Raft on a creek off the Yangtze |
Cruise
The Yangtze
To Three Gorges Dam
 CRUISE
on the Yangtze, China’s longest river, to the Three Gorges Dam is
a life enhancing experience that you must not miss.
Our sojourn
began in Beijing. After a two-day city tour we flew down to Wuhan,
a modern metropolis in Hubei province. Liu Kezhi, deputy director of
marketing and communications of the China National Tourism
Administration (CNTA) – our host – greeted us at the Shangri-La
Hotel in Wuhan.
"The
construction of the Three Gorges Project has highlighted China’s
social, economic and cultural development," he said. We were
eager to see for ourselves.
Homes along the Yangtze |
After
sightseeing in Wuhan, and a brief pit stop in exotic Jingzhou, we
sped down a two-lane expressway, with a divider that was topped with
bushy planters. It was a nice civilized touch as it painted a
pleasant picture of an otherwise empty road. I was intrigued with
the countless farms of rice paddies, cotton and lotus fields along
the way.
At Yichang we
veered onto another highway. As we passed a military checkpoint we
realized we were closing in on the famous Three Gorges Dam.
The road curved around the mountainside, with deep ravines menacing
below. We drove through several tunnels, the last being the longest
in the world, at 3100 meters.
Boats on the Yangtze |
With the
mighty Yangtze on the left, the towering mountains on the right,
their jagged tops hovering in the mist, we drove on. We passed
through a gate, with a smartly dressed soldier at rigid attention,
and entered the grounds of the Three Gorges Project. We crossed a
new bridge that brought us into Zigui, a new city built by the
government to relocate farmers uprooted by the dam construction.
Wang Lidong,
vice general manager of Changjiang Cruise Overseas Travel Company,
said the Three Gorges Dam will be completed in 2009 when it will
become the ninth wonder of the world. CCOTC, with 14 cruise ships,
specializes in the Yangtze experience www.ccotc.com.
In U.S. call Orient Royal Cruise at 1-888-565-4088, www.orientroyalcruise.com.
At the Three
Gorges Project Hotel, director of construction management Ding Hua
introduced us to the biggest construction project in the history of
China. The Yangtze valley, home to one-third of the 1.2 billion
Chinese, slices China in half, north and south. The third largest
river in the world brought culture but also floods. Every 50 years
or so it overflowed with disastrous results. It last happened in
1998.
East King docked next to sister ship |
The Three
Gorges Dam will allow for flood control, improve navigation and
generate electricity that will reduce the need for coal dramatically
and thus eliminate much carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.
Construction began in 1993 and will be completed in 2009, making the
dam the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world. It’s as
high as a 60-story building. Very impressive.
I gazed in
wonder at the massive dam and locks. Inside the power station I saw
massive rotators and 12 turbines for hyrdroelectric generation. The
operation room next door was vast, spotless, like an empty hangar,
except for one wall where several technicians sat at banks of
computers and monitors.
Trackers pulling a sampan |
We next drove
to a dock where we boarded the MS East King. This 5-star luxury
vessel was ready to take us on a thrilling adventure down the fabled
Yangtze. Designed by American naval architects, the ship is super
comfortable. Every cabin is Outside Deluxe, full-windowed, with VCR,
minibar, radio and air conditioning.
The fog was
closing in while we slept through the night. At 7 a.m. the mist on
the craggy peaks was turning into raindrops below. We sailed passed
the city of Baidicheng and through the narrow cliffs of Qutang
Gorge, at five miles long the shortest but most magnificent of
the Three Gorges.
I strode on
deck in a rain jacket, balancing an umbrella in one hand and a
camera in the other, while a fierce wind lashed the raindrops
against my face. I stood my ground, transfixed with the wonder at
the high peaks on both sides of the canyon seemingly closing in on
us. The sweeping inclines of the mountains that are clothed with
green vegetation and capped by clouds, gave me an uncanny feeling of
mystical embrace. The misty atmosphere only added to the majesty of
the scenery.
Cruising the Three Gorges in the rain |
At 8:30 a.m.
we were streaming through Wu Gorge, the deepest of the three
gorges. We stopped at the port of Badong where we disembarked for a
short side trip. We filed into a sampan to sail 1.2 miles up the
Shennong Stream. Three trackers rowed in front, two in the back. To
navigate a stretch of rapids all the trackers, except one in the
rear, put their oars down, got into the roaring waters and struggled
to tow our sampan with burly arms and rugged ropes. They hauled the
boats along narrow tracks carved out of the cliffs.
Back on the MS
East King we made our way through Xiling, the third and, at
50 miles, the longest and historically the most dangerous gorge. We
sailed through a narrow waterway hemmed in by steep cliffs. It felt
eerie.
Three Gorges Dam Operation Room |
Finally, the
Three Gorges Dam. Our cruise ship went through one of the five
massive step locks. It took three hours for the water to transport
the ship past the dam. Every minute was awesome. I loved it!
Get
Ready To Go
AHI Travel offers
11-night tour comprising three nights at Beijing Hilton, two nights
in X’ian at Hotel Sofitel, three nights aboard M.V. Yangtze
President through the Three Gorges plus excursions in Fengdu, Badong
and Yichang, ending with three nights at Hilton Shanghai. Looks like
a fantastic journey with all the sights and attractions, such as the
Forbidden City, the Great Wall, Terra Cotta Warriors and more. This
sounds like a fantastic adventure.
There are
eight departures between Sept. 3 and Oct. 29. Depart from San
Francisco for $3,729 per person (based on double occupancy), Chicago
for $3,889 and Washington for $3,939.
AHI Travel,
6400 Shafer Ct., Rosemont, IL 60018, phone 800-323-7373, www.ahitravel.com.
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