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Visit Outside magazine to see photos of the Yangtze River from the April 2007 issue!

The Great Bend of the Yangtze River makes a hairpin turn through a remarkable 10,000-foot-deep gorge (almost twice as deep as the Grand Canyon!) before continuing its march to the sea. Here you’ll find one of the most remarkable river experiences in the world—and we should know, since we made the first successful raft descent of its far-flung upper reaches in 1987! On this trip, we run some 120 miles of the Great Bend—a spectacular whitewater experience, with about a dozen Class IV rapids, including some fun Grand Canyon–style wave trains! Fascinating cultural encounters with the Naxi people, descendents of Tibetan traders, are a terrific bonus. Above all, you’ll be in the secure hands of some of our top river guides—the best in the world!

TRIP HIGHLIGHTS

• Raft part of the famed Great Bend of the Yangtze through a 10,000-foot-deep canyon!
• Hikes and home stays offer opportunities to experience Naxi culture, the area’s dominant ethnic minority and whose ancient script is the only pictographic language still in use
• Be part of an international conservation effort in northwest Yunnan

Giving Back

We donate a portion of the proceeds from The Great Bend of the Yangtze and The Upper Mekong River adventures to FLOW (For Love of Water), a non-profit established by our river guides to facilitate the development of locally owned and operated river-based ecotourism that can contribute to the region’s ambitious sustainable development initiatives. This is an outgrowth of a previous collaboration with The Nature Conservancy in partnership with the Chinese government on planning and implementation of a conservation and sustainable development initiative for Northwest Yunnan. Come join us for an adventure of a lifetime and be a part of this great project!

Day 1 Arrive in Kunming, China, “City of Eternal Spring.”

Day 2 Fly to Lijiang, center of the Naxi minority culture and a World Heritage Site. Explore the narrow cobbled streets and pathways of the city’s old quarter.

Day 3 Drive into the heart of Tiger Leaping Gorge. (The legend is that a tiger once made it from one side to the other with a single leap—hence its name.) Spectacular day hike through steeply terraced fields and along a trail cut out of the sheer limestone walls down to the river as it thunders past the spot where the Tiger leapt! Return to the lodge for overnight.

Days 4-10 Drive to the end of the gorge and hike to the put-in. Begin rafting, heading downstream though this amazing canyon (10,000 feet deep in some places!), and into the Great Bend itself as the river takes a turn descending to the east. Along the way you’ll encounter about a dozen Class IV rapids, and overnight in an 1,100-year-old Naxi village for a cultural encounter you’ll never forget! You’ll also float by a hydroelectric project, and no doubt have some discussions about the four dams proposed for the Great Bend in the coming decade, and the positive and negative effects it will have on China.

Day 11 End rafting with “Surprise,” one of the most exciting rapids in the Great Bend, and drive back to Lijiang. Enjoy a farewell dinner with your fellow participants and the guide crew.

Day 12 Fly to Kunming and depart.

Photo Credits
©Jim Norton (MTS guide)