May 16, 2022: Cycling the Sichuan-Tibet Line from Shenzhen (Chapter Four)

May 16, 2022: From Luding to Zheduo Tang, about 65 kilometers

Yesterday, during the rest, Luding was overcast and drizzling. We went to Luding Bridge in the morning. I bought some medicine to quench the fire because I was suffering from insufficient sleep and severe internal heat, which caused blisters on my lips.

Because there has been heavy snow on Zheduo Mountain these days, and the weather is cold, some friends who were cycling before were trapped on it. They had to spend hundreds of yuan to let a private car take them down the mountain. In order to be prepared, the three of us found several clothing stores before we could buy thick cotton jackets with fleece lining. Since it’s May now, there are really not many stores selling thick clothes. With thick clothes, it’s easier to keep warm in extreme weather. Although this thickened fleece vest looks quite old, the kind that uncles over 50 years old would wear, it really helped us a lot when it was cold along the way.

In addition, the legs and buttocks were too painful. Although we had cycling seats and cycling pants, the thighs were unbearable. The three of us each bought a bottle of safflower oil. After lunch, we went back to the inn, sat on the bed, and started to rub the thighs with safflower oil until they turned red, to promote blood circulation and relieve pain.

The weather is better today, no rain.

We set off after breakfast at seven, and there are really quite a few people setting off today.

There are about more than 10 people setting off with us, some to Kangding, some to Zheduo Tang like us, and some riding old-style bicycles, amazing. The overall condition today is a bit better, after all, we finally had a slightly better sleep.

It’s an uphill start.

I forgot to take a picture of the Dadu River bridge. After several days of cycling, the most important task in my mind every day now is to complete the day’s journey and arrive at the inn on time.

The scenery is not very beautiful now, so the photos taken are almost the same.

The morning was from Luding to Kangding, all uphill. When I arrived in Kangding, I insisted on not pushing the bike the whole way and rode over.

Arrived in Kangding around 12:30 noon. Had lunch and set off for Zheduo Tang around 1:30 in the afternoon.

This lunch was awkward because I forgot to pay. After the meal, I went to the bathroom and then prepared to pay. At this time, the owner asked if we wanted to add some boiled water for the road. As a result, I added the boiled water and forgot to pay. Later, after a while, I remembered and found the boss’s account from my friend’s payment record through the reward function to pay for the meal. Ah, it’s embarrassing. If I hadn’t paid at the time, I would have to make it up the next time I cycled the Sichuan-Tibet line.

The road from Kangding to Zheduo Tang is about 15 kilometers, all uphill, with an altitude gain of about 1000 meters, which is very difficult.

I used up all my strength in the morning, and I basically pushed the bike for these 15 kilometers in the afternoon. The only lucky thing was that not long after setting out in the afternoon, I could see the snow-capped mountains after coming out of Kangding city.

Then after about 3 hours of pushing the car, I finally arrived at Zheduo Tang Inn. I was tired and exhausted. The altitude here is high, and the temperature is only 10 degrees. After putting the bag in the room, the room was a bit cold, so I went downstairs to a small house in the courtyard to bask in the sun, leaning on the stool and sleeping for a while.

Then to prevent a cold, I took some cold medicine in the room and made a cup of cold granules. A cold at high altitude is very dangerous. Why am I so worried about catching a cold? Because I have chronic rhinitis, which is easy to catch a cold when the temperature is low, especially at this high altitude, a cold is quite dangerous.

Since it was still early for dinner, I lay down on the bed to rest and recover some strength. Since I started cycling, I only had a good sleep during the rest day in Luding yesterday. I slept poorly for the other days, and I was so angry that I had blisters on my lips. It’s dry at high altitude, so be sure to drink more warm water and rest well.

At 6:30, I went down for dinner, and there were a few friends who stayed here today, not many people, just 6 people, and then went back to rest after dinner. In addition to being too sleepy, there is also a fixed thing to do, which is to sit on the bed and be a blogger, export pictures from the Gopro, and then write down today’s process, which will take about an hour. This is the fixed homework every night when cycling 318.