Highway 28 to Cishan

Left the house at 6:30a.m. and headed up past the Sugar Refinery to Yanchiao for breakfast.

Some classic wheels out for a Sunday drive pulled up in front of the Family Mart.

Was very nice weather for riding this morning in KHH - about 27 degrees with overcast skies.
The two moderate climbs on highway 14 and 37 flew by and I was feeling strong.

I was feeling so strong, that I decided to alter my route and finally ride highway 28 out to Cishan - land of the banana. This is a 4-lane highway with virtually no shade that requires a nice overcast day like today. The first couple of hills went by alright and then, just when the only way back was forward, the clouds suddenly disappeared - the trap had been sprung.

The "Cishan 7km" sign turned out to only tell the distance to the district line and several more punishing climbs still stood between me and Cishan. It's no coincidence that overheat and defeat form a rhyming couplet.

The closer look at the sights of Cishan will have to wait for another trip on a cooler day when I'm not a puddle of my former self.

 

RIDE SUMMARY:   36km

1) Sugar Refinery MRT - Yanchiao : 8km totally flat

2) Yanchiao - Tianliao via road 14 and 37 : 12km with a couple of 6-8min. climbs.

3) Tianliao - Cishan on highway 28: 5 or 6 short but steep climbs; each a bit longer than the last.

To see this ride on Bikemap:
Ciaotao - Cishan


Orchard Alley

Did something really foolish yesterday - turned my phone to vibrate while in the bookstore and never changed it back so it could wake me up for my ride this morning. But, with all the missed rides recently due to rain, I wasn't about to cancel a ride just because of a late start. So, in the blazing 9am sun, I set off for a ride down Orchard Alley.

Things were pretty busy when I got off at Ciaotou Sugar Refinery MRT Station with a second hand market going on.

There was also an unusually large number of cyclists on my route today. Seems there was some sort of big group ride going on that had started in downtown KHH and was going to circle the reservoir and then back again.

They went left and I went right in search of a quieter road with a little more shade. Country road #40 was the answer.

This took me down to major highway 22. Then went east on the 22 for a couple of km to the KUAS campus, which is where you turn south again and enter Orchard Alley. The ridge in the background was shielding me from the chaos that is Fo Guan Shan Temple on a Sunday.

As you can see by the shadows on the road, the sun was all but directly overhead by 10:30 a.m. and it was getting rather hot. This quiet road is wonderful riding though, despite the heat.

Being of seafairing stock, my knowlege of farming is limited to say the least. So, when I saw this cactus being grown in rows, I wasn't sure what to make of it. A quick search with Google revealed it to be a Pitaya cactus or Dragonfruit tree. It should start to bear fruit next month I think.

Then came across this odd structure. An abandoned amusement park from days gone by?

A little further along, my quiet lane came to an end and I was thrust out in front of E-Da World. When will this monstrosity get abandoned? I would normally turn left here and drift down the hill to the Goaping river and enter the city via the back side of Niaosong, but the heat was getting to me. Therefore, took a shortcut down to highway 10 and got out of the sun under the elevated highway.

Over the hill to Meinong

I reached an important marker in my training this week: 600km of base miles.

As explained at Cycling Base Miles 101:
Base miles aim to gently increase cycling specific muscle/tendon/ligament strength, build capillaries, get your butt used to saddle time and improve your cardio vascular conditioning.

At 43 years old and 125kg (now 120kg) I was a bit worried about injuring myself if I hit the hills too soon, so I made a rough plan:

a) After 600km: Begin to challenge hills under 300m
b) 1,200km: Challenge hills under 500m
c)  2,000km: Knock yourself out.

So, with 600km under my belt, I set off for my first real climb of the year:
A 240m hill en route to Meinong.

All week, when I had no time to ride, the weather was great and I started to grumble about it being another weekend of rain, lightning and thunder. But as the saying goes: "Be careful what you wish for!"

At 6:30am when I left the house it was already pretty warm. At 7:30am when I stopped for a drink in Yanchiao it was a getting a bit hot. I passed a farm woman riding a bike with her body covered from head to toe and thought to myself:  "Lady, do you know something I don't?"
To which she of course answered in her best Benicio Del Toro as Freddy Four Fingers accent:
"Andy, I probably know a lot you don't."

At the 3-way hub in central Yanchiao where I like to stop at the Family Mart for a drink. With a temple on one corner, fruit and vegetable market on another and a convenience store it's quite a busy spot.

Before you actually get to the real climb though, there are about 6 short but steep hills that give you a taste of what's to come so that you can chicken out and take the easier route modify your route if need be. The first of these climbs takes you right in front of Cock’s Comb Mountain.

Though not a very long climb ( about 2.5km ) the grades were very steep. I just couldn't find a gear low enough to prevent myself from getting winded. I know Rule#69: It is strictly prohibited that under any circumstances a cyclist should walk up a steep incline. Luckily, my will to live is stronger than my pride, so I hoofed it up a few of the nastier sections. Luckier still, was that no fellow cyclists came along and caught me in my moments of shame.

I was ever so glad to reach the top of this climb, but really should have studied the topographic a little more carefully - I then would have known that this camel had two humps. There's a small temple at the top of the second peak with a nice rest area. Met a group of 4 oldtimers taking a break there, who had brought along with them a full sized tea kettle and campstove and proceeded to whip up some lao ren cha; one of those very pleasant little surprises that make riding in Taiwan so enjoyable.

A quick descent brought me down to highway 21 where I proceeded north for 10 minutes to the bridge at highway 28 and turned right.

By the time I finished grabbing something to eat in Meinong it was already 10:30am and I couldn't stop visualizing the mountains on the north end of town as being the lip on a giant frying pan. Decided to leave exploring Meinong to another day and caught the bus back into KHH.

Agongdian Reservoir Loop

There wasn't supposed to be a ride today - the weather forecast said a 70% chance of rain. After yesterday's thunder and lightning, I'd planned a swim at the gym. Woke late however to clear blue skies, so headed out. Haven't fixed the broken spoke on my Kona yet, so dusted off the road bike.

I have a bit of trouble doing pleasure rides on this bike as H.G. Wells described best:

I came out for exercise, gentle exercise, and to notice the scenery and to botanise. And no sooner do I get on that accursed machine than off I go hammer and tongs; I never look to right or left, never notice a flower, never see a view - get hot, juicy, red - like a grilled chop. Get me on that machine and I have to go. I go scorching along the road, and cursing aloud at myself for doing it. ~H.G. Wells, The Wheels of Chance

First ride with my new 50/34 compact crankset.

Earlier in the week, I'd planned a weekend ride out to Cock’s Comb Mountain for a hike, but the thought of starting a 200m hike just before noon made me change my mind. I therefore dedicate today's ride to Bruce Lee who said Be Like Water ( and follow the path of least resistance? )

Started the ride at Ciatou Sugar Refinery MRT station and headed east for around 25min. to Yanchiao and the Agongdian Reservoir bike path. It's best to do this ride counter-clockwise, as there are a couple of very short, but brutally steep, climbs that are easier in this direction.

The loop around the reservoir is only about 7km, but a nice escape from the sounds of cars and scooters. Also has a couple of suspension bridges thrown in.

After finishing the loop around the reservoir, it was time to head back the way I came. I have a fairly strong aversion to out-and-back rides - guess it comes from the limited choices I had for road rides as a lad in my home town: ride 20 miles north of town and back or 20 miles south of town and back.

I saw a fellow on a bike exit a little side road that followed alongside a canal. He said it would take me to Gangshan, just north of Ciatao, so I was off to explore. Turned out to be a very good choice.

A 10 minute blast south from Ciaotao on Highway 1 brought me to the Nantze Industrial District. The name alone should give you a pretty strong mental image of the place. Nantze is in fact an offence to every sense but one, as the high concentration of workers from Vietnam, Philippines and Thailand make it a culinary paradise in the middle of a wasteland. Stopped by my favorite Thai hole-in-the-wall for lunch.

Pictures of the king and queen on the walls, Thai whiskey and beer, Karaoke machine and heaping plates of cheap Thai food. Heaven! Was pretty quiet today due to being the last weekend before payday.

Ride Summary:  30km total
Ciaotou MRT to Agongdian Reservoir :  9km
Loop of Reservoir:  6km
Reservoir to Nantze : 15km

See this ride on Bikemap:  Agongdian Reservoir

Island Getaway

The temperature really shot up this week, so I decided to combine a bike ride with some snorkling. The closest decent beaches to KHH are on Hsiao Liu Chiu (Xiao Liuqiu) island, so I hopped on the MRT early Saturday morning and travelled east to the last station: Daliao.

The convenient elevator at KHH Arena station near my house.

Ready for a day at the beach with flippers in tow.

Not many people ride to the end of the line.

Exiting Daliao station and turning left, you travel south for about 300m and turn left again at a T-intersection and follow this road all the way east to the Gaoping River. Then cross Highway 21 and get up on top of the dyke and ride the bikepath along the river all the way south to Lingyuan.

Riding south on the dyke.

One of the few bits of shade to stop for a drink on this ride.

The new bridge across the Gaoping river on highway 17 has a lot more room for cyclists now.

Arrived at Donggang harbour at 10:45am and quickly boarded a boat leaving at 11:00. $380 for a return ticket + $50 extra for the bike each way.

Didn't realize there are 2 different harbours on Hsiao Liu Chiu and this boat didn't go to the main Baishawei Tourist Harbour. As I circled the island counter-clockwise, I couldn't figure out why it was taking me so long to get to the beach where I wanted to swim. The island also had a lot more hills than I remembered from when I last visited 8 years ago; I'm getting old.

Looking back toward Dafu Fishing Harbour from a viewpoint at the top of the first climb.

The famous crystal-clear waters of the island's beaches.

Houshi Skirt Reef beach had great snorkling.

The lack of cars on the island made for very good riding, with the odd tour bus to look out for on corners like this.

Arrived back in Donggang at 3:45 to be greeted by a brutal headwind for the 20km trip back to KHH. Can't say I enjoyed this portion of the ride very much and took no photos.

RIDE SUMMARY:
1) Daliao MRT - Donggang : 26km totally flat
2) Island Loop : 12km of short steep climbs (+8km when I got lost)
3) Donggang - Siogang MRT : 20km totally flat

To see this ride on Bikemap:
To Dongang and back
Island Loop

Backdoor to Eda-World

Riding the foothills of Kaohsiung is normally a very relaxing activity; but not today. My mind didn't make a proper connection between today being the last Sunday before Tomb Sweeping Day and the foothills of KHH being covered in Tombs. Needless to say, there were a few more cars on the route today than usual.

The quiet downhill on 186A just east of EDA-World.

Started the ride today on the Kaohsiung MRT that now offers a great deal for bikers: $60 for you and your bike for as far as you want to go. Best way to skip out on the Ring-of-Fire that surrounds KHH. Exiting at Metropolitan Park station in Nantze, we headed directly east into the hills. Takes about 15min to get past the city streets into the countryside.

Lots of pineapple farms in this area.

Did I mention there are a lot of pinnapple farms in this area?

A nice overcast day, with temperatures around 20 degrees, made it a great day for biking. After riding down the 186A to near the Gaoping River we headed back into town through the rolling hills of Niaosong and round the back of Cheng-Ching Lake. A very enjoyable 38km loop.

Ended the ride with a ice-latte and honey-mustard panini at the Jacoranda Cafe across from the Jade market.

To see this ride on Bikemap: