China, Tibet & SE Asia Cycle

3000 km by bicycle across China, East Tibet, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand

For the past years we have been thinking a lot about a China & Tibet bikepacking experience. We are drawn to what appeared to be a country evolving in isolation, and at the same time exploding onto the global scene. But for the independent overland traveler China is still a dead-end. To preserve our freedom and to make it more challenging, we decided to do the journey by MTB. Given the size of the land, our focus is on the Sichuan, Yunnan and East Tibetan provinces, which are also the most ethnically diverse.
VEHICLE
Merida + Gain MTB bicycles
Year
2013-2014

Dispatches from this adventure

China | East Tibet

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The Art of Rice

Bikepacking to the rice terraces of Yuanyang, a World Heritage site and one of the most photographed...
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The Many Faces of Dali

We leave Shaxi reluctantly, wishing we could just rent a house and stay forever. As we make our way ...
Cycling China Tibet Shangri La Ta Gong

South of Eden

We decide to reach Yangtze River via Baishuitai, Haba and Tiger Leaping Gorge, but first we head to ...
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Litang! Litang!

Once we found that the onward bus to Litang had been cancelled due to blizzard and another one may ...
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Paradise Lost

I manage to sleep until 09:30 when I realize how we were able to survive the insane cold, even if Ta...
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Ba Mei to Tagong

An exhilarating descent ending at an average altitude of 3,500 meters at the eastern edge of Qinghai...
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Up the Pass

Bikepacking to the 5820m ridge of the Ya La Snow Mountain in China....
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Entering Tibet Kham

The day begins somehow in mellow fashion, as we know we have lots of fun downhill sections and some ...
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爽 Shuang

The Chinese call this state of being Shuang, which hits us the moment we roll out of Chengdu with st...
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Pepper Freedom

Xi’an Bound If you’re a masochist, I’ve got a tip for you: the Trans-Siberian has ...
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Mission to China

It's the 25th of September and we are on a plane to Beijing. After roaming Africa a...

Vietnam | Cambodia | Thailand