Taishi Que Gates and Longmen Grottoes

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Taishi Que Gates

   At the foot of Mount Song, one of the five sacred mountains of China, stand three pairs of free-standing stone gateways that have been waiting for the better part of two thousand years. They are que, tall, pillar-like towers that marked the approach to a temple or tomb in Han dynasty China, and the ones at Dengfeng belong to the temples of Mount Song, as ceremonial entrance markers. The Taishi Que, the western gate of the Zhongyue Temple, dates from the second century, and is covered with carved scenes of hunting, chariots, dancers and animals, in a lively, rough, vigorous style. They are among the oldest such structures in China and they are part of the UNESCO listing of the Historic Monuments of Dengfeng.

   Read the complete Taishi Que Gates write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Taishi Que Gates is where the day begins. Next is Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han.

2. 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 67 km into the recorded legs. Next is Site of Dingding.

3. 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 93 km into the recorded legs you reach Site of Dingding. Next is Longmen Grottoes.

4. 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. 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 158 km, about halfway. Next is back through Site of Luoyang City from the Eastern Han.

6. 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 165 km into the recorded legs. Next is Taishi Que Gates.

7. 7. Taishi Que Gates

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Taishi Que Gates write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Taishi Que Gates closes the day.