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Yangtze River - 1995

Yangtze River - 1995

Jacek Pałkiewicz
2006-06-18 21:30:25

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ugly accommodation blocks, their new modern counterparts on higher ground unlikely to win architectural awards, but still visually far more appealing. The colossal dam itself and the five-stage ride up or down it will be among the Tiver's main attractions, and schedules will become more convenient as the deepening waters make night navigation possible on formerly dangerous reaches. Most travellers often feel the Three Gorges trip to be the perfect break from the clamour of China, and a cruise on the Yangtze is likely to remain one of the most pleasant memories of many China trips to come.
The energetic visitor may climb to the summit of Wushan (Witches Hill), a two-hour hike. W
orshippers still come to a small shrine here, built within the ruins of an old Buddhist monastery. From the summit the views of Wu Gorge and the river are spectacular. A less strenuous outing may be made to the newly opened limestone cave complex in Wu Gorge high up on the cliff face above the north bank of the river. This involves a short boat ride from Wushan town, an easy scramble up the rocky slope and then a walk along the old towpath. Around the cave complex there are the usual teahouse and ornamental pavilions. The cave complex, Luyou Dong, is named after a Song-dynasty official who visited Wushan and left an appreciative record of his stay.

Qutang Gorge
Immediately below Baidi City is Kui Men, the entrance to the first of the three gorges of the
Yangtze River-the eight--kilometre (five-mile) long Qutang Gorge (also known by early Western travellers as the Wind Box Gorge). The shortest but grandest of them all, the gorge's widest point is only 150 metres (500 feet). Mists frequently swirl around the mysterious Iimestone peaks, some nearly 1,200 metres (4,000 feet) high, and the river rushes swift as an arrow through the narrow entrance, pounding the perpendicular cliff faces on either side of the gorge.
This gorge was a particularly dangerous ...