Tiger Leaping Gorge

After travelling 3 hours from Lijiang, to the town of Qiatou, we set off on a trek through the magnificent Tiger Leaping Gorge.

We walked for around 3 hours the first afternoon, putting some distance between ourselves and the chasing pack, made up of 15 other trekkers and 5 lazy horse riders. We settled into the Tea Horse Guest House for the night and set off early the next morning. With the best views of the gorge and the morning sun beaming between the peaks we continued down to Tina's Guest House and then to the Middle Gorge, which gives you a better appreciation of the power of the water and the immense landscape. It's also the spot where the legendary tiger apparently lept across the gorge.

What both amazes and saddens us is that the gorge may be gone in a few years time. The Chinese government has put forward plans to construct 8 dams in the area that will not only wipe out 1 of China's most awesome natural attractions but also force more than 100,000 people to relocate and wash away their farms, homes, culture and history.