Two wheels diary: Zhuwei Port 竹圍漁港

The longest distance I have cycled so far is 41.94 km. Want a proof? Here, enjoy.

I'm still an amateur, hopefully I can get some guides and tips from the pros out there.

My friend Jeph showed me the photo he took while he was riding near the coastline. Well didn't go exactly where he has been, but cincai lah (same meaning as 隨便, whatever)

After some background research, I discovered this cycling trail near the Zhuwei Port (竹圍漁港). Departed at 4 pm, hoping I could catch up with the sunset, which was pretty late, around 6 pm or so. At first the route was the same as the route to the airport, but turned right and straight ahead to the trail.

A 'little' dead

The bridge

View from the bridge. Not the best view though.

Sun is shining bright

The deserted bike trail

Packed with people enjoying the summer breeze.

The silhouette of me waiting for sunset

Permitted myself to feel the sand

Nah kidding. I felt so stupid, didn't see the sand and keep riding into it, nearly fell from the bike. Lesson learned, always look where you're going. My shoes were full of sand I had to take them off. 

Sunset

My favorite pic of the day. I waited for like 30 or 40 minutes for this. Took this pic with my Samsung Galaxy Note camera. Pretty, huh? Thank God for the clear sky, no clouds, just the beautiful sunset and sand dancing on the road. 

The sky was getting dark really quick, so I had to rush my way back home. I stopped by the nearest 7-11, and bought some chocolates and water. Truth to be told, I was hungry and exhausted hence I rest a bit.

Ready to hit the road back home, I consulted the GPS for the way home since I didn't want to ride the same road, thus I rode a longer route, very much different from the first one. And look what I discovered: a VIP viewing place to watch planes landing from the airport. See these crowds? They were all waiting for the landing, which was majestic. It was so close that you actually can feel the tail wind blowing on your face.

Bird Plane watching

That was my first 40 km and I have two thoughts in mind: my butt hurts a lot and my right hand was numb. I don't know exactly why. I ate a quick dinner, took quick shower, later, snoring on my bed. What a beautiful day. 

Two wheels diary: TaoYuan THSR Station and TaoYuan International Airport

In case you don't know, I have bought a blue Giant Revel bike, which is pretty heavy for a girl. It's a mountain bike with a shock breaker, of course it's heavy, what did you expect?

Anyway, I'm starting to love cycling. I can go wherever I want to, yet sometimes I lost my way. The big differences between cycling and running: cycling doesn't burn much calories as running, but it can take you further. As a free spirit, I have gone to wherever the wheels can take me.

Taoyuan has many cycling tracks, but if you want a quiet place where no cars honking you around, you must find your own path, like those small road between the rice field and barn. Seriously, I hate those fast speed cars which drive close enough to shake your bike, plus the dust. Yikes. BTW, I usually ride at 4 pm, where the sun is no longer a death ray, and continuously till the night fall. The weather in Taoyuan is usually windy though, so make sure you have your wind-stopper jacket on.

Peaceful road

As an amateur, I started off on short distance route. For example: from Kainan University to THSR station. Round trip is about 15 to 16 km. I have put up the link here if you want to see the route. There's a Starbucks in the station you can enjoy while resting.

At first I couldn't go more than 20 km/s, and tire easily when hiking. Then I learned to change the bike's gear, lighter gear when hiking, and adjust the gear the strength of my feet. Soon enough, I find it easy and enjoying the journey. Later I challenged myself further with longer distance.

The post is a bit short and boring (just one photo is not enough :D) so I decided to add one more route: Taoyuan International Airport.

Once I tried to get there from THSR Taoyuan Station but I got lost, and I thought the only way to get into the airport is through the freeway. I was so wrong. On the second try, while I was out buying KFC for dinner LOL. I rode my bike till I arrived in DaYuan Township (大園), and only found myself nearly enter the freeway. Finally, the third time, on accident actually, I was cycling in Taoyuan city and I saw the sign post leading to the airport and seeing the day was still young, I went for it.

The route is not a freeway, so relax. A single trip is approximately 14.6 km. And I completely forgot the way home, I was exhausted so just wanted to hurry back home. The non-freeway route is usually for the airport employees who most of them are using scooters. Based on this assumption, I rode wherever the scooters go. Then I finally got into the road for the terminals.

Terminal 2 of Taoyuan International Airport

BTW I got this feeling that I am not supposed continue to the terminals so I went my way back. Then while waiting for the green light, a police asked me where did I come from and I was told that the place where I captured the previous image is forbidden for two-wheels. Lucky.