China Bulletin 4

Hi Kids,

Sunday night, end of riding day 8, I think we're in a place called Libu or somesuch. We're a bit ahead of schedule owing to road works - bloody great big ones. At breakfast in a cafe in Zhaoping this morning Danny announced that we had 73 kms to ride but 40 of them were over a road that was being rebuilt and probably unrideable! That means rocks, sand, blinding dust, craters, precipitous drops down the river bank and an overall climb over the biggest pass we've yet negotiated in temperatures up in the 30s - or, plan B, hire two vans, put the bikes in one and us in the other and get dropped on a lovely new road past the road works and in the next valley and the total cost will be 27 quid. "Yes please!" Unanimous vote for Plan B. Half an hour later and we were all packed up and on our way. A bit of a white knuckle job so I only nodded off briefly. I think we would not have been able to ride the route anyway or we would have had difficulty arriving in Mingshan before dark. Anyway we were there for lunch and so we moved on this afternoon along fine roads following the river to arrive here at 3.30. Tonight we have eaten in a very new posh restaurant outside town where we feasted on a fish fondu besides many other dishes. The proprietor came out in his car to pick us up and deliver us back to the hotel.

So the last two days have been a bit easier on the cycling front, not that that has stopped me spending most of the time off the back! I think the Redhill lads only asked me along cos they couldn't find a rear gunner. The day before yesterday we rode from Huangyao to Zhaoping and that involved a modest pass to start with then a 30 minute delay while road builders crashed rocks down into the road from a great height, but then some beautiful new roads following a river gently downhill and for the first time we had the wind behind us. Danny is a dog fan so we strolled along well behind the others and he now knows about Guide Dogs for the Blind. He has a Belgian Schiffer dog, if there is such a thing. If he ever comes to England he wants to take Maxie out round Nonsuch Park with me on the mountain bike. We got to Zhaoping in one hit for a late lunch and then went for a hike to see a waterfall, which we didn't. What sort if idiots believe the estimate of 15 minutes walk from a local who has obviously never owned a watch in his life?

Love Mick.