Garmin Activity: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/578976824
138km, 5h13, elevation 1078m
Today I joined the guys I had met in Miaoli on August 17, 2014. We would first meet in Fengyuan and then there would be a group cycling trip to a place called Guguan. I did a little homework and I was told by people that Hwy 8 used to be destroyed by several Typhoons. As a result, the section between Guguan and Deji is not open to traffic, unless you hold a local residence or working card. Then you are allowed to enter, but with time restrictions. A long story cut short: for today's ride we could not go any further than Guguan.
I cycled to Fengyuan in the early morning. When I set out, it was still dark. I went down Taiwan Boulevard and up via that little lane in Zhulin (Taichung-67). I was even chased by a few barking dogs, maybe had something to do with my lights, anyway they didn't to more than scare me a little. About one hour later, it was daylight and I made it to Fengyuan. When I got there, they had prepared a breakfast for me. After that, we cycled to a 7-11 where there were lots of guys. At the time, I did not know any of them, but a few of them would be regular cycling buddies.
I followed them that day, but later I learned that we cycled Hwy 3 and Hwy 8, going east. I also learned that they thought they could out-speed me because of my weight. Unfotunately for them, they were no match for me. I may be heavy, but I have been cycling constantly over the last two years. I was faster than all of them and I arrived in Guguan before they did. Later they praised me for that. A funny story that was narrated several times.
We had a first break at this bridge, waiting for the others to catch up. This is the T-split between Hwy 21 and Hwy 8. Our direction for the day would be Heping and Guguan. I would discover the other direction another day.
Another beautiful Sunday morning on my bicycle.
Beautiful views along this highway 8. This river is the Dajia river, that runs all the way to the Taiwan strait.
Information about the infrastructure
The Fengyuan gang. This very spot is called Tianleng (Heaven is cold). Then we would cycle through Heping township, which is Taiwan's largest township. Guguan is located in Heping.
In the second part of the trip, the group kinda fell apart, everybody had their own pace and nobody needed to be pressured in going faster as they could. I was keeping equal tread with one of the guys, Liao Shijie. I only ditched him in the last few hundred meters. He was skinny so obviously he was going fast enough. I had to pump it in order to keep my nr. 1 position. There were a few small climbs and descents in this part. Guguan's elevation is 700 meters, making it one of the lower places in central Taiwan, but still a little climb.
In Guguan, we waited for everybody else at the local 7-11. Then Liao Shijie guided me a little further down Hwy 8. He wanted to show me that this road was restricted due to Typhoons at that it was impossible to go all the way to Lishan. That section was about 3km and had some ascent, makes sense because from Guguan to Deji and from Deji to Lishan rises all the way to elevation 2000. That means from Guguan to Lishan we have to add some 1300 meters, twice the altitude of Guguan itself.
Check point station Guguan. I asked the people inside if one could at least cycle here. The answer was a fierce NO! Only permit holders can enter and only at designated times of the day, for instance: at 2pm at 4pm at 6pm. The reason is that the roads are too narrow and too crappy two accommodate two driving directions. Only room for one line of traffic at one time.
"You shall not pass!" He yelled at me
Hwy 8, with a new numeration as this is not a publicly accessible highway
After some sightseeing, we went back to the 7-11 in Guguan to join the gang. What did I learn here? For us normal mortals, highway 8 only runs from the 0km in Dongshi to this 37km spot right here.
Central Mountain Range. From here it was noticeable that we were entering Taiwan's central mountain range. This road reminded me of the Hualien Taroko Gorge I visited in 2011.
A little path, let's check it out!
Unfortunately it was a dead alley, so I didn't bother too much with it.
A picture of myself, quite chubby at the time
There was a small village down there
Some of the Fengyuan riders
Mr Cai
A lot of bikes
Group picture
After our break and chat in Guguan, we headed back. This time I was really racing for it, pumping at it all the time. The return part was more downhill than uphill, so pretty easy to hold on to that speed and cadence. I wanted to show these guys that I knew how to ride a bicycle, even though I wasn't the skinniest of the bunch. This picture was taken at the Guguan bridge.
There they go!
I like this picture a lot, a beautiful panorama of Highway 8. I just had to stop for it. Also gave the others some time to follow up on me.
A reservoir alongside the road.
GPS information for today's ride
When I arrived at that bridge, I first doubted if I was taking the right direction. I decided to wait for them and head back together.
A panorama back in Dongshi. We were waiting for the guys that couldn't keep up with our pace.
Quickly after that, we went back to Fengyuan and had lunch. A nice trip and I made some friends. Plus I learned something about this area.
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