Rafting down the Li River in Yanghsuo, China with Karst Mountain Views

I don’t always have a story to share along with my photos, and even though that’s the case with my rafting trip down the Li River, it’s still one of my favourite memories from my travels in China.

The Li River (Lijiang) is a popular journey in the Guangxi province; many travellers choose to cruise the length between Guilin and Yangshuo, and it’s easy to see why – the landscapes are out of this world! Karst mountains rise up from either side of the river, giving way to one of the most magical journeys in the world. The place is so spectacular that it’s actually printed on the back of the 20 Yuan notes – that’s saying something.

Sam had already cruised down the Li River on one of his previous trips to China, but because his trip had been shrouded in fog and rain, he was happy to do it all over again. We got incredibly lucky with the weather that day – the sun was out and there was hardly a cloud in sight.

After snapping a few photos of the bamboo rafts (which are really made of plastic tubes!), we hopped aboard and grabbed a seat on the wooden bench. The scenery was incredible and I had to keep reminding myself to just put the camera down and soak it in with my own two eyes. I ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and kept poking Sam on the shoulder excitedly muttering, “Can you believe this? Are you seeing this?!”…and then I fell asleep.

Not very opportune timing, but that’s what I do when I’m on a boat, or a train, or a bus, or anything that produces a rocking motion. I was shaken awake by Sam about halfway through the journey, “Are you still seeing this?”

Yup…that’s how we roll.

But enough about that, here are a few photos from the river journey: