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2006 Great China Ride

March - April 2006
A 15-day adventure by The World on Two Wheels Read more
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  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride

    How Did it all Start ?

    March 15, 2006 in Australia ⋅ 🌧 16 °C

    Like all of life’s true adventures this one began unexpectedly. About eight months ago I was sitting in my office plowing through the daily deluge of unsolicited e-mails. As I was working down the list with my finger regularly tapping the DELETE key, I happened to notice one unfamiliar message from a sender with the somewhat whimsical name of Grasshopper Adventures. For some reason I withdrew my deadly deletion finger and decided to read the message. I discovered a list of Asian cycling adventures which undoubtedly struck a chord somewhere in my imagination.

    I had been harboring a wish to take my Ghost Rider cycling companions on an overseas adventure, but my initial efforts had met with limited interest. As I read the e-mail further, I was particularly attracted to a tour to the rather exotic soundly Tiger Leaping Gorge in the Chinese Himalaya. Although I had never even heard of Tiger Leaping Gorge, I quickly knew that this would be a ride that I would like to do – after all it combined the two great loves of my life (cycling and high mountains).

    Within a couple of days, I had learnt a lot more about Tiger Leaping Gorge, including the fact that it is one of the narrowest and deepest gorges on earth. I started to imagine a group of our cyclists riding through the gorge wearing their famous yellow jerseys. Although I was excited about the prospect, I still had the rather daunting proposition of getting at least 10 others to share the adventure with me.

    The first step was to notify the members of the Ghost Riders via our regular e-mail newsletter. Almost immediately I had the first keen acceptance, John Green was just as excited as I was and asked me to put his name on the list. Over the next couple of months, the number gradually grew as new participants decided that they would also like to be a part of our Tiger Leaping Gorge Adventure. For some the decision was easy, but for others it was much more difficult. The hardest part of any such challenge is not the physical aspect, but the fear of the unknown, of not knowing exactly what to expect once we arrived in China.

     Since the initial dream had been mine, I also carried the added fear that I could be leading the other participants into a disaster of some magnitude. With 4 months to go we exceeded our target group size with 13 riders signed up and ready to go. A new chapter in all of our lives was about to begin.

    At the time I did not realise that this adventure would change my life forever.

    Now that the adventure is over, you can read about some of our experiences in the pages that follow.    Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 1

    Goodbye Melbourne

    March 31, 2006 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    We departed Australia for Bangkok at 0.20 am, arriving at approximately 600 am local time. We then caught a connecting flight to Kunming, landing at 2 pm local time. Our first overseas cycling adventure had finally begun.Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 1

    Kunming Arrival

    March 31, 2006 in China ⋅ 19 °C

    We were met at the Kunming Airport by Naomi Skinner from Bike Asia, and then transported to our hotel in the centre of the city. It had been a long day.

    Kunming is a surprisingly modern and pleasant city and has plenty of interesting historical sights such as the Tanhua temple, the Eastern and Western pagodas and the Incantation Pillar. We had a walk through the back streets of the old quarter with its family run traditional shops selling anassortment of weird and exotic paraphernalia.Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 2

    Kunming Free Day

    April 1, 2006 in China ⋅ 17 °C

    When I arrived at Kunming Airport, I started to chat with a young local girl who happened to speak quite reasonable English. I asked her, if there was only one thing in Kunming that we should see, what would it be ? Her answer was "Western Mountain". I had no idea what that was, but I decided that we should check it out for ourselves.

    On our free day in Kunming we found ourselves squashed in our minibus and weaving through the streets to Western Mountain. We certainly were not disappointed with what we found there. The whole complex is carved into an almost vertical cliff face, offering panoramic views down to the city. From time to time the path emerged onto tiny viewing platforms, precariously situated hundreds of metres above the valley floor.

    It turned into a magical day. Tomorrow we head out of Kunming and to the town of LiJiang, the start of our cycling.    Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 3

    Arrive Li Jiang

    April 2, 2006 in China

    This morning we caught a domestic flight from Kunming to Li Jiang. We were transported to our lovely traditional Chinese hotel. After lunch walked to the old part of the town to explore the labyrinth of tiny streets and canals.

    The UNESCO World Cultural Heritage town of Lijiang is situated at 2,440m above sea level. The old town of Lijiang is home to the fascinating Naxi people, descendants from Tibetan nomads. Women in the Naxi community play a strong role in the family and in business. The traditional blue clothes of the Naxi are still worn by many today.

    This was an enchanting place to explore the narrow cobbled streets, ancient bridges and marvel at the traditional curved roofs of the wooden houses. The afternoon was spent on a walking tour through some of the old neighbourhoods visiting the Museum of Naxi culture, and the Black Dragon Pool with stunning views of the jagged snow capped Jade Dragon Snow Mountains (5596m high at the southern edge of the Tibetan Plateau).

    In the evening we walked back to the nearby old city where we had dinner, then engaged with the locals in a series of singing challenges. We didn't really understand what was going on, but it certainly was a lot of fun.    Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 4

    LiJiang - Cycle to Lashi Lake

    April 3, 2006 in China ⋅ 12 °C

    Today was our first day’s ride. A "gentle introduction" to warm those leg muscles up as we cycle around the beautiful Lashi Lake. It was supposed to be flat, but that turned out to be a lie. This lake is found at an elevation of 2500m and
    is home to tens of thousands of migratory birds such as the black necked crane.

     We passed through small Naxi villages and experienced the traditional rural
    lifestyle of this intriguing ethnic minority. The cycling provided an escape into
    Old China with a step back in time as we ride under the shadow of the Yulong
    Mountains, the southern most section of Himalayas.

    Today also included a few sections of off road cycling, appreciated by those who enjoy getting off the sealed paths.

    Cycle 40 km    Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 5

    Cycle to Bai Shui He

    April 4, 2006 in China

    A varied and spectacular days riding as we took back roads out of Lijiang past the
    ancient villages of Su He and Baisha, famous for their 15th century Buddhist fresco paintings which depict scenes of village life.

    During the day we rode along a mixture of sealed roads and packed dirt paths that took us past an intricate terraced landscape and unusual buildings such as the Yu Feng temple, a Tibetan Buddhist monastery.

     We started off with quiet roads and moderate inclines and built up to two climbs before lunch, neither long but the second was on cobblestones. Soon
    after we stopped for lunch at the small but pretty Jade Lade.

     We continued on a few kilometres of rough dirt track before we were back onto tarmac and a welcome descent to get ready for our last but longest ascent for the day. It was seven kilometres up but the road was good, and the view is spectacular. We then had our last descent down to the valley of Bai Shui He and our home for the night, a quiet location with awesome views of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and renowned for its crystal blue waters.

    Cycle 60 km    Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 6

    Cycle to Tiger leaping Gorge

    April 5, 2006 in China

    Few rides can match the magnificent scenery and sense of adventure when cycling through the famous Tiger Leaping Gorge of the Yangtze River, a spectacular mountain area. This is one of the deepest and most dramatic gorges in the world, rising 3900m from the river to the snow capped peaks. (Twice the height of the Grand Canyon!).

    We start the day with a huge climb along cliff hugging roads with dramatic drops and, following a descent to match, headed into the valley floor of the Hei Shui River. A second and more difficult climb due to cobblestones brought us
    to Mao Niu Ping and a well deserved coffee break.

     A final short climb and we reached our highest point of the trip, 3300m. Here we took a well-deserved rest and looked down at the tiny Naxi villages nested in the hillside. We then braced ourselves for a spectacular 30km downhill descent on rocky roads to Daju.

     From here we hiked down to the river, crossed in a small ancient ferry (with the bikes) and then a steep climb out of the gorge for 2km. We then rode the remaining 10km into the gorge along the spectacular road that has been cut out of the steep cliffs. As we cycle up the Yangtze we were amazed by the height of the canyon walls towering above us.

    Our efforts were rewarded when we reached the narrowest part (20 metres) of the gorge that takes its name from the myth of a tiger escaping its hunters by leaping across this gap.

    We finally stopped at a small cluster of houses (Walnut Grove) half way up the gorge for an overnight stay in a guesthouse. A warm top was needed as the steep gorge hides the sun after 3.00pm.

    It had been an exhausting 70 km ride and 2 km hike.    Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 7

    Tiger Leaping Gorge Free Day

    April 6, 2006 in China

    To recover from our efforts of yesterday, we were rewarded with a free day in the gorge. It was a fantastic opportunity to explore the gorge on two feet, also to relax at Sean's Guesthouse and enjoy the unbelievable views across the gorge to the opposite cliffs. They were almost 4000 metres high and close to vertical. Way below us was the famous Yangtze River, roaring its way through the narrow gorge.Read more

  • The World on Two Wheels2006 Great China Ride
    Day 8

    Shigu, Yunnan

    April 7, 2006 in China

    Today we had a pretty ride out of the gorge, winding back along the Yangtze river through remote towns, road side villages and terraced paddy fields. We followed the river to what is known as the 'first bend' of the Yangtze since leaving Tibet.
    This is a popular spot for local women to sell fruit and other local produce. On the bank of the river there is a memorial hall commemorating the famous Long March.

    Today's ride was a mixture of long patches of flat road, some spiraling hills and nice descents.

    Overnight is at the ancient town of Shigu, where the river was crossed in 1936 by the People's Army led by Mao Zedong. It is also believed that Khublai Khan, the
    grandson of Genghis Khan, crossed here when Mongolia was the largest empire in the world.

    Cycling 75 km    Read more

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