9/13/11

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!