THE HAND aka The Buddha Hand aka Hand of God aka 神掌/Shén zhǎng
Route name: The hand THE HAND (如來神掌) | 141.3 km Road Cycling Route on Strava
Start point: National Palace Museum 7-11 Google Maps
End point: Tai Bei High School Google Maps
Traffic level: Moderate
Main climb(s):
- Wrist (right side): Leng Shui Keng 冷水坑 | Strava Ride Segment in Shilin District, Taiwan
- Thumb: 如來神掌逆時針(大拇指爬坡段) | Strava Ride Segment in New Taipei City, Taiwan
- Pointer finger: 櫻木花道 Section_2 | Strava Ride Segment in Shimen District, Taiwan
- Middle finger: 如來神掌逆時針(中指爬坡段) | Strava Ride Segment in New Taipei City, Taiwan
- Ring finger: 如來神掌第5p | Strava Ride Segment in New Taipei City, Taiwan
- Pinky finger: Reflecting tree - Full climb to 101 | Strava Ride Segment in Danshui District, Taiwan
- Wrist (left side): Balaka https://www.strava.com/segments/7454775
Total estimated distance: 140-160km
Total estimated elevation gain: 3300-3600m
Max elevation: 800m
Difficulty: Wish you never got up this morning
Description:
This route is almost like a right of passage if you are a cyclist in Taipei. There’s not too many like it. If you’re visiting town, I highly suggest you give this one a try.
If you have ridden some of the above routes that I have shared, a lot of the climbs you’ll be familiar with. Nonetheless, if you are not riding with someone who hasn’t done it before, best download the GPX file and upload it to your cycling computer for navigation. It’s very easy to get lost. There’s a reason some parts of the fingers are named after places in Middle Earth.
I will mention that in order to successfully finish this under daylight, you WILL need to start very early and I highly suggest you equip a front light. It may be light when you start in the morning, but it’s likely you’ll ride into early evening and into traffic going back home. Friends have completed it in 7-8 hours, but both times I did it, I did it in 10-12 hours mostly due to rest time at the bottom of each descent.
The toughest climbs are the right wrist (LSK), thumb (from Jinshan) and the middle finger (from Baishawan). So, keep in mind to save gas for those three, otherwise you might bonk and end up not finishing and missing a few fingers. However, do not underestimate the other long, but low gradient climbs!
Good luck!