Sun and his friend. Photo: Screenshot of web

Recently, a travel enthusiast surnamed Sun and his friend planned to row a boat from Hangzhou in East China's Zhejiang Province to Beijing. However, they only managed to row five kilometers in six hours and were persuaded to turn back before they had even left the city.

According to Sun, he said that he likes cycling and had been preparing for a boating trip for three months after reading the news that the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal was fully operational. 

"I had planned for about three months to try out a new way of traveling," Sun said.

After a local officer found them sailing illegally on the water, they were persuaded to turn back and received some guidance on the matter. 

Sun said he did not understand the regulations clearly and did not know that individual boating is not allowed on the Grand Canal. 

Later, Sun and his friend wrote a pledge stating that they had since recognized the danger of their actions. 

"It took me six hours to row about five kilometers before I got out of Hangzhou. The speed was slow. I had done some research online before, but it was not comprehensive enough. And I will not engage in such dangerous activities again," Sun noted.