October 22nd
148km (1,732m vertical)
Looked out the window this morning and thought “Boy it looks cold out there. They sky is really grey...oh...and everything is covered in snow!” The roads were clear, but there was enough snow on the cars to have a snowball fight in the parking lot.
Nicole and Trine were still feeling terrible, so I rode with Al. As we set off, it started to rain and snow heavily, and quickly became a full-on snow storm. It was 28F and very, very wet. I'd never ridden in snow like this before...let alone on a 148km ride! My toes and hands were freezing, as the slush quickly soaked through my shoe-covers and gloves. By lunch it had stopped raining and the temperature had risen to 40F...which was a LOT more comfortable.
After lunch, we rode along the Yellow River, which is now decidedly more brown than yellow. (Apparently, up to 70% of the river's volume is silt...versus 4% for the supposedly muddy Nile!)
The traffic in Lanzhou is completely crazy! Traffic lights are ignored, with cars, scooters, buses, bikes and people swarming intersections randomly. As we entered the city, Al hit a huge pothole that was hidden in a puddle, and fell off his bike. Bad luck.
Made good time, averaging 26.1km/h on a day with a net descent. We arrived at 3pm but the hotel didn't turn on the hot water until 7pm...which was pretty frustrating after such a wet, cold day. At least we weren't camping!
This photo doesn't really capture how cold I was:
Al with all his warm clothes on:
Rolling hills covered in fresh snow:
The Yellow River (once the snow had stopped):
Main road into Lanzhou...now dry and warm(er):
2 comments:
yellow river does look very brown..it doesn't even look like a river..it looks more like a dirt puddle..
BTW, when will you be done exactly? I am going home over Christmas... And dude, you are in your own little world when the rest of the world is CRASHING AND BURNING!!!
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