Qinghai Lake Biking Tour

Day 1

Meet your guide at airport and transfer to the hotel. The rest of the day is free to explore by you.

Day 2

Place & Transport: Xining
Today's Activities: Biking from Xining to Huangyuan
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

- Biking from Xining to Huangyuan: After have breakfast at hotel, commence the first leg from Xining to Huangyuan County. The ride is 70 KM and about 4 hours. Pass through Duoba County which is a Tibetan county, and then continue riding tour to Huangyuan County passing through Huangyuan Canyon. The evening’s accommodation is at Huangyuan Hotel.

Day 3

Place & Transport: Xining
Today's Activities: Biking from Huangyuan to Qinghai Lake, Qinghai Lake, Sun and Moon Mountain
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

- Biking from Huangyuan to Qinghai Lake: Today’s ride is 121KM - 7 hours from Huangyuan County to Qinghai Lake.
Start with a long moderate hill climb on the state road to Qinghai Lake. You will have probably gotten used to breathing in the high plateau air! From here the Dao Tang River (means reverse flowing river) is visible. The river flows from east to west, which is a rare because the general geological pattern in China is higher in the west and gradually descends towards the east. Depending on how you feel are after the climb, continue on the flat at the south eastern corner of Qinghai Lake. Stay in Qinghai Lake Hotel for the night, and enjoy the sunset and a buffet dinner.
- Qinghai Lake (2 hours): Qinghai Lake, China's largest inland salt water lake is at 3200 meters above sea level and is situated at the east of Qinghai province, around 2.30 hours drive from Xining. The ellipse-shaped lake looks like a huge poplar leaf sitting on the alpine prairie. Scenery in Qinghai lake varies according to seasons. Summer and autumn are the most comfortable weather conditions and the lake's scenery is most beautiful during these seasons.
- Sun and Moon Mountain (10 minutes): Sun and Moon Mountain was named from story of Princess Wencheng from the Tang Dynasty. Located in the southwest of Huangyuan County and Southeast of Tsinghai Lake, it is the divides agricultural and herding areas of the Loess Plateau and the Tibetan Plateau. The mountain pass at an altitude of 3,520 meters is a gateway to the Tibetan Plateau and is thus called the “pasture gateway”.
It is said that when Princess Wencheng arrived here on her way to Tibet, she climbed the mountain and looked eastward with a mirror hoping to see Chang’an, her hometown, but failed. She felt so sad that the mirror dropped on the ground and broke into two, one half becoming golden sun and the other a silver moon. At that moment, she was determined to go westward. The mountain was renamed Sun and Moon Mountain because of this story.

Day 4

Place & Transport: Xining
Today's Activities: Biking from Qinghai Lake to Heimahe
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

- Biking from Qinghai Lake to Heimahe: After have a breakfast at hotel, start the days cycling from Qinghai Lake to Heimahe County, which is a distance of 137KM and about 7 hours. The morning’s ride will first follow the busy national road. In June and July, the wild rapeseed flowers are in bloom, blanketing the landscape with shades of yellow and gold. There is little civilization around most of the lake, so we will stop in a quiet spot along the way for a picnic lunch to recharge our energy with toast, ham，fruit and chocolate. The route in the afternoon will lead us away from the traffic onto a quiet roads alongside the lake. We will cycle in an area of peaceful tranquility until we reach our overnight stop in Hemahe County. It is a small town located at the intersection of the road to Bird Island and Saltwater Lake at Chaka. Tonight we will camp near the village.

Day 5

Place & Transport: Xining
Today's Activities: Biking from Heimahe to Bird Island
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

- Biking from Heimahe to Bird Island : Today’s ride is 70kms about 4 hours. On the way you will probably come across a few young curious but friendly Tibetan lamas. Those who wish can climb up a small mountain with a Tibetan style tower made of rocks and tree branches on top, to get a fascinating bird’s view of the crops, the winding road leading to Bird Island and Qinghai Lake in the distance. Between May and July, around 100,000 migratory birds - Red-Crowned cranes and King Shags migrate from South East Asia to Bird Island to breed, and literally cover the whole island. Tourists can get a close up view of these birds from within the well hidden observatory during the birds' breeding season.

Day 6

Place & Transport: Xining
Today's Activities: Biking from Bird Island to Gangcha, Bird Island
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

- Biking from Bird Island to Gangcha: After breakfast, set off along the west bank of the lake for another 25km, then on the National road again to Quanji, where we will have lunch and also visit the local market to buy fruit. In the afternoon ride to Gangcha, where there is time to relax a bit and take a shower before wandering around this little Tibetan town with its various ethnic groups. After supper take in an amazing sunset over the seemingly-endless lake.
- Bird Island (1.5 hours): It is an interesting and charming place on the western shore of Qinghai Lake. The island is a paradise for varieties of birds. The protection policy of the local government makes the island a heaven for the birds. Each March and April when the ice covering the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau begins to melt, more than 20 kinds of migrating birds come to the island to breed. Flocks of birds cover the whole island and bird eggs can be found everywhere. Visitors can hear the birds songs from far away.

Day 7

Place & Transport: Xining
Today's Activities: Biking from Gangcha to Xihai
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

- Biking from Gangcha to Xihai: This morning get up before dawn to see a bit of Gangcha itself, with its traditional yurts, beautiful prayer flags, and mysterious praying stones. Then make an early start leaving Qinghai Lake behind and head back toward Xihai. On the way pass though several small villages which provides another opportunity to the see the day-to-day activities of the local people. After a picnic lunch, ride through the most beautiful natural grazing grounds outside of Xihai before arrival at a local in the late afternoon for the night.

Day 8

Place & Transport: Xining
Today's Activities: Biking from Xihai to Hudongyangchang
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

- Biking from Xihai to Hudongyangchang: Today we will ride from Xihai to Hudongyangchang about 59KM 4.5 hours. On the way you will probably come across a few curious and friendly young Tibetan lamas. We will camp near village at night.

Day 9

Place & Transport: Xining
Today's Activities: Biking from Hudongyangchang to Xining
Meals: Breakfast, Chinese Lunch, Chinese Dinner

- Biking from Hudongyangchang to Xining: The final ride is 160km or about 9 hours from Hudongyangchang to Xining pass Riyue Mountain and Daotang River on the national highway. As this is the same route as the first day an option is available to return from Hudongyangchang by mini bus to the hotel.

Day 10

Place & Transport: Depart Xining, Flight not included
Today's Activities: Hotel to airport Transfer (Xining)
Meals: Breakfast