317 Cycling Tour, Day 6: Danba-Dandong

Because you will find that your growth is visible to the naked eye. For example today.

What’s special about today is that even though there are 70 kilometers of uphill climbing, I didn’t start early. Therefore, we caught up with the group photo for the first time. Even though it’s in the back row, it’s better than not having it at all 😂

Today’s itinerary, as described by my teammates, is the opposite of yesterday’s journey. Yesterday it was a continuous downhill, today it is a continuous uphill. Think of your scalp as slightly numb.

I started at 7 o'clock and stayed until about 11 o'clock. I was actually in pretty good shape. Although the climb was indeed tiring and zig-zag, it was not to the point of being left far behind by the large group. I just don’t take pictures, so when the masters take pictures, I just record them with my eyes from the side.

Not long after I started riding, there was news in the group that a friend decided to withdraw to Chengdu due to knee problems. It's a pity that he still resigned to ride 317. I couldn't help but pray that my knee was okay.

Generally speaking, I have kept up with everyone on this journey. So Brother Leshan and Sister Rong both praised me and said that I had made obvious progress.

I also discovered it myself. It should be that my muscles rested for a day and are in much better condition than before. One of the most obvious changes is that your endurance has increased - when you climbed the Balang Mountain Tunnel, you took many breaks in between, but today you can rest once an hour while climbing.

It seems like what my best friend said, getting older is nothing more than adapting to the longer cycle.

What I am most grateful to are the cyclists. Maybe it is because my articles have left a deep impression on them and they are more worried about me. When there are dogs on the road or there are forks in the road and they are afraid of taking the wrong turn, they also think of me and ask if Liu Jing is here?

Benben was also afraid that I would collapse, so he called to see where I was.

Later, my speed slowed down, and Brother Guang, who stayed behind to take pictures, became brothers who finished the race.

We also passed a monument on the way, and Brother Guang helped me take pictures. I was a little hesitant about giving a military salute to the martyrs. After Brother Guang found out, he began to recognize his comrades. It turns out that he joined the army in 1984, 10 years after me, so he was the old squad leader.

Along the way, he started to protect me as the squad leader.

Today's road is a rural road, the road condition is very good, and there are few cars. The sunshine was very good, and as we walked up the river, the air was fresh, and the colorful forest scenery in western Sichuan was everywhere. It was extremely beautiful. Except for the tiring climb, everything else was fine.

Brother Guang always stops to take pictures when he encounters beautiful scenery, and he even helps me take pictures. He yelled and ate pears. He picked them from a friend's garden with his own hands. They were very sweet. It is said that it will not fall off even if it is hung on the tree through the winter, and can be picked and eaten in winter.

Thanks to his butter tea, it helped me survive the thirstiest part of the journey.

After stopping and going like this, we fell behind and later met up with Little D.

I was in bad shape throughout the afternoon, and by the time I took a break for the fourth hour, I was already so hungry that I had no energy. I ate apples, pears, sagema, chocolate... but I still felt wrong.

Looking back now, I can see that you really can’t rest all the time, the rhythm will be messed up, and the human body itself is too lazy. Even if you rest for only 2 minutes, you will feel weak when you get back on the bike and it will take some time to get used to it.

With about 30 kilometers left, the signal started to disappear completely. Both China Unicom and China Mobile cannot make calls or view group messages.

Fortunately, the satellite signal is still there, and Baidu Maps can be used to know how many kilometers are left.

Okay, now, Brother Guang and I are joking, we really need two people to walk together. Otherwise, if something happens and the heavens and the earth fail to respond, it will still be too dangerous.

The following was taken during a break on the way.

The picture above is truly classic and beautiful.

When I passed by the small store, I added hot water and bought a bottle of iced black tea, which made me feel more at ease. I also went to the toilet in the wild. On the way, I was still thinking that I should invent a convenient urinary catheter for cyclists, so I don’t have to worry.

The remaining 23.5 kilometers of gentle slopes were really close to collapse. I started looking at Baidu Maps frequently again.

Because there is no signal, NetEase Cloud Music cannot be listened to and cannot divert attention. There was no signal until there were 10 kilometers left.

I called Benben and asked him what he wanted to say about the missed call. He said he wanted to know where I was. After I told him, he said it was okay and complained that he had a hard time completing the last 1.5 kilometers.

After I heard this, it only made me more stressed about the final journey. In the last 2 kilometers, my daughter even sent a video invitation. I felt that I had reached the critical state of riding. She didn't want to pick it up at first, but she did anyway, considering that she was at home alone and didn't know what was going on.

Fortunately, it turned out that she cooked a meal by herself, and I was very pleased as an old mother.

In the last 1 kilometer, I repeatedly told myself that it would not work to keep looking at the mileage. I told myself that there were still 5 kilometers left and kept a calm mind...

Finally, we arrived at Dandong Town, which is 3,290 meters above sea level. I wore less clothes throughout the whole journey today because I was thinking it was going uphill and I was sweating a lot. As a result, as soon as we arrived at our destination and stopped, our teeth were chattering with the cold.

The accommodation was in a Tibetan home, and the conditions were very average. I didn’t bring a sleeping bag, so for the sake of cleanliness and warmth, I had to sleep with my clothes on.

To be honest, I was so cold that I didn’t even want to wash my face or go to the toilet😂

It does look like a lot of suffering, but thinking about the last time I rode 318 where I lived in Class 119, it’s already considered a good thing.

Curling up in the quilt, I once again doubted how long I could hold on 😂 The road and weather that followed would only get colder and colder. I thought, is it necessary to buy a sleeping bag?

Tomorrow we will go uphill for 34 kilometers and cross the pass at an altitude of 4550 meters. We will have breakfast at 6:30 and set off at 7:00. Living in Yuke Town at an altitude of 3,680 meters, I hope to have hot water for bathing.

Conclusion

It is said that the most profound saying that people can understand when riding is that there is no road in vain and every step counts.