红枫湖国家级风景名胜区，位于贵阳之西32公里，湖面辽阔，湖水清澈，湖汊蜿蜒，１９２个大小岛屿及半岛散布其间，形成山外有山、水外有水、湖中有岛、岛中有湖的奇异景观。泛舟湖中，但见奇峰挺拔，山环水曲，秀色满目，有“高原明珠”之美誉。
　　红枫湖水域面积57.2平方公里，是贵州高原第一大人工湖，比北京的十三陵水库大12倍，相当于六个杭州西湖。因湖边有座红枫岭，岭上及湖周多枫香树。深秋时节，枫叶红似火，红叶碧波，风景优美，故名“红枫湖”。红枫湖年均气温14.06℃,夏无酷暑，冬无严寒。其得天独厚的山川地貌、宜人的气候、迷人的民族风情和依托于大城市的优越条件，成为人们旅游、度假、避暑和疗养的理想胜地。
　　红枫湖由北、南、中、后湖四部分组成。北湖以岛闻名。鸟岛、蛇岛、龟岛……北湖沿岸，有西汉的古墓群，有明代的“苗王营垒”。南湖以洞著称。有将军洞、打鱼洞、水下洞。将军湾和将军山因明朝开国大将胡大海驻防于该处而得名。将军山是红枫湖最高的山峰，登高极目，湖面和岛屿尽收眼底。将军湾右岸有一溶洞，称为将军洞，水涨时形成独特的“洞中湖”。洞内钟乳石柱五光十色，琳琅满目；尽头处有一幅十多米高、二十多米宽的晶莹闪烁大石幔，恰似一幅巨瀑从悬崖直泻而下，甚为壮观。洞中有湖，水质明净，乘船游程1400米，这里可一边欣赏千姿百态的钟乳石，一边倾听神奇的古老传说。
　　北湖与南湖之间，有中湖连接。进入中湖，两岸峭壁森严，山势险峻；山上松柏苍劲挺拔。山颠之上一石似亭亭仙姑，一石含笑若罗汉。
　　后湖湾汊众多，纵横交错。看似山穷水尽，忽又柳暗花明，船头一转,山水如画,尽收眼底：附近的村落，归来的打鱼船，手拉手的情侣，舞姿翩翩的苗族姑娘。湖、岛、山、洞巧妙结合，构成一幅绚丽的画卷。北湖的岛、南湖的洞、中湖的山、后湖的湾，到红枫湖游览情趣不同时间不一样。春来观花，夏日望水，秋季看树，冬天赏鸟。
　　在红枫湖景区，依山傍水建有侗寨、苗寨、布依寨等民族村寨，风情浓郁，引人入胜。汇集了侗寨鼓楼和风雨桥、苗家吊脚楼以及布依石头城等少数民族的建筑精品，让游客品味少数民族建筑艺术，体味侗族拦门酒、苗家拦路酒等少数民族待客礼仪里蕴涵的一片真情。尤其是在此参加每周六的“土风狂欢晚会”，荟萃了苗族、侗族、布依族风情节目的精华，有多声部合声、曾轰动巴黎的侗族大歌，有被誉为“东方迪斯科”的苗族反排木鼓舞、踩桥芦笙舞……会让您由衷赞叹少数民族同胞的艺术创造力。
　　红枫湖风景区地处贵黄公路与清(镇)毕(节)公路交叉点，是西去龙宫、黄果树瀑布，北去百里杜鹃、织金洞的必经之地，离贵阳20公里。高等级公路直达。经10余年建设，景区服务设施逐渐完善，目前有游船近百艘（只），高、中、低档客房共有床位1000余张，10余个餐厅可供1500人就餐，为游客提供了吃、住、行的方便。

　The Red Maple Lake is in Qingzhen County and only 33 away from Guiyang. Covering an area of 57.2 sq kilometers and holding 600 million cubic meters of water, it is the largest artificial lake on the Guizhou Plateau, 13 times as large as the Ming Tombs Reservoir in Beijing and over 10 times as large as the famous West Lake in Hangzhou. Red Maple Lake was built in 1958 when a power station was established. Beside the lake there is the Red Maple Ridge with many red maple trees planted on and about it. In late fall, all the maple leaves turn red. That is how the lake got its name.
　Scattered throughout the lake are 178 islands, some of which resemble huge reefs, some look like screens and still others are just small rock-hills with water inside. By the lake there stands a Dong's Drum Tower with a Roofed Bridge in front of it and the Miao Village Museum just opposite to it. Besides, The new-built Buyi Village, Fengye (Red Maple Leaves) Villa and Golden-Dream Garden as a whole have formed a lovely garden of ethnic villages, not far from the Dong's Drum Tower.

　On the peak, one rock resembles an elegant fairy while another is like a smiling abbot. The Rear Lake is a crisscrossed by many branches of a river to such an extent that you simply cannot tell where the river starts and where the lake ends. When the pleasure boats make a turn, picturesque views come into sight: villages far and near, returning fishing boats, young couples hand in hand, and dancing girls of the Miao nationality forming a peaceful world. The intricate combination of the lake, the boats, the isles, the rocky hills and the water birds forms a picture of unique beauty. Tourists need to make a choice of time and scene according to their different tastes. In spring, one can enjoy the best of flowers when azaleas bloom in profusion; in summer, a vast expanse of clear water when all kinds of boats dot the lake; in autumn, the leaves of the maple trees turning red; in winter, hundreds of water birds coming to nest here as their winter home.
　The local villagers and Guiyang Tourism Agency organize jointly a Night-Spree-Campfire. On this happy occasion, the local villagers entertain the visitors with a Welcome Ceremony in the Miao's traditional way, local minority dishes with ox-horn wine and lusheng dance. At night a campfire party starts with hundreds of fire torches burning brightly around the Tower of the Miao's King, then various festival activities are under way, such as lusheng dance around fire, "oriental disco" (wooden drum dance of the Fanpai Village), or climbing the knife ladder. Visitors can't help joining in the dancing spree to enjoy themselves to their heart's content.
　With wide and deep water and surrounded by rolling green hills, the Red Maple Lake is an ideal place for aquatic sports and summer vocations. The Red Maple Lake is located at the crossing point of the Guiyang-Kunming and Qingzhen-Bijie Highways, leading to the Dragon Palace and the Huangguoshu Waterfalls to the west and azalea hills and Zhijin Cave to the North.