Well, it's been quite a while now since the last update on our ride here on mychinamoto but a lot has happened since the last update which left us at Xi'an.

We've now ridden through 11 provinces (1/3 of the way done!) and have passed 10,000km.

We are currently in Xinjiang province, at our most western point in Kashgar.

We visited the western end of the Great Wall in Jiayuguan

Hiked the sand dunes in Dunhuang and visited the ancient Buddha grottoes (Some beautiful desert roads on the approach to the city)

We went to one of the lowest points in earth in the Turpan Depression getting stuck in a massive sandstorm while visiting the monument at Aiding Lake

Went up a gorgeous mountain climb south of Urumqi but required 100km of riding on unpaved road climbing up to 4,600m (highest point of the trip so far).

Taking some days off now in Kashgar while we wait for our Tibet tour guide and permits. Had to go on a pretty eventful visa run to Kyrgyzstan though while we waited!

Just some quick road and riding tips:

The guys at the CFMOTO (and also Shineray) shop in Urumqi are top notch. Best of the trip so far and highly recommend if you're there and having any troubles.

Both approach roads to Dunhuang make for some beautiful riding. Empty, flat stretches of desert highway lined the whole way with melon stands

There is a lakeside road at Bositeng Lake in Xinjiang that is really nice as well but a bit windy.

The route between Turpan and Urumqi has an area that is susceptible to extremely high winds and they have a pretty famous wind farm there. Check before leaving what the wind speeds are because on good days you have to drive at 60-80km, meaning bad days are almost unrideable.

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