Why this ride
From Songyang it runs 223 km to Songyang; allow about 3 h 23 of riding. On the way it passes Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han, Site of Dingding, Longmen Grottoes and back through Site of Dingding.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Songyang Academy of Classical Learning and Longmen Grottoes
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 223 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 23
- 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. Songyang Academy of Classical Learning
Long before there were universities in Europe, Chinese scholars gathered at academies in quiet places to read, argue and teach, and the Songyang Academy at the foot of Mount Song was one of the four great ones of the Song dynasty. It began life as a Buddhist temple and a Daoist retreat, and in the eleventh century it was turned into a school. Its most famous teachers were the brothers Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi, who helped shape the school of thought called Neo-Confucianism. The buildings you see today are mostly later rebuildings, in the Ming and Qing styles, with courtyards and halls in grey brick and tile.
Read the complete Songyang Academy of Classical Learning write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Songyang Academy of Classical Learning is where the day begins. Next is Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han.
2. 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
Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han comes up about 62 km into the recorded legs. Next is Site of Dingding.
3. 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
about 88 km into the recorded legs you reach Site of Dingding. Next is Longmen Grottoes.
4. 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
Longmen Grottoes, about halfway. Next is back through Site of Dingding.
5. back through Site of Dingding Gate
Return visit. Read the place description above.
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
back through Site of Dingding sits at 149 km, about halfway. Next is back through Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han.
6. back through Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han
Return visit. Read the place description above.
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
back through Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han comes up about 160 km into the recorded legs. Next is Songyang Academy of Classical Learning.
7. Songyang Academy of Classical Learning
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Songyang Academy of Classical Learning write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Songyang Academy of Classical Learning closes the day.
Leg by leg
Songyang Academy of Classical Learning to Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han
Songyang Academy of Classical Learning → Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han is 62 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han to Site of Dingding Gate
Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han → Site of Dingding Gate is 26 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Site of Dingding Gate to Longmen Grottoes
Site of Dingding Gate → Longmen Grottoes is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Longmen Grottoes to back through Site of Dingding Gate
Longmen Grottoes → back through Site of Dingding Gate is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Site of Dingding Gate to back through Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han
back through Site of Dingding Gate → back through Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han is 26 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han to Songyang Academy of Classical Learning
back through Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han → Songyang Academy of Classical Learning is 62 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.