Thegenesis of fluvial systems is closely related to tectonic activities and climate fluctuations. Consequently, studying the historical development of rivers is crucial for comprehending the evolutionary processes of the Earth. The formation age of the Yellow River, the largest river in northern China, remains a subject of significant controversy. To address this issue, our study focused on the Kaifeng depression, a crucial passage through which the Yellow River flows eastward to the sea. Through sedimentary drilling, paleomagnetic analysis, magnetic susceptibility measurements, grain size analysis, and detrital zircon U- Pb age dating, we obtained several significant results. The ZK02 drilling core penetrated Quaternary strata, while the bottom of the ZK04 core was dated to approximately the late Early Pleistocene. The sedimentary environment at ZK02 was primarily fluvial, whereas ZK04 exhibited a transition from fluvial and lacustrine deposition between 1. 0 Ma and 0. 15 Ma to loess deposition from 0. 15 Ma to the present. Detrital zircon U- Pb age analysis revealed that the main sediment source for ZK04 between 1. 0 Ma and 0. 15 Ma was the eastern Qinling Mountains. However, since 0. 15 Ma, sediment composition has been significantly influenced by loess derived from the Mangshan Mountains. In contrast, the sediment provenance of ZK02 is primarily connected to the evolution of the Yellow River. Material from the eastern Sanmen Gorge region has been present near Zhengzhou and the Yellow River Delta for at least 2. 2 Ma. The connection between the upper, middle, and lower reaches of the Yellow River occurred between 1. 9 Ma and 1. 6 Ma, mainly driven by the humid climate conditions in the region. During the Middle Pleistocene, the Yellow River basin experienced a period of coarser sedimentation between 0. 7 Ma and 0. 5 Ma, primarily attributed to climate transitions. This period contributed to the formation of a distribution pattern similar to the current configuration of the Yellow River and the Bohai Sea in North China. The presence of material from the Yellow River in ZK02 at 0. 15 Ma indicates that the main channel morphology of the Yellow River has not experienced significant oscillations after flowing through this region since 2. 2 Ma.