26 September. So today was our day off; completely dedicated to rest,
relaxation, and sight seeing. But I decided, after much
“encouragement” from the rest of the group to go for a run. Running
in a foreign place is one of the best ways to really take in a locale.
The pace allows for you to observe and think about things that you
would otherwise miss.
My guess is that the run was about 5 miles—a fairly short distance in
comparison to the other physical activity we have been involved in.
It was easy but it also hurt. There certainly was a general tightness
in my legs given our rides, but the real pain came from the incredibly
bad air here. My lungs were on fire; my throat sore; my nose
dripping. All of us complained of sinus issues and notices growing
cases of the “Chinese Crud.”
We had read about the respiratory problems of Chinese citizens prior
to the start of the trip. At each stop so far it has been reinforced
by men and women of all ages “hocking a loogey“ anywhere in public。
But it takes being here to understand exactly how bad it is.
All Chinese cities of any size or growth, which in China means of a
couple hundred thousand or more, seem to carry with it a foggy haze
that can blot out the sun. In the cities we have seen, one can see
lots of buildings and streets ripped up and wide open with piles of
dirt, rock, and equipment nearby. The workers and the dense traffic
kick up all kinds of dust. Along the roads, one can see diesel trucks
and motorcycles oozing thick black smoke, mechanics at their
storefronts performing their trade spilling oils and fluids on to the
sidewalks and roads, and pedestrians adding their own litter. Even in
the rural areas the amount of burning of random things that occurs
have left us will foul smells and lingering sinus pressures during the
rides.
To think of the tremendous growth in China throughout the hundreds if
not thousands of cities provides only a small indication of the scale
and scope of this pollution problem. A booming economy can leave
these sorts of things in the dust—literally. The lack of
understanding, appreciation, and concern of the problem only suggests
how difficult it will be to overcome.
So until then and for the rest of our ride, we push on, wipe the grit
from our face, spew the crud from our lungs, and enjoy the amazing
sights and incredible people we encounter. China is changing before
our eyes and it will never be like this again.
9/26/11
We are finally on our Megameter Ride to Nepal! (by Jim)
We are finally on our Megameter Ride to Nepal!
Thursday, September 22, we are leaving Lhasa (suicide traffic, noise, hotel rooms) for the quieter environs near Chusul, 52 flat miles at 12,000' along the Yarlung River. We still seem to be having bike breakdowns (flats, derailleurs, misc adjustments) topped by Dan blowing out a wheel rim along the way. WOW! We visited a painted buddha carved into a large rock formation and tashe delek'ed (hello'ed) everyone we saw. Met a local at lunch along the river doing his laundry. Apparently we are somewhat of a curiosity around here. Either bare skin or lycra or both... We made camp and met some campers next door from Australia. Invited them to happy hour with beer "cooled" in local water. Our camps come complete with dining tent, cook tent, privvy tent, and shower tent. Seemed to be another thing that attracted drive-by attention! Great dinner came out of that tent, including apple pie baked in a camp oven that Gene gave to the cook. We settled in to sleep at about 9PM, dark. Then there was this dog. Yap, yap, yap starting in our camp and continuing off into the distance. Finally it was over - until the blasted canine began again, from afar, back into our camp. As we later discovered, there seem to be relatives of this nuisance at ALL camp sites!
Friday, September 23, we got up early to pedal off at 9AM, after breakfast of bacon, eggs, pancakes, oatmeal, etc. We are not going to starve. The day's ride is a total of 45 miles climbing from 12,000' to Khamba La at 16,075', then descending to 14,500'. Included is a 15 mile, 4200'+ climb (most for a single climb of the trip) which takes us up to the Tibetan Plateau. The road, while basically serviceable, has serious potholes (more like craters) that give us something to think about while grinding along. Yaks graze on the near vertical thin grass, paying us no mind (Alpine cows have nothing on these yaks). FINALLY, we reach the pass and sun but no wind. Had a very comfortable lunch looking out over Himalayan ranges and Yamdrok Tso, a huge glacial lake of brilliant turquoise. We descended to Nagartse village and camp for the night. Along the way, Cathy spotted the one bird she hoped to see, a black necked crane, migrating south presumably. No water, so GI showers were had by all. Another who-knows-where-they-came-up-with-it dinner. Before bed, we noticed a t-storm in the distance. When it passed, the range in view was coated with white down to our elevation! That was something to think about while we were in our tents, cursing another blasted dog who yapped even longer around our tents than the previous one.
Saturday, September 24, back in the saddle again at 9, after breakfast and in the sun. Not as cold as we expected for this altitude (higher than anything in CO and all but Whitney and Rainier in the lower 48). FAT CITY, or so we thought. 66 miles from 14,500' over 16,730' Karo La to 13,300' Gyantse. First, a nice 10-12 mile easy climb to a glacier, which we had seen in the distance the day before. Wondered why there was snow there and not where we were the day before. Could the weather be that different? Well, YEAH! After the glacier, no more sun, lots of headwind, and temp in the 30's made for a serious grind the rest of the way to the pass. Cathy saved the day by purchasing a "plastic" rock at the roadside trinket stand near the pass at the Karo Glacier, an altitude-related lapse according to her. The descent was overcast and cold as well, but we were warmed by lunch at a gravel pit along the road thousands of feet lower. Joining us were some local village women that stopped by on their way home from barley harvesting with a backbreaking load of sheaves. Some flirting going on with our drivers! They accepted some of our lunch. Afterwards, we descended at length to Gyantse over a second "pass", actually a bump, called Simi La and were elated that it was as easy as it was. Night in a hotel - actual beds, sheets, bathroom, and NO DOG! PS - Cathy's rock was actually a quartz crystal, not plastic.
Sunday, September 25, time out for some sightseeing at the Pelkor Chode Monastery and Gyantse Kumbum. The monastery was mostly empty land surrounded by a high wall running up a hillside. Between the Cultural Revolution and British invasion in the early 1900's, it was severely damaged. It is the rare monastery that housed multiple buddhist sects, yellow (Gelugpa) hat, red (Sakyapa) hat and Buton. Buddhist history was mainly one of war between the various sects, so this place is special in its tolerance. The Kumbum (meaning 100,000 buddha images) is a stupa but not a tomb. Walking through, there were lots of small paintings depicting buddha in several levels. Good view of Gyantse from the top. So, enough fooling around and time to cycle! 66 miles of flat terrain to Shigatse at 13,000' through the best agricultural land in Tibet. Lots of farmers harvesting, cows mooing, and what we have begun calling the Lhasa rush hour. A stream of SUVs and tour busses that usurped our quiet ride for an hour or so, coming at 2PM here, but time depending on distance from Lhasa. We pulled off the road and had a hot lunch (!) in grassland dotted with willow trees, cows, and a local policeman's family. Life was good. But, not so fast. About 20km from Shigatse there was light drizzle on and off. Then changing to on and on. Then in town, road work made it a mud drizzle. We arrive thoroughly soaked and caked, and were really happy to have another hotel night to immediately jump in a hot shower. Dinner at the hotel and bed, but not at 9PM (electricity, you know).
Thursday, September 22, we are leaving Lhasa (suicide traffic, noise, hotel rooms) for the quieter environs near Chusul, 52 flat miles at 12,000' along the Yarlung River. We still seem to be having bike breakdowns (flats, derailleurs, misc adjustments) topped by Dan blowing out a wheel rim along the way. WOW! We visited a painted buddha carved into a large rock formation and tashe delek'ed (hello'ed) everyone we saw. Met a local at lunch along the river doing his laundry. Apparently we are somewhat of a curiosity around here. Either bare skin or lycra or both... We made camp and met some campers next door from Australia. Invited them to happy hour with beer "cooled" in local water. Our camps come complete with dining tent, cook tent, privvy tent, and shower tent. Seemed to be another thing that attracted drive-by attention! Great dinner came out of that tent, including apple pie baked in a camp oven that Gene gave to the cook. We settled in to sleep at about 9PM, dark. Then there was this dog. Yap, yap, yap starting in our camp and continuing off into the distance. Finally it was over - until the blasted canine began again, from afar, back into our camp. As we later discovered, there seem to be relatives of this nuisance at ALL camp sites!
Friday, September 23, we got up early to pedal off at 9AM, after breakfast of bacon, eggs, pancakes, oatmeal, etc. We are not going to starve. The day's ride is a total of 45 miles climbing from 12,000' to Khamba La at 16,075', then descending to 14,500'. Included is a 15 mile, 4200'+ climb (most for a single climb of the trip) which takes us up to the Tibetan Plateau. The road, while basically serviceable, has serious potholes (more like craters) that give us something to think about while grinding along. Yaks graze on the near vertical thin grass, paying us no mind (Alpine cows have nothing on these yaks). FINALLY, we reach the pass and sun but no wind. Had a very comfortable lunch looking out over Himalayan ranges and Yamdrok Tso, a huge glacial lake of brilliant turquoise. We descended to Nagartse village and camp for the night. Along the way, Cathy spotted the one bird she hoped to see, a black necked crane, migrating south presumably. No water, so GI showers were had by all. Another who-knows-where-they-came-up-with-it dinner. Before bed, we noticed a t-storm in the distance. When it passed, the range in view was coated with white down to our elevation! That was something to think about while we were in our tents, cursing another blasted dog who yapped even longer around our tents than the previous one.
Saturday, September 24, back in the saddle again at 9, after breakfast and in the sun. Not as cold as we expected for this altitude (higher than anything in CO and all but Whitney and Rainier in the lower 48). FAT CITY, or so we thought. 66 miles from 14,500' over 16,730' Karo La to 13,300' Gyantse. First, a nice 10-12 mile easy climb to a glacier, which we had seen in the distance the day before. Wondered why there was snow there and not where we were the day before. Could the weather be that different? Well, YEAH! After the glacier, no more sun, lots of headwind, and temp in the 30's made for a serious grind the rest of the way to the pass. Cathy saved the day by purchasing a "plastic" rock at the roadside trinket stand near the pass at the Karo Glacier, an altitude-related lapse according to her. The descent was overcast and cold as well, but we were warmed by lunch at a gravel pit along the road thousands of feet lower. Joining us were some local village women that stopped by on their way home from barley harvesting with a backbreaking load of sheaves. Some flirting going on with our drivers! They accepted some of our lunch. Afterwards, we descended at length to Gyantse over a second "pass", actually a bump, called Simi La and were elated that it was as easy as it was. Night in a hotel - actual beds, sheets, bathroom, and NO DOG! PS - Cathy's rock was actually a quartz crystal, not plastic.
Sunday, September 25, time out for some sightseeing at the Pelkor Chode Monastery and Gyantse Kumbum. The monastery was mostly empty land surrounded by a high wall running up a hillside. Between the Cultural Revolution and British invasion in the early 1900's, it was severely damaged. It is the rare monastery that housed multiple buddhist sects, yellow (Gelugpa) hat, red (Sakyapa) hat and Buton. Buddhist history was mainly one of war between the various sects, so this place is special in its tolerance. The Kumbum (meaning 100,000 buddha images) is a stupa but not a tomb. Walking through, there were lots of small paintings depicting buddha in several levels. Good view of Gyantse from the top. So, enough fooling around and time to cycle! 66 miles of flat terrain to Shigatse at 13,000' through the best agricultural land in Tibet. Lots of farmers harvesting, cows mooing, and what we have begun calling the Lhasa rush hour. A stream of SUVs and tour busses that usurped our quiet ride for an hour or so, coming at 2PM here, but time depending on distance from Lhasa. We pulled off the road and had a hot lunch (!) in grassland dotted with willow trees, cows, and a local policeman's family. Life was good. But, not so fast. About 20km from Shigatse there was light drizzle on and off. Then changing to on and on. Then in town, road work made it a mud drizzle. We arrive thoroughly soaked and caked, and were really happy to have another hotel night to immediately jump in a hot shower. Dinner at the hotel and bed, but not at 9PM (electricity, you know).
9/20/11
Post from Dan re: Beijing and Lhasa
Dan
9/20 - We rode our bikes through the city and up some steep hills
to Dreprung Monastery. Josh and I both broke bicycle chains---a bad
omen the bikes were only in fair condition We used our skills gained from
watching the local drivers to safely navigate There were numerous stands
selling trinkets around the entrance. For those daring enough, there were
very fragrant pit toilets. Away from the toilets, the smells were of burning
juniper and incense.
The monastery used to house 10,000 monks; now 500. Inside, it was
relatively dark. There were numerous temples within the monastery, each
showing a different image of the Buddha. Pictures in the temple could be
taken for 15 to 20 yuan per temple. Pilgrims would pour yak butter into
lanterns as devotion.
On the way down the steep hill that leaves the monastery, both Larry and
Tom fell. Tom's was pretty fast and left lots of abrasions. The left rear of
his bike shorts was completely torn away.
After lunch, which included yak butter tea, we visited Jokhanj Monastery. It
was in the city and much smaller and was very crowded. It was sometimes
difficult for the pilgrims to do their devotionals due to all the tourists. We
watched an organized debate among the monks. The senior monk is
seated on the ground and the junior (novice?) stands in front. During the
conversation, the junior monk will vigorously clap his hands; I believe to
emphasize a point.
I am in awe of the devotion of some of the Buddhists. There were many
prostrating themselves in front of the building.
The Tibetans are a handsome people. Their traditional clothing, which is
common to see, gives them an aura of dignity.
The locals find us an oddity. My seat-mate on the flight in took pictures of
me and many have taken pictures of us riding. Others just stare and many
wave hello.
We finished the day with a traditional Tibetan dinner. In addition to our
leader Ang was Ang Gelu. Ang Gelu weighs about 130 pounds and is in
incredible shape. He has summited Everest twice and climbed the world's
sixth highest peak without oxygen. We also met Katak who is the camp
manager.
9/20 - We rode our bikes through the city and up some steep hills
to Dreprung Monastery. Josh and I both broke bicycle chains---a bad
omen the bikes were only in fair condition We used our skills gained from
watching the local drivers to safely navigate There were numerous stands
selling trinkets around the entrance. For those daring enough, there were
very fragrant pit toilets. Away from the toilets, the smells were of burning
juniper and incense.
The monastery used to house 10,000 monks; now 500. Inside, it was
relatively dark. There were numerous temples within the monastery, each
showing a different image of the Buddha. Pictures in the temple could be
taken for 15 to 20 yuan per temple. Pilgrims would pour yak butter into
lanterns as devotion.
On the way down the steep hill that leaves the monastery, both Larry and
Tom fell. Tom's was pretty fast and left lots of abrasions. The left rear of
his bike shorts was completely torn away.
was in the city and much smaller and was very crowded. It was sometimes
difficult for the pilgrims to do their devotionals due to all the tourists. We
watched an organized debate among the monks. The senior monk is
seated on the ground and the junior (novice?) stands in front. During the
conversation, the junior monk will vigorously clap his hands; I believe to
emphasize a point.
I am in awe of the devotion of some of the Buddhists. There were many
prostrating themselves in front of the building.
The Tibetans are a handsome people. Their traditional clothing, which is
common to see, gives them an aura of dignity.
The locals find us an oddity. My seat-mate on the flight in took pictures of
me and many have taken pictures of us riding. Others just stare and many
wave hello.
We finished the day with a traditional Tibetan dinner. In addition to our
leader Ang was Ang Gelu. Ang Gelu weighs about 130 pounds and is in
incredible shape. He has summited Everest twice and climbed the world's
sixth highest peak without oxygen. We also met Katak who is the camp
manager.
9/19/11
The group is gathering in Lhasa
Well, we're finally congregating in Lhasa with Jim, Cathy, Paul, Sue and me getting here this morning and the rest (hopefully including our last to arrive in China - Larry Young) arriving late this afternoon. The weather has been a little messy though we're not really still in the monsoon season but it's cool, overcast, windy with an occasional drizzle. Our flight in from Beijing via Chengdu yesterday got to short final (~1-2 miles) and hit some turbulence and aborted the landing. We expected there would be another attempt but the pilot did a 180 deg. and headed back 2-1/2 hrs to Chengdu! Once back there it was quite a drill to find buses, transport us to severaL different hotels, check-in, get late dinners (ours was pistachios Sue had brought along and cold beers) and we turned in around 10:00 in a downtown, very "untouristy" hotel. They woke us up at 03:45 and we were on the bus at 4:00 headed back to the airport for a 06:30 second attempt on Lhasa. The rest of the day was uneventful with a perfect landing this time, Ang met us at the airport with our Tibetan guide (Norbu Sonham) and a much faster trip into Lhasa than the last time I was here on a new superhighway through multiple new tunnels. Much has changed in Lhasa in five years with significant infrastructure having been built including a new railroad going in to Shigatse, many new apartment building complexes in Lhasa, much more billboard advertising and a general feeling that this is now a Chinese (not Tibetan) city with a tremendous increase in PLA and police presence seemingly everywhere, like every corner! We've also met our Nepali cycling guide (Ang Gelu) and been introduced to our bikes which, though banged up some, seemed quite serviceable. So we've done our exploratory walk around the old Tibetan (Barkhor Square) section of Lhasa, had lunch overlooking the Jokhang and will shortly get about modifying our rental bikes with our own saddles, pedals, tires, etc. We're starting to feel like this trip is really underway and looking forward to the arrival of the rest of the group.
Gene
If you would like to post this to the blog over my name that would be fine with us. (We can't access the blog at all from here it seems.)
Cheers,
Gene
We unfortunately don't seem to be able to access our blog site (nor any Google sites including our g-mail accounts) in China so will trying to send postings to friends in the States to see if they will post them.
If you would like to post this to the blog over my name that would be fine with us. (We can't access the blog at all from here it seems.)
Cheers,
Gene
9/13/11
Namlo Sabhung School Project
After our cycling adventure 7 of us (Jim, Gene, Dan, Tom, Josh and new adventurers Kim and Nick) are traveling on to a little village in Nepal to help local villagers reconstruct a dilapidated old school under the auspices of a charitable organization called Namlo. The attached video provides a look at the school and village. Namlo has a great program that uses US volunteers working alongside the villagers to help them help themselves improve their situation. A few years ago Namlo and volunteers worked with the villagers to help them construct a new school. It has been such a success that people from throughout the region are now sending their children to Sahbung to get an education and Namlo is also supporting adult education to improve the villagers’ (particularly the women’s) ability to earn a decent living, which isn’t much. Anyway as a result they need more classrooms and it appears the fastest way to help is to renovate the old buildings. Although we are paying our own way over there and while in the village, Namlo estimates the cost of supplies to get to this remote region of Nepal will be about $6000. We and the villagers will of course provide the labor.
If you would like to help financially, we would be very appreciative as would Namlo, the villagers and the children. It’s another great way to show the world how much Americans care and to do it on a personal level. You can donate your tax deductable gift directly to Namlo on their website, www.namlo.org using your credit card through Paypal or by writing a check directly to Namlo and mailing it to their headquarters at, Namlo International, Suite 200, 4105 East Florida Avenue, Denver, CO 80222. Thank you for any help you can provide these people who are working hard to improve their lives and their children’s lives. Best Wishes!
Final Preparations
Preparations are rapidly coming to a close getting ready for our epic bike trip from Lhasa, Tibet to Kathmandu, Nepal. Never thought a simple bike trip could have so many logistics issues! The first of our group head out for Beijing tomorrow for a little sightseeing, then on to Lhasa for a couple of days acclimatizing and getting the bikes ready. The trip itself is about 1,000km (625 miles) long and 8,000m (26,000 feet) of climbing, the challenge is world-class particularly for a bunch of Old Geezers (the oldest is 73 and the child of the group, Josh, is only in his early 40s. He’s training for an Iron Man triathlon when we return, so we’re going to take it easy on him ;-) Most of the trip is at high altitude with eight passes at over 16,000 feet, and a side trip to the Chinese Mount Everest Base Camp at 17,000 feet. The average elevation for the trip is about 14,500 feet. It is a high, dry environment with about the same climate as Colorado.
Our trip will take 13 days, including one rest day and two easy days of 30 to 40 miles with no total elevation gain. One tough day is 100km (63 miles) and 1300m (4300 feet) of elevation gain. Half the nights will be camping and the other half will be hotels, but we’ve been told that some of the hotels may not be up to camping standards! The last full riding day is a 3000m (10,000 feet) downhill run into Nepal. Due to heavy traffic (and switching to the wrong side of the road) and the probability of losing our way as we enter Nepal, we will use the support vehicles for the final few miles into Kathmandu.
We will be guided by Ang Tshering, a Nepali adventurer and mountain climber. He has assembled an experienced team, vehicles, bikes, and camping gear to fully support our ride. A Tibetan guide will be along to keep us informed of local history, culture and geography.
Given all of this, we (Gene, Tom, Josh, Paul, Sue, Dan, Larry, Cathy, and Jim) expect a continuous adventure rather than a predictable ride. There may be alpine similarities, but this is NOT Switzerland! Hallmarks will be beautiful scenery and great experiences with the Tibetan culture. As this is part of China, we have been told to expect some bureaucratic sideshows (all part of the adventure).
We will keep you posted with our progress and major events including photographs. Each of us will take turns writing a daily summary. Many days will be without internet access, so the updates will come in batches when we get connected.
You can see our route on the first post, and follow our progress on Google Earth. Be flexible about the spelling of the names of the towns. Local dialect and the difference between the Tibetan, Chinese and Nepalese names vary quite a bit.
Date Start Elevation End Elevation High Point
22-Sep Lhasa 11 975 Chusul 11 975 none
23-Sep Chusul 11 975 Nagatse 14 435 (Think Mt Elbert) 16 075
24-Sep Nagatse 14 435 Gyantse 13 057 16 730
25-Sep Gyantse 13 057 Shigatse 12 598 none
26-Sep Shigatse 12 598 Shigatse 12 598 rest day
27-Sep Shigatse 12 598 Lhatse 12 959 14 760
28-Sep Lhatse 12 959 Xegar 13 615 17 125
29-Sep Xegar 13 615 Rongbuk 16 076 16 565
30-Sep Rongbuk 16 076 Rongbuk 16 076 16 896
1-Oct Rongbuk 16 076 Tingri 13 943 18 010
2-Oct Tingri 13 943 Mambuk 12 992 none
3-Oct Mambuk 12 992 Nyelam 12 303 16 730
4-Oct Nyelam 12 303 Borderlands (Nepal) 6 561 none
5-Oct Kathmandu 4 500 feet and finally some air to breathe!
9/7/11
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)