24th November 2006
Punctures a plenty!

Well as the title suggests I've been a little plagued by punctures recently! The last few days have possibly been the most frustrating of the trip trying to push on as hard as possible and seemingly being stopped at every turn! I have however been able to make pretty good progress with a few days at around 80 miles (sometimes intentionally!)

I last left you in Xian about to pick up my parcel to fix my barbag attachment. I was easily able to pick up the package and all the parts went together without issue or problem and I was soon on my way again after a being seen off by a very friendly and helpful Sheraton employee from Derby! It had been very nice to be able to speak English normally for a bit and have a little luxury even if it was a rather expensive treat! I did a short day through and from Xian as when I'd planned it I wasn't sure how long fitting the parts would take or if I'd have any problems, it was a relief to be rid of the rucksack but at the same time the barbag made quite a difference to the ride with much more touchy steering!
In Lantian I caused a little stir by ordering 4 spring onion and egg pancakes from a street seller for breakfast creating a little queue as she could only cook one at a time! They were very nice though :) Wherever I go I cause a bit of a crowd which is sometimes a bit of a curse I try and manoeuvre my heavy bike around but its also quite amusing. From Lantian to Shangzhou was all on main roads, not expressway so safer and with villages to pull off into but pretty dull. There were a few tunnels which were a little hairy but I'm getting used to them now! In Shangzhou I came across the problem which I've seen a few times that they not only call hotels hotel over here but also restaurants which I don't understand as they have a separate word for restaurant but there you go! From the 'fake' hotel a guy offered to show me somewhere but the place he took me to was quite expensive & the showers weren't working so we walked back again and eventually found somewhere. It was on a major junction which made crossing the road traitorous but was a nice enough place with glass lifts :) (& basement for the bike :)

From Shangzhou to Shangnan it was again a dull main road trip starting off wet and staying pretty murky all day. There were a few hills today and at the top of a particularly long hill just before tunnel I found I had a slow-ish puncture so back tracked to a lay by to sort it out which took about 30 mins fortunately after that it was more downhill. I was accosted in Shangnan by a lady who owned a 'hotel'/hostel but it was pretty comfortable and had hot water so was OK. Her son was very interested and helped me out finding a 'big' supermarket (about the size of a small co-op!) and finding food too :) I went though his school English book with him which was quite amusing!

I found some great Boa-zir (steamed filled dumplings) just outside the hotel so filled up as I left! The terrain was beginning to flatten but still a good few ups and down but the weather was a bit better which is always good! I had a lot of people driving slowly alongside to stare which starts off amusing but often becomes dangerous as following drivers get impatient and overtake too close, it also gets a bit annoying being the centre of attention the whole time! I found a nice hotel in Xixia where they were very friendly and helpful and did try and provide an English speaker where they could :) They also employed a small army to carry my bags upstairs!! Unfortunately a mouse had a go at my peanuts overnight which not only meant I had to ditch the nuts but also meant I didn't sleep too well as the rustling woke me a few times.

When I tried to leave Xixia I was 'direct' to stay in my room, eventually an English speaker was found who told me they wanted to take a photo of me and give me a gift, I'd been a bit anxious to get going but just had to sit tight! They very kindly gave me a set of thermals. After a little ceremony for pictures etc I went to pack my bike and found the back wheel flat again! Changing a tyre with an audience wasn't much fun but they did take the old tyre to be patched by a local repair 'shop' and wouldn't let me pay. I tried to check the tyre but I couldn't find anything obvious. I'd hoped to get to Dengzhou but with the various delays I know that wouldn't be possible. I was a pretty uneventful ride to Zhenping. I had trouble finding hotel and eventually ended up at a pretty grotty dorm but at least it was a bed!

I was aiming for Xiangfan to catch up so got up and out early knowing there was no shower in the offing! I found some giant boa-zirs for breaky. On the way through Zhenpin I saw a few places that may have offered a nicer hotel but never mind! As I was early I saw a goats head being cut off which wasn't particularly pleasant but I guess it has to be done somewhere! It was a mucky misty day but I eventually found my way out of town after doing a bit of a tour of town! It was a pretty long straight road trudging into the mist. I later realised it was Saturday when I came across a market town absolutely heaving with people & bikes, it was a nightmare getting through but I eventually fought my way through without being run over or hitting anyone! After a long but pretty quick day I got to Xiangfan in good time but tired and found a nice hotel (after avoiding a couple of grotty looking ones)

I had trouble finding breakfast as they were a bit slow getting started but eventually got it sorted after confusing reception! I had yet another puncture which got me rather stressed out!! I tried pumping it but had to change it in the end. It was then a hard push to cover the miles to Jingmen with a final total of just short of 80 miles. I found a hotel quick but couldn't find any normal shops because it was in the DIY district of town! In the hotel restaurant I think I was chatted up by the waitress which was quite amusing as it was done by message written from my phrase book while I ate! She later sent me a number of txts in Chinese which my phone couldn't display let alone me understand! (when I told her this she said 'you're welcome', I think there could be communication issues!)

Again I started off early, security was still asleep! Had some nice breaky on the way out of town. I had another puncture and close inspection of the tyre proved that the seems were going and leaving rough edges which were obviously wearing holes in the tube. I dug out my old tyre and replaced it with much less problems since. I was fuming by this time after so many punctures but I just had to keep on pushing on and thankfully from there it was a pretty pleasant ride to Jingzhou I had real problems finding my way once I got there and ended up doing a circuit round the prison back to where I started! I tried a different tack following the road I'd gone in on instead of heading into town and eventually found a hotel (after yet another restaurant masquerading as a hotel!) The place I found I thought was expensive at 130 Yuan then I found it had a squat loo and no hot water so wasn't at all impressed!

In the morning I found out the receipt actually said 188 which made me pretty annoyed given the other prices I've had to pay but no amount of arguing could make a difference it seemed (they seemed to dislike scruffy foreigners!) They also didn't have a clue about my bike so I was exceptionally glad I'd insisted on following to see where the bike was being put when security took it last night! I headed off after a nice local breaky where they tried to tell me the way but language (or lack of on my part) caused a bit of trouble! I carried on regardless and followed a sign for a town I thought I had to go through. It was quite a misty morning and the signs soon disappeared I asked some interested passers-by when I stopped and they directed me down a little road which quickly disintegrated into nothing! As I stood considering my options at a very misty muddy junction a lorry behind hooted me so I went over. He told me the way to Gong'an but also tried to tell me something else which I couldn't understand. I followed and ended up on a raised concrete road with less than 50m visibility because of the thick fog! It was an interesting ride almost taking a couple of wrong turns because I simply couldn't see the junction! I regularly had to dive off the road for fear of not being seen by passing traffic (traffic was fortunately very light). It became even more fun when road works were added into the equation closing one or other side of the road quite regularly! As the day wore on the fog slowly lifted and I managed to spy the out lines of some ships on what I assumed must be the Yangtze, the only problem was I was on the wrong side on a road not marked on my maps! I persevered a little worried that I'd be left in the middle of nowhere but regularly checking with people that I could get to Dong'an this way. Eventually I reached a queue of cars to the river which I guessed to be a ferry. It took a little while but once I'd checked with someone this was a ferry to Gong'an I soon had a crowd as usual! They were really friendly and in the time waiting for the ferry with the help of my phrase book we had quite a chat! They even taught me how to eat raw sugarcane (given to me free by the seller) and paid for my crossing, as well as persuading the boatman to let me on with the bike as he was for some reason worried about me getting run over! It was a short ride into Gong'an making it a pretty short day but the next marked town was by then too far to get to in time. I found good Dove (Galaxy by a different name) chocolate in one of the shops which was great except I indulged a little too much and ended up not being able to sleep because of the sugar!

I started badly on the way out of Gong'an by getting on the wrong road but fortunately the noodle place I stopped for breakfast at put me right. It was pretty wet which never makes for easy cycling but the waterproofs did their job! A motorcyclist followed me for a while but I couldn't understand a lot of the conversation! He then invited me to his house but I was expecting to have a long day getting to LinLi the next town so had to decline. I crossed the 'border' into the Hunan province and it was very noticeable, the road quality and size deteriorated dramatically and well as the cleanliness of the road, it appeared the 'hard-shoulder' had never been swept! The rain got heavier which mixed with the dirty roads made it a pretty messy unpleasant ride but I made it to LinLi OK. When I went to the supermarket to get supplies I happened to be coming back just as the school kids were milling around and a few of them followed me back to the hotel with great amusement!

I expected a an 80 mile day but even so found it hard getting up and wasn't riding out of town after breakfast till 9:30 or so. The road I was directed to out of LinLi (as far as I understood anyway!) turned into a bit of a mud bath particularly after yesterdays rain but after a bit 'interesting' puddle negotiation it eventually came out onto the new main road as promised. I'm sure there would probably have been an easier way out of town onto the same road but never mind! It was a relatively short ride to my next obstacle which was ChangDe, I was worried about hitting the expressway and having nowhere to go (as has happened quite a few times before!) Fortunately I just followed the road around the city and at the junction to the expressway there was also a national road on towards ChangSha, I was very pleased! It looked from the maps to be about 80 Km from the expressway junction which I really hoped it wasn't as time would then be short but as it turned out it was! I pushed hard and reach HuTai which looked on the maps to be about halfway, the first sign I saw said 40Km which was a little tight but doable and the second sign said 30Km (about 1k down the road!) so figured I should be OK! It was hard going with lots of ups and downs, constant drizzle and wind all the way and I was relieved to see a 5km sign although it was a bit early. 8Km down the road was a 13Km sign just to annoy me! I was beginning to cut it fine with light but just as I was getting worried I reached the outskirts. Stopping at a junction as usual I somehow got a big puncture and my tyre went instantly flat. I could practically see the town so after a bit of debate I decided to unload as much weight as possible to save the tyre and walk as it was by now dusk. As I plodded on a cyclist came up slowly behind me and motioned that he'd show me where a repair man was so JiCheng (as I later found out) got my puncture sorted and then took me to the nearby hotel, I was whacked physically and mentally after such a long day and frustrating end but it was nice to have company and he was keen to learn English. We went together to supper which in its self is rare on the road (eating with someone that is!) Then he took me to refill my phone card and to show me the hypermarket next-door. He was very friendly but after a long day a high priority was sleep and it took a while to get the message across! I was grateful of the company though. In all I cycled 92.9 miles today (149 Km)!

Expecting a short day I rose a little late but was still preparing to leave by 9. When I came to check out and load my bike I found to my frustration the tyre was flat again! I tried taking it back to the same guy but he wasn't up yet, fortunately some nearby locals saw my predicament and pointed my to another guy. I had stupidly forgotten my pump so after a bit of confusion as the guy couldn't read my phrase book I left my bike to go back and get it. He told me to pump it which I did then told me I had a puncture which I'd kind of figured out! (I was running low on patches so thought best to conserve them and use the locals as I knew where they were.) He was very brutal with the tyre until I managed to persuade him to let me have the screwdriver and to it a bit more gently (folding tyres aren't quite as sturdy as thick rubber ones!) He got the puncture fix though and for a very cheap price. After loading up at the hotel I headed of the way I expected to have to go and at the fateful puncture junction I asked some guys to check my direction (it was raining again so they were sheltering under a little kiosk awning) They confirmed my thoughts but after a short distance I found that actually this road just lead to the expressway which they wouldn't let me on and were less than helpful with alternative directions! I vaguely understood that I had to go back through the town so retraced my steps. It was almost 12 by the time I was back at the hotel so to the confusion of the staff I decided to call it a day and have my rest day here in YiYang. After getting another room I did internet and mostly chilled for the afternoon.