Daju Town of Yulong County, Lijiang

Daju Township (大具乡) is located at the northern foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (玉龙雪山) and along the Jinsha River (金沙江), with a total area of 468.1 square kilometers. It is bordered by Mingyin Town (鸣音镇) to the east, Dadong Township (大东乡) in Lijiang Ancient City District (丽江古城区) to the southeast, Baisha Town (白沙镇) to the south, Longpan Township (龙蟠乡) to the southwest, and across the river from Sanba Naxi Township (三坝纳西族乡) in Shangri-La City, Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (迪庆藏族自治州香格里拉市) to the west, and connected to Baoshan Township (宝山乡) to the north. The geographical coordinates are between 100°08′-100°22′ East Longitude and 27°10′-27°26′ North Latitude. The township government is 87 kilometers away from Yulong County (玉龙县), 84 kilometers from Lijiang City (丽江市), and 5 kilometers from the famous Tiger Leaping Gorge (虎跳峡) tourist attraction.

The area is characterized by undulating mountains and crisscrossing ravines, consisting of arid valley areas, dam areas, semi-mountainous areas, and mountainous areas, with altitudes ranging from 1650 meters to 5596 meters. The average annual temperature is 17℃, with an annual rainfall between 600-900mm, a frost period of about 30 days, and an annual accumulated heat of 5640 kcal, exhibiting a pronounced vertical climate.

The total population in 2017 was 9350 people. As of November 1, 2020, the permanent resident population was 6196 people.

The economy is primarily based on agriculture, making it the largest olive planting base in Yunnan Province and the largest corn seed production base in Lijiang City. In recent years, there has been a strong push to develop traditional characteristic agricultural industries such as grapes, watermelons, and red melon seeds. Leading enterprises have been introduced to develop olive and blueberry industries, actively exploring development models such as “Party branch + Association + Enterprise + Farmers” and “Company (Enterprise) + Base + Cooperative + Farmers” to promote dual income growth for village collective economies and farmers.

Daju Township is located in the hinterland of the national 4A scenic spot Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, featuring two major scenic areas, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and Tiger Leaping Gorge, as well as numerous other attractions such as Ganhaizi (甘海子), Yunshanping (云杉坪), Baishuihe (白水河), and Maoniu Ping (牦牛坪). Tiger Leaping Gorge is one of the deepest and most perilous canyons in the world, and has been the filming location for TV dramas such as “A Meter of Sunshine” (一米阳光) and “Ancient Tea-Horse Road” (茶马古道), and movies like “Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles” (千里走单骑) and “Iron Highland” (铁色高原).

With a long history and rich culture, there are many cultural landscapes such as the “Quarry” (采石场) from the Wanli era of the Mu Clan local governors, the Jiaqing White Pagoda (嘉庆白塔), the Gold Mining Cave of the Mu Heavenly King (木天王采金洞), the Bronze Age stone coffin burial groups, and the Imperial Edict Stele (圣旨碑). There is also the mysterious and ancient Dongba culture (东巴文化), simple and elegant folk customs, the folk craft “Four Seasons BoGu” (四季博古) wood carving, and the Daju Township Cultural Square (大具乡文化广场), which integrates stone culture, tiger culture, and Dongba culture.

There are regular bus services between Daju and Lijiang City from the Lijiang City Bus Terminal every morning.