Today was all about anticipation. We motored 238km (149 miles) through small towns and villages to Huxian and the tunnel roads.
The weather cooperated today, with mostly clear blue skies. We drove through several small cities.
Lunch was at a previously scouted stop and served family style for expediency. Again, we attracted some gawkers.
It is corn harvest time. In the small villages, corn was spread over the pavement to dry.
I was surprised and amazed at the number of people pushing old heavy wooden wheelbarrows, and at the large numbers of people sweeping the streets with straw brooms.
Livestock is transported in multilevel trucks. The piggies are going to market.
We came into one village on what must have been market day. People, vehicles, merchandise - all in close proximity to the street. It was quite a bustling atmosphere.
I was most in awe of the beautiful mountains and countryside, with small cottages and temples on the hillsides. My pictures do not do it justice.
We saw the first examples of terraced farming that we became familiar with in high school textbooks.
Christian churches are few and far between, but do exist in China.
Because the weather was cooperating, we bypassed tonight's hotel and headed straight for one of the tunnel roads.
The banners are announcing a mountain climbing festival inside the park.
There is a small village, mostly hotels and small cafes at the park entrance where we waited for Yingchu to buy our tickets.
Two other bikers were waiting to gain access to the road.
This was the beginning of the Guoliang tunnel road.
It was hand dug beginning in 1972 and opened to the public in 1977. The road conditions and width vary, making it difficult to pass at some locations.
Thirteen locals under the leadership of Shen Mingxin, carved 1.2 km (.75 miles) INTO the side of the Taihang mountains to provide a better route for the locals, rather than the difficult exterior route.
We found a place to park almost all the bikes, and took pictures.
and stood in awe of the accomplishment.
After the tunnels, we came out on the exterior road up to the top of the mountain.
We still had to be concerned about rough, wet road conditions and opposing traffic.
When reaching the other side of the gorge, it was possible to look back at the road we traveled.
Lots of fun switchbacks before the tunnel entrance.
A small village is at the top in the crotch of the gorge...
...providing the perfect background to our picture.
These cyclists were on a mission to get to the top.
Yingchu pointed out the even higher tunnel roads we will travel tomorrow. We are hoping for better weather/less smog, so we can see further down the valleys.
John had the group ride down ahead of him and wait here for a group picture in front of a waterfall. What waterfall? It is too late in the season.
Instead we headed for tonight's hotel. We were warned that it is very basic and would probably just have the floor toilets, but most of us lucked out with regular toilets. What a relief. When we entered our room, we noticed an air conditioning unit, but no remote. Dave went to the front desk to see if they could help. Indeed they had the remote - I guess you have to ask for it. Others in our group didn't know to ask, which necessitated opening the windows onto a very loud Chinese group on the patio - they were having a good time until the wee hours. Festivities included some high pitched Chinese singing, which Boz described as Halloween music. When Mike imitated the sound at breakfast the next morning, it made the cooks laugh out loud.
Tomorrow we will ride all of the three sections of tunnel roads and then head to huge city of Xian, the historical end of the Silk Road, and home to many Chinese antiquities, including the terra cotta warriors.
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