Day 1: Depart UK
Leave London Heathrow bound for Beijing.
Day 2: Arrive Beijing
Arrive in Beijing and transfer to Jingshalin, the site of a beautiful section of the Great Wall. After arriving at the hotel we will have time to relax before starting out on a short walk of the Wall.
Day 3: Jingshalin – Yulin
We transfer back to Beijing and take a flight to Yulin, a large town south of the Gobi desert. Yulin's section of the Wall protected it from the fearsome Mongolians of past centuries. We transfer straight to our campsite from the airport and prepare our bikes for an early morning departure.
Day 4: Yulin – Hengshan
Our ride starts from an impressive fortress built on the Great Wall. From here you can see north into Inner Mongolia. We head south passing through a beautiful area that very few westerners visit. The countryside is open and the gently rolling hills make for great riding with superb views! We sleep in a simple camp.
Approx cycling distance: 110km
Day 5: Hengshan – Yangqiaobangzhen
Today's ride takes us through small villages and rolling countryside with vast areas of farmland. We arrive in the large town of Jingbian which lies at 1450m altitude. We set up camp near the small village of Yangqiaobangzhen in the east of town.
Approx cycling distance: 105km
Day 6: Yangqiaobangzhen – Liandaowan
Today's ride takes us through rolling hills with some remnants of the Wall still visible as we head south into the hills towards An Sai. Today we have a mixture of long, gradual and short, sharp climbs and descends through remote countryside. We camp by Liandaowan, a traditional Chinese village near An Sai.
Approx cycling distance: 110km
Day 7: Liandaowan – Nanniwan
After riding through the bustling streets of An Sai we continue to Yan An, famous for being the final destination of Chairman Mao's army after the Long March. We head out into the countryside again, cycling through farmland and small villages.
Approx cycling distance: 100km
Day 8: Nanniwan – Qitaixiang
A gentler morning sees us passing through small villages and orchards where many of the soldiers from the Long March lived and farmed. We pass through towns with colourful markets before climbing into the hills and then descending to Enichuan. We make our way beyond Enichuan to our campsite.
Approx cycling distance: 120km
Day 9: Qitaixiang – Shanhuxiang
Leaving the bustle of Enichuan behind us, we head along undulating roads into the countryside where we have spectacular views over the country with good descents and challenging climbs. We reach the highest point of our challenge at 1700m before camping for the night in the night in remote Shanhuxiang.
Approx cycling distance: 100km
Day 10: Shanhuxiang – Xian
Our final day of cycling takes us into wonderful countryside and after a series of climbs, we start an exciting and spectacular 12km descent. We pass spectacular farmed terraces to our finishing point above a meandering river before a 7km climb to a ridge which leads to our final descent and finishing point in the town of Baishui. Once we have taken a few moments to revel in completing our 680km challenge, we drive to the outskirts of Xian where we visit the renowned Terracotta Warriors. After soaking up the magnificence of this ancient wonder we then make our way to our hotel in Xian and relax!
Approx cycling distance: 35km
Approx transfer time to Terracotta Warriors & on to Xian 3 hours & 1.5 hours
Day 11: Xian – Beijing
Today we take an early morning flight to Beijing. On arrival we will do a wonderful tour of the Forbidden City and Tianenman Square before checking into our hotel for our last night in China. In the evening we will celebrate our huge achievement with dinner at a local restaurant.
Day 12: Beijing – London
We get up early for our flight home, arriving back in the UK on the same day.