Qutang Gorge
| Qutang Gorge | |||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 瞿塘峽 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Postal | Chutang Gorge | ||||||||
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| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Qūtáng Xiá |
| Wade–Giles | Ch'ü1-t'ang2 Hsia2 |
The Qutang Gorge (Chinese: 瞿塘峽; pinyin: Qūtáng Xiá) is the shortest and most spectacular of China's Three Gorges.
Immediately downstream of the ancient village Baidicheng (白帝城) the Yangtze River passes between the Chijia Mountain (赤甲山) on the north and the Baiyan Mountain (白鹽山) on the south. The point where the river passes between these mountains is called the Kuimen Gate (夔門) and it is the entrance to the Qutang Gorge - the first of the three Yangtze gorges. The Qutang Gorge is only 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) long, but it is also the narrowest of the Three Gorges. The widest point measures only 150 metres (500 ft) wide. The mountains on either side reach as high as 1,200 metres (4,000 ft). This combination of narrow canyons among high mountains with several switchbacks in only 8 kilometres creates spectacular vistas, and the Qutang Gorge is often considered the most beautiful of all the Three Gorges.
The Qutang Gorge is located 31.033826 °N, 109.540160 °E. Administratively, it is part of Fengjie County of the Chongqing Municipality.
Baidicheng was an ancient city on the northern shore of the Yangtze River. Baidicheng was also where Liu Bei, first emperor of the Kingdom of Shu during the Three Kingdoms era, died. There is a Liu Bei Memorial Temple and a Zhuge Liang Memorial Temple in Baidicheng. Baidicheng is a major tourist attraction of a Yangtse cruise.
The Chalk Wall (粉筆牆) is a white cliff face on the southern bank of the Yangtze River at the entrance to the Qutang Gorge (Kuimen Gate). The Chalk Wall can be easily recognized by the numerous characters carved into the rock, many of which were done by famous Chinese calligraphers. Nearly 1,000 characters in all are carved into the rock wall, with the oldest dating to the Song Dynasty (960-1279). The wall has characters carved in many different styles of calligraphy and in various sizes. The largest characters are approximately 1.7 metres (6 ft) wide.
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