Tiger Leaping Gorge

So, why's it called Tiger Leaping Gorge? Well, Chinese legend speaks of a tiger using the large rock at the bottom of the gorge as a stepping stone, pictured above, to escape certain death at the hands of a hunter. How much of that is true, who knows, but it's a nice little anecdote to accompany the place, which is a World Heritage site and one of the deepest canyons on the world.

The Yangtze River runs through the gorge, which is situated north of Lijiang City in one of the most beautiful provinces, Yunnan, in south west China. The river itself is locally known as the "Golden Sands River" because of all the sand that gets churned up along the river bed. I wouldn't actually call it "golden" myself though....more like a dirty, muddy brown colour, but I guess the "Dirty Muddy Brown Sands River" doesn't have quite the same ring to it! Anyway, golden or muddy, the place is spectacular and a "must-see" for anyone visiting Yunnan.

The gorge is around 15km in length and sits between the excellently named Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and the Haba Snow Mountain. There are actually trails and a few guest houses along the way too, if you wanted to trek the entire gorge. Most people tend to just visit this main part though and just this section takes a good 3 or 4 hours alone.

The trek down this part of the gorge isn't too bad. It's steep and quite a workout for your leg muscles, but there are railings along the steepest parts for you to hold on to and man-made steps along the way. Once you reach the bottom, you can just stand in awe as the rapids of the Yangtze River thunder past you. Apparently, in the 1980's, some rafters tried to go down the river....they were never seen again!

Going back up the gorge, you can return the same way you came or you can take a different route. It's more hazardous and not recommended for vertigo sufferers, but it is a really beautiful trek. You start off nice and easy, walking through meadows with waterfalls cascading down the side of the mountain beside you, but then the climb starts! Going down is tiring enough, but the climb back up is a killer!

Up steep mountain pathways, which are bad enough in themselves, but then every so often you'll be bombarded with water droplets that seem to come out of nowhere. They can be refreshing, but torturous when you're trying to navigate a particularly scary part of the trek. Usually the parts with a sheer drop on one side and a rickety old chain that's been hammered into the mountain for you to hold on to on the other.

The final part of the trek is up the ladders! There are three altogether and they seem never-ending. They're narrow and slippery from all the water, and all you can do is take your time and not so much worry about slipping yourself, but worry more about the person above you slipping!

That said, I would do it all again tomorrow! It's exciting, exhilerating and the scenery is just amazing. Some places you go, all around the world, can be a challenge to get to, but leave you thinking, "Was it worth it?" At Tiger Leaping Gorge there are no anti-climaxes, just amazing scenes at every turn. The kind of scenes that make you go "Wow!"...when you get your breath back that is!

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