by Brian Perich on Monday, September 12, 2011 at 4:29pm

Expedition notes: HimalayasX2011 - A cross country travel experience in the People's Republic of China 

A brief chat with Ken Roberts Across Continents RTW Expedition 

And a photo gallery of the HimalayasX2011 expedition of western China (Part 1)

Brian:
AH, cool! I went to Tianjin/Beijing by 30-hour ferry and 2 hour train, then from Beijing-Urumqi, Xinjiang province 3240km away in 36 hours by train, cycled across the Taklamakan, G314 north and south of desert after crossing, a few days in the N.Himalayas and back to Kashgar, fly to Urumqi and Chengdu and cycled through SIchuan and Yunnan finally at Deqin I completed the expedition (returning via Shangri-La, Lijiang, Dali, Kunming overland, flight to Beijing, and Korea) in 60 days.
3,200km cycling, 500km hitch hiking, 3240km train (standing all the way to the hospital in Urumqi), 1028km bus...

Ken:
Urumqi I know well - but no hospitals for me - nothing serious I hope!

Brian:
blood clotting in feet and ankles, fortunately nothing serious (if not stopped sooner, I would of been in serious condition)
I thinned my blood clots on aspirin for several weeks, rested for 3-4 days and hit the road, and big! Cyclists in Korea, most competitors ignore my updates, but it was truly a risky adventure for me and true to expeditions

Brian Perich:
lost u!
okay, i'll talk to u later

Ken:
Sorry, went off to check on laundry as am Warmshowering for the night - clotting definitely doesn't sound good - Warfarin an alternative although tricky without blood testing?!

Brian:
yeah, the Chinese doctor didn't want to prescribe anything, I sprayed Yunnan Baiyao (tonic with herbal ginseng extracts) and took aspirin self-prescribed, blood rushed to the surface and later peeled off when the swelling went down, the train cost $49, I had no idea it was 3240km away although I knew it was 36 hours. 
no toilet either, no food ingested except a few nan breads and plenty of water since i was sweating the entire time, hot and tiring...expedition right there, ride the train - my first updated album on FB...next update coming soon!

Ken:
Will take a look - hope you are ok now!

Brian:
Oh i recovered and am eating plenty to compensate, in your blog the cyclist friend of yours withthe kitchen in her panniers, I wish I traveled with her, I ate Nan bread, oatmeal and a few raisins crossing 900km in several sections of my routes...start preparing 95kg, finishing 75kg and back up to 85kg with home rest, nourishment o'plenty

Ken:
Good stuff - and your next adventure?!

Brian:
Alaska next summer, loop Yukon, NWT and back through BC - Northwest Expedition 2012

Ken:
Not sure how well you know the area - Alaska and Yukon specifically - but happy to share what I've learnt - places to stop etc... - you'll obviously see quite a lot unfold on the blog, but do fire away to me if there's anything you think I can help with!

Brian:
Hey that would be great! As you can see - i plunge in, but planned a great deal as far as equipment went and failed before launch, I rode a $50 used frame with all mountain parts built by a friend at a local Korean bicycle shop 9 hours before launch to China. An epic adventure in just 60 days!

(Credit: Sponsor - An Dae Gi, KEVIN BICYCLES, PONAM-DONG, GANGNEUNG, SOUTH KOREA)


  1. Details in notes (photos blocked by Facebook encryption)
  2. $49, 3005km train to Urumqi, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China (stand-room only)
  3. Ticket of no-return. 1-way to Urumqi!
  4. Ben Bndr - support for the expedition and tour around The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  5. The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  6. Meeting internationals with France, Canada, Germany represented. The couple in middle are Canadian cyclists from Quebec riding 1/2 way around the world on Kona's!
  7. The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  8. Cycling in China - Yes!
  9. The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  10. The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  11. The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  13. The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  14. The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  15. The Summer Palace, Beijing, China
  16. The Forbidden City, Beijing, China
  17. Oops, maybe this train idea was a big mistake?
  18. Stacked to the walls
  19. High Fives! Expedition begins to reach out!
  20. Everyone chatting, keeping positive it will soon be over
  21. This was the overnight section of the train journey
  22. Fully loaded 'train' touring in China
  23. Sweaty and tired but positive about moving forward on this train, get to me the start of the HimalayasX2011
  24. New light, 29 hours away from Beijing, 7 more hours to go!
  25. New light, day 2 of train ride
  26. Music DJ - on the train caravan to Urumqi
  27. HimalayasX2011 supporting nonprofits
  28. Coming from...going to...
  29. Expedition cycles
  30. Open thoughts, open roads
  31. High mountain desert is what you will find south of Urumqi. Further west along the Tian Shan ranges you will find glaciers and water
  32. Camping is majestic
  33. Bicycle build by An Dae Gi - KEVIN BICYCLES, GANGNEUNG, KOREA - Recycled parts, frame has 13,000km now
  34. I captured this with a Sony Handycam
  35. Sock change
  36. Riding high top, rebar load being transported to Aksu on G314 which is China's extension of the KKH Karakoram Highway
  37. Won Jen Gwon, Picked me up without water or resupply available for 50km
  38. Flat top southbound
  39. Campsite in the Tian Shan
  40. Tian Shan Mountains cut into the blue skies of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (with Beijing administration)
  41. Rest on the road, daily nap sessions under the shade of highway signs, no other shade available, 100km a day on the bike
  42. Lifted before getting hit in a sandstorm
  43. Uyghur cultures and big smiles
  44. PetroChina smiles
  45. Tourist information center out in the middle of ???
  46. PetroChina workers outside Luntai, last settlement before crossing Taklamakan Desert (455/522km)
  47. HimalayasX2011 expedition supporting IDEAS http://nogutsknowglory.com and ETE http://www.etelive.org
  48. Taklamakan Desert crossing north-south (note: sandstorms occur at night regularly)
  49. Haligul at Toksun. She is a nurse at a local hospital and her town is divided by the mighty G314 highway intersecting with a river for irrigation of the local farms and households
  50. Last stop for food! Nan bread for the entire Taklamakan Desert crossing, call me crazy, you're right! Carried only 6 loaves across 5 days of desert until reaching Min Fung This is real, here's the Wiki link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarim_Desert_Highway
  51. Meeting more Uyghurs in Luntai, the friendly family invited me to free watermelon with their friends and children
  52. Watermelon for free, grown locally on the edge ofthe desert using irrigation methods of old and the roadways are lined with Poplar trees for shade and to protect the areas from desertification
  53. Last settlements
  54. Entering the Tarim Desert Highway linking G314 and G315 (northern and southern Silk Roads) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarim_Desert_Highway
  55. Cut by bicycle tools, ate by hand
  56. Expedition is fully-loaded Taklamakan Desert, Cudi Himalayas, Chengdu to LuguHu Lake, Sichuan to Deqin/Baima Snow Mountain, Yunnan
  57. Good morning Taklamakan, fully positive I can do this entire ride and live to tell friends about it!
  58. Schwalbe Marathon Tour Plus tires, the only way to ride!
  59. Getting across the line, the finish, the expedition is only started and the positive energy is running through me. Thanks to all my friends (James Penlington, Tim Copeland, Mi Sung, Mom and Dad, Chris, Rob Hill, Antony Jinman, An Dae Gi, Mechel Kai, Lee Engdahl and friends I met on the road that made this an incredible experience in survival, endurance, and personal achievement.