Yichang Yunhe Park Flat Bridge

Project Profile

Yichang, known for the monumental Three Gorges and Gezhouba Dams, sits on the banks of the Yangtze River and is often referred to as the “Hydropower Capital of China.” Its geography is defined by hills and valleys. Yunhe Park (literally “Canal Park”) is located in the city’s Eastern Ecological New District, in a low-lying area shaped by hilly terrain. The site was once a cluster of abandoned fish ponds and included a small hydroelectric station.

The design adopts a minimal-intervention strategy, turning this once-forgotten site into an “ecological sponge” for the new city—purifying polluted canal waters, alleviating urban flooding, preserving historical memory, and offering a distinctive public space for community recreation.

A central feature of the park is the Flat Bridge, an ecological transformation of the old pond embankments into a paved walkway. Combined with timber boardwalks, it forms a meandering pedestrian network across the park. Inspired by Yichang’s traditional cement river docks, this cement walkway becomes a new vernacular landscape. Locals affectionately describe the fusion of sheltered paths and flat bridges as “a bridge over water, a path through the woods.”

The project explores how urban fringes and rural landscapes can be repurposed into green urban sponges. With the least amount of engineering, the design reclaims a former industrial-agricultural “ruin,” converting it into an ecosystem with diverse ecological services and recreational value. By incorporating and reinterpreting relics from the site's past, the park not only preserves cultural memory but also creates a distinctive aesthetic and identity.

Within the wooded areas and on platforms by the water, residents gather to practice tai chi, yoga, and dance, embracing a humble, natural lifestyle. The park has become a popular setting for wedding photography and hanfu portraits, reflecting people’s love for nature. Along the boardwalks, locals set up easels and cameras, quietly capturing moments—of time, of nature, and of life itself. At Yichang Yunhe Park, every scene reflects a deep harmony between people and nature.