Tiger Leaping Gorge, a 15km long gash in the Earth found between two massive mountains, is said to be the deepest in the world, and, teetering at the edge of a cliff on the back of a willful horse, it is not hard to believe it.
We hadn't planned on riding horses in the gorge, but, after hearing that we could avoid several hours of torturous climbing for the very reasonable price of 100 yuan, we decided to go for it. Joining up with a group of Koreans, (Hyangmi is able to spot them, instantly, from 50 feet away) we started hiking towards the trailhead, gaining horses and handlers as we went. After an hour, we formed a line eleven people and six horses long, the jagged crown of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain coming into full view just as we reached the start of the trail. It was time to mount. For reasons I still do not understand, (perhaps it was because I was wearing a cowboy-style hat, or perhaps because the Chinese figured everyone from Canada was an experienced horseman) I was the only person in our group allowed to ride unassisted, that is, without anyone leading the horse by its reins. Of course, I had no idea how to ride a horse, I had tried it only once, when I was eight, but I was delighted at the opportunity nonetheless. After listening in on a few pointers given to the other riders (again, why not me?) and quickly recalling all the episodes of Have Gun - Will Travel I had recently watched, we were off.
We followed a narrow, rock strewn trail along the side of the gorge, passing palms, cactus, and petrified trees, never far from a cliff that tumbled steeply down to the raging Yangtze below. This, combined with waterfalls, mountainside villages, and the sight of snow-capped mountains looming in the distance, made for a dramatic ride. However, it wasn't long into our trek before I discovered that my horse did pretty much whatever it wanted, stopping frequently to munch on grass and refusing to climb the particularity difficult sections, requiring a stern word or slight yank of the reins to continue; and it wasn't long after that that I discovered why cowboys walk so funny.
After a much-needed lunch break we were back in the saddle, riding up towards the infamous "28 Bends" (the section of the trail we had hired the horses for) when, passing a small wooden hut I heard a middle-aged Chinese woman say, "Coca-Cola. Ganja" Did I just hear that? Impossible. But, sure enough, after finishing the 28 Bends and leaving our horses behind to continue on foot, we came to a small stall, with another woman selling water, soft drinks, beer, chocolate bars, and, bags of marijuana. Perhaps equally incredible, was a man nearby, asking for 8 yuan to take a picture from the cliff behind him, which apparently offered the best view on the trail. I was tempted to buy the weed, but, knowing the Koreans would view this as a sign I was deranged and immoral, I abstained.
We arrived at our guesthouse a couple of hours later, a large but simply outfitted place made great by the beauty of the operators, and the fantastic view from our window. We had dinner, and I ordered my first beer. Halfway into my second beer, I had to pee. When leaving the sloped ditch that was the men's bathroom, I noticed a very interesting plant growing nearby.
Minutes later, I was back in my room, rolling a joint using one the cosmetic papers Hyangmi used to wipe oil from her skin; she didn't partake. Afterward, we went out and looked at the starriest sky I've ever seen, a sight I guessed was due to the fact we were above 3000 meters, and far from any city.
The following morning, we got up early to see the sun rise, but stars still filled the sky at 6am; we had forgotten that China adheres to only one timezone--Beijing time--and while the sun may rise on Yellow Mountain in the East at 6am, we were now far to the West, our true time being perhaps just 4 or 5am.
The sun eventually rose, revealing wisps of fog which gathered in the gorges base, then slowly swirled up, growing ever-larger until they blotted out all but Jade Dragon's highest snowy peaks.
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