2006 Great China Ride

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.Leer más