Rider On The Wheel

 When I devised my Taiwan plan back in early February, I was enjoying the convenience and culture of city life in Phnom Penh. As such, I tacked on a five day stopover in Hong Kong for some bonus Asian big city action. 🇭🇰  In truth, by the time I was set to visit, my appetite for sprawling metropolises had waned. But I had a cunning plan… The fantastic Warm Showers host team of Katie 🇺🇸 and Dan 🇺🇸 stated a love for the outdoors and hiking in their bio, extolling the virtues of their rural location near Sai Kung with its myriad trails and captivating views. 🥾  Without hesitation I contacted them and was granted a stay, even though I was now travelling bike less.  We lucked out massively as, the day they were both free (a Sunday) was gloriously sunny, perfect hiking weather. 🌞  Before the hike, here we are with a Hong Kong institution, dim sum. With Katie ordering a diverse platter of dishes, I can now confidently say I have had the quintessential dim sum e...

 The trail north to complete my loop of Taiwan ( 環島 Huándǎo)  continued… …with sunny but breezy days on the way to Sun Moon Lake. ☀️ 🌙 💧  Crossing the western plains, I followed this bike path, the Irrigation Canal Greenway, Taiwan’s longest dedicated cycle path at around 55 miles. As an alternative to riding through the middle of towns, dicing with traffic and being slowed by traffic lights, it’s a great piece of infrastructure. However, the monotony of endless rice paddies made it a slightly boring route at times and there were quite a few construction works meaning diversions off the path and loss of momentum. 🚧  This random park, a tiny oasis of grass and trees in the green desert of rice paddies, made for a decent camp spot after a blustery and somewhat tiring Sunday ride. ⛺️  The wind kept the droves of mosquitoes at bay as I set up camp. 🦟  Heading north, I crossed the Tropic of Cancer. ♋️  The airspace above me was regularly filled with the...

The next leg of my journey was to be gloriously restful and unusually sociable as I had company. The donors of my touring equipment - Hengo (bike donor) and Yvonne (tent donor) - had arranged a little excursion for me to Xiaoliuqui off the south-west coast of Taiwan.  Food was a central theme of the next few days as we typically are out for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You have to be quick with your wallet when with Taiwanese and, even then, it’s hard to pay for anything! They just won’t let you. I managed it a couple of times but have a large debt of kindness to pay forward when back in the UK. 💰  So much good food! When by myself, if I’ve ever struggled to order in restaurants, the staff have sometimes just ordered for me! As happened here. I got good stuff - seafood noodle soup and tuna on rice. 🍚  When with Hengo and Yvonne, my brain was largely switched off as I let them order food, plan activities, navigate the route etc.  Sometimes I feel that cycle touring ...