First Bend of Yangtze and Tiger Leaping Gorge

Trip Start Sep 02, 2011
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Trip End Sep 19, 2011


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Flag of China  , Yunnan,
Tuesday, September 13, 2011

What an incredible day! This is turning into one of my favorite tours ever! We're out the door at 8am to make the journey to Shangri-La. We begin our sightseeing at the First Bend of the Yangtze River. The river is quite wide at this point, and it makes a dramatic curve of more than 90 degrees.

Our next stop is the small town of Shigu to see the Iron Chain Bridge and the Red Army Monument. It happens to be market day in Shigu, and we have a fantastic time observing the bustling activities.

Tiger Leaping Gorge is the narrowest point of the Yangtze River, and we need to walk down about 500 steps to get to the river's edge. Porters sell their services to carry you in a chair, and two of our group accept the ride to spare aching knees. The power of the water rushing through this narrow point is difficult to describe. All I know is I don't want to go rafting here! 

We arrive at Shangri-La around 5pm, and check in to our hotel. Later we drive into town for dinner and to see a folk show that is a complete and unexpected delight. Dazzling technical effects and talented dancers make this a mesmerizing experience. Hoping for clear skies tomorrow so we can take the cable car up to the top of a mountain. We're at 10,000 feet elevation here, and the cable car will take us up to about 15,000! Fingers crossed!
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bruce on

very nice to see

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