Lesser Three Gorges

Daning River Lesser Three Gorges

The Wushan Lesser Three Gorges, also the Daning River Lesser Three Gorges, lie in Wushan County, Chongqing, in the Three Gorges region on the lower Daning, a Yangtze tributary: the Longmen, Bawu and Dicui gorges, 50 km in all, with gorges, ancient plank roads, Ba hanging coffins and the old town of Dachang.

Wushan Lesser Lesser Three Gorges

On the lower Madu River, a tributary of the Daning: the Sancheng, Qinwang and Changtan gorges, 20 km.

Xueye Lesser Three Gorges

20 km north of Laiwu, Shandong, beside Xueye Lake: the Qinglong, Wulong and Laolong gorges.

Jialing River Lesser Three Gorges

Centred on Beibei, Chongqing, from Juliangtan to Badoulin: the Libi, Wentang and Guanyin gorges, 27 km. Mount Jinyun lies near the Wentang gorge.

Beijing Lesser Three Gorges: Longqing Gorge

Longqing Gorge, the Gucheng reservoir, lies in Yanqing County in the northern suburbs of Beijing, 20 km north of the Badaling Great Wall. The dam is 72 m high and 90 m long; the reservoir covers 340,000 m² with an average depth of 20 m and a 7 km boat channel between sheer cliffs, under 10 m apart at the narrowest.

Jiazhou Lesser Three Gorges

On the Min River about 23 km north of Leshan, Sichuan: the Litou, Bei’e and Pingqiang gorges, 8 km. This stretch of the Min from Hanyangba in Qingshen to Leshan was anciently the Pingqiang River, hence also the Pingqiang Lesser Three Gorges; Li Bai wrote of “the moon’s shadow flowing in the Pingqiang”. The Leshan Giant Buddha and Mount Emei are nearby.

Zhaoqing Lesser Three Gorges

Also the West River Lesser Three Gorges, on the West River near Zhaoqing, Guangdong: the Lingyang, Sanrong and Dading gorges. Lingyang is about 6.5 km long between peaks of over 800 m, with the Longhua and Xiashan temples facing each other at its mouth, the Hanbi Garden and the Guiyuan hermitage. Mount Dinghu is nearby.

Loujiang Lesser Three Gorges

Near Zhangjiajie, Hunan. The Lou River rises at Golden Whip Stream; its lower 22 km from Zhaojiagang to Jiangya can be rafted.

Hechi Lesser Three Gorges

At Hechi in northern Guangxi, a karst landscape with the rare tree fern.

Danjiang Lesser Three Gorges

In Xichuan County, Nanyang, Henan, on the middle Dan River near the Danjiangkou reservoir: the Yunling, Taibai and Yankou gorges from Baidutan to Shiqiao in Madeng township, over 20 km. Mount Wudang is nearby.

Fuchun River Lesser Three Gorges

On the Fuchun River, Zhejiang: the Wulong, Zixu and Hulu gorges.

Lubuge Lesser Three Gorges

55 km east of Luoping, Qujing, Yunnan: the Xiongshi, Diling and Shuangxiang gorges.