View along the way.
Day 4 – Butterfly Valley to Pingan (48 klms)
The hotel in Butterfly Valley is in a surprisingly beautiful location, next to a Yao minority village some 4 kilometres off the main highway in a gorge filled with luscious foliage and a gushing mountain stream.
For me, today was the big day. Would I make it up the hill to Pingan?
We set off on the old highway up into the hills, through small villages whilst being surrounded by gorgeous vistas. The final leg through to Heping was our steepest climb so far. At those times when I thought my legs could go no more it was instantly refreshing to look around and see the countryside had evolved into steep mountains covered with terraced fields.
I did decide however that once we reached Heping that it was getting a little late for me to consider the final 15 klms or so up to Ping An.
Riding 280 klms in 4 days through truly spectacular landscapes was an incredible experience, one that I do hope to repeat in the not too distant future.
