CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
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.
From Suzhou it runs 198 km to Suzhou; allow about 2 h 48 of riding. The stops in between: Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal, Changzhou City Section of Jiangnan Canal and back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal. Long stretches are under trees.
If you want to know why Chinese gardens love rocks, go to the Lion Forest Garden. Built in 1342, during the Yuan dynasty, by monks of a Buddhist monastery in Suzhou in honour of their teacher, it is famous for its rockery, a maze of grey limestone from Lake Tai, twisted into peaks, caves and tunnels, some of which are said to resemble lions. The artist Ni Zan, a celebrated painter of the period, is said to have helped with the design. The garden is part of the Suzhou group inscribed by UNESCO in 1997.
Read the complete The Lion Forest Garden write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
The Lion Forest Garden is where the day begins. Next is Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal.
The Grand Canal is the longest artificial waterway in the world, stretching from Beijing to Hangzhou, and some of its sections have been in use for more than two thousand years. In the Jiangnan region, south of the Yangtze, it flows through a landscape of rice paddies, lakes and old towns, and in Wuxi it runs right through the city. The canal was listed by UNESCO in 2014, and the Wuxi section includes historic streets, bridges and warehouses along its banks.
Read the complete Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal comes up about 51 km into the recorded legs. Next is Changzhou City Section of Jiangnan Canal.
Changzhou does not appear on many bucket lists, which is a pity, because it holds a living stretch of the Grand Canal, the longest man-made waterway in the world. The canal here is the Jiangnan section, the southern part that links the Yangtze with Hangzhou, and it runs right through the city, past old lanes, stone bridges and modern towers. UNESCO added the Grand Canal to its list in 2014, and Changzhou's urban section is one of the segments that make up the listing.
Read the complete Changzhou City Section of Jiangnan Canal write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
about 99 km into the recorded legs you reach Changzhou City Section of Jiangnan Canal. Next is back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal, late in the day. Next is The Lion Forest Garden.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Lion Forest Garden write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Back at The Lion Forest Garden. That is the ride.
The Lion Forest Garden → Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal → Changzhou City Section of Jiangnan Canal is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Changzhou City Section of Jiangnan Canal → back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal → The Lion Forest Garden is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.