Skywalk at Chiang Khan
Discovering part of the Mekong River
For a long time now, walking around this country from south to north or east to west has been an experience and a whole host of discoveries for me. More and more, you can access ‘skywalks’ on which you can walk and enjoy exceptional views, wearing special shoes to avoid scratching the glass.
The footbridge we're seeing today isn't exceptionally large, but it's more than enough to show you a beautiful part of the mythical Mekong River.
Some information about the Mekong
The Mekong is a river in South-East Asia, the tenth largest in the world and the fourth largest in Asia (after the Yangtze, the Ganges-Brahmaputra and the Yenisei), with an average annual flow of 284 km3. Figures for its length vary from 4,350 to 4,909 km, and its catchment area covers 810,000 km2.
Rising in Qinghai (in the Himalayas), in the Xian of Zadoi, on Mount Guozongmucha (果宗木查), the Mekong successively irrigates China (in Yunnan province), then flows through Cambodia, where the first arms of its delta are formed. The delta continues into southern Vietnam, where it is traditionally known as the ‘River of Nine Dragons’ (in Vietnamese: Sông Cử): Sông Cửu Long).
Around 70 million people live directly in its catchment area. Its main uses include irrigation, as a receptacle for drainage and wastewater systems, fishing and fish farming, hydroelectric generation (thanks to dams such as those in Yunnan), transport and the supply of water for industry and individuals. It is also known for its floating dwellings and markets.
Unluckily for us, we arrived at the end of the morning at this beautifully laid-out and very well-maintained site: at this hour, close to midday, the sun is at its highest and for amateur or professional photographers this is the worst time to bring back some pretty shots... after a lot of post-processing the result is not necessarily to be sneezed at.
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The Skywalk: is a glass footbridge located on a panoramic viewpoint built in 2020, situated in the front and at the foot of the Great Buddha of Phu Khok Ngio.
It rises 80 metres above the Mekong, the height of a 30-storey building. This 2-metre-wide, 80-metre-long glass walkway offers a panoramic view, particularly of the confluence of the Hueang and Mekong rivers.
