Nice thread, mnredfox! Thanks for pulling it together and updating information and prices.

On the subject of the Middle Gorge fees: to my knowledge what the villagers are saying has always been true: they do maintain the paths down from road to river and they are not getting any cut of the Gorge official entry fee, nor other government funds to do so. I suggest that the only two routes to consider heading down to the Middle Gorge are the central and/or the far eastern one (options 2 and 3 as identified by fox). The most western one could be skipped. Except for the final platform down at the river itself, there had never been any other fees collected for stopping and resting at the intermediate "huts" or platforms---so this would be a new development and this is where I think there may be a bit of a scam going on. However, if you are buying a Snickers, fruit or a bottled water from a villager anyway, I'm sure it's possible to charm your way out of paying any "platform fee." Hikers should just keep a few extra RMB 5 and 10 notes on them if they want to use the paths: Life's too short to sweat the small stuff.