The Nine-Bend River (九曲溪, Jiǔqū Xī) is the defining experience of Wuyishan. Flat-bottomed bamboo rafts carry four to six passengers in a slow 9.5-kilometre float downstream through a canyon of vertical red sandstone cliffs, past hanging temples built into rock faces, beneath overhanging peaks that close in to just a sliver of sky. The trip takes about two hours and the river lives up to the approach.
The cliffs rise 200 to 400 metres on both sides and the erosion has created a dramatic repertoire of shapes: columns, arches, overhangs, and cavities. Most famous are the Bronze Age cliff-face burial sites — wooden boat-coffins wedged into almost inaccessible crevices at the sheer faces of several bends. The coffins are visible from the raft and some have been dated to over 3,000 years ago. The rafts depart from the upper terminus at Xingcun and float downstream to the Wuyi Palace area; the trip is mostly downstream with a few sections of gentle current. Morning slots have better light; afternoons can be crowded.