Climbing a 1,000-meter-high cliff in Chongqing

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The Cloud Bridge in Yunyang Longgang Scenic Zone in Southwest China's Chongqing opened to the public on April 26. (Photos provided to chinadaily.com.cn)

Do you have the guts to walk the 700-meter-high steel cable bridge or climb the 1,000-meter-high cliff in the mountains of Chongqing?

The Cloud Bridge, part of the Via Ferrata project and located in the Yunyang Longgang Scenic Zone in Southwest China's Chongqing, opened to the public April 26.

The bridge is over 700 meters high and primarily consists of a climbing ladder, cable bridge, cliff climbing and other projects, according to information released by Yunyang county government.

Tourists can experience breathtaking views climbing the mountain via the steel handrails, life cable, and other facilities, and even those with no climbing experience can scale the steep cliff safely, according to the government.

Visitors can take in the whole project in one hour, it added.

To ensure the project's safety, Yunyang Longgang Scenic Zone adopted a special chemical anchoring technology to implant steel anchors one meter deep into the rocks, and the working load of each steel cable can reach two tons.

It also introduced protection technology from Italy to ensure tourists' safety ? the protection device cannot be turned on without a professional tool or help from staff members.

There are dozens of lifeline protection anchors protecting the entire system even if faults occur to one or two .

Staff members say the Via Ferrata is a both a physical and mental challenge for ordinary people.

Via Ferrata means "steel path" in Italian, originating from the metal ladders used by the military in WWI to navigate the mountains. Today Via Ferrata is seen as a useful way to encourage tourism and increase the range of activities available to visitors.