It amazes me how each day seems to get better than the last. China is one of the most amazing places I have traveled. It has perfect roads like Thailand, but the landscape is far grander and of a much larger scale.

Today’s ride took us towards and then past Yala mountain, ascending the grasslands and then transitioning to steep and rocky valleys. We followed the Maoniu and Dadu rivers until reaching Danba town. From there, we ascended to Jajiu, a Tibetan town on the mountainside, overlooking the valley.

Today’s ride in blue

I thought it would be nice to see if it was possible to get a monk to bless my motorcycle (as i had newly purchased it for this trip), so the first stop was Muya Dasi monastery on the outskirts of Tagong. Alas, the master was teaching, and would only be free at noon, so we continued on our journey. Perhaps another day!

Muya Dasi monastery

The transition from grasslands to rocky mountains was quite a sight to behold.

Riding towards Yala mountain from the grass-mountain biome

As we snaked through the valley and followed the river we saw traditional Tibetan villages high up on the sides of the mountains. After a few sections of construction, I found Kiat parked up by the side of the road. “Dude you should go see the village!” “Great idea, lets get lunch there.” “Nooo the road is too steep, my bike will not make it”.

I was keen for a side quest so I suggested that I’d go and check it out and report how the roads were.

A few minutes later I was at the foot of the mountain and ready to ascend. A trio of villagers were sat on the side of the road, and I breezed past them on my way up. After snapping a photo for Kiat “hey the roads are decent, turns are just a bit tight”, I got the response “I’ll see you back at the hotel, I want to get there before it rains.”

Ascending the mountainside to the village

I’m getting more comfortable riding my bike up steep terrain and navigating tight turns. First gear, enduro mode, patience is all you need. And after countless hairpins, I reached the village. A bit nervewracking, but quite fun. The village itself was relatively uneventful. A hall had Tibetan techno sounding music, but all else was quiet. No stores, or anything. I turned around halfway through the village (I was afraid of being overly ambitious; and it seemed to get steeper and narrower as I ascended).

View of the valley as I descended from the village

Most of the way down, I encountered the villagers once more. It was an elderly man carrying a very large sack on his back, with his two grandchildren. The village was a long way up, and it seemed like a huge journey to be undertaking - at least a few hours of walking - so I offered (and insisted) to take the sack up to the top for them. However, the granddaughter, who could speak Mandarin and was about 5, told me in a firm tone that it was okay, and that they would make their own way up. I reflected on this as I continued on my journey. What was clear was that in the grand scheme of things, offering to relieve the burden was futile. It may have made his day easier, but structurally nothing would change; until there were serious changes to their way of life, whether that be through infrastructure improvements, improved technology/transport (e.g. drones/vehicles), or relocation. I don’t quite understand why they didn’t accept my gesture however. Was it a matter of pride? Was it a lack of trust? Or just not wanting to bother a stranger? Some things I will never know.

The last 30KM or so wound through riverside villages, until I reached Danba.

Danba Town

It was only then that I realised that we would not be staying in town, but in a village to the north. This was quite a steep climb up roads which were on the cliff edge. Picture hairpin turns, with a very steep drop. “Don’t look down” was on my mind the whole time. I reached the hotel around 1:30PM, exhausted, hungry, and ready for lunch. The views from the hotel were spectacular, overlooking the mountainside and the valley below.

The afternoon was spent resting until ~5PM (it gets dark at ~8PM), when I set off to explore the mountainside, up the windy road, and wow. This is a unique place. Every few metres of road offered jawbreaking views of the valley below.

View from the hotel

It felt a bit like being in a mountainside village from a Shinkai picture (a la “Your Name” / “Kimi no Na wa”). I spent a while searching for a nice vantage point for photos, ascending up the mountainside until I found a deserted viewpoint, with only a large black van in the corner. I really put in the work for this, picking up rocks and setting them into the mud for a place to put my kickstand without my bike falling over, when I was approached by a woman from the van. She was senior in years, and spoke with a northern accent, making conversation. Soon enough, I found that she and her husband (63 and 70 respectively) had retired and were travelling China in their van. They had been on the road for 3 years! And had been all over. This past year they had circumnavigated China, travelling about 60,000 KMs. She was quite nice, kept offering for me to stay in the room next to where they had parked the van, and told me to stay for dinner (as she was cooking).

Taken by the travelling couple…I really need to fix my helmet hair

Once I found the perfect shot for the bike, her husband helped me take photos - and she even asked to take a photo and jumped on my bike with a lot of confidence.

Such confidence on my bike! Better posing than me

The couple’s setup (van to the right of the frame)

We said our goodbyes and I continued exploring. I had my eyes set on a concrete road on the far side of the valley, next to a white shrine.

The white shrine and the concrete road leading to it

Half an hour of twists and turns later, I was on the right path, and eventually found myself at the end of the concrete road - which was where the local helipad was. Not a single person in sight.

Sandeep on the helipad

Dinner was chicken soup, which we had from the hotel patio overlooking the valley. It was the perfect scene for a cigar (and I think chicken soup is the perfect accompaniment). What a nice way to end the day.

Chicken soup for dinner

Tomorrow; Chengdu!

Some stats:

• 167 KMs travelled
• No fuel added
• 30g coffee consumed
• 4 unique interactions

Route to date

Altitude map of today’s ride