Three gorges
The Three Gorges Region ( Chinese 三峽 / 三峡 , Pinyin ) is a series of breakthrough valleys along the Yangtze River ( 長江 / 长江 , Cháng Jiāng ) in the People's Republic of China with a total length of 193 km.
The west elevation of the Three Gorges Region was shown on the Chinese old 5 and new 10 yuan notes .
The three gorges are mainly known for their scenic character. In the direction of the Yangtze River, the three gorges system is formed from west to east by the Qutang, Wu and Xiling gorges.
Qutang Gorge
The Qutang Gorge ( Chinese 瞿塘峽 / 瞿塘峡 , Pinyin Qútáng Xiá ), also: Kui Gorge ( Chinese 夔 峽 / 夔 峡 , Pinyin Kuí Xiá ) is the first and shortest of the three gorges at 8 km.
Downstream from the village of Baidicheng ( im ) in Fengjie County , the Yangtze River flows between the Chijia in the north and the Baiyan ( Chinese 白 鹽山 / 白 盐山 , Pinyin Báiyán Shān - “White Salt Mountain ”) in the south. This place is called Kuimen ( Chinese 夔門 / 夔门 , Pinyin Kuímén - "Kui gate") and is the influence in the Qutang Gorge . The Qutang Gorge is 8 km long and is the narrowest of the three gorges. The widest point is only 150 m. The mountains on both sides are up to 1,200 m high. The Qutang Gorge is often referred to as the most beautiful of the three gorges due to this extraordinary characteristic. As early as the Song period (960–1279), the poet Su Dongpo described the current section of the gorge, broken by sandbanks, as “a thousand seas flowing in one cup”.
Holes in the shape of a "Z" are carved into the vertical rock walls, the so-called Meng Liang stairs ( Chinese 孟良 梯 , Pinyin Mèngliángtī ). It leads to a platform halfway up the cliff where, according to legend, the Song general Yang Jiye was killed by traitors.
Wu Gorge
The Wu Gorge ( Chinese 巫峽 / 巫峡 , Pinyin Wū Xiá - "Witches Gorge ") begins at the confluence of the Daning in Wushan County and has a length of 44 km.
It found its way into Chinese mythology : Here, according to legend, the goddess Yao Ji and her eleven sisters defeated some unruly river dragons before they solidified into mountains themselves, but carefully selected their location so that they could safely guide the ships downstream.
On the way, the rock inscription “Wuxia's peaks grow higher and higher” appears, which is attributed to the outstanding strategist during the Three Kingdoms period (220–280 AD), Zhuge Liang .
Xiling Gorge
The Xiling Gorge ( Chinese 西陵峽 / 西陵峡 , Pinyin Xīlíng Xiá - "West Hill Gorge") has a length of 66 km and is the easternmost of the gorges. It is located between Xiangxi in Zigui County and Yichang . At the narrowest point it was 80 m wide.
Travelers from the west who traveled this section of the river in the 19th century reported of sandbanks emerging from the river as barriers, dangerous currents and threatening rocks, so that the ships had to be kept on course by boat tugs with iron-clad bamboo poles. Today the passage has been structurally restructured accordingly for shipping traffic and is safe to use.
Three Gorges Dam
The Three Gorges Dam ( Chinese 三峽 大壩 / 三峡 大坝 , Pinyin Sān Xiá Dàbà ) is located in the middle of the Xiling Gorge and was put into operation in 2008. Due to the flooding of the reservoir, the water level in the gorges rose by more than 90 m to a level of 175 m above sea level by 2009 (highest retention target for lock operation). The reservoir formed extends through all three gorges back to Chongqing , a city of over 500 km away . It reaches a length of 663 km.
The dam project was implemented, among other things, to make the Yangtze River easier for shipping, to improve flood protection and to optimize the water supply in the adjacent regions. Another important part of the project was the generation of urgently needed electrical energy. The world's most powerful hydropower plant was built on the dam . The dam is criticized internationally, however, because its construction and the damming of the river was accompanied by a massive change in the landscape, through which numerous endemic animal and plant species are threatened or possibly become extinct. In order to create space for the reservoir, there were also forced relocations of several million people.
Web links
- Picture ride (5MB flash slideshow)
- Three Gorges State Geopark on the Yangtze River
- The Three Gorges Museum
Individual evidence
- ↑ China Travel Service: Travel Report Yangtze Cruise through the Qutang Gorge , May 16, 2006. Retrieved March 5, 2019
- ↑ China Travel Service: Travel Report Yangtze Cruise with River Detail , May 16, 2006. Accessed March 5, 2019
- ↑ China Travel Service: Travel Report Yangtze Cruise with description of the gorge , from May 16, 2006. Retrieved on March 5, 2019
Coordinates: 31 ° 2 ′ 34 ″ N , 109 ° 33 ′ 41 ″ E