This story appears in the May 2006 issue of National Geographic magazine. I've always believed the best way to know a river is to paddle it, to feel its undercurrents and speed, to take in the ...

When finished next year, it will be the eighth dam on the Lancang River ... The Mekong begins on the Tibetan Plateau and runs for more than 2,600 miles through China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos ...

River water should instead be full of silt. The Mekong, South-east Asia’s main artery, winds 4,900km through China, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Its basin is dotted with 190 ...