Quote Originally Posted by bigdamo View Post
Did you actually get off the G312 and come into Shihezi? I think you just kept on the G312 that is the outskirts of Shihezi and the industrial area.Not much appealing down there.

Xinjiang is a miltary region I'd be wary of the signs for a reason plus you being a foreigner should get a permit to travel that pass if something happens to you up there and you have to call in help they aren't go to be to happy coming and pulling you out.Did you tell anyone that you were doing that pass and were going to ring them when you safely made it through?

The weather up there can change real quick even in summer the storms come in real fast.

That said lots of foreigners do that pass with out a permit probably because if they ask for one they aren't going to get one.

Having that beard helps you .People around here will look at you and at first glance will think maybe your Uryghur or Hui rather than a foreigner.

Unfortunately, we didn't take the time to visit Shihezi. Just shot straight through.

Have you ever done the crossing?

We had no idea about the permit, and we thought that the road would be good because it's a national road. We also had no idea about what the weather could do in that region. We just wandered up to check it out and managed to get through. We also didn't tell anyone we were going because the possibility of getting stuck didn't occur to us.

Careless and naive of us I suppose.

Even now, I can't find information on the internet about the G217 permit. Do you know how someone else, planning to ride this road, could find out about the permit without putting their faith in the words of a travel agency? It's a stunning road and should be experienced before they pave it and put tunnels at the top of the passes.

Pat's mate wanted to ride through on a bicycle, and the travel agency asked 350 Euros to get the permit. Apparently the permit itself is practically free, but "there's a lot of paperwork". It seems a fairly steep price for paperwork, but I suppose that could include insurance in case the rider gets stranded and needs a rescue.

It's funny you mention the whole beard=Uigur thing. Most people in Xinjiang assumed I was Uigur, until I spoke