Entering the Autonomous Region of Tibet at night past the checkpoint we found ourselves cycling in one of the worlds most spectacular areas. White capped mountains, huge gorges and pine forests formed the backdrop for our first few days in Tibet.
September 1999
Resting for at a convenient rock by the side of the road until dawn we set of up the hill. We went for a few hours but there was no sign of a shop or a restaurant and hunger had begun to bite. Our path was blocked by a landslide, and the truck drivers were working by hand to clear the road shifting rocks down the hillside. Lending a hand suddenly there was shouting and people pointing up above and a few rocks whizzed past my ear before I too ran panicking for cover from the impending rockslide. After a few minutes with no-one hurt everybody was laughing about the incident and we timidly returned to the scene and were able to pass by on a thin path they had cleared.
Seeing a boy herding some Yak along the road I asked him where the nearest place to eat was and he invited us to his house for lunch. We walked along to a lovely village clinging to the mountainside, and into a large square Tibetan house. On the ground floor his mother dressed in traditional Tibetan dress welcomed us into the muddy yard and held back the vicious dog that looked as though he wanted blood from finding his meal from our legs. On the ground floor of the house were all the animals, calves and pigs rolling around in the thick mud and hay. Upstairs though are the living quarters and we were invited into the large livingroom with pictures of Lamas on the wall and a large stereo and TV in the corner on a brightly painted cupboard. The ceiling and the wood around the windows were all painted the same bright greens and reds infancy patterns. After a long wait where we were constantly served butter tea we eventually were presented with our lunch of rice and vegetables. Of course the asking price for this service was higher than normal but in the circumstances we were happy to pay.
The road continued to wind up the mountainside but the scenery was spectacular and in the afternoon sun with breaks for naps in the surrounding forest with the now familiar snow capped peaks in the distance the first days riding was relaxing. We found a flat area in a logged part of the forest and camped down. Riding up for a few more km I found a small village with a shop and was able to buy basic provisions: beer and rice wine. Being in full view of the road we became the chief attraction of the area and again the Tibetans watched smirking at our attempts to light a fire and showed us that the bark of trees made the best fire lighter.Without the help of these hardy friendly people our lives would have been hard. With long hair wound around their heads and red head ties and grey robes over colorful shirts they made a sight to behold.Communication with the country folk in Tibet is hard as they only speak basic Chinese but with smiles and sign language one can get a better feeling from them than from the townspeople who are predominantly Chinese.
In the morning a convoy of tour buses screeched to a halt seeing us sitting by our tents and the Chinese occupants clambered up the hill towards us cameras clicking. We found out that they were an ecological group from Kunming doing research on the Tibetan Plateau and an ecological impact study. They were planning to appeal to the government to open the road to tourists, and we were happy to give them our support to this idea.
We rode to the peak in the afternoon but treated the day as a rest day and enjoyed our surroundings which were so picturesque. Stopping at a village near the top fo
r a bowl of noodles we sat in awe of the beauty and thought how if the road were only open this place could become a travellers rest without parallel. We found camp on the other side of the pass and eventhough we found a spot deep in the woods Tibetans on horseback soon found us and as usual sat watching and smiling as we set up camp.
The next day we raced down the hill passing trucks full of people all of whom waved and shouted hello tous a s we passed, we found our meals in the little villages on the way to Makang. The road was fairly flat as it followed a river, only the headwind and the sandy surface a challenge and asking a group of Tibetans soon found we were close to the large Chinese town of markham and they warned us the police there were bastards. We waited till dark and then rode quickly through the town not wanting to find out if the Tibetans were right about the police. Only stopping for provisions at a store. At the edge of town we were spotted by a crowd of kids who chased after us shouting and waving excitedly. We only found out at the other side of town they had managed to grab the sleeping bag off the back of Brittas bike, making a dare devil return to the scene Dave and myself found the area quiet with all the kids gone. Camping the other side of town Britta faced a cold night and even sharing a sleeping bag with Gavin all of us squeezed into one tent for warmth wasn’t going to solve the problem when we reached 5000m mountains.
