Why this ride
97 km from Xin’an Chengguanzhen to Xin’an Chengguanzhen, about 1 h 40 of riding. On the way it passes The Grand Canal, Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han and back through The Grand Canal.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ and Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 97 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 h 40
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
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. 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 Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han.
3. Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han
Luoyang, in Henan province, is one of the four great ancient capitals of China, a city that served as the seat of more than a dozen dynasties over a thousand years. East of the modern city, in the fields along the Luo river, lie the remains of the capital of the Eastern Han dynasty, which ruled from Luoyang from the first to the early third century AD, and of the later Wei, Jin and Northern Wei capitals built on the same site. The site is part of the UNESCO-listed Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor, inscribed in 2014.
Read the complete Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 50 km into the recorded legs you reach Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han. Next is back through The Grand Canal.
4. 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, late in the day. Next is Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’.
5. 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
Back at Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ to The Grand Canal
Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ → The Grand Canal is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The Grand Canal to Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han
The Grand Canal → Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han to back through The Grand Canal
Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han → back through The Grand Canal is 17 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The Grand Canal to Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’
back through The Grand Canal → Site of Han’gu Pass of Han Dynasty in Xin’ is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.