Tiger Leaping Gorge

I'm back at Mama Naxi's after two nights in Tiger Leaping Gorge. She welcomed me with "Mama happy to see you! Mama has full home today but Mama save room for you!"

Tiger Leaping Gorge is definitely Yunnan's highlight. Mama had arranged a cheap ride for us from her guesthouse and sent us off with a stomach full of banana pancakes and a bag full of bananas for the trail. Along the way, we stopped off to admire the Yangze's first bend as it wound its way through the valley. The early morning mist, the green, rolling hills, and the twinkling water made for a perfect chinese painting.

2 hours into the trip, our minibus driver pulled off the road and a sketchy looking guy came over and told us that if we went with him, he would drive us the rest of the way and also sell us a discounted entrance ticket. Our driver (who we sort of trusted) told us it was ok, so we changed minibuses. Sure enough, we saved 30 Yuan and got a ride 1km into the park, saving us an hour of hiking.

The hike is one of the most spectacular hikes I've ever done. You start at the entrance to the gorge and immediately start climbing. Up and up, through 28 bends you ascend 900m in less than 2 hours, passing enterprising chinese with their horses, offering to take you up. Over 1000m below the precarious, treacherous trail, the mighty Yangtze roars, rages, and crashes its way between towering, vertical cliffs. The Gorge itself is less than 1000m wide and is lined with massive granite walls that shoot up a dizzying 3500m from the riverbed. Far below, the river churns and twists for over 16km through this wild, narrow gorge. In true chinese fashion, the government blasted a road beside the river, without concern for the ecological impact, so chinese package tourists can now drive into the gorge for that perfect picture. Luckily, chinese tourists are too lazy to actually hike the terrain, so the "high road" (which is nothing more than a winding, slippery, rocky path) is quiet, 1km above the belching tour buses.

The first day, we hiked for 7 hours (including an hour stop for a delicious lunch at a guesthouse on the trail). This hike took us up through bamboo forests, sub-tropical vegetation, over a rocky, arid peak, and down through an alpine pine forest. We passed through small villages with their rice and corn terrasses and smiling children, beside roaring waterfalls, and over a few minor landslides. We were lucky with the weather. While it was quite cloudy in the morning, we had two hours of sunshine in the afternoon. We stopped every few minutes to snap a picture and to admire the amazing vista of mountains, cliffs, and winding river.

We ended up at a guesthouse named "Halfway Guesthouse" which is actually more than halfway through the hike. There, we were presented with two options:

1. For $2, a dorm bed in a room with 7 others, a cold shower, and a stinking, filthy squat toilet.
2. For $15 (between 2 people), a double room with large, comfortable beds, a pristine western toilet, and china's best hot shower. The shower had good pressure and also 4 heat lamps above the stall.

I chose option number 2. I guess I'm getting old.

Perched at 2400m on the side of a rough mountain, Halfway Guesthouse has the most spectacular setting. From the patio we had an unimpeded view of the churning river, 1000m below us. Looming 3100m above us - at an altitude of over 5500m and less than 1km from us - Jade Snow Dragon Mountain's craggy granite peaks and sheer, vertical walls plunged down to the river. From the patio, while sipping a cold beer and playing cards, we admired the spectacular view and tried not to get dizzy.

Yesterday's hike was much easier, as it was mostly downhill for 3 hours. Due to the previous night's rain, the trail was rather slick, so we had to watch our step. One misstep and you would plunge 500m to your death. Although we headed to the guesthouse recommended by the Lonely Planet (Sean's Guesthouse), we found the owner rude, arrogant, and unhelpful. And his guesthouse was filthy. So, we walked up the street and ended up at a wonderful guesthouse run by a tibetan woman and her adorable 4 year old daughter. We spent the evening playing cards, chatting, and feasting on tibetan and chinese food (all for less than $2/person).

Due to last night's rain, I couldn't make my way down to the river. The path was half washed-out and word had it that it was a quick 200m fall into the churning rapids. Not for me. Instead, I came back to Lijiang to Mama's welcoming dinner feast.