In the Clouds, in the Sky – A Yunnan-Tibet Cycling Journey (Part 11) – Unforgettable Spruce Forests, Unforgettable Nights

On August 25th, we arrived at Eighteen Bends (), 65 kilometers. A 25-kilometer long uphill ride to Colorila Mountain – this is the 7th of the 8 peaks over 4000 meters, with a 1500-meter elevation gain, followed by a 40-kilometer downhill ride to Eighteen Bends, with an elevation drop of 1800 meters.

Just like in 'Turn the Mountain', why is the road so difficult to cycle? It's because there are eight points above 4000 meters, and several points below 3000 meters. You constantly climb and descend, and in a single day, you might experience all four seasons – spring, summer, autumn, and winter.

Not long after our departure, we started to have fun. Ari went to sleep, DP and Ming and after went to catch squirrels, I stood aside drinking beer, Xiao Jianzu went to take pictures, the road is just as leisurely as this.

We prepared to buy a steamed bun for breakfast in Lu Lang ().

The scenery is really beautiful.

In the afternoon at 2 pm, we arrived at the Colorila Mountain pass. Colorila Mountain allows you to see the most beautiful snow mountain in China – Mount Namcha Barwa (). Mount Namcha Barwa's altitude is 7782 meters, ranking as the 16th highest peak in the world, and it's the second highest peak after Mount Chonger Kang. Because I rushed down from Colorila Mountain, I didn't see its full glory (probably even if I waited, I wouldn't have seen it), but being able to see it is already quite good.

Colorila Mountain pass ()

Cloud-shrouded Mount Namcha Barwa ()

The downhill road was smooth, and the scenery was particularly beautiful, with good weather. The Tibetan-Qinghai Plateau has ten different days in a day, as you might experience all four seasons in a single day.

The Niang River ()

At 7 pm, we finally arrived at Eighteen Bends (), having cycled for so long in the wilderness, it was a long-awaited arrival. This is the first medium-sized modern city we left after departing from the capital of Deqin County (). There are high-rise buildings, traffic lights, banks, and many places to eat. After so many days cycling in the wild, we finally arrived in a city, and we couldn't help but hug the traffic lights.

We met Su Xiao Pang who had arrived three days earlier. In fact, Su Xiao Pang hadn't arrived three days earlier either; his car got stuck due to traffic congestion, and he waited for 18 hours.

Eighteen Bends is a city after all, the accommodation conditions are much better, with washing machines and bathrooms. Those who can afford it can stay in single rooms, and those who can't can set up a tent in the lobby.

On August 26th, we arrived at Eighteen Bends () and then traveled 130 kilometers to Kongbu Jiangda County (), with an elevation gain of 500 meters. After cycling on the road again, this is not a big deal.

Because I lost my gloves at Rongxu Bing Station (), I went to the beautiful Da Meilan Specialty Store () in Eighteen Bends to buy a pair of gloves and checked the car, which was basically fine. I also went to the post office to stamp my small booklet, recording the places and times I visited, which will be a beautiful memory in the future.

After leaving Eighteen Bends, we had a gentle uphill ride. The problem with big cities is that the scenery isn't great – although it's beautiful compared to inland places, it's much less beautiful than the previous two days. Fortunately, the later road was accompanied by the beautiful Niang River (), which wasn't very monotonous.

The Niang River ()

In the afternoon at 7 pm, we arrived at Kongbu Jiangda County () early, and we stayed at the Kongbu Jiangda Grain Station () guest house, the room was huge and the conditions were excellent. In the evening, DP had symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea, and we were worried about whether he could still cycle tomorrow.

The 318 Line (318) at the 4321-kilometer mark, approaching Kongbu Jiangda County ().

Almost reaching Kongbu Jiangda County ().

On August 27th, we traveled 98 kilometers from Kongbu Jiangda County () to Songdu Town (), with an elevation gain of 800 meters. Songdu Town is the place where we stayed at the highest altitude, 4200 meters.

When exiting Kongbu Jiangda County, you will see a large stone standing in the middle of the Niang River; this stone is called 'The Middle Stream Pillar' () and is considered sacred by the Tibetan people.

The Middle Stream Pillar ()

There is no difficulty in cycling along the road, it's very leisurely. There are four attractions along the way: Ta Zhao Ancient City (), Tang Fan Ancient Road (), Tea Horse Ancient Post Town (), and Qing Dynasty Ancient Tombs (). We didn't visit them. To be honest, these attractions and the scenery on the road are much worse than the scenery.

During the ride today, Ari had a physical discomfort and rode at the back, taking a break about every hour. Ming, DP, and Wu Huan () 3 people took Su Xiao Pang for fun, stopped to let Su Xiao Pang, then waited for him again, then waited again, then passed him again. Xiao Jianzu and Xiao Zhenzhen () 2 female cyclists from the line were often liked by other teams. While others were eating and drinking, they were also eating and drinking. And I just like to build a Mani wheel on the road.

We stayed at a guest house run by a Tibetan local, and we met many familiar faces, including Su Xiao Pang pushing a cart and speeding, and those who had drunk a lot of wine in Ranwu (). Let's talk about the story of drinking wine in Ranwu. In Songdu (), he and we talked, and he said that someone got drunk in Ranwu and looked for oxygen – that's him! He himself doesn't even know, and it's such a magical thing.

Songdu's prices are really expensive – a plate of stir-fried tomatoes costs 35. Ari arrived at Songdu at 9:30 pm, and because it was cloudy, he put on his raincoat, but the rain poured down on him. Xiao Pang in Eighteen Bends () had a three-day rest after cycling, except that he cycled slower, there was no problem.

Wu Huan () finally fell down after cycling for 20 days. He vomited, had diarrhea, was shivering, and was dying. He remained calm, and there were times when he was not calm. There are no hospitals in Songdu, so all we could do was give him some medicine and let him sleep. I basically didn't sleep for almost one night to take care of him.

The Tibetan boss at the hotel chatted with me until midnight, talking about his children, one son and one daughter, he wants them to go to big cities; he also talked about his business and future plans. It's difficult for me to understand what he was saying about Tibetan and Zhuang, and he kept asking me if I could understand him. Honestly, I could understand what he said, and everything else was really incomprehensible.

This three-member brother had only one wife. In some Tibetan-Qinghai regions, there is a polygamy system. At this time, I finally understood what the child in Shangri-La said when he met me – he said his brother had a wife. But as a teacher, my investigative spirit immediately thought of two questions: one is how to solve the problem of sleep, and the other is what to do if you have children?

Unforgettable Songdu (), unforgettable night.