The DGS1 segment in the Dishaogouwan section from the Salawusu River valley is a typical stratum to study the climate variations in the Holocene. Based on the dating ages and analysis of the grain-size features within the DGS1,we find that the particle gradually becomes finer but the sorting rate becomes poorer from mobile dune sands, peat, paleosols, semi-fixed sand dunes to the lacustrine facies and secondary loess; the grain-size parameter values of Mz(?), sigma1(?), SK1 in the dune sands are lower than those in the lacustrine facies or secondary loess, and the KG value shows opposite trends; the Mz ranges from 2.26 to 3.36 (average 2.55) in the dune sands, 2.33 to 6.33 (average 4.28) in the lacustrine facies and 4.25 to 5.27 (average 4.58) in the secondary loess; the sigma1(?) ranges from 0.51 to 2.51 (average 0.97) in the dune sands, 0.81 to 3.25 (average 2.13) in the lacustrine facies and 1.10 to 2.46 (average 1.46) in the secondary loess; the SK1 ranges from 0.01 to 0.45 (average 0.29) in the dune sands, 0.09 to 0.53 (average 0.32) in the lacustrine facies and 0.22 to 0.38 (average 0.36) in the secondary loess; the KG ranges from 0.92 to 1.70 (average 1.42) in the dune sands, 0.65 to 1.80 (average 1.13) in the lacustrine facies and 1.22 to 1.51 (average 1.44) in the secondary loess. They display distinct variations that correspond to the sedimentary changes. The surface microstructure of the quartz grains in the lacustrine facies under the electron microscope scanning shows typical aeolian characteristics with good roundness, without precipitated silica, but with pits on the surface. Together with the freshwater gastropod fossils discovered in the stratigrapgical layers, we suggest that the grain-size cycles in the DGS1 segment actually reflect the climate variations in the alternation of East Asian winter and summer monsoons in the Holocene, and the climate of the Holocene can be divided into four stages: the warming period of the Early Holocene; Holocene heyday; the fluctuation period from the Megathermal to cold; and the cooling period of instability and desertification. The climate changes in the DGS1 during the Holocene correspond well to those found in the North Atlantic and some places in China, which probably results from the global climate changes in the Holocene.