Three Rivers Gorge and Daning River

Wu Gorge, roughly twenty miles long, is known for its deep valleys and quiet beauty, including the "Twelve Peaks" which line the Yangtze's banks and which have been admired by visitors from all over the world. Among these, Goddess Peak (below) is thought to be the most exquisite. Goddess Peak is topped by a large rock that resembles a silhouette of a goddess who the local people believe watches over the boats along the river and guards their homes against serious river flooding.

The Xiling Xia, forty miles long, was the third and final gorge we saw on the Yangtze, itself. It will be the deepest part of the whole reservoir when the Three Gorges Dam is finally completed. Some cities, such as Fengdu, have already been inundated and others face the same fate before 2009. Everything below the anticipated water level--- houses, commercial buildings, docks and wharves--- will be dynamited so as not to threaten navigation.

In parts of the Xiling Gorge , the Yangtze is full of turbulent currents and whirlpools, and is one of the most dangerous shoals and rapids of the entire river, especially for boatmen in small vessels. There are water markers (in meters) located on the river banks to show the gradual increase in the water level and we were amazed to realize the enormity of the of flooding that will be caused by the new dam. The water will rise to about 600 feet (175 meter marker below) above sea level by 2009!

At Wushan, where the Yangtze is joined by the Daning River, we were scheduled for a side trip to see what are known as the Lesser Three Gorges, referring to three separate valleys of the Daning. Although it was overcast and threatening to rain, the local guide promised that we would have an extremely good view of some of China's most impressive natural spectacles. The process of leaving our boat to board the ferry that would take us up the Daning was interesting because we had to pass through two other river cruises to get to the docking area. These ferries, each designed along the traditional "pagoda" style, cruised slowly up the river and allowed us to get some pretty "up close" views of the Daning and its attractions.

Spanning the Daning near the point of its confluence with the Yangtze rivers is a beautiful bridge. We learned that this bridge won't be there for much longer. As the river rises, the topography of the area will change so much that a new bridge will be necessary. We passed by the place where the new bridge, already under construction, will be located and saw the huge concrete footings that will eventually hold its suspension cables. (Second row, left, below.)

One of the more interesting sights on the Daning is the so-called "Hanging Coffin." According to the ferry's tour director, there really is a coffin located in the "hole" we could see on a sheer cliff face (bottom center below). What appears to be a crack running laterally across the cliff is actually a narrow road, carved by ancients who believed they should bury their dead in a spot that was completely safe and, in addition, close to the heavens. It took most of our group several attempts but most of us were finally able to spot monkeys climbing on the rocks and in the trees along the river. (Ralph needed a lot of help before sighting his one and only critter.)

We had to look hard to see monkeys like the one on the flat rock near the center.	At the right center of picture is a dark hole on a lateral crack. This is the Hanging Coffin.	This river family seemed to think tourists with cameras are "routine."

After about 45 minutes on the ferry, we suddenly came to a large dock area where we saw a dozen or so small boats, called "sampans," one of which we would board for a trip through the Lesser Three Gorges area. It was something of a challenge for us to scramble from the dock into our assigned "Gold 1" boat but there were plenty of smiling (and very small) boatmen on hand to assist us.

Because it was threatening to rain, these small boats had mounted their blue plastic canopies to keep passengers dry. Stooping almost in half because of the very low ceiling, we found seats, one on each side of a very narrow walking area, and donned our bright orange life jackets. Each boat had three "crew members," a driver in the back to operate the 80 HP outboard motor, a person in front who seemed to be sort of a lookout, and a guide to point out attractions as we passed them and to give us sort of "mini-lectures" on the geography, history, and cultural history of the Wushan region. Of course, in their never-ending quest to separate tourists from their dollars, the crew also pulled out some examples of traditional clothing worn by local rivermen and allowed members of our group to have pictures taken wearing these outfit. ($1, please, once again.)

There were some interesting things to see but maybe the most noteworthy were the people we saw and heard as we passed up and down the river. At isolated places along the banks there were people dressed in costumes, playing local musical instruments, or just waving. We never got close enough to "reward" these efforts with a gratuity so Ralph figured they were paid a small sum at the end of the day, either by the boat concessionaire or, more probably, by the boat drivers and guides who were, of course, tipped.