Swimming in the Li River in Heavy Rain—Guangxi Travel Notes 6

2021 0512

I was awakened by the rumble of thunder in the early morning. I opened the curtains and looked outside to see heavy rain.

The hotel in Guilin may need to match the time of the river cruise, as breakfast starts at 6:30.

At 7:30, we got on the shipping company’s car and headed to Zhujiang Pier.

On a heavy rainy day and during the morning rush hour, the traffic was moving at a snail's pace. The driver cursed battery-powered cars and queue-jumping cars in Cantonese and Mandarin, while changing gears and swerving in the traffic, and finally arrived at Zhujiang Pier on time.

I took the reserved ticket and checked the code to enter.

Find the "Huaxin 8" four-star cruise ship among the rows of cruise ships.

The upper class ticket on a four-star ship is 378 yuan per person (including buffet lunch) + 30 yuan for separate car transfer.

The bow is a VIP cabin.

Views can be enjoyed from both the second-floor rear deck and the third-floor platform.

After 9 o'clock, the cruise ships set sail one by one.

The captain announced that due to the high current speed, the original four-and-a-half-hour boat journey would be advanced to three-and-a-half hours. Is this good news or bad news?

Starting from Zhujiang Pier, it passes through major scenic spots such as Wangfu Stone, Guanyan, Yangdi, Shenbi Peak, Jiuma Painting Mountain, Huangbu Reflection, Xingping, and ends at Yangshuo Longtoushan Pier.

After the rainwater collects, it is wrapped with loess in the mountains and forests along the river and dumps into the Lijiang River, making the water of the Lijiang River comparable to the water of the Yellow River.

The sky is getting darker and darker, and the green mountains are covered with clouds and mist.

The river water becomes more yellow and turbid, and the rain keeps falling.

Yangdi, the first scenic spot in Yangshuo County, and the 18-kilometer section to Xingping Scenic Spot is the golden section of the Li River.

The once bustling Yangdi Pier was closed.

Rows of bamboo rafts are out of business.

The radio on the cruise ship announces every attraction.

The carp wall is located on the carp beach two miles downstream of Yangdiwei. There is a mountain beside the beach, 100 meters high. The mountain wall is close to the water. From a distance, the mountain wall looks like a giant red carp, so the river beach under the wall is named Carp Beach.

Little Three Gorges

Thin clouds surround the mountainside, making it look like a dream. It is the best time and location to watch the misty rain on the Li River.

Jiumahua Mountain is a large stone mountain with nine connected peaks and towering over the river. The stone walls are cut into the mountains to form a screen, more than 100 meters high and 100 meters wide. The stone walls are colorful with ocher, yellow, green and white, like giant murals, hence the name Painted Mountain. Looking closely at the Nine Horse Painting Mountain, there is a tall horse on the top of the stone wall, which seems to be roaring in the wind; below there are two silver-gray ponies, which seem to be grazing with their heads down; the bay-red horse on the left is galloping with its mane, and the snow-green horse on the right is galloping. There are nine horses in total in the high-tailed chase, including the "pioneer horse" on Fishtail Peak and the "backward horse" on Lengshui Beach.

The most beautiful section of the Li River – Xingping

The face was half covered by clouds and mist, and his true face was not revealed.

After passing Xingping, the boat announced that the Xingping-Yangshuo section is idyllic. You can enjoy the scenery on both sides of the Taiwan Strait while having lunch.

The buffet lunch is very rich, and the roast duck is especially delicious.

Approaching Yangshuo Longtoushan Pier, the rain stopped and the sky became sunny.

Three- and four-star cruise ships dock at the same time, making the waterway resemble the evening rush hour of a big city.

By the passage out of the pier, you can see the local fruit prices in Yangshuo.

At the exit, a battery car costs 15 yuan per person. It goes along West Street to the bus station and gets off next to Yangshuo Park on the way, which is very convenient.

I went to the hotel to rest for a while and looked at the blue sky and white clouds outside the window. I was unwilling to miss out on the beautiful scenery due to heavy rain when the boat cruise passed Xingping, so I went downstairs to Xingping Ancient Town.

Xingping Ancient Town is an ancient town with a history of more than a thousand years. 25 kilometers away from Yangshuo. The ancient bridges, ancient ferries, ancient pavilions, ancient stages, ancient temples, ancient villages, ancient trees and ancient village buildings here have relatively completely maintained the original historical environment.

Entering the ancient town, there was a lot of traffic and people, and groups of tourist teams lined up to board and disembark under the guidance of the tour guide flags. It was so lively.

There is a viewing platform on the second floor of Xingping Pier, with a background picture of RMB 20.

The Lijiang River makes a big bend here, forming a beautiful green jade belt. (Unfortunately the water is too yellow)

The sunset in Xingping, created with the help of computers, satisfies the imagination.

Xingping Ancient Town has been assimilated into a national model ancient town.

The meaning of "the old streets are long and the ancient alleys are deep" vaguely remains.

At the east end of the alley in the ancient town is the station, with minibuses to Yangshuo.

Back to Yangshuo, check in to Yangshuo West Street.

Yangshuo West Street is located in the center of Yangshuo Ancient Town. With a history of more than 1,400 years, it is the oldest and most prosperous street in Yangshuo and one of the important tourist attractions in Yangshuo.