whats everyones strava url?
Headed towards the crocodile late by Shiding this past weekend. Road leading up to it is paved now, but the view is now obstructed with the brush growing a lot in the past few years.
The view with tea plantations made up for it later.
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Beautiful!
May I ask if this is connected to the Feitsui reservoir that keeps us here in the capital hydrated?
Guy
only suggestion is to tighten up your bottle cages before/after, the rattling on the rebar made one of mine a bit loose which I found out after I returned home. Otherwise an easy ride - just don’t turn your handlebars all the way left or right 
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Bingo. The tough part about getting a good view of the reservoir is that you have to descend from the main roads to the look outs and then climb out. Most climbs tend to be a quite steep, but it’s quite an adventure.
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Today’s ride up and down Balaka was something I’ve done many times, but this kind of weather in the middle of December? Absolutely amazing! OK, also a little worrying, but I’m still going to enjoy it.
My phone tells me this is eight degrees above the average temperature.
I apparently wasn’t the only one who wanted to head out there. Saw a couple dozen other cyclists during my climb and descent, which is quite a few for a weekday, and cars were lined up for the parking lots at the top.
Sadly, no Datunshan, since I teach this afternoon and feared I wouldn’t have enough time. The views must have been fantastic.
I was low-key amused by getting my second best time on the climb despite not feeling I was putting that much effort into it - all of sixteen seconds slower than my best time, two weeks ago, when I WAS pushing for a personal best. I’m not sure how that works.
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I can see the point of the signs because as you say, there are varying levels of skill. I can control my bike fine in most places where I see those signs, but I do recall nearly getting run over (while on foot) by some panicked-looking guy coming down the pedestrian ramp on Yongfu Bridge on an ancient beater he was struggling to control. I recently crossed a pontoon-style bridge on the Xindian River that connects to a bike path leading onto the Number 9 Highway, and I did get off the bike for that one, because it moves with the waves. So did everyone else with a bike I saw.
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Is it particularly busy, you mean?
Thought I’d post some pictures from rides I’ve taken since about August. I’m limited to trips of three to five hours, due to time limitations, so I try to see how far I can get before I have to turn back. Typically this means cycling to places like Guishan or Wulai to the south, Guanyinshan to the north-west, Shenren Falls to the North-east. and various points overlooking Fetsui Reservoir to the east, since I can usually get to those places within a couple of hours.
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You were saying?
Damn, what a horrible weather. I’m not with the bike, but a car. My parents are here and we tried to see the sulfur areas in Yangmingshan.
We’re aborting the mission.
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Yeah maybe not the right day for this in northern Taiwan—unless you were IN one of those hot springs. 
Guy
LOL. Gotta share that one.
It’ll likely look dismal today, and it’s cold and windy, but also dry and probably my only chance to ride this week (tomorrow looks warmer but wet) … will I find the strength/ foolishness to do so?
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Bonus points if you attempt the ride using a youbike. 
Guy
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I have zero winter clothes. Even the zip on my gilet has seized. 
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You mean the alternatives? They’re a bit busier than Guang Ming Rd, but much easier to ride.
Is it common after a ride for the penis to be stone cold and half retracted into oblivion, even on a warm day?
I figured this might have something to do with aerodynamics, all the wind is being blown down there, but also it might be the saddle cutting off the blood supply.
I also fear it getting stuck in the back wheel but I guess that’s a different issue. 
The latter is my guess. 
A ride a few days ago was fine - some of the darker cherry blossoms are already starting to appear, which is nice to see, but I’m not sure if they should be appearing in early January.
But what was fun was playing with an app that’s new to me, PeakFinder, CAD$7 in the Canada Apple App Store. It figures out where you are and where your phone is pointing, and gives you a contour map of the different mountains you’re looking at, with their names. And after playing with it, you can get photos with the peak names overlaid.
It’ll also tell you what time the sun or moon will rise or fall over the ridgeline, which is the kind of thing I like but can’t think of much use for.
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