Puppy Mountain

“The puppy’s posture is like it’s drinking water, or it’s looking at some fish. It also looks like it’s quietly protecting the Yangtze River”

–Guo Qingshan

China’s Yangtze River is the third longest on the planet. Fittingly, the name in Mandarin means “Long River.”

In the middle portion of the waterway lies a famous sequence of canyons known as the Three Gorges. Over nearly 200 miles, the Qutang, Wu, and Xiling Gorges produce some of the most picturesque scenery in China.

Near the end of the easternmost gorge – Xiling – where the Yangtze meets its namesake plain before heading to the sea, the Chinese constructed the Three Gorges Dam, a hydroelectric monster and the world’s largest power station by installed capacity. This spot is just west of Yichang, a city that has become a hotspot for both dam and gorge tourism.

Recently, a designer named Guo Qingshan, who lives in Shanghai, visited his hometown of Yichang and decided to trek through Xiling Gorge.

He snapped a slew of photographs, ended his hike, and returned to Shanghai.

When he went through the images, he noticed something peculiar and intriguing. A giant dog emerged from the rock!

Qingshan posted his photo on the Chinese app RedNote with the caption “Puppy Mountain.”

The image became an instant sensation.

The high gorges are typically composed of limestone, which is resistant to erosion but can also form cave systems. The eyes, from this angle, appear to be recessions where rock has lost the battle with wind, rain, and time. A gently sloping nose stretches toward the river, as if the dog lies on a board that reaches the waterway. Its tree-green fur and white-ringed eyes practically beg for a pet or two.

Other people flocked to the spot with their dogs or dug up old photos from the point, never having seen the imagery inherent in the rocks.

The human nature to see images in random, natural, or ambiguous objects is called pareidolia. From the Greek roots pará – “beside” or “alongside” – and eídōlon – “image, form, or shape” – this tendency allows us to see specific things in the clouds, grilled cheese, or Chinese gorges. The Man on the Moon and the face on Mars are famous examples. Previously, we investigated the Mingan Sorcerer in Canada.

If you find yourself in China and want to visit Puppy Mountain, head northwest about five miles along the Yangtze from the Three Gorge Dam. The views look incredible.

Unlike so many places where we can get a decent stand-in by visiting virtually, the pareidolia does not seem to extend well to Google Earth. Only the faintest canine emerges, if you really squint.