This week’s Travelsonabike2 bicycle touring post comes from China on the 12th-January-2012. Finally, I’ve managed to leave Bangladesh, and I’m back cycling towards Australia. But it’s hard going in the mountains of the Chinese district of Yunnan.
Thursday 12th January 2012 Yuri to Yuanjiang. 94 miles.
Yay, I passed the 4000-mile mark today. But boy, has it been hard going. There have been some long climbs today, but the view at the top of them has been spectacular. I’d be cycling along, thinking, would this hill ever end? Then I’d turn a corner, and the landscape would open up, and I’d be looking out over the lush green mountains of Yunnan.
Despite it being a hard ride today, the roads have been very quiet. Most traffic goes on a new motorway that carves its way through the mountains. Sometimes, I’m cycling beside it. The next, I’m looking down on it as it disappears through a tunnel carved into the mountain.
There was a bit of a worry at one point this morning. I could see and had been smelling smoke for quite a while but never took too much notice of it. But then, when I rounded a corner, I could see a forest fire on the other side of the valley. Few, that’s okay then. But then, as I cycled on, the fire was on my side of the valley, thankfully, though the main part of the fire was above me. Although there were a few patches burning next to me on the road! I don’t think there was any real danger, though. None of the people in the villages that were closer to the fires than me were taking any notice.
A Long Day
It’s been a long day. I didn’t finish cycling until gone 8 o’clock and in the dark. And for the time I’ve spent cycling, I’ve not covered that many miles. It’s these hills. It takes me so long to drudge up them. And then I can’t even fly down the other side. The roads are too bumpy and unkept; one thing, though: I passed the 4000-mile mark today.
It’s another cheap hotel tonight, it only cost me £7, and these are proper hotels. Although they do have some strange things in the rooms. Both the hotel yesterday and today have had condoms in the rooms. So if I get lucky, I’ll be okay. They also had cigarettes and Chinese pot noodles. Also, a spare pair of pants for him and her tonight. But no minibar.
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