Eastern Qing Tombs and Ming Tombs

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Eastern Qing Tombs

   Five emperors of the last dynasty of China lie in the foothills of the Yanshan range, about a hundred and twenty kilometres east of Beijing, and the place was chosen with the care of a general choosing a battlefield. The Eastern Qing Tombs, near the town of Zunhua in Hebei, form the largest imperial burial ground in the country: Shunzhi, Kangxi, Qianlong, Xianfeng and Tongzhi are all buried here, along with their empresses and concubines, in a valley sealed by mountains. Feng shui masters said the site had everything: a high peak behind, hills on both sides, a stream in front. UNESCO inscribed the complex in 2000, later joining it with the Ming tombs in its listing.

   Read the complete Eastern Qing Tombs write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Eastern Qing Tombs is where the day begins. Next is Tongzhou Section of Tonghui Canal.

2. 2. Tongzhou Section of Tonghui Canal

   For centuries, Beijing depended on grain shipped from the south along the Grand Canal, the longest artificial waterway in the world, and Tongzhou was where the boats arrived. The Tonghui canal connected Tongzhou with the capital, carrying grain, timber and goods to the city's markets and granaries. The Grand Canal, built and rebuilt over more than two thousand years, was listed by UNESCO in 2014, and the Tongzhou section is its northernmost part. Today, the waterfront has been landscaped into parks, with walkways, bridges and the old Ranteng pagoda rising above the water.

   Read the complete Tongzhou Section of Tonghui Canal write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Tongzhou Section of Tonghui Canal comes up about 102 km into the recorded legs. Next is Ming Tombs.

3. 3. Ming Tombs

   North of Beijing, where the plain meets the first ridges of the Jundu mountains, thirteen emperors of the Ming dynasty lie buried in a broad valley chosen for its perfect feng shui: mountains behind, a gentle slope, water in front. The first to be buried here was the Yongle emperor, the ruler who moved the capital to Beijing and built the Forbidden City in the early fifteenth century; his tomb, Changling, is the largest and best preserved, with a magnificent hall supported by enormous columns of nanmu wood. UNESCO lists them with the other imperial tombs of the Ming and Qing dynasties.

   Read the complete Ming Tombs write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 170 km into the recorded legs you reach Ming Tombs. Next is back through Tongzhou Section of Tonghui Canal.

4. 4. back through Tongzhou Section of Tonghui Canal

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Tongzhou Section of Tonghui Canal write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Tongzhou Section of Tonghui Canal, late in the day. Next is Eastern Qing Tombs.

5. 5. Eastern Qing Tombs

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Eastern Qing Tombs write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Eastern Qing Tombs. That is the ride.