Why this ride
286 km from Jinjiang to Jinjiang, about 3 h 55 of riding. It goes by way of Luoyang Bridge, Sites of Dehua Kilns and back through Luoyang Bridge. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Sites of Cizao Kilns and Sites of Dehua Kilns
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 286 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 55
- 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. Sites of Cizao Kilns
A thousand years ago, Quanzhou was one of the greatest ports in the world, the place Marco Polo called Zaitun, where ships from Persia, Arabia, India and Southeast Asia came to trade for silk, tea and porcelain. The ceramics that filled those ships were made in kilns in the hills around the city, and the Cizao kilns, near Jinjiang, were among the most important. Long dragon kilns, built up the slopes of the hills, were fired with wood, producing huge quantities of pottery for export. Shards from Cizao have been found across Asia and as far away as East Africa. Since 2021 the kiln sites have been part of the UNESCO World Heritage site of Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China.
Read the complete Sites of Cizao Kilns write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sites of Cizao Kilns is where the day begins. Next is Luoyang Bridge.
2. Luoyang Bridge
The Luoyang Bridge, also called the Wanan Bridge, spans the Luoyang River in Quanzhou prefecture, Fujian, a few kilometres from where the river meets the sea. It was built in the eleventh century, in the Northern Song dynasty, under the direction of Cai Xiang, the local governor and a noted calligrapher. It is a long stone beam bridge, with huge granite slabs laid across stone piers shaped like boat prows, so that the current is split rather than resisted. It was a real engineering achievement, because the estuary has strong tides, and the builders used an unusual technique: oysters were encouraged to grow on the piers and cement them to the foundation, a living mortar that strengthened the structure over the years.
Read the complete Luoyang Bridge write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Luoyang Bridge comes up about 32 km into the recorded legs. Next is Sites of Dehua Kilns.
3. Sites of Dehua Kilns
Dehua, a county in the mountains of Fujian province, in south-eastern China, has been making porcelain for over a thousand years. Its white porcelain, known in the West as blanc de Chine, is famous for its pure, creamy white colour and its fine figures, especially statues of Guanyin, the goddess of mercy, and other Buddhist and Taoist figures. The ancient kiln sites of Dehua, including long dragon kilns built on hillsides, are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China, inscribed in 2021.
Read the complete Sites of Dehua Kilns write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 150 km into the recorded legs you reach Sites of Dehua Kilns. Next is back through Luoyang Bridge.
4. back through Luoyang Bridge
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Luoyang Bridge write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Luoyang Bridge, late in the day. Next is Sites of Cizao Kilns.
5. Sites of Cizao Kilns
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sites of Cizao Kilns write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Sites of Cizao Kilns. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Sites of Cizao Kilns to Luoyang Bridge
Sites of Cizao Kilns → Luoyang Bridge is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Luoyang Bridge to Sites of Dehua Kilns
Luoyang Bridge → Sites of Dehua Kilns is 118 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Sites of Dehua Kilns to back through Luoyang Bridge
Sites of Dehua Kilns → back through Luoyang Bridge is 107 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Luoyang Bridge to Sites of Cizao Kilns
back through Luoyang Bridge → Sites of Cizao Kilns is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.