Sometimes we would spend days climbing
a single mountain pass. At altitudes of more than 17,000 feet
it would be slow going. North of Mt. Kailash, Tibet.
Endless Sky. North of Mt. Kailash, Tibet.
Mt. Kailash, the peak in the back ground, is one of the most sacred
mountain in all of Asia for both Hindus and Buddhist. Mt. Kailash,
Tibet.
You can get some idea from this photo just how much stuff we had
to carry, each of the bikes with all of the gear weighted more
than 100 pounds each. Mt. Kailash, Tibet.
Prayer flags in front of the lone peak of Kailash.
Mt Kailash, Tibet.
These prayer flags mark the last point from which pilgrims can
see Mt. Kailash, before returning to central Tibet. After Horchu,
Tibet.
We stopped to checking our maps. We used a few different kinds
of maps, ranging from Chinese truck driver maps, to detailed topo
maps of the area. Before Zhongba, Tibet.
These locals had stopped by to see what we were up to. There is
just not that many people in this area and almost none on bicycles.
Before Zhongba, Tibet.
A few times a day we would need to filter water. This process
went a lot easier with a couple people taking turns to pumps and
help hold the water bottles. Before Zhongba, Tibet.
This young woman was part of road maintenance crew. These small
houses can be found fairly often along the roadside. Most of these
folks spend their days fixing potholes and drinking tea. This
woman is standing beside a butter churn, preparing some Tibetan
butter tea for us. This kind of salted tea is more like soup then
what most western people would think of as "tea." After
Zhongba, Tibet.
