China's Rivers

There are several gorgeous and scenic rivers in China. The rivers fall into two categories: inflow and outflow. The Yangzte, Yellow, Heilongjiang, Zhu Jiang, Liaohe, Haihe, and Huaihe flow into the Pacific Ocean eastwards. The Brahmaputra River in Tibet, which is 104.6 kilometers long, flows southwards into the Indian Ocean. China also has the Brahmaputra Grand Canyon, the deepest Grand Canyon in the world at 6009 meters. The Xinjiang River flows into the Arctic Ocean northward, resulting in landlocked lakes or the creation of desert.

The Yangtze River is the longest river in China at 6300 km long. It is the third longest river in the world behind the Amazon and the Nile. The headwaters of the Yangtze are situated at an elevation of about 16,000 feet in the Kunlun Mountains in the southwestern section of Qinghai. It also has enormous and inexhaustible hydroelectric resources known as a golden water course.

The Yellow River is the second longest river in China at 5464 kilometers. The Yellow River Basin is lush and the mineral deposit abundant. It is the cradle of the ancient Chinese civilization.

Heilongjiang River is 4350 kilometers long, of which 3101 kilometers flow through the border of China.

The Zhu Jiang River is in southern China. It is 2214 kilometers long.

The river of Tarim in southern Xinjiang is the longest inland river in China, totaling 2179 kilometers in length.

Besides the natural rivers, there is a famous artificial river in China: the Jinghang Canal. It was created in the 5th century and runs from Beijing in the north to Hanzhou in the south. It links up with five major river systems including the Haihe, Yellow, Huaihe, Changjiang, and Qiantang. Its total length is 1801 kilometers and is the longest artificial river in the world.