Why this ride
From Songling it runs 227 km to Songling; allow about 3 h 20 of riding. On the way it passes The Couple's Retreat, Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal, Classical Gardens of Suzhou and back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
The Retreat & Reflection Garden and Classical Gardens of Suzhou
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 227 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 20
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. 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. The Retreat & Reflection Garden
The name says almost everything. Tuisi Garden, the Garden of Retreat and Reflection, was built in the 1880s in the water town of Tongli by an official named Ren Lansheng after he was dismissed from his post, and he called it after the old idea that a man out of office should withdraw and think about his faults. What he actually created was one of the most graceful small gardens in the region: pavilions and halls arranged around a pond as if they were floating on it, with rockeries, covered walkways and windows that frame views like paintings.
Read the complete The Retreat & Reflection Garden write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Retreat & Reflection Garden is where the day begins. Next is The Couple's Retreat.
2. The Couple's Retreat
The Couple's Retreat, Ou Yuan, is a small garden in the Qing style, tucked in a lane in the old quarter of Suzhou and often missed by visitors who head for the larger gardens. The name refers to its layout, which is divided into two parts, east and west, that are joined by a covered walkway, a bit like two halves of a household, and the pairing of the pavilions on each side gives the place its romantic title. It was laid out by a Qing dynasty official and is part of the UNESCO list of Classical Gardens of Suzhou.
Read the complete The Couple's Retreat write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Couple's Retreat comes up 41 km in. Next is Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal.
3. 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.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
82 km in you reach Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal. Next is Classical Gardens of Suzhou.
4. Classical Gardens of Suzhou
A classical Chinese garden is a whole landscape squeezed into a courtyard: rocks stand in for mountains, ponds for lakes, and a winding covered walkway reveals one framed view after another, each window cut in a different shape. Suzhou, a canal city west of Shanghai, perfected the art over centuries, as scholars, officials and merchants built private retreats behind high white walls. Nine of its gardens are listed by UNESCO as the Classical Gardens of Suzhou, among them the Humble Administrator's Garden, the Lingering Garden and the tiny, exquisite Master-of-Nets Garden, and the Retreat and Reflection Garden in the water town of Tongli.
Read the complete Classical Gardens of Suzhou write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Classical Gardens of Suzhou, about halfway. Next is back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal.
5. 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.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal sits at 164 km, about halfway. Next is back through The Couple's Retreat.
6. back through The Couple's Retreat
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Couple's Retreat write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through The Couple's Retreat comes up 205 km in. Next is The Retreat & Reflection Garden.
7. The Retreat & Reflection Garden
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Retreat & Reflection Garden write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Retreat & Reflection Garden closes the day.
Leg by leg
The Retreat & Reflection Garden to The Couple's Retreat
The Retreat & Reflection Garden → The Couple's Retreat is 26 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The Couple's Retreat to Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal
The Couple's Retreat → Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal is 56 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal to Classical Gardens of Suzhou
Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal → Classical Gardens of Suzhou is 41 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Classical Gardens of Suzhou to back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal
Classical Gardens of Suzhou → back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal is 41 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal to back through The Couple's Retreat
back through Wuxi City Section of Jiangnan Canal → back through The Couple's Retreat is 56 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The Couple's Retreat to The Retreat & Reflection Garden
back through The Couple's Retreat → The Retreat & Reflection Garden is 26 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.