Enticed by the views in Guilin, but wanting to get far away from the city, we set our sights on Yangshuo. Since we hadn’t yet gotten onto the Li River, we signed up for bamboo raft transport from Yangdi, near Guilin, to Xingping, 45 minutes or so from Yangshuo. This stretch of the river is said to have some of the best scenery, and we were excited to have a look.

Bamboo Raft Trip on the Li River

On arrival at the bank of the Li in Yangdi, rafts (now a more sturdy pvc, but still bamboo shaped!) lined the shore. There were lots of people ready to begin the 2-3 hour trip, but the river police in their little speedboat had other ideas. In the name of safety, they determined there would be a max of 4 people per raft rather than 6. A great deal of shuffling ensued until finally we set off an hour or two later.

The views were indeed absolutely gorgeous. The karst peaks seem to line the riverbank and then extend back into the distance in layers. They form strange, otherworldly shapes: pointed cones, round hills and jagged towers. We floated down the Li silently, slowly most of the way, meeting up with other boats occasionally, and stopping once along the shore for some to buy snacks and drinks. Especially popular among the Chinese tourists were colorful, plastic pumps with which they could pull up river water and spray each other.

Xingping is supposed to be the prettiest curve of the Li River. It’s 1000 years old, and the setting of the mountains on the back of the 20 yuan note. What we saw of it, unfortunately, was the classic “herd the tourists to the bus station while selling them anything they’ll buy” routine. We were glad to arrive in Yangshuo an hour later.

Yangshou Town and Outskirts

Sitting on a small plain amongst the karst peaks, with the Li River flowing along one side, Yangshou has been popular with backpackers for many years. The setting is gorgeous, and opportunities for outdoor activities abound. The area is the premier rock climbing destination in China. West Street is where most of the hotels and restaurants are located, along with stalls of souvenirs, cheap clothing items and snacks. This is exactly the area we wanted to avoid, so we caught a taxi to the village of Chao Long, a few miles away.  The Outside-Inn is truly an oasis. The traditional farmhouse buildings are constructed from yellow mud brick, and have been renovated for use as a guesthouse. There is a lovely terrace among the green, leafy trees, with mountains reaching the sky in the background. The facilities are eco-friendly and encourage conservation and recycling. The kitchen puts out delicious, varied dishes at pretty reasonable prices, using local ingredients. The Dutch owner and his local team are friendly and knowledgeable. They can arrange guided tours or just equip you with a map and point you in the right direction.

Hike it or bike it!

Yangshuo is all about being outdoors, and that’s where we spent most of our time there. Set close to the Yulong River, smaller, cleaner, and even more beautiful than the Li, Chao Long was a perfect base for exploring. One day, we hiked a “trail” up and between two of the big karst hills, first passing through farmer’s fields of corn, squash and eggplants. The route got more and more rough, and we lost the trail countless times before emerging on a wide, round plateau high above the farms. It felt like a dinosaur might walk out at any moment. There was quite a lot of bushwacking on the other side too, and we had to climb over a stone wall topped with brambles that kept cows from crossing that way. Eventually we made our way to a part of the river we could follow back to the village. We took several walks like this, and each rewarded us with different, bit equally beautiful sights and sounds.

Another day we rented bicycles and set out to find the famous Dragon Bridge. It’s about 600 years old, very picturesque, and for some reason really hard for us to find. We cycled through a number of small villages, turning around once when a trio of 5 or 6 year old girls pointed and gestured enough to convince us there was nothing but more cows further down the dusty trail we were following. Then we got out of the clusters of stone houses and cobblestone streets and onto a gravelly dirt road with lots of hills. There was no turning back. We ended up after several miles on a paved road that actually showed up on our rudimentary map. We were just outside the town of Baisha, which was on the list to pass through later, but far from where we thought we were.  When we got closer to they bridge, and missed yet another turnoff, a helpful lady rode after us on her bicycle to tell us to turn around.

Eventually we made it back to the Yulong River and the Dragon Bridge. This is a popular spot to catch one of the small, real bamboo rafts for a float and there were lots of people doing just that. On the way back we passed through more farmland. One lady was washing clothes on one side of a stream with her water buffalo up to his neck, enjoying the cool water behind her. People were still hard at work in the fields, and it looked like it was close to harvest time for many of the crops. Just after another small village, in front of more fields and with the ever-present hills in the background, was a white house. A sign outside said cold drinks. As we walked onto the patio, we saw a young girl, maybe 10 or 11 years old, laying on the couch watching tv. She was glad to sell us a cold beer, not negotiating too hard on the price. We sat and enjoyed it, sitting on dark, wood chairs overlooking the fields. This spot had a large number of haystacks bundled up and placed in rows.

Back in the village, we returned the bikes and took another walk. In front of a good number of the houses were peanuts or corn drying in the sun. People were always there alternately spreading them out, raking them around, or gathering them back up. Since the whole plant is removed when they are harvested, high piles of the discarded peanut plants stood by the side of the road or next to the houses. One terrace had strips of tofu skin hung up to dry. On the street, ladies sat in small groups chatting in the shade. A couple of shops served noodles lunches cooked on the spot to hard-working men who sat at low tables with something cold before going back into the summer sun. An occasional chicken clucked by. We left Yangshuo feeling relaxed and renewed, ready to face the road again.

More Yangshuo Photos HERE.