Baotu Spring-----Number One Spring under the Heaven

The Baotu Spring, also called "Jet Spring" or "Spurting Spring", is a culturally significant artesian karst spring located in the city of Jinan, Shandong Province. Located right to the southwest of the city center of Jinan, it is part of a cluster of about 20 named springs. It was declared the "Number One Spring under the Heaven" by the Qing Dynasty Emperor Qian Long.

The Baotu Spring is the most renown among the more than 70 named artesian springs in the downtown area of the city of Jinan. The water of all these springs originates from an Ordovician karst aquifer under the city. As the terrain around Jinan slopes from the south down to the north, the recharge area for the aquifer is located in the mountainous area to the south of the city. The recharge area of the springs covers 1,500 square kilometres, out of which 550 km2 provide direct recharge and 950 km2 indirect recharge.

Baotu Spring has a history more than 3000 years. The area of the Baotu Spring as well as some neighboring springs in the same group is protected by a public park. The park was created in 1956 and covers now about 10.5 hectares. The Baotu Spring public park also houses memorials to the local painters Li Kuchan (1898–1983) and Wang Xuetao (1903–1982) as well as to the poet Li Qingzhao. The latter has a memorial hall set in a traditional courtyard dedicated to her.

The Baotu Spring is the site of an annual lantern festival (starts on the Chinese New Year day and lasts for one month, and a chrysanthemum show (since the 1970s, held from the end of October to the end of November). The festival attracts many tourists every year.

For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com