Hiking Tiger Leaping Gorge

This is the third part reviewing a cycling and hiking tour I did around Yunnan in China in January 2025. Here are links to part one and part two part four and part five.

Tiger Leaping Gorge is one of the best known hiking routes in Southern China. The gorge is a deep canyon formed by the upper stretch of the Yangtze River (Jinsha) and is known for its fast flowing water and dramatic scenery. The name derives from the idea that a tiger would be capable of leaping across from one side of the gorge to the other. In reality it wouldn't get close, because even at its most narrow, the gap is still around 100 metres. However, the illusion of the gorge is that it is incredibly narrow.

The canyon is one of the deepest in the world, with the mountain peaks of Yulong National Park towering nearly 4,000m above the river. The perspective and angles of this make for incredibly scenery at times.

The hike itself is around 20km long with around 1,100m of elevation gain if you walk the whole length, although there are some fun diversions which add on a couple of kilometres.




I had cycled through Yulong National Park to stay in Tibet Guest House, situated in the small village of Hetaoyuan, where the hike through the gorge ends.

In the morning, the guesthouse arranged a transfer to the starting point, next to Naxi Guesthouse. Previously it was possible to hike all the way from Hutiaoxia, but construction work (notably two huge new bridges) have made this no longer possible.

If you are coming from Lijiang, then the bus will take you to Hutiaoxia, where you pay a fee to enter the gorge area. You will then have to get a taxi transfer up to the guesthouse, or hike up the road to get to the start of the trail.

Many people split the hike up into two days, but my plan was to do it all in one day.



I arrived at the start of the trail around 10am and it was quite chilly, with the sun not yet above the mountains. There were a few people on the trail already, but it was not particularly crowded at this time of year.



After a short stretch, you enter one of the most challenging stretches of the trail, the 28 bends. Reading about the route beforehand, the 28 bends were frequently described with great fear and respect. I felt a bit of trepidation when I saw that most Chinese hikers were carrying oxygen cylinders with them and were moving at a slow pace, presumably to preserve their energy. As it turned out, I didn't find the 28 bends very demanding. It is basically a lot of steps to ascend around 400m in elevation: it took me around 35 minutes at a steady pace. Some people were struggling, perhaps because they were not well acclimatized to the altitude, but I think cycle tourists or fit hikers would find it pretty easy.



There were no great views on this part of the trail, but it was pleasant, and by the top the number of people had thinned out considerably.

At the top of the 28 bends is a small hut overlooking a viewpoint where you can buy drinks and snacks. In fact, every few hundred metres along the entire hike there were stands selling refreshments.

From the 28 bends the trail was very easy for the next 10km. The surface was good and the gradients were gentle, allowing you to stride out and admire the mountains on the other side of the gorge. It is also easy to follow, as the route is signed with red arrows, as well as some kilometre markers. You could probably do this section without a GPS or maps.

There were some road sections through villages, but most of the trail was a nice single-track clinging to the side of the mountain. It passes several waterfalls and there are occasional views of the river, way down below.

The trail wasn't busy in January, although it became a bit more crowded close to the villages, with people doing shorter sections. Judging by the number of refreshments stands along the way, I can imagine that the trail gets quite busy in the high season, in which case I would recommend an early start to enjoy a bit more tranquility.



After around 10km you will arrive at a village halfway into the route. There are many guesthouses here, including the appropriately named Half Way House. A lot of hikers split the route into two days and stay here, but I think if you are in reasonable physical shape then it is not worth it. It took me just over two hours from the start to the half way point, and it would have felt far too early to stop.

If you don't cycle or hike much, however, then it might be worth considering as the more challenging part is still to come.

There was a very popular hiking section just after the half way point. The route is a bit more technical, with boulders and several beautiful waterfalls, before a short descent takes you down to Tina's Guesthouse.

Some people finish the hike at Tina's Guesthouse, as this is where the bus departs from heading back towards Lijiang (around 3pm if I recall correctly). I stopped for lunch here, before continuing with the hike down into the gorge.



In my opinion, it would be a big mistake to finish at Tina's Guesthouse. The hike to get there on the high trail is nice, with good views, but the really spectacular part is the following 5km along the river.

If you plan to split the route into two days, I would recommend staying at Tina's Guesthouse (or other nearby accommodation), instead of the half-way village, and doing the second part of the hike as a circular route.

From Tina's, the route heads down into the gorge. You have to go through a small cafe and pay a toll to enter (15 RMB), and then follow steps along a steep trail down to the river. Here the power of the Yangtze is revealed in all its fury. There is a bit of scrambling on rocks to get to the viewpoint over-looking the river which is an awe-inspiring sight.






The route continues by entering the Ladder Trail, which is the most technical section of the hike. It is also the most tricky to follow, with numerous diversions and signs which are not entirely clear. I would recommend following a GPS track for this section, or at least have a decent quality map.

As the name suggests, the Ladder Trail has numerous ladders, rope bridges and wooden pathways, as it clings precipitously to the side of the cliff. It's a lot of fun to walk, with several diversions that you can explore to get great views of the gorge and the river.

The ladder trail leads into the Ray of Sunshine trail, which was another of my favourite parts of the route. This was less technical, but very quiet and still with beautiful views of the river. I continued on this trail as it climbed up from the river and back to the village of Hetaoyuan, where I returned to Tibet Guest House.



Overall, it was a very enjoyable hike. The first 14km were fun and not very challenging, but not overly spectacular - to be honest, having done this section I wondered slightly why the hike was rated so highly. However, the second part from Tina's Guest House to Hetaoyuan was absolutely fantastic. It was more challenging, more spectacular and extremely enjoyable - I spent a few hours just doing this section of the hike, exploring different diversions and admiring the scenery.

Even at this fairly leisurely pace, I still returned to my guest house around 5pm, well before the sun started to go down.


Next - Shigu & Shaxi


Previous - Jade Dragon Snow Mountain


Overview - Yunnan Tour Overview


Cycle Touring Guides