Lijiang City – must see the Tiger Leaping Gorge

The Tiger Leaping Gorge in Lijiang City of Yunan province is one of the most engaging destinations for tourists who travel to Yunnan. The Tiger Leaping Gorge is famous for its narrow gorge, rapid flowing speed and it ranks the deepest gorge in world. If you plan a tour to Yunnan province, this is one excellent destination you can’t leave out in your list!

The Tiger Leaping Gorge, located in Lijiang city, is one of the deepest and narrowest gorges in the world. It is located at the Jinsha River between the northwest of Dian in Naxi Autonomous County and Zhongdian County. When the Jinsha River flows near Shigu, it turns around suddenly and the direction of the flowing turns south-north to northeast.

Tiger Leaping Gorge is renowned as the first gulf of the Yangtze River. The gorge turns to narrow gradually, forming the Tiger Leaping Gorge. The Snow Mountains on both sides of the gorge see each other; the left one is called Haba Snow Mountain and on the right set the Yulong Snow Mountain. The cliffs are precipitous, which is over 1,500 m. (4,921 ft.) deeper than the American Colorado Gorge. The reason why it was called the Tiger Leaping Gorge derived from a legend. Legend has it that a tiger jumped the gorge at its narrowest point to escape a hunter. In fact, The Tiger Leaping Gorge route is one of the most welcome tour routes for tourists traveling to Yunan to visit Lijiang City.

With a height of more than 3,000 m. (9,842 ft.) from the center of the river to the top of the mountain, the Tiger Leaping Gorge is the deepest gorge in the world. The Tiger Leaping Gorge includes three parts: the Upper Tiger Leap, the Middle Tiger Leap and the Lower Tiger Leap. Both sides of the gorge are like the knife-chopped, very precipitous. The bottom of the river is narrow, with around 30 m. (98 ft.) wide at the narrowest part.

The flowing water flows rapidly, with an average speed of 6-8 m. (20 – 26 ft.) per second. When you stand beside the gorge, it indeed rocks actually, the waves hitting on the rocks, giving every tourist the most exciting scene.

However, the most enjoyable thing to do in this attraction is trying to trek the Tiger Leaping Gorge. Trekking the Tiger Leaping Gorge means setting off from the Tiger Leaping Gorge Town in Zhongdian, Yunnan, walking the mountain path till the final destination to Daju in Lijiang City, or vice versa. From the 1980s, some foreigners with backpacks started to cross the gorge by walking the mountains.

Today, the roads are passable, the mountain paths improved and more inns in better conditions, thus more backpackers would love to try crossing the gorge as a challenge for themselves. If tourists walk in relaxed pace, then the route takes about two and a half days.

If you can walk faster, it only needs 2 days. For tourists, if you want to see the beautiful and fantastic scene on your way, it is recommended to take a 2 day trekking tour and then you can have enough time to relax and see the scenery.

As the deepest gorge in the world, The Tiger Leaping Gorge is a must place to visit in Lijiang City of Yunnan. With a drop of 213 m. (699 ft.), it surely can wake up your ears or you can take the trekking tour lasting for 2 days, a feast for your eyes and the attracting mountain scenery on your way.