Tibet here we come!
Our entrance into Tibet was one hell of a mission with the mind bending
Tanggu La Pass @ 5231m which was to be made even harder with a killer
side wind of what we believe to be around 40 km/ph and gusting up to 60
km. To add to the challenge my chain snapped just 1km from the top of the
pass requiring a sub zero chain repair at Formula 1 speed by me and
Chris. Here is a wee video of us at the top.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbcnWPhwz6U
At 5000m it took some time for the brain to kick in and work out how to
fix the chain…
After making it to the summit is was supposed to be a 17 km ride down hill
to a roadwokers hut with our own Yak dung stove – total luxury! Unfortunately
the down hill ended up taking as much effort as the up! A severe head wind
resulted in us doing 6km/ph downhill – Tibet was challenging us but we would
not be defeated!
The next day was looking like a simple day with rolling hills and a small
pass. When we got to the top of the Largen La pass @ 5170 m once again
mental head winds cheated us out of are downhill with the wind trying to push
us back up the hill!
The next 24 hours would turn out to be our most eventful yet with a wee
run in with the local Police and being asked to turn round and go back
north watch this wee video which will explain what is going on!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxdUyAztxuQ
It only took 30 min and we had convinced a Chinese Trucker to give us a
lift. I jumped up on top and strapped down the bikes and gear and we were
off. Thinking we had made it, then we were asked to get out of the truck so
it could be weighed the same friendly Police man pulls up in his van and just
misses us as we hop back in to the truck.
Our last night of camping before Lhasa was to have the best view yet with
Nyainqentanglha Apex 7000m.
Finally we managed to get a downhill with no head wind and put in a
good 100 k days which would take us all the way to the heart of Tibet
– the capital Lhasa.
Chris found the world larges smoothie maker!
A solar Powered kettle is the way to go in Lhasa. With all the water you
drink over here needing to be boiled there are some fantastic ways to
harness natural resources to help save on fuel.
We had been told we would not get into any monasteries but Team Subtle
can manage anything with our Jedi powers so we nipped in to Jonkking
and had a walk around
We have had a fantastic time chilling in Lhasa and getting a well
deserved rest before the next mission to Katmandu with only 14 days
until our flight we will have to do some hitch hiking but with good road
and hopefully not to much of a head wind we are confident of success.
Until next time
Mike and Chris