Xiling Xia Gorge

Xiling Xia Gorge, 450km/280mi east of Chongqing in Hubei province, is nearly 80km/50mi long, making it the longest of the three gorges. It has some dangerous shallows, heavy rapids and numerous reefs. Its bank are strewn with countless rock formations with the strangest of names - these include the Gorge of Military Writings and The Sword (Bingshu Baiojian Xia), where can be seen a rock protruding from the ground like a sword (General Zhuge Liang is said to have hidden here a textbook he had written when he was unable to find a suitable successor), the Gorge of Ox Livers and Horses' Tongues (Niuganmafei Xia) and the Gorge of the Yellow Cow (Huangniu Xia). At the bottom of the latter stands a temple with the same name, which dated originally from the Han period (206 BC-AD 220) and was rebuilt in 1618.