Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ and Site of Dingding Gate

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’

   The Hangu Pass is one of the legendary places of Chinese history. According to tradition, it was at the old Hangu Pass, guarding the narrow road between the Central Plain and the Wei valley, that the philosopher Laozi, leaving China on the back of an ox, was asked by the gatekeeper to write down his wisdom before passing, and the result was the Tao Te Ching. That pass lies further west, near Lingbao. In 114 BC, under the Han dynasty, the pass was moved east to Xin'an county, near Luoyang, and it is the remains of this later Han pass, with its gate, walls and stretches of ancient road, that form part of the Silk Roads World Heritage site, on the route between the capitals of Chang'an and Luoyang and on towards Central Asia.

   Read the complete Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ is where the day begins. Next is The Grand Canal.

2. 2. The Grand Canal

   Luoyang is one of China's ancient capitals, a city with over a thousand years of imperial history pressed into its soil, and the Grand Canal is part of the reason why. In the early seventh century the Sui emperor Yang ordered a system of canals dug to link the Yellow River plain with the rice country of the south, and Luoyang became its great hub. Grain from the Yangtze delta was shipped here and stored in enormous underground granaries; one of them, the Hanjia granary inside the city, is part of the UNESCO listing of the Grand Canal and you can see the excavated grain pits today.

   Read the complete The Grand Canal write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   The Grand Canal comes up about 32 km into the recorded legs. Next is Longmen Grottoes.

3. 3. Longmen Grottoes

   South of Luoyang, the river Yi cuts through a narrow gap between two limestone hills, and for about a kilometre the cliffs on both sides are honeycombed with caves, niches and carvings. Over around four centuries, starting in the late fifth century under the Northern Wei dynasty and continuing through the Tang, Buddhist sculptors carved tens of thousands of statues into the rock, from tiny figures a few centimetres high to colossal Buddhas. The Longmen Grottoes were listed by UNESCO in 2000 and are among the finest examples of Chinese Buddhist art.

   Read the complete Longmen Grottoes write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   about 64 km into the recorded legs you reach Longmen Grottoes. Next is Site of Dingding.

4. 4. Site of Dingding Gate

   Luoyang was a capital for so many Chinese dynasties that locals like to say it holds the history of thirteen of them, and the Dingding Gate was the grand southern entrance of the outer city in the Sui and Tang periods, when Luoyang was one of the largest cities in the world. Through it passed officials, merchants, pilgrims and ambassadors, many of them travelling on the routes that linked China with Central Asia and beyond, which is why it forms part of the UNESCO listing of the Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor, inscribed in 2014. Excavations revealed the foundations of the gate and the road surface, with ruts and even footprints of people and animals, now protected inside a modern museum building that echoes the shape of the original gate.

   Read the complete Site of Dingding Gate write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Site of Dingding, about halfway. Next is back through Longmen Grottoes.

5. 5. back through Longmen Grottoes

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Longmen Grottoes write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through Longmen Grottoes sits at 129 km, about halfway. Next is back through The Grand Canal.

6. 6. back through The Grand Canal

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete The Grand Canal write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through The Grand Canal comes up about 141 km into the recorded legs. Next is Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’.

7. 7. Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ closes the day.