“Humans have a natural yearning for distant places, and many possess an adventurous spirit,” said Sun Wenzhu.
On June 6, 2024, Sun Wenzhu, a 34-year-old man from Wuhan, Hubei, embarked on a solo journey drifting down the Yangtze River in a rubber dinghy from Jinsha River in Panzhihua. His destination was the sunrise point at Dongtan, Chongming, Shanghai, covering a total distance of over 3,500 kilometers. He completed the 118-day drifting challenge when he landed at the sunrise point on November 16.
Sun Wenzhu embarked on the journey alone, carrying his luggage. All images in this article are provided by the interviewee.
Sun Wenzhu’s drifting adventure was divided into three stages. The first stage was from Panzhihua to Yibin, approximately 800 kilometers, which he described as “extremely challenging, feeling detached from the world.” The second stage was from Yibin to Wuhan, roughly 1,600 kilometers, where he encountered unexpected flood peaks. The third stage was from Wuhan to Shanghai, spanning about 1,100 kilometers, which tested his mental resilience even more.
Throughout his journey, he faced numerous difficulties. When storms hit, he sought refuge in enclosed spaces. During hot weather, he drank 4 liters of water daily, and due to the combination of paddling and intense sun exposure, he rarely felt the need to urinate. In typhoon weather, waves rolled on the river, and逆风 (counter winds) made it impossible to move forward.
This journey was also made possible with the support of his family. Sun Wenzhu hopes that his children will understand what he has done in the future and learn that “many things require steadfast effort, and only then will results come.”
[Sun Wenzhu’s Account]
When I started drifting from Panzhihua, locals told me that the rainy season was approaching.
On the night of June 8, at 11:30, strong winds began to blow, and lightning in the clouds illuminated the contours of distant mountains. Heavy rain followed the wind, bringing cold temperatures.
At that time, my boat was still in the river. I first pulled the boat to the shore and tied it up, then searched for a suitable place to spend the night. The surroundings were desolate mountains and wilderness. Except for the area illuminated by my flashlight, it was pitch black everywhere else. If there were a third-person perspective, it would have shown a small figure staggering forward in the rocky beach, with only a beam of light beside him, resembling a scene from the movie “Life of Pi.”
Around midnight on June 9, 2024, Sun Wenzhu illuminated the interior of his boat.
At that moment, I thought of an agricultural motorboat nearby where I could land. When I walked over, it was indeed still there. I climbed onto the boat with my sleeping bag and found a blue metal shed at the back of the boat. When I opened the door, there was a bed inside. I illuminated the boat and felt a sense of security staying there overnight. Indeed, heaven never seals off all exits.
Sun Wenzhu took refuge in an agricultural motorboat.
The most dangerous moment was at Baihetan. I thought my life would end there.
On June 19, somewhere downstream of the Baihetan Hydropower Station, my rubber dinghy was capsized by a huge wave. I struggled in the water for over an hour, sinking and resurfacing. The rubber dinghy was about three to five meters away from me. I tried to climb onto it, but it was too light, and I flipped it over with one arm. The current was very swift, and I couldn’t swim to the shore. Whenever I tried to swim over, the waves on the riverbank would push me back towards the middle.
After trying for 20 minutes, I was freezing and my scalp was numb. Each time I was capsized, I had to gather my energy to try again, and the intervals between attempts grew longer. I started reciting what felt like my last words, thinking I might not survive. Finally, it was the chair on the rubber dinghy that saved my life. Without that chair, I couldn’t have climbed back onto the boat. The chair served as a handhold, allowing me to exert force and climb back on. After landing, all my other luggage on the rubber dinghy was gone, except for the chair.
Passing by a hydropower station.
The most challenging aspect of this drifting journey was the weather. Several “furnaces” are located along the Yangtze River, such as Chongqing and Wuhan. Chongqing, in particular, experiences continuous high temperatures around 40℃ in summer. Wearing a hat and face mask, I was exposed to the sun outdoors, and even during the hottest times of the day, I had to wear three layers of clothing: a T-shirt, a sun-protective jacket, and a life jacket, while paddling for 8 hours a day.
During those two months, I drank 4 liters of water daily, but even with that amount, I didn’t urinate at all while paddling. My body was consuming a lot, and I was sweating profusely, so I had no urge to urinate. Throughout the 100+ days, apart from normal toilet breaks on shore, I only stopped to urinate four times on the water.
Since I needed to constantly paddle the rubber dinghy on the water, there were no opportunities to eat. For meals, I mostly chose liquid foods like eight-treasure porridge. The minimum energy intake requirements for a person include carbohydrates, proteins, and good fats. I would keep some dried meat and nuts on the boat, eating them during breaks from paddling.
Scenery seen along the way.
More importantly, I needed to keep track of my direction to ensure I stayed in the main stream and didn’t veer into tributaries. Once, I almost made a wrong turn. Along the Jinsha River, there are many stepped hydropower stations, where the water flow is not obvious. Additionally, at the confluence of the Jinsha River and Longchuan River, the mouth of the Longchuan River is wider than the Jinsha River, so I instinctively headed towards the wider part of the river. After about twenty minutes, I checked the map and realized I was going in the wrong direction, so I quickly turned back.
During the journey, I encountered multiple giant hydropower stations. Whenever I encountered no-sailing zones and large dams, I would disembark and go around. For example, the section from the Three Gorges Dam to the Gezhouba Dam was not suitable for drifting, so I took a cruise ship and a car to pass through. Additionally, when encountering extremely dangerous waters, I chose to go around. The water flow at Laojun Rapids in the Jinsha River is rapid and dangerous. People have died there before. For safety reasons, I gave up drifting in this section and chose to disembark.
Around September 22, due to typhoon weather, I passed under the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge and felt strong winds. The waves on the river were rolling. Typically, long rivers have upstream winds, which are counter winds from downstream to upstream. Therefore, the headwinds prevented me from moving forward. From a distance, I saw that the embankment on the Jiujiang side was well-constructed with many embankment protection stones. Later, the winds and waves pushed me towards the embankment protection stones, and the tail fin of my boat broke. With the tail fin broken, it was difficult to control the direction of the boat, so I had to disembark. After disembarking, I stayed in Jiujiang for two days, waiting for the rubber dinghy manufacturer to send me a new tail fin. I continued my journey after the strong winds passed.
A selfie taken by Sun Wenzhu.
The journey was tough, but I gained a lot. During the drifting, many maritime departments along the way provided me with assistance, such as those in the Three Gorges, Yichang, Jingzhou, and Anqing. They informed me about navigation safety and knowledge, and reminded me to stay safe. Besides the cameras and law enforcement recorders, they often said, “Brother, be sure to stay safe.”
As I approached the finish line, I was excited. When I reached Wusongkou, the winds and waves were very strong, with waves exceeding one meter. At that moment, a fast boat from the Shanghai Maritime Administration approached me. The first thing they asked was, “The winds and waves are strong now. Do you want to rest on shore?” I replied, “No problem, I can handle it.” They then escorted me from the side.
I was near the cruise ship terminal at Wusongkou, about two to three kilometers away. The winds and waves were very strong, making it difficult to move forward. There were several times when I almost capsized, and my arms were almost giving out. If I stopped, the tide would push me back, so I had to move forward against the waves.
Thus, at 2:16 pm on November 16, I landed at the sunrise point at Dongtan, Chongming, Shanghai, concluding my over 3,500-kilometer drifting journey along the Yangtze River.
On the road.
Actually, I have wanted to attempt drifting along the Yangtze River for about 13 years. When I was in college, I learned about Yangtze River drifting online.