Chongqing to Hohhot

[futianshenzhen]

23rd

I ate so much I nearly puked last night, walked back to the hotel slowly and carefully just managing to keep it down. Set off at 9.30 to get properly into the grasslands, there was a gap of about 20 kms between two x roads that I thought I could bridge. The bike spluttered a couple of times on the way there but I decided to press on and found a dirt track that looked to be heading in the right direction. Off I went thinking I'd show those luvvies McGregor and Boorman how its done, unfortunately the spluttering got more and more frequent until finally the bike was dead in the water. I tried to mess around with the coil and it fired up momentarily but no long term joy, so I pushed it the final 4 kilometres to the tarmac road then 5 more to the nearest town, Siziwang. There, the first mechanic didn't have a new coil but gave me a used one and invited me in for a drink (I probably looked like I needed it), disappointingly I only made it a few hundred metres up the road before it konked out again, luckily near a bigger bike shop. I changed the coil for a new one and gave it a test ride but it spluttered to a halt pretty quickly. I forced a reluctant mechanic to try it and he came back saying a wire was being nipped while steering, he then came out with a meter and I knew then I had the right man for the job. He quickly found the problem and I now have no tachometer but I do have a running bike. I know the yingang so well now I don't really need the taco anyway. So mission accomplished, a Mongolian offroad adventure was certainly achieved, it was a bit of a ballache but at least the bike is ready for the return leg. Got back into town for a traditional meal of pot au sheep, I fly out tomorrow and will leave the bike with the good people at suzuki. Total kms 3410.


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Golden hans - a dangerous place for the weak willed

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Grasslands


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Start of track connecting the two x roads


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Nice wood amoung the steppe


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Reminded me of the south of France