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Yangtze River - 1995

Yangtze River - 1995

Jacek Pałkiewicz
2006-06-18 21:30:25

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stretch during high-water seasons and has been known to rise to 50 metres (165 feet). An upper Yangtze steamboat captain recalled how in September l929 the level of water was 75 metres (246 feet), and likened the passage to a trough, with the water banked up on both sides. His ship became quite unmanageable, and was carried down, broadside on, only coming under control again at the lower end. He would never, he vowed, try to negotiate it again at such a level.

Two mountains--Red Passage Mountain (Chijia Shan) to the north, once compared to a celestial peach, and White Salt Mountain (Baiyan Shan) to the south form the Kui Men entrance, their steep precipices like the wings of a giant door guarding the tumultuous waters.
In the Tang dynasty (618--907) chains were strung across the river as an 'iron lock' to prevent passage of enemy boats. ln the Song dynasty (960--l279) two iron pillars nearly two metres (six feet) tall were erected on the north side, and seven chains, some 250 metres (820 feet) long, were used to block the river passage. Although the original purpose was defensive, the chain locks were later used to enable local authorities to gather taxes from all boats travelling downriver. This system continued until the middle Qing dynasty (1644--1911). The iron pillars are only visible at low water.

On the precipice of Bai Yan Shan (south side) are a series of holes nearly a metre (three feet) apart and about one-third of a metre (one foot) deep, forming a 'Z' shape. These are known as the Meng Liang Stairway. According to legend, YangJiye, a Song-dynasty general, was buried on a terrace high up on the mountain. His loyal comrade--in-arms, Meng Liang, decided secretly to take the bones back for burial in Yang's home town. In the dead of night he took a small boat into the gorge and began to hack out a pathway to the terrace. Halfway up the rock face he was discovered by a monk who began crowing like a cock. Meng Liang, ...