Tao River is a right tributary of China's Yellow River

Yellow River

The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...

. It starts in Xiqing Mountains (西倾山) near the Gansu

Gansu

' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...

-Qinghai

Qinghai

Qinghai ; Oirat Mongolian: ; ; Salar:) is a province of the People's Republic of China, named after Qinghai Lake...

 border, flows eastward across Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture

Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture

Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture is an autonomous prefecture in southern Gansu Province, China. It includes Xiahe and the Labrang Monastery, Luqu, Maqu, and other mostly Tibetan towns and villages...

, and then northward more or less along the border between Dingxi

Dingxi

-Geography and climate:Dingxi City is located in central Gansu province, 98 km east of Lanzhou, giving it the nickname the "eastern gateway". The Wei River, a tributary of the Yellow River flows through the district and provides it with the majority of its water. Dingxi is semi-arid, with little...

 Prefecture-level City in the east and Gannan and Linxia

Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture

Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture is in Western China's Gansu Province, south of the capital, Lanzhou. It is an autonomous prefecture for the Muslim Hui people, a large Chinese ethnic group. It also includes two autonomous counties for other Muslim groups, namely Dongxiang, Salar, and...

 Prefectures in the west. It falls into the Yellow River

Yellow River

The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...

 (actually, the Liujiaxia Reservoir

Liujiaxia Reservoir

The Liujiaxia Reservoir is a reservoir in China's Gansu Province, formed by the Liujiaxia Dam on the Yellow River. It occupies over , and is located entirely within Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, between Yongjing County , Dongxiang Autonomous County , Linxia County The Liujiaxia Reservoir is a...

) near Liujiaxia Town (the county seat of Yongjing County), just upstream of Liujiaxia Dam

Liujiaxia Dam

The Liujiaxia Dam is a major hydroelectric dam on the upper Yellow River, in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture of China's Gansu Province. The dam and its hydroelectric facility are located in Liujia Gorge, or Liujiaxia , just downstream from the fall of the Tao River into the Yellow River...

.