Yunnan and the Tiger Leaping Gorge

Summary: Tiger Leaping Gorge is the longest, deepest, and narrowest gorge in the world. The Gorge acquired its name because, according to local legend, a tiger once leaped over its rapids to escape from hunters who had chased it into the Gorge.

Tour notes:

Tiger Leaping Gorge is a canyon on the Yangtze River or the Golden Sands River, located 60km north of Lijiang, Yunnan. Around 15km in length, the canyon is located where the river passes between Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and Haba Snow Mountain in a series of rapids under steep 2000m cliffs. Legend says that in order to escape from a hunter, a tiger jumped across the river at the narrowest point, still 25m wide, hence the name. The inhabitants of the gorge are primarily the indigenous Naxi people, who live in a handful of small hamlets. Their primary subsistence comes from grain production and foreign hikers. The gorge is not considered navigable. In the early 1980s, four rafters attempted to go down the gorge and were never seen again. In 1986, the first known successful attempt to sail through the gorge was made by the first expedition to float down the entire length of the Yangtze, starting at the river's high source at the Gelandandong glacier lake.