"8 Days of fully-supported cycling through the best of Guizhou Province's epic scenery and fascinating minority cultures.  Get off the beaten track and deep into the heartland of the Dong and Miao minority hill people."

Gallery Itinerary Info FAQs Dates

  • Day 1: Arrive Kaili Station - Transfer to Langde

    Dinner

    Our meeting point is in Kali, Guizhou. We’ll have a transportation organised to pick you up from the train station to drive you to Langde village, the start point of our ride. Please see the tour Info section for details on the timings and best ways to get to Kaili. Given time, we recommend a walk in the village, and/ or cool off in the nearby stream. In the evening we’ll meet for a banquet welcome dinner, go over all the details of the tour and answer any lingering questions you may have. Our stay tonight is in a comfortable traditional style guesthouse on the edge of the village overlooking the river.

    Langde is a small Miao village famed for its traditional buildings, scenic setting and proud locals who are happy to show off their culture (and sell you a trinket or two!). The village is recognised nationally for its cultural heritage so sees more tourists these days, though generally they are day trippers, and the village returns to daily life once the buses leave. Walking around the village takes about an hour but there are walks to further villages into the hills if you arrive early and want to explore wider. Langde would be a better option than Kaili to stay an extra night. Zhaoxing at the end is probably better still if you have extra time.

  • Day 2: Day 2 - Cycle to Baiyan - 36KM

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner 36 km

    We kick off the day today with a brief bike fitting after breakfast. We'll be following the contours of the stream by our hotel for the first 15km passing by small Miao villages along the way. We leave the valley behind and begin a 6km gentle climb into mountains and forest. A stunning twisting 6km descent follows, passing by tea plantations, terraced fields and villages, bringing us into Leishan town, the major hub for the surrounding Miao communities.

    After lunch we’ll leave the relative bustle of Leishan behind and head back into the hills to begin our climb up Leigong Shan, Thunder God Mountain. The climb up to our hotel is a gentle 5kms passing by more Miao villages with the views becoming more spectacular as we rise to a ridge-line and our stay in Baiyancun Miao village. Surrounded by mountain views, Baiyancun is a serene place to relax and take in the views. You may also wish to explore the nearby waterfall or wander among the villages before dinner in the hotel.

    Leigong Mountain is the highest mountain in the Miaoling mountain range at 2178m. It’s name translates to “Thunder God” Mountain due to the preponderance of thunder echoing across the mountains in summer (not for appearances of Norse gods!) and is revered among the local people as the home of the thunder god. It forms the southern end of the Yunnan-Guizhou plateau, from which the lands descends in altitude into Guangxi Province. It receives the northern extent of the tropical monsoons which provide conditions that have supported a vast array of flora and fauna and is part of the Pearl River watershed. Leigong Mountain tea has been traditionally sought after.

  • Day 3: Cycle to Leli - 74KM

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner 74 km

    We have an epic ride today as we cycle into the clouds (and hopefully through them) and up Leigong Mountain.  The first 8km are undulating tending upwards before we head into the Leigong Mountain National Forest for an a 10km climb to our pass.  After a break on the top to rest the legs, a superb downhill follows:  26km of twisting descent through forest before emerging through a river gorge onto the valley floor and a well deserved lunch. A picturesque flat 12km along rivers and rural Miao and Dong villages brings us to Yan’ao village from where we start our last 5km gentle climb to finally descend to our hotel destination just outside the Dong town of Leilizhen.

    Lelizhen is a Dong town with a population of around 30,000 people, also referred to as the “72 Dong Villages” by the locals, as it serves as a centre for the many surrounding villages.  Lelizhen is famous for its bull fighting festival, held on the 6th June every lunar calendar year, and is attended by the 72 surrounding villages.  Water buffalo bulls are prized: specific specimens, chosen for their potential strength, are fed special diets that is paid for by the whole village.  Whist bull fights aren’t commonly fatal - a bull is deemed a winner if its opponent backs down or submits  - deaths can happen.  The winning bull brings great pride to its village and is celebrated in a festival atmosphere where all the surrounding communities come together to meet and feast.  Our hotel is located outside town next to the bull fighting stadium.

  • Day 4: Cycle to Dalidong - 80KM

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner 80 km

    A downhill start to the day as we descend to Lelizhen, making our way through town, and onward down the Leli River: a superb ride over 32km tending downwards along the river valley with numerous  wooden villages perched along the mountainsides.  Our route takes us up past a reservoir for our first climb of the day over 8km up into the forest once again.  We’ll catch glimpses of remote Miao villages through the trees as we make our ascent.  A 5km descent, a nice break from the climbing, brings us through rice terraces to the village of Piaozhai, from where we have a 4km climb up to the village of Yuezhaicun.  From here we have a 15km backroad descent, following a small rocky stream, to meet a county road to Zaimaxiang.  We’ll continue along this road before turning into the mountains for a last gentle climb of 5km to Dalidong.  On arrival we will park the bikes and walk into the village to our hotel for showers and dinner.

    Dalidong is a small 600 year old Dong village of 250 households (1300 people) tucked away in the mountains.  It is very well preserved while the inhabitants maintain traditional farming and culture; uniform wooden dwellings are bisected by a stream over which sit five wind and rain bridges. Blue flagstone paths pave the alleys through the village and up to the rice terraces and forest above.  A large drum tower sits in the centre of town.  Dalidong has attracted efforts to develop eco-tourism, with small guesthouses offering guests an opportunity to experience the villages intact culture and ecology.  A special effort has been made to retain and develop the traditional indigo dyed textiles offering local women opportunities to retain their traditional skills whilst providing them an income too.

  • Day 5: Cycle to Zengchong - 49KM

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner 49 km

    As we will have arrived late the previous day, we will allow some time to check out the village this morning before continuing our ride.  Back on the bikes, we re-trace our route back down to the main road. We only have one climb today as the follow a small waterway up a valley climbing gently for 3km and then up switchbacks for 2km.  From the top we make a sweeping descent for 7km to the Dong village of Xiaozhai.  The rest of the day is generally flat; passing by several villages through rural scenery as we make our way for an early finish in Zengchong.  There’ll be plenty of time to explore this tiny Dong village before we meet for dinner.

    Zengchong is a tiny Dong village famous for it’s well preserved drum tower, built in 1672 during the Qing dynasty, and said to be the oldest in China.  Villagers congregate around the drum tower - a great opportunity to mingle with the locals. The village itself sits in a small hook of the stream that circles the village and is surrounded by forest, perfect for walks and views over the village. 

  • Day 6: Cycle to Basha 54KM

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner 54 km

    Today’s ride will be split into two sections.  The first section takes us out of town and up past a small reservoir, the village water supply, on a gentle climb for 13km.  From the top we’ll have panoramic views of the mountains and the Duliu River below.  A long, fun 12km descent brings us down to the Duliu River.  We’ll pack up the bikes and transfer along the main road for around 40km to avoid traffic.  Our second section takes us back into the hills one more.  Forested country roads take us up 10km before a a nice descent and an undulating shady ride to Basha Miao village.  Basha, besides its beautiful mountaintop scenery and Miao culture, is famous for having the last remaining community still permitted to use guns.  It attracts quite a few tourists, although very few stay in the village as we will, so we’ll be able to explore the village peacefully!  Our guesthouse is a short walk from the bikes in a quaint traditional style building.

    Basha Miao village is the last remaining place in China where people are still permitted to use guns.  Hand made rifles are still made in the village and the local men are proud of this skill.  Gun making dates back to the Miao rebellions during the Qing dynasty when, it is said, that two Qing generals defected and brought with them the use of gunpowder and gun making to the Miao. In more modern times, the Basha locals use the guns ceremoniously.

  • Day 7: Cycle to Zhaoxing - 68KM

    Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner 68 km

    Today is our last day of riding!  We start with a 5km swift downhill to Congjiang town and make our way through its busy streets, which will be a little bit of a shock after so much time spent in quiet rural landscapes.  We’ll cross the Duliu River and continue out of town.  After around 10km, we’ll make our way out of the busier valley and up into the hills for the last time.  Passing by several sleepy Dong villages as we climb around 4km, we’ll choose one to visit while we have a break.  A further 11km undulating along the ridge line will bring us to to the top at the small Dong village of Xinchuan.  From here, it’s downhill all the way.  We’ll stop in Huanggang Dong village for lunch and a wander through the authentic village, as yet untouched by tourism development.  We’ll continue downwards passing by lakes, ravines and small villages to make our way to Zhaoxing.  We’ll bid farewell to the bikes and make our way into Zhaoxing village to freshen up for dinner and a celebration of our adventure!

    Zhaoxing is a pretty Dong village nestled in a picturesque valley.  Comprising of eight small clans, and thus eight drum towers, the village has a network of canals and alleys running off a main thoroughfare.  Zhaoxing sees a lot of tourists (well less than most places in China - it is Guizhou after all!), who can easily travel here on the nearby high speed train line, and it has all the glitzy trappings and entrance tickets of a town spruced up by the same old developers hand.  It is, however, a great base to explore the surrounding countryside or idle away some time meandering through the village, which is quiet outside of peak holidays.  There are just enough cafes (1), bars (2) and restaurants (many) to keep you there an extra day or two.  The hike up to Tangan at the top of the valley is highly recommended.  And that train line is convenient when you want to leave!

  • Day 8: Departure Day

    Breakfast

    Today is departure day and you are free to depart at any time.  See Getting There & Away in the tour Info section for details of onward travel.