Tiger Leaping Gorge

We take a bus out of Lijiang and for the first time in this trip we feel as if we are getting away from cities and built-up China. We drive along roads that pass through small rural communities and the landscape is made up of small plots of farming land planted with vegetables and fruit trees. Cutting through this is the construction of a brand new major road. In places the concrete supports go right over old houses. Where the old road crosses the new, the traffic goes on the rough unmade road and sometimes has to wait for cranes and diggers to complete their work.

 concrete pillars for new road stride across the countryside

the traffic crosses the road construction

 

Along the way we stop to stretch our legs at a place where there is a good view of the Yangtze River. A small higgledy-piggledy market is here, selling fruit and other things to the people on the coaches.

roadside market

chillies for sale

our first view of the Yangtze River

Our walk starts in an uninspiring little place at 2000m above sea level, which is the access point for Tiger Leaping Gorge. We will be walking up to 2800m towards the top of a gorge of a tributary of the Yangtze, the Jin Sha Jiang river. It is on the path of an old route which enabled trade between tea from India and horses from Tibet. My guide book says that this is the deepest river gorge in the world! Can that be true? Our guide buys our tickets for the gorge and also arranges for 2 horses and men to accompany us to the top of the gorge, in case anyone can’t make it on their own. We leave the bus and follow a steep concrete road up the side of the hill. Very soon we are in a more rural landscape and walking along a dirt path between terraced fields of sweet corn. Round a corner a man and woman struggle with a plough and a buffalo on a small plot of land. It begins to feel for the first time that we are doing something for its own sake and not just because there is a tourist site to visit. 

ploughing the hard way

horse and his man

view of the valley near the start of the walk

The landscape is very reminiscent of the trek I did in Nepal – but without the steps. Small farms and settlements dot the terraced hillside and every so often there is a small restaurant, guest house or shop selling drinks and provisions. We climb steeply and steadily for a couple of hours. We share the route with a few other western tourists and locals working.

hillside with terraces and farms

woman carrying a load of sweetcorn stalks - for firewood

 We stop for lunch in the restaurant of a guest house. The courtyard of the place has sweetcorn drying on one side and bougainvillea growing up the other. In a cage are two pretty birds.

lunch stop guest house

birds in a cage in the courtyard

After lunch we have a section that takes us, via 28 hairpin bends, to the highest point of the walk at 800m above the river. Carol begins to feel unwell and opts to ride one of the horses.

Carol on a horse

views of the valley

We reach the highest point of the path and we can look down on clouds in the river valley below us, but the gorge is too steep to be able to see the river.

me at the top of the path

 

We have a fairly easy walk for the rest of the afternoon until we reach the Tea Horse Guest House, where we are staying the night. The place gets its name from the trade of horses and tea along this route.

Tea Horse Guest House

chillies drying

In the courtyard there are some traditional Naxi garments hanging up on display. Most are made out of dead animals. Hanging with a leather jerkin is this little fur bag that still has feet and holes in the flap where eyes were!

fur bag with legs and eyes

Harvey tells us that the local families have collaborated to build a dam and provide electricity to the village. Government electricity won’t arrive here for another couple of years. The supply is temperamental and can cut out from time to time. In the evening we have a meal around a fire and it is not at all late when we go to bed in our cosy little cabins.

camp fire

The next day the walk is level for a good way to begin with and we have more opportunity to enjoy our surroundings. Peggy and I walk at the back of the group with Harvey our guide and we are able to ask him about life in China and how things are for him and his family. It was all incredibly interesting, but I won’t recount the conversation here, as it would feel like publishing things that were said privately.

We pass various farm houses and sometimes the small children run out and then disappear, squealing.

yard

We begin to have to concentrate on the walking as the path becomes very exposed and cut directly out of the cliff, with a steep drop down to the river. We pass a waterfall and have to walk over the wet, slippery stones.

a long way down to the river

waterfall

A woman and her herd of goats come towards us. Here is a photo of her talking on her mobile phone.

goats and goatherd on her mobile phone

We stop for a short rest at another guest house. We sit on a rickety roof terrace called ‘Inspiration Terrace’ which overhangs the valley and looks out onto the clouds. Theguest house toilet has a fantastic view through an opening in the wall, straight out onto the gorge - there's inspiration for you.

Inspiration Terrace

view from Inspiration Terrace

view from the toilet

The final part of the walk is quite steeply downhill and slippery from the light rain. We take our time and I m glad to have my walking poles with me. We come out on the road and meet up with the others for lunch. The youngsters have already been there for a good while and are eating already. We check out the menu. The items are written on individual pieces of bamboo, which are laced together like a window blind.

Peggy choosing lunch off the bamboo menu