The Yangtze River, or Chang Jiang,about 6,385 km long (3915 mi) and flows from its source in Qinghai Province, eastwards into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It acts as a dividing line between North and South China, although geographers generally consider the Qinling-Huai River line to be the official line of geographical division. As the largest river in the region, the Yangtze is historically, culturally, and economically important to China. One of the dams on the river, the Three Gorges Dam, is the largest hydro-electric power station in the world. The section of the river flowing through deep gorges in Yunnan province is part of the Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected. 

Waters of the Yangtze are often used for rice and wheat irrigation. It also has enormous and inexhaustible hydroelectric resources. In 1995 construction began on the Three Gorges Dam near Yichang and is scheduled for completion in 2009. The dam will measure about 600 feet and about 1.5 miles wide. The dam is expected to help control the flooding of the Yangtze River Valley. The Three Gorges (the Qutang Gorge, the Wuxia Gorge, and Xiling Gorge) will also be the largest electricity generating facility in the world. The hydroelectric generators will provide 1/9 of China's total power output.

There is a lot of controversy surrounding the construction of the dams. There are 140 villages, 1,600 factories and over 80,000 acres of growable land that will be destroyed. It may also cause animals to become extinct. The area is very prone to earthquakes because it lies directly on a fault line. Actually, the plateau and gorges were created by collision of the Indian-Australian plate, drifting northward, with the Eurasian plate that began over 40 million years ago and continues today.

Map of the River Yangtze
China covers an area of almost 3.7 million square miles and is the most populous country on earth having more than one billion people. The bordering countries include Mongolia, Kazakhstan, India, Nepal, Burma, Vietnam and Korea. The People's Republic is led by Chinese Communist Party and governed by the State Council. The main language spoken is the Mandarin dialect of Chinese but there are more than 150 languages and dialects spoken throughout the country. Approximately 350 million people inhabit the region of the Yangtze. There is plenty of wildlife along the river as well which include the Tibetan antelopes, Mongolian gazelles, and snow leopards, just to name a few. 


Yangtze River Dam
The famous Three Gorges section of the Yangtze river stretches for 192km from Yichang to Kui Men near Fengjie. The three major gorges, after which this section of the river is named are the WuXia Gorge, the Xiling Gorge and the Qutang Gorge. The Three Minor Gorges consist of the Huangniu (Yellow Buffalo) Gorge, Dengying (Slide Show) Gorge and Huangmao (Yellow Cat) Gorge. Also worth a visit is the Shennong Stream.

At the end of the Three Gorges Section lies the giant Three Gorges Dam (Gezhouba Dam). It was commenced the 80's, and its completion is scheduled for 2009. It will back up the Yangtze River for 550km, making it the world's largest dam. Due to the fact that the water will rise to a level of 185m behind the dam, millions of people have had to be resettled, bridges moved and historical relicts secured. The energy production capabilities of the dam are estimated at 84.7 billion kilowatts, equivalent to 18 nuclear reactors. The three single stage locks guarantee that ship traffic is not delayed.

The easiest and most comfortable way to experience the beauties and attractions on the river is in taking a Yangtze River Cruise.


Yangtze River Cruise
Victoria Prince Cruise Itinerary
7 DAYS/6 NIGHTS VICTORIA PRINCE DOWNSTREAM ITINERARY
Day 1 Jul.6/Mon. Chongqing/Fengdu(Meals:L/D)
10:00 am Prince depart Chongqing
Afternoon shore excursion to Fengdu
Day 2 Jul.7/Tue. Daning River Small Gorges or Shennong Stream/Three Gorges Dam Ship locks (Meals:B/L/D)
Morning excursion to Daning River Small Gorges or Shennong Stream. Evening sail through Three Gorges Dam Ship locks
Day 3 Jul.8/Wed. Three Gorges Dam site/Yichang dock (Meals:B/L/D)
Morning visit to Three Gorges Dam site
Reboard ship at Yichang dock
Day 4 Jul.9/Thur. Wuhan/Hubei Provincial Museum(Meals:B/L/D)
Afternoon shore excursion of Wuhan, visiting the Hubei Provincial Museum
Day 5 Jul.10/Fri. Huangshan ("Yellow Mountain")(Meals:B/L/D)
Full-day shore excursion to Huangshan ("Yellow Mountain").
(Jiuhuanshan or "Mountain of the Nine Lotuses" may be substituted if weather or road conditions do not permit a visit to Huangshan.)
Day 6 Jul.11/Sat. Nanjing/Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum/Qing Dynasty style Bazaar(Meals:B/L/D)
Full day tour of Nanjing including Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum and a Qing Dynasty style Bazaar surrounding a Confucian Temple;
9:00 pm Leave Nanjing for Shanghai
Day 7 Jul.12/Sun. Arrive Shanghai
8:00 am arrive Shanghai
Itineraries and times are subject to change according to river conditions

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