Xiling Gorge () is a

gorge A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tend ...

on the Yangtze River (Chang Jiang) in

Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...

province, China. It is the easternmost and largest of the

Three Gorges The Three Gorges () are three adjacent and sequential gorges along the middle reaches of the Yangtze River path, in the hinterland of the People's Republic of China. With a subtropical monsoon climate, they are known for their scenery. The T ...

Geography

Xiling Gorge is located in Zigui County and Yiling District, in the west of

province, from Xiangxi down to the western suburbs of

Yichang Yichang ( zh, s= ), Postal Map Romanization, alternatively romanized as Ichang, is a prefecture-level city located in western Hubei province, China. Yichang had a population of 3.92 million people at the 2022 census, making it the third most pop ...

. Xiangxi village is located in Zigui County, at the fall of the stream of the same name into the river, between Guizhou Town and Quyuan Town. The area is named after Mt. Xiling, a peak at the eastern end of the gorge, and has been so named since at least the

Three Kingdoms period The Three Kingdoms of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu dominated China from AD 220 to 280 following the end of the Han dynasty. This period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and followed by the Western Jin dynasty. Academically, the ...

when it was recorded in the geographical treatise Shui Jing Zhu.''Zhongguo Gujin Diming Dacidian'' 中国古今地名大词典, 1089. Xiling, which forms nearly half the length of the entire Three Gorges region, is actually a series of four different gorges: Precious Sword; Horse Lung and Ox Liver; Soundless Bell; and Shadow Play Gorges.

Three Gorges Dam

The

Three Gorges Dam The Three Gorges Dam (), officially known as Yangtze River Three Gorges Water Conservancy Project () is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River near Sandouping in Yiling District, Yichang, Hubei province, central China, downs ...

was constructed at Sāndòupíng in the middle of the Xiling Gorge. Before the construction of the

and Gezhouba Dam, Xiling was known for being the most dangerous of the three gorges to travel through, with frightening whirlpools and strong rapids. Since the construction of the dams, the river's depth has increased from in some areas below the dam, to well over throughout the reservoir's length.

References

External links

* {{coord missing, Hubei Canyons and gorges of China Landforms of Hubei Yangtze River Geography of Yichang