Tour organizers want the country’s leading photographers to record the scenic landscapes and historic sites that are due to disappear forever when the dam reservoir begins filling with water next year. The trip is being jointly organized by the China Photographers Association, Qianlong (Thousand Dragon) News Net and Beijing Tourism College.

The tour is intended to generate top-quality photographs to enshrine in memory the magnificent Three Gorges themselves, as well as the many old towns and ancient temples, cultural relics and examples of traditional architecture that will be completely or partially inundated.

The itinerary is to include Baiheliang in Fuling city, Mingshan guicheng (Ghost City) in the old county seat of Fengdu, Shibaozhai, the old city of Wanzhou, ancient houses in Yunyang county, Zhangfei Temple and Baidicheng.

The photographers will be taken to the Three Gorges dam site itself, as well as to the Gezhouba dam 40 kilometres downstream.