Adventure Motorcycle Magazine Subscribe Now

Thread: MyChinaMotoTrip

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 18
  1. #1 MyChinaMotoTrip 
    C-Moto Senior Roadrunner's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Kunming
    Posts
    150
    Stage one – Figuring out where to go

    G’day,

    I just want to share some info that I’ve come across in the past couple of months (most of it from this forum) which has been very useful in planning my China bike trip.

    About 10 months ago, I arrived in Chongqing to start a year long work contract. I had just finished off a short but intense two month ride in India and was keen as mustard to get back on a bike and do some more riding. I bought a big map of China and marked out all of the interesting places I wanted to go to and it looked something like this.

    way副本副本.jpg


    The easiest choice was the round trip, to get the most destinations and riding distance, and to avoid mucking around with trains. The current route is around 20,000 kms total and goes through 17 provinces and 4 municipalities.

    The original route changed a little after I read through some posts here and talked to some people. The highlight of the trip was supposed to be T*bed, but it turns out that it’s far too expensive and troublesome to do by myself. The requirement for the guide within the region is the main issue because I would have to pay for all of his/her expenses (accommodation, food etc) as well as the salary, fuel and hirage for the other vehicle and more fees. I was quoted by one company in Kashgar for RMB80,000 for 28 days (I was originally planning only 21 days in T*bed) and a very helpful ryanjpyle said that it can cost upwards of RMB1500 a day just to comply with the regulations for foreigners, not including my own expenses. I have wanted to visit T*bed for years so it’s a real bummer to not be going there. I’ll be bypassing the big T by going through Qinghai and into Western Sichuan.

    I’ll be starting in Chongqing on the 1st of March so I decided to go anti-clockwise to give Spring some time to catch the more western and northern areas. It might still be a bit cold when I get to Harbin in early April though, and apparently they can get some pretty nasty thunderstorms in Qinghai around May so there’s that to keep in mind. I wanted to take 5 or 6 months to ride around, but my work contract has been extended to another 18 months, so they gave me 3 and a half months off to do this trip. I hope to finish in 100 days on the 6th of June.

    I need to avoid going into many of the bigger cities on the route. Fortunately Chongqing seems to be more motorcycle tolerant than other cities in China, so I’ve had a bit of practice and I can park my bike in a garage downstairs. The list I have (courtesy of Mr. ChinaV) of no-go-moto-cities:

    Guangdong Province - Guangzhou, Zhongshan, Shaoguan, Zhuhai, Dongguan, Shantou, Shenzhen
    Liaoning Province - Shenyang, Dandong, Dalian, Tieling, Benxi, Anshan
    Jiangsu Province - Nanjing, Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou, Zhenjiang, Nantong, Yangzhou, Yancheng, Huai'an, Xuzhou, Taizhou, Changshu, Zhangjiagang, Jiangyin, Lianyungang, Kunshan
    Fujiang Province - Fuzhou, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Longyan, Xiamen
    Zhejiang Province - Hangzhou, Wenzhou, Ningbo, Jiaxing, Shaoxing, Yiwu
    Shandong Province - Yantai, Qingdao, Jinan
    Hebei Province - Shijiazhuang, Tangshan, Zhangjiakou, Qinhuangdao
    Henan Province - Luoyang, Zhengzhou, Xinxiang, Nanyang, Linzhou, Jiaozou, Anyang
    Heilongjiang Province - Harbin
    Guizhou Province - Guiyang, Anshun, Tongren, Duyun, Zunyi
    Anhui Province - Hefei
    Jiangxi Province - Nanchang, Jiujiang
    Hunan Province - Changsha, Xiangtan, Yueyang, Zhangjiajie, Hengyang
    Sichuan Province -Chengdu, Mianyang, Deyang, Yibin
    Yunnan Province - Kunming, Yuxi, Qujing, Mengzi
    Hainan Province - Haikou
    Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region - Nanning
    Hubei Province - Wuhan, Xiangfan, Yichang, Zhongxiang
    Shaanxi Province - Xian
    Shanxi Province - Taiyuan
    Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region - Baotou, Ordos, Dongsheng, Hohhot
    Jilin Province - Changchun
    Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region - Yinchuan
    Gansu Province - Lanzhou
    Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region - Urumqi

    With some of the cities (like Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou etc) I’ll be parking the bike outside the restricted zone so I can bus or train into the city and nosy around the more interesting parts and take some photos.

    I will also have to stay off the expressways in most provinces. I’ve been told by an MCM member here in Chongqing that in Guizhou you can drive on the expressways. Does anyone know if any other provinces allow motorcycles on their expressways?

    Does anyone know some scenic/twisty/generally awesome bits of road on the way around?


    Cheers,

    Jeremy
    Reply With Quote  
     

  2. #2 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    Life Is Good! ChinaV's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Guangdong, China
    Posts
    1,508
    Hi Jeremy,

    A couple things to think about.

    The list of cities is something you need to explore on a case by case basis. Many of those places are in the process of banning motorcycles, and that takes years to effectively implement. For instance, Kunming is a good place to stop for supplies and gather intel from the MCM community (also a nice place). With a little local knowledge, it's easy to enter and exit on motorcycle. However, Guangzhou is probably the least motorcycle friendly city I know in China, and I wouldn't suggest entering under any circumstance.

    You have 3.5 months to cover a lot of ground, my question is, why? The entire eastern seaboard is the same giant pile of tiled concrete over and over. Sure, there are some interesting people and roads, but it's not the best this country has to offer, not by a long shot. Just a personal view, and not trying to tell you how to do your trip, but I would cut the country in half and focus on everything in the west and a bit of the north. Maybe start off from Chongqing, head down towards Guilin/Yangshuo via western Hubei and Hunan, then spend a month covering Yunnan and the Tibetan plateau of Sichuan, another month heading west through Qinghai and Xinjiang, then east through Gansu and Inner Mongolia, and finally head back home through Shanxi etc.

    The western part of China is changing fast, and the opportunity to discover it is rapidly slipping away. The eastern half is already well developed with most of the good places now being expensive tourist traps. You can always take a long weekend and send your bike by train to go explore parts you're interested in, but it's pretty difficult to cover places like Xinjiang without a lot of time. Instead of blasting through the country on roads that have already been done by thousands of other tourists, maybe it would be better to spend more time in those special areas exploring villages and trails other people don't get to see.

    Just my 2 cents. Whatever you decide, looking forward to following your journey, and hope we get to see a lot more of your photography.

    Cheers!
    ChinaV
    Reply With Quote  
     

  3. #3 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    C-Moto Guru Supersignet's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Location
    Red China
    Posts
    405
    Listen to the V. The west is where china hides its goodness
    Reply With Quote  
     

  4. #4 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    C-Moto Senior Roadrunner's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Kunming
    Posts
    150
    Quote Originally Posted by ChinaV View Post
    Hi Jeremy,

    A couple things to think about.

    The list of cities is something you need to explore on a case by case basis. Many of those places are in the process of banning motorcycles, and that takes years to effectively implement. For instance, Kunming is a good place to stop for supplies and gather intel from the MCM community (also a nice place). With a little local knowledge, it's easy to enter and exit on motorcycle. However, Guangzhou is probably the least motorcycle friendly city I know in China, and I wouldn't suggest entering under any circumstance.

    You have 3.5 months to cover a lot of ground, my question is, why? The entire eastern seaboard is the same giant pile of tiled concrete over and over. Sure, there are some interesting people and roads, but it's not the best this country has to offer, not by a long shot. Just a personal view, and not trying to tell you how to do your trip, but I would cut the country in half and focus on everything in the west and a bit of the north. Maybe start off from Chongqing, head down towards Guilin/Yangshuo via western Hubei and Hunan, then spend a month covering Yunnan and the Tibetan plateau of Sichuan, another month heading west through Qinghai and Xinjiang, then east through Gansu and Inner Mongolia, and finally head back home through Shanxi etc.

    The western part of China is changing fast, and the opportunity to discover it is rapidly slipping away. The eastern half is already well developed with most of the good places now being expensive tourist traps. You can always take a long weekend and send your bike by train to go explore parts you're interested in, but it's pretty difficult to cover places like Xinjiang without a lot of time. Instead of blasting through the country on roads that have already been done by thousands of other tourists, maybe it would be better to spend more time in those special areas exploring villages and trails other people don't get to see.

    Just my 2 cents. Whatever you decide, looking forward to following your journey, and hope we get to see a lot more of your photography.

    Cheers!
    ChinaV
    Hey, thanks for the feedback.

    I’m still not very sure what to expect so I’ll be playing alot of it by ear, and listening intently to advice from experienced persons

    The main reason I want to do this is to see as much of China as I can by going to as many regions as possible. I know some of it won’t be pretty or easy, but I’d like to see it anyway. Guangzhou sounds unpleasant for any rider, so I’ll take your advice and stay away to save my wallet and my sanity. I’m also going to skip Qingdao and Fuzhou and spend more time in Yunnan now. Here is a more detailed GoogleMap of the general route.

    Another reason for the length is that I’m also raising funds for a charity called Half the Sky Foundation, which is a registered charity that works in orphanages all over China. I’d like to raise USD$1 for every kilometer I travel, and the total will go to the Infant Nurture Program at the Urumuqi centre in Xinjiang.

    No doubt I’ll be back to see the more scenic places when I get the chance (hopefully before the concrete tiles get there), but I’m sure that the ride will raise more money if it is longer and covers more regions. There are a lot of articles around about people doing charity motorcycle trips through Africa to raise funds for charities that work there, so it would be great to do the same in the world's 2nd largest developing country.

    I'm sure I can get some epic photos on the way too. I took Motokai’s advice and got the latest from the Nikon P range (the P7000) and I'm still learning how to drive it. I’d like to put the helmet-cam to some use too and upload some videos to MCM at some stage as well. I’m still figuring that one out.

    Cheers
    Reply With Quote  
     

  5. #5 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    Administrator-tron CrazyCarl's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Location
    NoVA
    Posts
    2,540
    Yes, listen to the V.

    CC
    ---------------------------------------------------
    Subscribe to the hippest, most happeneing Adventure Motorcycle Magazine around!
    Adventure Motorcycle Dual Sport News Magazine

    Help support MCM!! Buy "The Return - Riding Western China" DVD! -

    http://www.motocyclops.com/buydvd/

    Personal China travel info, photo and video site:

    http://www.carlparker.com

    Reply With Quote  
     

  6. #6 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    Administrator-tron CrazyCarl's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Location
    NoVA
    Posts
    2,540
    If you insist on doing the east side as well, then I would suggest getting it out of the way first. I think it would be very difficult to come back east after having seem so much of the western half.

    Like the saying goes... "Go West you man!"

    CC
    ---------------------------------------------------
    Subscribe to the hippest, most happeneing Adventure Motorcycle Magazine around!
    Adventure Motorcycle Dual Sport News Magazine

    Help support MCM!! Buy "The Return - Riding Western China" DVD! -

    http://www.motocyclops.com/buydvd/

    Personal China travel info, photo and video site:

    http://www.carlparker.com

    Reply With Quote  
     

  7. #7 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    Life Is Good! ChinaV's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Guangdong, China
    Posts
    1,508
    Quote Originally Posted by CrazyCarl View Post
    Like the saying goes... "Go West you man!"
    Or as Jim Morrison said "The west is the best. The west is the best. Get here and we'll do the rest."

    +1 on what CC mentioned. The east will be a major let down after the amazing scenery in the west. It's like visiting Disneyland and then getting stuck at the county fair.

    Cheers!
    ChinaV
    Reply With Quote  
     

  8. #8 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    C-Moto Guru Fred's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Shanghai
    Posts
    333
    Just my 2 cents : saw a lot of bikes in Kunming (125 & 250) last week, same in Chengdu.
    I don't know if this no-go-moto-cities list is updated or as ChinaV said only in the process of being implemented.

    The best spotting was 2 big street bikes zooming by on a street in Kunming, didn't spot the brand of the 1st, but the 2nd one looked like a BMW roadster to me. Impressive to say the least, and definitely more than 500cc bikes.
    Reply With Quote  
     

  9. #9 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    Administrator-tron CrazyCarl's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Location
    NoVA
    Posts
    2,540
    Only this time the county fair is ten times more expensive and people spit on you while you're on the rides! GAAH!!!


    CC

    Quote Originally Posted by ChinaV View Post
    Or as Jim Morrison said "The west is the best. The west is the best. Get here and we'll do the rest."

    +1 on what CC mentioned. The east will be a major let down after the amazing scenery in the west. It's like visiting Disneyland and then getting stuck at the county fair.

    Cheers!
    ChinaV
    ---------------------------------------------------
    Subscribe to the hippest, most happeneing Adventure Motorcycle Magazine around!
    Adventure Motorcycle Dual Sport News Magazine

    Help support MCM!! Buy "The Return - Riding Western China" DVD! -

    http://www.motocyclops.com/buydvd/

    Personal China travel info, photo and video site:

    http://www.carlparker.com

    Reply With Quote  
     

  10. #10 Re: MyChinaMotoTrip 
    Administrator-tron CrazyCarl's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Location
    NoVA
    Posts
    2,540
    Isn't the BMW Roadster a car?

    CC

    Quote Originally Posted by Fred View Post
    Just my 2 cents : saw a lot of bikes in Kunming (125 & 250) last week, same in Chengdu.
    I don't know if this no-go-moto-cities list is updated or as ChinaV said only in the process of being implemented.

    The best spotting was 2 big street bikes zooming by on a street in Kunming, didn't spot the brand of the 1st, but the 2nd one looked like a BMW roadster to me. Impressive to say the least, and definitely more than 500cc bikes.
    ---------------------------------------------------
    Subscribe to the hippest, most happeneing Adventure Motorcycle Magazine around!
    Adventure Motorcycle Dual Sport News Magazine

    Help support MCM!! Buy "The Return - Riding Western China" DVD! -

    http://www.motocyclops.com/buydvd/

    Personal China travel info, photo and video site:

    http://www.carlparker.com

    Reply With Quote  
     

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Bookmarks
Bookmarks
Posting Permissions
  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •