Day 19 #B.E. Pomi - Ba Yi : Heavy Fogs, Falling Rocks And 40KM Of Sticky Muddy Uphill Climb On The Most Dangerous Highroad In China (G318)

Recognized as one of the most dangerous roads in the world and regarded as THE MOST dangerous highroad in China is the legendary China National Highway G318, which I'm SO privileged to be riding on, on my very own Singapore-registered motorcycle on it!!

On G318

Running from Shanghai all the way to Zhangmu (Tibet, near Nepal Border), G318 is the longest highway in China, crossing through 8 provinces at over 5,400KM in total.

Singapore's longest expressway is PIE (Pan Island Expressway), measuring 42.8KM.. to think that I actually used to feel it was quite long before I started this trip... Hahaha.

Credits to paranoa

So anyway, I've been traveling on roads like these for the past countless days (check out my previous posts for more pictures). They are as daunting as they seem, but at the same time, the views that they offer is usually far more breathtaking than any other straight highways.

Let the picture tell you how tight this two-way uphill climb is

But today.. hmm, let's just say it was the most difficult ride of this entire journey. The terrains on such a long distance is really putting my bike and myself to the test. Read on to find out why!

Breakfast

It's about 11 degrees on a cold and wet morning, had some dough fritters and soya bean milk at nearby small eatery to warm things up a little.

My morning

Moved off into a pretty foggy start, with clouds hanging real low, like those I always see in Chinese paintings. Quite picturesque, and as it's set between the mountains around, it didn't hinder my visibility, which is good.

Road works that were ongoing yesterday stopped for today, so I can continue my journey. If I can, means everyone else too! So my guide has advised me to mentally prepare myself for a massive jam.

When road works are in process, the terrain is usually very uncomfortable to ride in, and can be unsafe. I was looking forward to some off road fun, but when I got to the scene, it DOESN'T LOOK FUN AT ALL :(

Frowning in this soft and squishy shiat

It's not road. It's just a bed of sticky squishy fresh wet mud, parallel to the mountain cliff and fallen rocks are seen lying at every other corner.

With this kind of mud, vehicles lose traction easily. To make things worse, I even had a truck rolling back towards me. It was frightening because many vehicles were behind me and there wasn’t much room for me to escape.

My heart started beating real fast as I imagined all kinds of scenarios being squashed by the truck.

I was so nervous I tried to reverse and ended up dropping my bike. This couple here got down immediately and helped me up. Thank God the driver managed to steer out of my way even while rolling backwards.

Partial areas had some tarmac, but rocks would fall anytime, anywhere.

Just yesterday, the news reported that a falling rock hit a cyclist who was passing through this area and his arm was injured.

Jam

Just look at how bad the jam is, with barely much space for a two way traffic. Sigh, this just feels dangerous and I wanna get outta hereeee as quickly as I can!

All this goooo

Slimy and gooey : ( How long more is this stretch of road work gonna last.. Lucky being on a bike with my semi off road Pirelli Scorpion MT90/AT tyres, I’ve got enough grip and I can squeeze in between the traffic to get out asap.

Frowning again

LOL I just realized I can’t stop frowning in all my pictures so far. Haiyurrr, how to smile riding in 40KM of such road conditionssss!

And then we have horses crossing the muddy pathway… But ok I see colorful flags, this horrible road must be coming to an end.

Ombre-Mud

Ok out, I’m OUT!!!

Both my bike and I mud stained, but it’s okay, what matters is we made it out alive.

Damn, that was quite a tiring test.

Passed through Lu Lang, where the locals regard this small town as Little Switzerland. Hmm.. maybe it looks more like Switzerland during Winter. Not now, not really.

But it’s still nice to be surrounded by such lush greenery.

Ba Yi Town from above

I think I'm done for today and what a way to end it off - A magnificent sight of Ba Yi town, where my much needed rest place awaits, especially after today’s “off road exercise”. 

Now where’s my bed?

[Singapore.Malaysia.Thailand.Laos.China.Tibet]
[Mileage Clocked: 6,020KM]
[Weather/Temperature: Gloomy/Fog/Drizze/11°C]
[Altitude: 2,900m]
[Terrain: Mountain Roads/Off Road/Very Sticky Mud/Rocky/DUDE IT'S JUST BAD]

Next: Lhasa, Capital of Tibet