The rewarding us with punishment tour

[jape]

Stunning pictures of what is becoming a real adventure and a great story. I loved that old mastiff, old soul eyes asking you who you are. I hope you gave him a biscuit or a pat? Sod the rabies, he deserves one!

[moilami]

Day 9

I'm fairly sure this person had no idea where we wanted to go.

Great report with especially good stuff in this phase!

[felix]

Damn dude i just realised you forgot to put up the best picture from Luguhu!

[ChinaV]

And I also forgot to mention your little crash that day . Must be my old age.



Cheers!
ChinaV

[bigdamo]

Great story Great photo's

Some people think China is a land just full of big cities this shows a side of China we will never see.

Those biker's from Panzihua where some on Japanese motorcycles?

[ChinaV]

Day 10

If you're a light sleeper, never share a room with your riding buddies. On the two occasions in my life I've done so, both could have gone the wrong way and ended in murder. As the straight pipe Harley Davidson sleeping next to me continued to slumber, I decided to get up and start the morning ritual around 5:30. Felix and Daniel were soon to follow and we actually managed to get on the road by 7:00.

We had inquired about directions and road conditions the night before, and my earlier hunch was proven correct. The road we were now on may become S216 someday, but for now, it's basically just a logging trail through the mountains. It's hardly used, and almost impassible on anything other than a motorcycle. This sounded like a lot of fun, so we headed off to find gas and filled up at this "full service" station.



A local villager circles a stupa while out for her morning stroll.



This is the town we stayed in. It looked so peaceful compared to the shit storm of construction and mining only 2 kilometers behind us.



Flowers, no idea what kind.



This woman seemed quite interested in our bikes as we passed by. It's not an easy life here, you can see it in her hands and face.







One of many small bridges we passed on our way up the mountain. Most of them were very narrow and barely strong enough for motorcycles. I couldn't imagine trying to get through with a 4WD.



This place is heaven on a dirt bike.









We stopped at this pile of Mani stones and chatted with a local gentleman. He was sporting a very cool knife and mentioned we might need one in some spots where the road gets bad. The Mani stones are plates inscribed with a six syllabled mantra "Om Mani Padme Hum" (Hail to the jewel in the lotus). We will be seeing lots more, as we are now traveling in the Tibetan area of Sichuan.



As the elevation increases, so do the Yak sightings.





We finally reach a peak at 4400 meters / 14,435 feet, and decide to yak with the yaks for a while.



We always seemed to find perfect campsites at ten o'clock in the morning. Wish we had made it here last night.





Looking off into the distance, you can see the 3 holy peaks, which were blessed in the eighth century by Buddha Padmasambhava. The south peak Jambeyang (mostly hidden to the left) at 5,958m/19,547ft is the avatar of Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom. Chanadorje (middle) also 5,958m/19,547ft represents Vajrapani , the Bodhisattva of Wrath. Chenresig (right) at 6,032m/19,790ft, the highest of the trio, symbolizes Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Mercy. It is said that if a Tibetan makes a pilgrimage to the shrine 3 times in their life, they will be blessed with all they desire.



We descended for over two hours, and as the afternoon wore on, our stomachs started to grumble. We hadn't seen any sign of civilization, and at one point, the road became little more than a trail passing through the trees. As we arrived at a junction, we were fortunate enough to meet a passing stranger who told us we would come to a logging camp in about three kilometers. We may even find some food there. Upon arrival, we were happy to see lots of beer, but the only food to be found were a couple containers of instant ramen noodles (starch, salt, MSG) good enough for us. This lady stopped to gaze at the strange foreigners, I liked the combination of ethnic dress complimented with her "Chairman Mao" hat.



The cow was hoping to get in on some of our noodle action. Mooooo sounds the same in Chinese, in case you were wondering.



We made it out of the logging forest and the scenery turned harsh. A deep gorge with the fast running Wuliang River was bordered by mountains that were brown and devoid of almost any vegetation. The only green areas were the tiny Tibetan villages dotting the sides of the hills. How these people survive here is a testament to their strong will. There was a newly built bridge spanning the river and I knew this was the crossing for S216. The problem, again, was that the road ended after two kilometers. The line showing S216 continuing west on the map was nothing more than an optimistic view of a road that will exist, someday. With nobody around to ask directions, we decided to head north. Not that we really had much choice, move forward and hope for the best, or backtrack 75 kilometers through the mountains. Onward ho!



Moving forward was working out well for us, and we eventually met a nice man tending his fields. We asked if the road would bring us to Daocheng and he nodded in approval. He told us the road could only be crossed by motorcycle or horseback and it would probably take four or five hours. I looked at the map and GPS, then estimated maybe forty kilometers. How could that take four hours? Surely the old man must have meant by horseback. Roughly four hours later we were half way to our destination looking for a campsite. Pretty smart old man.



After an hour of climbing, we had only covered about 10 kilometers, or roughly 200 meters as the crow flies.



We stopped at this small stupa and made a round of prayers. Make sure you walk around these from the left, as that is the custom of the Tibetans in this region.



The prayer wheels, spun clockwise. The direction in which the earth and the universe revolve, according to Buddhist doctrine



As it started to get late, we stopped in several of these Tibetan towns trying to find food, water and beer.



One of the local children taking care of her brother. Shy but curious.



Around 7:00 we finally resolved to camping at the next piece of flat ground. The canyon walls were steep and offered no place to set up a tent. There was little vegetation to hide behind, and whatever we seemed to find was obviously privately owned land that we were not keen to camp on without permission. We passed a bridge, and the low water level provided a nice sandy spot for us to call home for the night. It was a bit more exposed than we would have liked, but seemed like a safe enough place to settle. Finally we were camping, now if we could just get the damn stove going, life should be good.



Chinabiker and I always pick names for our campsites, so I guess I will name this one "Camp Bridgeside". The location turned out to be pretty good. A very friendly man had a house nearby, and he brought us gifts of firewood, walnuts, and some super strong hooch (moonshine). The conversation went late into the night as he shared many stories of how the area and people had changed since he was a child. With a billion stars overhead, the glow of the campfire, and the lack of my buddies snoring, I slept like rock.



That was probably one of the most epic days I've ever experienced on a motorcycle.

Cheers!
ChinaV

Distance = 130 Kilometers - Time = 11:00 Hours - Average Moving Speed = 21 kph

[ZMC888]

Wow, the three peaks are a proper mountain view!

[moilami]

Day 10

If you're a light sleeper, never share a room with your riding buddies. On the two occasions in my life I've done so, both could have gone the wrong way and ended in murder. As the straight pipe Harley Davidson sleeping next to me continued to slumber, I decided to get up and start the morning ritual around 5:30. Felix and Daniel were soon to follow and we actually managed to get on the road by 7:00.




That was probably one of the most epic days I've ever experienced on a motorcycle.

Cheers!
ChinaV

Distance = 130 Kilometers - Time = 11:00 Hours - Average Moving Speed = 21 kph

You're doing it right

I have to say for me it would certainly been the most epic day as well! And can't say I have seen better in any other reports. Different yes, but not better though not worse. Epic is epic Yet I think the combination of scenary and roads were the best I have seen in this phase.

I am by the way also a light sleeper and can copy with your thougts regarding straight pipe harley davidsons Have to remember that when travelling alone as a positive thing.

[felix]

Those biker's from Panzihua where some on Japanese motorcycles?

Nope. One was on a Galaxy TGR and the other on a Shineray X2. I got a chance to try his X2 the night before and frankly it felt even less powerful than my XTR. There must have been something wrong with it to be honest.

[moilami]

You tour China with a china bike. Like you eat thai food in Thailand. Or you do it wrong