Day 1: Kunming
Cycling 30km of total 30km
On the first day, the group will meet and there will be a warm-up tour of the city where we will visit the Yuan Tong Temple, Cuihu (Green Lake) Park and the East and West Pagodas.
Day 2: Kunming /Xiaguan
Cycling 20km of total 20km
Fly to Xiaguan, transport to Old Dali. Old Dali still has some of that small town charm and ideally located between the Cangshan Mountains and Erhai Lake. In the afternoon we will visit the Three Pagodas and Chongshen. Three Pagodas of Chongshen Monastery At the foot of the Zhonghe Peak of the Cangshan Mountain just one kilometer to the northwest of the ancient city of Dali stand three pagodas, which are an emblem of the city's venerated history. The tallest of the trio, which is 69.13 meters tall, was built in 836 AD, and the two smaller ones were built during a late period. No visit to Dali is complete with a call at these three pagodas.
the group will fly to Xiaguan and then get transport to Old Dali.
Day 3: Old Dali / Erhai Lake / Dali
Cycling 40km of total 40km
We will cycle half way around Erhai Lake, visiting several villages, temples and Jinsuo Island before returning to Dali via boat. Erhai Lake in the shape of an Er, meaning ear in Chinese, the Erhai Lake in the east of Dali covers 250 square kilometers at an elevation of 1,980 meters with water a storage capacity of 300,000 cubic meters. Its vast pool of water, shining under the sun like a sheet of vivid green, and the snow mantles of the Cangshan Mountain reflected quivering in it, combine to form a breath-taking sight known poetically as ˇ°Silver Cangshan and Jade-like Erhai ". Visit to Laotai Temple, Haidong Village.
Day 4: Dali / Jianchuan
Cycling 50km of total 120km
An interesting market selling cattle, handicraft and agricultural products is held every Monday in the village of Shapin, just thirty kilometers outside Dali. Every Monday, the villagers from the surrounding countryside gather in an open area on the outskirts of town where they sell, buy and trade goods for the following week.
We will head north to Jianchuan via Shapin Village cycling along the old Dali-Lijiang road where numerous minorities can be seen along the road in traditional dress. In Jianchuan we will have an opportunity to visit the Jinhuashan Precipice Bas-relief Grottos.
Day 5: Jianchuan / Qiaotou
Cycling 50km of total 95km
Qiaotou was a small town and waypoint for those headed to Tiger Leaping Gorge.
We cycle along side the Yangtze River. The village of Stone Drum stands at the First Bend of the Yangtze River, some 70 kilometers west of Lijiang on the way to Qiaotou. Approaching to Stone Drum offers a dramatic view of the Yangtze's near-180-degree turn, where the wide, swift waters perform a miraculous about-face. For nearly 20 kilometers the river, first flowing south, then north, runs parallel to itself. Locals say if it were not for their village standing guard at the bend, China would lose the water of the Yangtze to Southeast Asia, like that of the adjacent Mekong and Salween Rivers.
Day 6: Qiaotou / Zhongdian
Cycling 25km of total 105km
We will go to Shangri-La (Zhongdian). This is a predominately Tibetan town and we will visit the Songzangling Tibetan Monastery. This Large Yellow Hat (Gelukpa) Tibetan monastery has returned from the ashes and destruction that swept southeastern Tibet in the late 1950s and 1960s. Songsenlin was founded in the 17th century during the reign of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama, when the yellow Hat school came to full ascendancy in Tibet. It lies a few kilometers beyond the north end of town and welcomes visitors who behave respectfully. The monastery once had as many as 1200 monks before, and now claims many hundreds, though most of these stay at home and work with their families, only coming together as a single body on area festival occasions. In 1980 the second delegation sent by the Dalai Lama to investigate conditions in Tibet stayed in Zhongdian, and since then there has been steady reconstruction at this sacred site.
Day 7: Zhongdian
Cycling 20km of total 20km
Enjoy natural limestone formations at Tiansheng, a hot spring, another ancient temple (Dabao), and another lake (Bita Hai) set in a pristine landscape. This mountainous area is lovely and the scenery is wonderful. Situated on a plateau at an elevation of 3200 meters, the region of Zhongdian offers great possibilities for trekking, botanical exploration, as well as the discovery of Tibetan culture. Zhongdian is surrounded by vast grasslands with grazing yaks. The Tibetan houses look like small forts with their white chalked thick walls, windows decorated with elegant painted woodwork. The picturesque Tibetan villages still keep unique customs and traditions.
Day 8: Zhongdian / Qiaotou
Cycling 50km of total 95km
On the way back to Tiger Leaping Gorge we will stop at the Mutian Castle. In the 13th century the Yuan dynasty established the Lijiang Prefecture that will be governed by Naxi local rulers called Tusi. From the following century all the Tusi belongs to the Mu family. Considered hereditary kings of Lijiang, their dynastic line keeps the power until 1949. During the Yuan and Ming dynasties Lijiang, Ninglang, Weixi, Yanyuan and Muli are under the Tusi system. The descendant in fourth generation of Aliangzen, Mudeqin goes in person to Nanjing, to give the Naxi tribute to the emperor Hong Wu. He received the title of King of Mutian, agglutinating around its power in Lijiang, the Naxi tribes. We will explore the ruins of castle the King of Mutian.
Day 9: Qiaotou/ Yongsen Village
Cycling 20km of total 20km
The Tiger Leaping Gorge, or Hutiaoxia in Chinese, is the Yangtze's best-known gorge after the Three Gorges in Sichuan and Hubei. Wedged tightly between titanic cliffs, the river is so narrow here, as legend tells us, that a hunted tiger made his escape to the other side in a single bound. Here, the Jade Dragon Snow Mountains and the Haba Snow Mountains lean close to each other and a large volume of torrent moving between them cutting deeper and deeper into the bottom of the gorge. In some places there is a drop of 3,000 meters to the water.
Day 10: Yongsen / Lijiang
Cycling 50km of total 121km
Visit to Zhiyun Temple. This lamasery is situated in the west of Lashi Basin. It was built in 1727 and was made up of thirteen different structures. However during the Cultural Revolution many structures were badly destroyed with only six structures remaining intact. In the courtyard of this temple, there are five different kinds of big trees. These are the Cherry tree, Plum tree, Ginkgo tree, Mulberry tree and the Chinese Scholar tree. All of which are more than 200 years old .This monastery is unique in design, it differs from the traditional Tibetan architecture as all the carvings and structural designs were taken from the Naxi, Han and Bai people. From this lamasery, all tourists can view the beautiful Lashi Lake which is just at the bottom of the temple.
Day 11: Lijiang
Cycling 20km of total 20km
Whole day tour in Lijiang including Old town, this town was built about 800 years ago during the Southern Song Dynasty. Owing to its unique ethnic culture and urban layout, this old town (including Baisha and Shuhe housing clusters) was enlisted to be one of World Cultural Heritage in 1997. This ancient town has an area of 3.8 square km with about 30,000 residents living in it. Two major families reside in this town: the Mu Family (the former ruling family) and the He Family. There are three entrances to the Old Town. Strolling causally along the Old Town, you can find beautiful cobbles stone path across the narrow streets. Most of the Naxi's houses were erected along the fast flowing streams in the old town. After lunch visit to Baisha Frescoes, this ancient Mural were stored, preserved and displayed in some ancient buildings in the Baisha village, which is located 10km northwest of Lijiang city. These houses were built over a period of more than 300 years during the Ming (1385AD) and Qin Dynasty (1619AD). The murals were also painted during this period when the Han, Bai, Tibetan and Naxi people came together and resided in Lijiang Plain. Hence the Baisha Mural displayed the different religious cultures and arts forms from Buddhism, Lamaism, Daoism and the Naxi Dongba religion. The Artists that painted the murals also came from the Han, Tibetan, Bai and Naxi people.
Day 12: Lijiang / Lake Lugu
Cycling 16km of total 270km
Bike to Lake Lugu, it is known around the world not only for its beautiful natural scenery, but also because it is home to a unique matriarchate well-preserved by the indigenous Mosuo people, who are a branch of the Naxi (also spelt Nakhi and Nahi) ethnic minority group. Explore Liwubi Island, which lies three kilometers (one point nine miles) away from Chieftain Island, is actually a small peninsula extended into the lake by the Holy Gemu Mountain. The mountain is also called Lion Mountain, for it looks like a lion drinking water beside the lake.
Day 13: Lake Lugu
Cycling 16km of total 16km
After breakfast, take a home visit of the local Mosuo people and the Zha Mei Monastery in Yongning. This is the biggest lamasery in Lugu Lake area, which is 2 km north of Yongning Town. There is a big courtyard surrounding the temple. Inside the temple, you can see both the statue of the goddess Gemu and the goddess Buddha. Both the Tibetan Buddhism and the Daba Religion (a primitive religion) are still being worship by the local people. During the Cultural Revolution, the temple was badly destroyed leaving behind only one part of the temple structure. This was then rebuilt in 1986.
Day 14: Lijiang / Kunming
Kunming - Fly to Kunming. End of trip
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