tainan touring | RandoTips

Bakfiets Daytrip

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Since building up the cargo bike I’ve been keen to give it a longer test.

There are two reasons in particular.

Firstly, I wanted to see how comfortable it was for a longer trip. Scooting around town is one thing, with limited distances and limited speeds meaning that I don’t get an accurate measure of how it does in the long term. How much more effort does it require and is the general setup comfortable for a few hours in the saddle?

Secondly, I wanted to see how comfortable it was for the kids. They are not doing any riding so I can rule out tiredness for exertion. But can they sit down in there for so long without getting edgy? To make it clear, this is not kid torture, rather gauging how much is too much. To further defend myself against accusations of putting my kids in harms way, I’m discovering what people who have cars already know, and that’s how long they can go between stops with kids on board.

I’ll uncover my findings at the end.

On Saturday evening the kids and I agreed to a bike trip on Sunday. I tend to get objections when I don’t warn them ahead, so this time we planned it and set out the general schedule for the day.

[pe2-image src=”//lh3.ggpht.com/-DPCgS4G7mjo/UdpiAhZ6BQI/AAAAAAAALkc/mxfQ7PVjiJA/s144-c-o/IMAG1828.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134423101637890″ caption=”Christopher having breakfast” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1828.jpg” ]

Sunday morning started a little late as usual, we rolled out of bed and went for breakfast at the same place the kids always like to eat on Sundays.

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-MZbm2JyVRH4/UdpiDuIf1oI/AAAAAAAALkk/SFiK_JIYLxQ/s144-c-o/IMAG1829.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134478057887362″ caption=”Christina having breakfast” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1829.jpg” ]

Sidenote on safety: I’ve had comments from people along the lines of “is the bike safe for the kids”? Personally I think the question is insane, and let me explain why. In my little town I regularly see a single parent carrying two kids on a scooter. Typically one child will stand on the spot where your feet rest (as the guy in the picture above is doing), and one behind the parent. Nobody asks, “is your petrol-powered, 40km/h – 50km/h scooter with two children, one holding on for dear life and one balancing precariously at the front, safe?” or “is riding down the wrong side of the road, weaving through red lights, often not taking a glimpse at the traffic, safe?” or “is this adult who wobbles around like an old fogey, but has actually been riding for their whole life, safe?” I barely hit 20km/h most of the time, I stop at reds (always when the kids are on board), double-check for people running the lights when its green for me, glance ahead at every intersection and slow down rather than weave, I am vigilant at all times. YES, it’s bloody safe, and NO they are not going to fall out of the damn box. END.

[pe2-image src=”//lh3.ggpht.com/-kGOueL1nttU/UdpiKImQTzI/AAAAAAAALk8/0W-eTnDhG-4/s144-c-o/IMAG1832.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134588241235762″ caption=”Comfy” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1832.jpg” ]

I put in two cushions from the couch for the days ride. Christopher can completely recline in the box, while Christina is slightly more constricted. This box is longer than most typical designs I see online. This makes the bike more cumbersome than shorter models, which is not great for urban settings. For my uses, the length is not a big issue as I don’t have to deal with masses of cars or any traffic jams, so no weaving in and out of small spots. We packed umbrellas for the sun as I have not created a sun cover for this monster yet (on my todo list).

It was a rather windy day, with something I’ve become unaccustomed to, wind from the South. This provided my first lesson: big, flat panels kill in the wind. It was a constant battle all the way to Anping. The journey is only 21km or so, but took over an hour and a half. The journey back was much easier.

[pe2-image src=”//lh3.ggpht.com/-vwBBlELu7uM/UdpiPtgS7RI/AAAAAAAALlM/AfmchT48nhk/s144-c-o/IMAG1834.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134684047699218″ caption=”Wide and open with the wind in my face” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1834.jpg” ]

The most astonishing thing, which in hindsight is really to be expected, is that the kids were quite content in their resting area. As we went along they put their hands out to feel the wind and were peaceful most of the time. That is bliss. I feel completely at one with the world when I’m enjoying myself on the bike, and now it’s possible for me to do it while dragging my two little beloveds along. Yay!

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-IM9P9iu1OCo/UdpiNCLtNFI/AAAAAAAALlE/xv-2feRM1yw/s144-c-o/IMAG1833.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134638058878034″ caption=”Side view (yes, it’s only half-painted, I’ll get to it)” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1833.jpg” ]

So after quite some time we were heading down the last, long stretch to Anping to a spot I was so looking forward to seeing.

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-PLwvByzJWnQ/UdpiUt4D6LI/AAAAAAAALlc/PbFHLcr8m64/s144-c-o/IMAG1836.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134770046724274″ caption=”Anping Bridge facing South” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1836.jpg” ]

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-kVp1NMXAOE0/UdpiWw3aCAI/AAAAAAAALlk/O2TTp9T-NDo/s144-c-o/IMAG1837.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134805209024514″ caption=”Anping Bridge facing North” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1837.jpg” ]

The view from this bridge is one that I could enjoy for the whole day. I guess it’s the same feeling as when I’m up in the hills, and I could just sit about and enjoy the scenery for the whole day.

We walked slowly across the bridge, enjoying the sunshine and the fresh air off the sea.

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-jz7Yssq3J9I/UdpiecEM0ZI/AAAAAAAALl8/42I1jH7jL6Q/s144-c-o/IMAG1840.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134937064493458″ caption=”Tree Climbers” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1840.jpg” ]

Ice creams were on the menu as well as a fresh stock of water as we had already polished off the two liters we brought with us. We went to explore the area near Fort Zeelandia where Christopher started to climb trees and Christina started asking to use my cellphone to play games.

Our friends Corné and Elmari just had their son and we planned to visit them at Chimei Hospital in Yongkang City, approximately 7km away.

[pe2-image src=”//lh3.ggpht.com/–b3USMQpDJQ/Udpigjwil3I/AAAAAAAALmE/628IXu4EgXA/s144-c-o/IMAG1841.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898134973489256306″ caption=”Chimei Hospital” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1841.jpg” ]

The cruise over to the hospital was quick and uneventful. Unfortunately, the information counter staff were all off, and I got no answer from my friends’ cellphones so I gave up on locating them. We guzzled down some more water, ate some chips and headed home.

[pe2-image src=”//lh5.ggpht.com/-TjSiV3K5urs/UdpiioO0OTI/AAAAAAAALmM/kGKLtUZHm2A/s144-c-o/IMAG1842.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/BakfietsToAnping#5898135009049721138″ caption=”Huh?” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1842.jpg” ]

We got home before dark ready to eat a whole ton of food. After gobbling down we took a much needed shower then headed to bed.

So, back to the two things I mentioned at the beginning.

Firstly, the bike is comfortable for distance. The setup is really just a normal bike with different handling. Even with the shocking components it was a decent ride. One change I’d make is to have bent-back handlebars, the MTB handlebars are not ideal for distance and even barends would have given some much needed hand relief.

Secondly, the kids were great. They were comfy and seemed quite at ease in their box. They do, however, need a sunshade for such sunny days. I’m a little more worried about the sun than the rain as I would likely just pull over and find shade if it started raining. With that said, a sunshade would provide some mild rain cover, which would prove handy for commuting where the ride has to be done, but the cover just needs to keep the majority of the rain off them for a short stretch.

It was a fantastic day, with the whole lot of us enjoying being out on the bike. Bliss.

Dongshan Exploring Again

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Sunday saw the rest of my family head off to the dream mall in Kaohsiung.

I headed off into the hills to do some more exploring of those foothills that beckon me when time permits.

The start was as usual, with a quick flat spin up towards the hills.

Over the past few months I’ve mastered the avoidance of busy roads in the neighborhood. What that means, in essence, is that I’m doing a fair amount of cruising through farm roads. These are not nearly as well maintained as the main road, but allow me to avoid the evil, metal beasts that threaten to disturb the sanctity of my ride at every turn.

There was one final stretch left to conquer that would plop me down right at the end of the stretch I want to avoid. With a fair amount of double-checking the route on my phone I managed to get to just where I had wanted. The detour adds roughly ten minutes to my journey, but is more than worth it.

Pressing on, I munched up the rest of the flats like the pancake they are.

And then the hills.

[pe2-image src=”//lh5.ggpht.com/-JU19gUXZyIY/UYip4rii9pI/AAAAAAAALGA/zqNwd0QerrE/s144-c-o/IMAG1635.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875132505130202770″ caption=”View From the Small Road” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1635.jpg” ]

My new alternate route to get to the main road at the foot of the big hills is a nice, winding road, almost two cars wide in places, but only a lane and a half in others. It’s a fairly quick, although fairly steep, climb that’s over before you know it and gives you the first taste of the thick, humid air in the hills.

The single, thin cycling top I was wearing was drenched from sweat once the paths headed upward.

The last ride into the hills I had made the mistake of doing so after a long period without food and was also short on water.

This time I finished off two Zefal Magnum bottles of water before I stopped off at the 7-11. Two sandwiches and two liters of water and it was time to head on to the good stuff.

The main route of choice that heads straight to near the entrance to “the big temple” is steep, brutally so. Despite a brave effort to push it in the middle chainring, I was in granny ring and by the time I was halfway up was searching for gears beyond the teeny weeny ones my bike is sporting.

[pe2-image src=”//lh6.ggpht.com/-Mbu3YUTJFiM/UYip7i2_H-I/AAAAAAAALGI/TKj7U4xJzyw/s144-c-o/IMAG1636.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875132554339622882″ caption=”On the Coffee Road” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1636.jpg” ]

Finally, I hit the no.175 coffee road and headed toward what Google Maps promised to be a good little, hopefully long, climb from about 300m to 800m.

It needs to be stated that Google Maps is great for most roads. However, the tiny roads mapped on this route are completely wrong. That just adds to the adventure.

[pe2-image src=”//lh6.ggpht.com/-ESdpE8SCd2U/UYip-lo_UwI/AAAAAAAALGQ/axkDvFB4dFU/s144-c-o/IMAG1639.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875132606625829634″ caption=”Fancy Sign on Coffee Road” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1639.jpg” ]

Straight into the baby chainring and up towards the clouds.

[pe2-image src=”//lh6.ggpht.com/-7Xkc_Vq1MX8/UYiqCg4_OyI/AAAAAAAALGY/k8XPNlsyCRc/s144-c-o/IMAG1640.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875132674070231842″ caption=”The Rock Sign at the Start of the Big Climb” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1640.jpg” ]

The thick clouds sitting on the top of the hills were threatening to pour bucketloads of water on my head, but had been kind in providing me a moisture-free ride so far. The atmosphere that the looming mists added were well worth the humidity that they were pressing directly onto me.

[pe2-image src=”//lh3.ggpht.com/-FzjkzhnwWzk/UYiqIsFo4hI/AAAAAAAALGg/3dG3GkKxsFw/s144-c-o/IMAG1641.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875132780155298322″ caption=”Trail Marker” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1641.jpg” ]

After passing what appeared to be an abandoned Buddhist center, I hit the first trail marker. I was in two minds as to whether to follow it’s advice on where to go or to blaze my own trail with my phone as my navigator. I chose the latter and headed off in the other direction to the trail that was most likely to take me close to the peak and into the clouds.

The roads were getting more and more patchy, but were still quite rideable. I pushed on and up, still able to keep the pedals turning around despite the pitch of the climb and having to fight to keep my bike from pulling an easy wheelie.

Riding the steepest hills provides a great challenge to both your skill and endurance. Once you’ve exhausted your gears, at speeds around 4-6km/h it becomes increasingly hard to keep your bike on track. The front wheel becomes light and in order to not go so slowly that you just topple over you need to keep pushing to keep the speed up a bit. This becomes even more difficult when the paving falls away and you’re wrestling for traction. In addition, at these speeds the cadence drops, there’s no choice but to “mash” the pedals. At the top sections I had to stop at every second switchback to catch my breath. The humidity plus the huge effort was just completely draining and I was heaving like I’d just finished an all-out training interval.

[pe2-image src=”//lh5.ggpht.com/-YEdoXBYw-_U/UYiqLHj0-8I/AAAAAAAALGo/gMVtA4RZLJw/s144-c-o/IMAG1642.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875132821889416130″ caption=”Up to the Clouds” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1642.jpg” ]

And then another sign. The virtual world and the physical world were showing no convergence whatsoever. The signpost pointed me to an unpaved road that looked like it would head me in the wrong direction so headed the other way.

Upwards, then dirt.

I was not prepared for this.

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-K6m59NpkNDE/UYiqOeXKQoI/AAAAAAAALGw/qP-rF-UD438/s144-c-o/IMAG1643.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875132879549907586″ caption=”Bamboo” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1643.jpg” ]

When the trail started to fade it was a sign that I read as needing to turn back. Perhaps the sign was right.

So I headed back down to the signpost and with a minimum of confidence in the direction it was heading and then pushed on.

The dirt on the signposted section quickly changed to old cement road, which gave me a slight confidence in the road ahead. Unsurprisingly that changed as all paving gave way to dirt roads.

The roads were getting steeper and there were no plantations of betelnut trees, or anything to suggest that any human had been by recently. There were beehives, however, artificial ones that were just erected at the side of the road. At least it was something.

Then came the rain.

It started as a light drizzle, nothing that wouldn’t make me wetter than I already was. And then it started to rain harder. There was no point in heading back, just push on upward.

Up, up, up until finally I arrived at the end of the trail.

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-TAR_KkXVzK4/UYiqTGIPzCI/AAAAAAAALG8/cYXhFRYvmNk/s144-c-o/IMAG1645.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875132958944250914″ caption=”Shelter for Bees” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1645.jpg” ]

It started pouring down and I took a slight refuge in the shelter of a tree. The covered area was home to two big beehives and preferred to just leave them alone.

It was a tad cooler and the air was fresh. The pitter patter of raindrops in the peace and quiet of the hills. Nothing better.

My shelter was not providing much protection from the rain, so I headed back down.

Mountain biking is one thing, but I’ve learned from experience that slicks don’t provide much grip. The chainring scar on my left thigh is testament to this.

So feathering the brakes I headed down the steep, and now wet, path. I was starting to remember why I always loved mountain biking so much and why I’ve been reluctant to switch to a full-on road bike for all my riding.

With butt over the back of my saddle and my eyes peeled for the best route around or over obstacles, avoiding slippery patches of concrete with their slimey coating of moss waiting to drop me on my ass.

[pe2-image src=”//lh6.ggpht.com/-sVibdRrzOe8/UYiqVvanNkI/AAAAAAAALHE/jcQxOd83DJU/s144-c-o/IMAG1646.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875133004386874946″ caption=”Mountain Biking” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1646.jpg” ]

All went well and before long I was back to navigable roads. My perceived exertion on the way up had me thinking I was much further away than I really was.

And I set on my cruise back home. Cracked 60km/h freewheeling down the big hill I had come up on, then stopped at the 7-11 again to sit down and get some nourishment.

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-QgexT-4z69Y/UYiqZ-MAPdI/AAAAAAAALHU/0i3XvKD7K0M/s144-c-o/IMAG1648.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875133077071609298″ caption=”Rest Stop” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1648.jpg” ]

The hills coming back were as expected, it’s amazing how familiarity makes hills seem a little less daunting.

On passing through Liujia a group of roadies passed me by. They were going a tad faster than me so I seized the opportunity to suck some wind and make some quick progress through this final segment.

As it turns out, they were from the same town as me, so I got to suck wind all the way back.

[pe2-image src=”//lh4.ggpht.com/-DZ-ngUn7knc/UYiqcGeHD8I/AAAAAAAALHc/yytU0ALI8Qw/s144-c-o/IMAG1649.jpg” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/110249026098208712655/DongshanExploring#5875133113654775746″ caption=”Roadies Hauling Me Home” type=”image” alt=”IMAG1649.jpg” ]

On the final, long stretch into town I tried to see who would take the bait and pick up the pace for the last section. Head down, I picked up the lead pace to 40km/h with the front guy holding his spot behind me.

At least that’s what I thought. When I got to the traffic lights they were all some way back.

My favorite part about road races, when I used to do them, was the group sprint to the line. At least in those local races, I found almost everyone did a lot of training, but that was limited to long miles in the saddle. My rides were long, with intermittent sprints all the way through, it was the greatest feeling to look at the person who I was riding with, see the slight nod, and then both head into a frenzied sprint to some arbritrary location on the road ahead. When in Taipei, “The Fly” gave a me a good run for my money, we need to have a challenge again.

The sprint was not without pain however. My legs were starting to cramp, and although I maintained all the way to the line, my hamstrings and quads were both giving me warning messages to ease up on the pace. Since moving my saddle forward about 4cm my hamstrings are getting a little more work done. Bliss.

Another trip into the hills is in order, and hopefully I’ll find a way to the summit at around 1000m.

But that’s for another day.

Touring Tainan

Late on Sunday morning Christopher and I set out to explore a little more of Tainan. Most of the time we head west or north, but today we followed a tourist map towards the south and the popular destination of Zeelandia Fort.

Despite my best efforts to get to bed early for an early start I stayed up to 4:00 messing around with the configuration of my bike. Also had to fix some tire issues and experiment with some setup changes.

So at around 10:30, the little bundle of young boyishness and I awoke to set out on our journey.

A pleasant breakfast at our Sunday morning joint started off our morning before heading out.

Before I begin I have to state that the map I used was almost utterly useless for finding any of the places I was looking for. It had plenty of detail of places to see, but the scale and accuracy of the map were completely hopeless and I ended up guessing a lot of the time. With destinations that were slightly off the beaten track we missed some of the smaller places I had hoped to see. Next time, we’ll be searching for the places we missed.

So anyways, we set off to the south-west towards Tainan City proper.

I’ve become a little more familiar with the quieter roads and so headed past the Spring Garden Golf Resort, our own local 9-hole short range golf spot.

It appears to be quite popular on weekends, but most likely for lunches and stuff because everyone was by the clubhouse, with very few on the course. Or perhaps it was the sun scaring everyone off the course.

We continued on to the 17 and the bridge that crosses the river. After crossing the bridge, the map started to come into play. This was also when I realized the map was vastly oversimplified and missing much of the detail needed.

We hooked a right and headed towards a prominent temple. The first one we came across was obviously not the one we were looking for and was at best an average temple.

So trying to sniff out the right direction we headed off to find the real temple.

Sure enough, the sight of multiple huge towers confirmed we had been in the wrong place.

We had now found the Temple.

The correct temple is pretty darn huge. Small streams down either side, flanked by double-story buildings. The buildings run three deep or so from the entrance and there are stores and other things by the entrance. I only took pictures from the outside and didn’t head in. It’s just my own issues with actually obeying “no bike” signs by the pedestrian entrance.

I believe I found the memorial park, but am unsure because the marker for the park and temple are the same size, but the park is vastly smaller than the temple.

By this stage I was getting pretty fed up with the map I was using. The final straw, however, was the imaginary bridge. What appeared on the map to be a bridge was nowhere in sight. I noticed a car that tried to follow the same route, but made a U-turn, much like we ended up doing.

So we got back to the 17 and headed across to a better marked section of roads. There was not much to see here, except for some of the Tainan science park. Apparently there are things to see here, but I was following the more accurate map which lacked most of the sight-seeing bits and bobs.

At this point I took a picture of a map that marked out the riding path around the area. I followed this new map exclusively for the rest of the trip and headed for roads I was familiar with.

I knew what Anping, our final destination, had to offer, so made a quick pace for there.

The bridge over the river to Anping gives a great view of the ocean as well as the river through the mangroves.

After negotiating with the crowds of people fishing on the bridge, we made a quick turn to follow the riverside path towards Fort Zeelandia. The path follows the river for some 3km or so and then plops you down near the fort.

The riverside path is good enough, but has more than a few motorbikes on it. Most of those were people who were going fishing, so they rode their scooters along the bike path and then parked them in the way.

We made a quick stop at a 7-11 to pick up some goodies, and then went back to the riverside trail to take a rest in the nearby parks.

A spot on small tower-looking thing served well and we enjoyed ice-creams and other sweet treats that were perfect for the hot day we were having.

The clean bathrooms nearby were a welcome sight and after make good use of the facilities Christopher decided he needed to test out the slide, which was the last thing before we headed home.

The way back, as with the ends of many journeys, was quiet. A quick stop at a 7-11 for refreshments and to give Christopher a chance to stretch his legs was the last stop before getting home.

The ride back was a slog into the wind. The combination of a strong headwind and the kids seat that acts like a sail were enough to slow progress significantly. But considering this was a pleasure ride, it was all good.

The best takeaway from this ride is that Tainan city is not unreasonably far to take Christopher on the bike. He seemed comfortable for the whole trip, he kept talking to me the whole time. This opens up a few possibilities for longer day trips in the area on bikes. Just need to think of where to go next.