Shennong Stream, also called Yandu River,is the first tributary that feeds the Yangtze River after it comes out of theWu Gorge and flows into Xiang Stream (Wang Zhaojun's birthplace - Zigui County)Broad Valley. It is known as the "Jade Waterway" of the Three Gorges.

It originates in the vast green mountainsof Shennongjia, and has a total length of 60 kilometers, with a rafting sectionof 20 kilometers. Its water is clear and clean. The peaks on its banks areexotic and lofty.

It flows among the high mountains and loftyhills in the territory of Badong County in Hubei Province in a vein-like mannerfrom north to south, and enters the Yangtze River at Xixiangkou, 2,000 meters eastof the outlet of Wu Gorge.

Meanwhile, it passes through three gorgeswith different landscapes - Mianzhu Gorge, Parrot Gorge and LongchangdongGorge.

Mianzhu Gorge boasts differently-shapedstalactites and the sight known as 'A Thread of Sky' that is precipitous andnarrow, with strange and special peaks and rocks that is like "a python iscoming out mountain", "a wild man stretching out his palm", andso on.

In the Minzhu Gorge, which is known for itsprecipitousness, there are karst caves everywhere on the precipices which aredifficult to climb up. Huge stalactites are hung in the air upside down. Thestream bed is narrow, and its river drop is large.

There are more than 30 sections of rapidsin the 4 kilometers long waterway. Rafting in the stream makes tourists' heartsbeat faster, but they will be more scared than hurt due to the boatmen'ssuperior skills.

On the stream banks, there are more than 60karst caves. In the stream, there are over 60 sections of rapids, longshallows, riffles at the coves, and shoals. The water there is crystal clear.Deeps pools look dark green, and fish are faintly visible at the shallowbottom.

In addition, there are waterfalls,suspended coffins, plank roads alongside the cliffs, primitive boats, andprofound ethnic village customs. All of these compose the unique landscape ofShennong Stream.

Parrot Gorge: spectacle of the Three-ColorSpring

Shennong Stream can be regarded as apollution-free natural stream that has limpid water, without much muddy waterexcept for the "Three-Color Spring". Five-color stones are everywhereat the bottom of the stream.

At the sections of rapids, boats willtravel rapidly, like they are flying; at the places where the water flowsslowly, quiet lakes are formed; while encountering riffles where the water isnot up to the knees and the pebbles rub against the creaking boat bottoms, theboats must be pulled by the boat trackers.

Parrot Gorge is the most scenic one amongthe three gorges. On its sides, there are evergreen plants, waterfalls, estavels,and other spectacles.

At one section of this gorge, bloomingflowers can be seen all the year round, so it is called the "Cove withYear-Round Blooming Flowers".

At another place known as the "NineSprings", nine springs flow out of piles of cluttered stones and becomedistinctly clear, muddy and turbid when they fall into the stream.

As a result, a 100-meter long coloredspring is formed, and is called the "Three-Color Spring". It can besaid to be a unique spring in the Parrot Gorge.

Longchangdong Gorge: boats can go in andout of the 10 kilometers long cave

The last gorge that Shennong Stream runsthrough is the Longchangdong Gorge. Its average width is less than 20 meters.Its precipices stand in the water and extend for over 5,000 meters, showing thesame majesty of the Qutang Gorge; it is also called Kuimen.

Cultural landscapes along this gorgeinclude a group of coffins placed in the rocks and ancient plank roads.

SuspendedCoffins

On the cliff of Shennong Stream, suspendedcoffins left by the ancient Ba people (the Ba people refers to a nation thatlived in the south-east of Shanxi, the west of Hubei, and the east of Sichuanin the pre-Qin period of ancient China) of the Warring States Period.

On the cliff, which is 150 meters above thewater surface at the east bank of Longchangdong Gorge, there are many smallcaves. Coffins were placed in these caves at different depths, which are clearlyvisible to the naked eyes.

It is still a mystery today how thesecoffins were placed there.

YanziqianKarst Cave

The entrance of the "Yanziqian KarstCave" is 80 meters high and about 30 meters wide. It got its name becausethousands of Himalayan swiftlets fly in the cave.

At a depth of 50 meters inside the cave isa place called the "Thousand Qu of Terraces", because there arelayers of "terraces" formed by karst accumulation，which areshaped like the Chinese character "Pin" (品) from topto bottom.

ShennongRiver Shennong Stream Rafting

Shennong Stream is a typical canyon stream,which has clear and sweet water, lofty peaks and steep cliffs on its sides, anda winding waterway. In the stream, there are more than 60 sections of rapids,long shallows, riffles at the coves, and shoals.

Although the waterway is narrow andtorrential, it is also clear and shallow. Therefore, rafting there can be bothvery exciting and safe.

The reason why rafting is possible inShennong Stream in all four seasons is that "Shennong Spring" suppliesa sufficient amount of water.

"Shennong Spring" originates fromthe Jigong Mountain which lies to the west of the main peak of Shennongjia.

Due to the "lung lobe function"of the virgin forests (the virgin forests are regarded as the lung lobes of theearth), "Shennong Spring" is not affected by drought on rainlessdays. It has an endless supply of water.

The steep cliffs on the two banks of thestream are facing each other, forming a narrow place of less than 7 metersbetween them. These cliffs are composed of rocks and are at 80-90 degree anglesto the stream. Their relative height differences are between 300 and 800meters.

The average daily water flow of the streamis 20 cubic meters per second, the steepest drop of which is up to 3 meters.All of these can make you enjoy the experience of extreme sports.

A "flat bean" small boat that hasa carrying capacity of 2.5 tons can sail at the section which is 20 kilometersupstream from the stream mouth throughout the year. Sailing through the gorgesis just like passing through quiet alleys and heavy doors.

The oncoming mountains that have heights ofhundreds of meters mean that you can hardly see the waterway ahead of you.Upstream of the Shennong Stream is the mysterious Small Shennongjia NatureReserve.