Yecheng to Ali

Yecheng to Mazar: Onto the Tibetan Plateau

Rod decides to head back to Kashgar after the pavement ends. Ferran and I continue into the Kun Lun mountains.

The first pass at 3300m (10,826 ft) was pretty easy.

The second pass at 4900m (16,076 ft) was no joke. We decide to take it easy the day before and camp at 3800m.

The climb begins.

For me, this was physically the hardest part of the trip because I wasn't yet acclimated. I couldn't breath fast enough and I could barely keep myself from passing out. Photo courtesy of Ferran Vila Bonell

The relief at the end of the day was the truck stop town of Mazar. You can pretty much tell what kind of place it is by just looking at it. From here to Lhasa, pathetic places like this become paradises. Martin, a Dutch cyclist joins the team here.

Our first glimpse of the Tibetan plateau.

Mazar to Sumzhi: Across the Aksai Chin and into Tibet

Everyday my diary entries can be summed up as: bad roads, beautiful scenery. Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet.

Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet.

Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet.
The third pass at 4800m was also hard for me. Once again, I felt like I was going to pass out. I was considerably slower than Martin and Ferran and I didn't like the idea that I was slowing them down. I contemplated cycling solo, but the guys convinced me to stay with the team. It was a decision that certainly benefitted me later on. Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet because I was too busy breathing to be bothered with pictures.

We reach the town of Suget three days after leaving Mazar. Well stocked stores, good food, clean sheets, and a disco. Ferran has a "backpacker" moment interacting with the "locals."

Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet

Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet

Martin

In Dahongliutan, we stock up on food. The Aksai Chin is 300km of high altitude plateau where few provisions are available. Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet.

Khitai La 5100m (16,732ft) and the entrance to the Aksai Chin. I am now acclimated to the altitude and I feel strong.

The Aksai Chin is cold and beautiful when the weather is good. It's also where we encountered the best roads.

At Tielongtan (5100m), we get a persistent snow storm and we take our first day off. The weather doesn't really improve and we decide to keep on cycling. "Bad" weather is just normal for this altitude. We slip and slide up to a 5250m (17,224ft) pass.

Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet.

On the descent, our gears and brakes freeze. We try urinating on our bikes, but it doesn't work. A fierce blizzard descends on us and we decide to take a 32km lift to Sumzhi.

There was nowhere to stay at Sumzhi so we pitched our tents. The weather here was just as uncyclable so we took a 100km lift to Domar. Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet.

Sumzhi to Ali: Escape from the cold

In Domar, we meet Sato, a Japanese cyclist who is at the tail end of a 5 year round-the-world trip. We now have a team of four.

When we get to Ali, all of us are shocked. Electricity, running water, multi-story buildings, internet, and taxis! Photo courtesy of Martin Kwaasteniet.

A new record for me: 22 days without a shower.