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Passed through the first of the three gorges today, Qutang, steep mountains with the Yangtze cutting through them. In the afternoon we went up a tributary called Shennong Stream, we docked up and hopped on the local boats which had four rowers with one guy steering on the back and another with a bamboo stick at the front. They rowed about a mile up river and when the water got shallow they pulled it with bamboo ropes while the one with the bamboo stick kept it off the stones. Tough work in the heat and against the current with about twenty of us inside. We felt like we should help all we did was sat on our arses . The scenery was great, high forested mountains with small fields cultivated wherever there was enough soil. it's a pity when the Dam is finished in 2009 the water level will rise covering some of the best fields and some of the houses. In all about one million people will be displaced by the project. On average the water will rise over twenty five meters. We rafted down the river and docked up again, the rowers who are local farmers had to row home after about four hours it would take them.At 22:00 that night we passed through the five lock system of the dam, amazing engineering and some amount of concrete. 24 doors each weighing 800 tonne, 19m by 34m. Could fit six of the cruisers we were on which was a big one.
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