Shennongxi Tug-of-war Culture Tourism Area

　　• Take a cruise boat and glide along the stream, surrounded by lush greenery on both banks, with ancient and mysterious hanging coffins on the steep cliffs.

　　• Enjoy local ethnic performances as well as tug-of-war demonstrations by the boatmen of the Three Gorges.

　　Scenic Area Introduction

　　Originally named Yanduhe, Shennongxi was renamed after the legend that Shennong, the Yan Emperor, descended the river following his herb-gathering activities on the mountains. The entire stream is divided into three gorges (from the Yangtze River confluence inland, they are: Longchang Gorge, Parrot Gorge, and Shennong Gorge) and one tributary (Mianzhu Gorge). Currently, visitors explore the area entirely by boat, with the round trip taking about four hours.

　　Visitors board the cruise boat at the dock located by the Yangtze River in Badong County. About five minutes after departure, the boat enters the Longchang Gorge section of Shennongxi. From the boat, the surroundings are filled with verdant scenery, with cliffs rising at angles of 80 to 90 degrees straight down to the water. The stream water is emerald green, and the width of the water surface does not exceed 30 meters. As the boat sails through the stream, the lush vegetation on the cliffs is in full view, with blooming mountain flowers everywhere. Sometimes you can spot the charming sight of monkeys and serows playing along the rocky slopes. In addition, you can see some ancient and mysterious hanging coffins near the openings of sheer cliff caves. Over four thousand years ago, when tools were extremely primitive, how did the ancients place the coffins in such steep cliffs? This remains an enduring mystery.

　　When the boat reaches the wider waters of Mianzhu Gorge, passengers will transfer to a traditional paddle raft provided by the scenic area. These rafts are shaped like pea pods and are locally called "pea pod boats." Each raft typically has a boatman and a Tujia ethnic guide, who may occasionally sing a local folk song. After docking at Luoping Dock (Luoping Reception Center), the guide will lead visitors to watch local ethnic performances and tug-of-war demonstrations by the boatmen of the Three Gorges (the tug-of-war shows usually take place in the morning and may be canceled in the afternoon due to weather conditions). Please note that the once widely publicized "nude boatmen tug-of-war show" has now been discontinued.

　　Special Tips

　　Due to the rise in water level after the Three Gorges Dam water storage, Shennongxi’s water is now deep enough for boats to navigate freely, and manual towing by boatmen is no longer needed. Towing has now become purely a performance.

　　Address: Within Badong County, Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture

　　Type: Canyon and river boat tour

　　Recommended visit duration: 4–5 hours

　　Phone: 0718-4335245; 0718-4334848; 0718-4334242; 0718-4331500

　　Opening Hours:

　　6:00–17:00