318 cycling route guide mountain warfare
Chengdu to Lhasa: Altitude Changes
This young hero is about to make a new world in 2017. No, wait, it's already 2017.
So sentimental! Speaking of cycling on National Highway 318, that was last year, oops!
It was the year before last.
(Photo by fellow cyclist: Just Call Me Zashi)
Time really flows like a river, without even blinking. In a flash, those youthful days are gone, and now we're preparing for our children's schooling, just like our parents once urged us to do our homework. The worst part is being single, like a lone dog!
A single dog with a heart that loves freedom and a desire to go to Tibet.
So, speaking now, I'm incredibly excited and pure, comparable to a first love. This might be the persistence towards something. I have to thank all this education for teaching me to read hydrological texts, yet I don't know what life is, or the meaning of life. I only remember who got first place and boasted in front of the teacher. Now, she's just a housewife. As for me, I should be standing firm at thirty, but I got confused early. I have no hobbies in my life, what is madness and craziness?
Among the many talents showcased at annual parties, you cyclists seem the weakest. Fortunately, cycling can be considered a hobby, and it truly makes one's blood boil, almost like finding love. This should be a hobby, starting after thirty, is it too late?
So let's talk about Highway 318. This route requires crossing 13 mountains. Compared to the past, some mountains now have tunnels, so your 318 journey is not the same as those before you. Let's see which mountains still require pushing the bike up. Seeing the mountain pass is like seeing a deity.
NO.1 Erlang Mountain 2198 meters - Tunnel available
Although Erlang Mountain has a tunnel, you still have to climb for a long time to reach the tunnel entrance. Once you cross Erlang Mountain, the world changes. On the way west, each mountain is a different world. Before Erlang Mountain, you're still in the Chengdu Basin. After the tunnel, there's a viewing platform where you can see the national highway stretching across the mountains. Looking down, it's all altitude, and you can see Luding in the distance. For cycling on 318, this is the first challenge. Endure the pain in your butt.
NO.2 Zheduo Mountain Pass 4299 meters - No tunnel
Zheduo Mountain is not fun. It's higher than Erlang Mountain with more winding roads. For me, climbing one mountain a day is enough, and I might not even make it. Zheduo Mountain starts from Zheduotang Village and goes all the way to the pass. There's a viewing platform at the pass. The Tibetan locals charge 10 yuan for entry, regardless of whether you walked or cycled up. You can follow the mountain path to the top of Zheduo Mountain, where there are prayer flags.
Sometimes, faith is either you believe it or you don't. As an objective witness, if you start with throwing Lungta, you should continue till the end. If you don't start, don't touch it at all. That's my opinion, but everyone can do as they please.
NO.3 Gao'ersi Tunnel 4412 meters - Tunnel available
Since 2016, Gao'ersi Mountain has had a tunnel. A few years ago, those heading to Tibet had to climb over it. The altitude of Gao'ersi is 4700 meters. When I went to Daocheng Yading, the road was terrible and dangerous. Now, you don't have to climb, and you can't see the mountain top scenery. Maybe without people, something good might grow there.
NO.4 Scissors Bend 4294 meters - Tunnel available
From the cliffside city of Yajiang, following the winding valley, when you're almost out of breath, you'll reach Scissors Bend Mountain. There's a viewing platform here. The mountain road below has eighteen bends, enough to make you car sick. The tunnel opened after 2015. Back then, I had to climb up and down without a tunnel.
NO.5 Kazila Mountain 4422 meters - Tunnel available
After climbing Scissors Bend Mountain, it's all alpine meadows and grasslands, with stunning scenery. But with the tunnel, the old asphalt road is abandoned. In 2016, I drove there again. At first, I thought I took the wrong road because the feeling of winding around the mountain was gone. It turned out to be the tunnel. Looking back at the old road after exiting the tunnel, it's already desolate.
NO.6 Haizi Mountain 4688 meters - No tunnel
From Litang, the road splits. The 318 is still rough, while the road to Daocheng Yading is good. The road on Haizi Mountain is okay, winding through endless rocks, making you feel like a groundhog in the rocks. The overall altitude of Litang is high, and cycling here is a real test. Don't get altitude sickness, Bazahei.
NO.7 Zongbala Mountain 4170 meters - No tunnel
Building tunnels in these mountains requires a lot of investment. This is not an ordinary place; Mangkang is also a magical place.
NO.8 Laowu Mountain 4371 meters - No tunnel
The boundary marker of this mountain has been defaced by unethical people to read 'Laniao Mountain.' Some people come here out of admiration, some for the challenge, and some are just shameless, littering everywhere. With no environmental services in Tibet, the 318 route is littered with garbage.
NO.9 Jueba Mountain 3930 meters - No tunnel
This is a magical mountain. The village at the foot of the mountain is beautiful, like a paradise. But don't get too happy; climbing this mountain will exhaust you. The winding mountain road is not like a giant dragon but more like a noblewoman's tangled hair.
NO.10 Dongda Mountain 5008 meters - No tunnel
This is the first mountain over 5000 meters in altitude before reaching Lhasa. Oh my! I don't want to say much. When you cycle here in summer, you'll feel it. The sign at the top reads, 'Fearless of bleeding and sacrifice, overcoming altitude sickness.'
If I can climb this mountain without hitchhiking, I will wear a red dress and high heels at the top to take a commemorative photo. Then you can all praise me.
NO.11 Anjula Mountain 4475 meters - No tunnel
I haven't been here yet, only seen it in other people's travel notes. How thrilling it is, wait for me to gather material for you this summer.
NO.12 Tongmai Dangerous Pass
This place is known as the Jiangnan of Tibet, but it's also the perilous Tongmai Pass. The old 318 was carved out of cliffs, with a sheer drop into an abyss if you're not careful, as difficult as Tang Sanzang's journey to fetch scriptures. But now, it's all connected by tunnels and bridges, so Tongmai is no longer a dangerous pass.
NO.13 Sejila Mountain 4598 meters - No tunnel
It's introduced in the 'Walking in Tibet' video series. You can check out the travel diary of Zhang Guangming, the hiking king.
NO.14 Mila Mountain 5017 meters - Tunnel under construction
This is the last and highest mountain. In summer, it's hot at the foot and freezing at the top. Cycling on 318 means experiencing all four seasons in one day, with sunshine, rain, and snow all at once.
As more tunnels are built, 318 is no longer the same. Driving is easier; cycling is lighter; hiking is simpler. This road, once known as the most beautiful in China, loses its magic. It will change with modernization, like the viewing platform at Zheduo Mountain Pass, where everything costs ten yuan. If you don't pay, they threaten you, and if that doesn't work, they plead poverty.
Whether these changes are good or bad, who knows? The world needs to progress, and we will grow old. While we're young, let's cycle and fall in love with the rough and poor 318. Don't wait until everyone loves it and then complain it doesn't belong to you.
(Photos in this article by fellow cyclist @Just Call Me Zashi, all rights reserved)