While I went to sleep with no roommates, I awoke a couple hours later to two stumbling in. They then committed what I consider a cardinal sin in a hostel – they hit snooze when their alarms went off (at 6:20 am). Fortunately I’d been up since 6:00 am, and that removed any obligation of packing up quietly. I left before 7:00 am. I picked up two Chinese omelettes on the way out of Dongang.
The road out of Dongang had fields of water, part of the local aquaculture.
Today’s ride split about half highway, half smaller roads, directly on the coast. I ate lunch sitting on an old pill box!
I arrived in Checheng by noon. Registration didn’t open until 3:00 p.m., and I couldn’t find anyone there, so I just dropped all my gear in a locker. Just as I finished, someone showed up, so I got myself checked in.
Then headed back out! I cycled down towards Kenting and Hengchung, in part because I’d seen an attraction that tickled my fancy.
I mean, who wouldn’t want to go see the Paradise of Capybara? A petting zoo with miniature goats, Sika deer and, of course, capybara!
I then rode around town, looking at the historic street, part of the wall that used to surround the town, and the gates that used to be part of the wall.
Then I rode back to Checheng. Encountered an odd little creature in the road; I got a picture of it before it realized that I was there. My best guess is a civet! (Ok, he was really far away).
Then back to the hostel, where I met Jaden (UK) and Thomas (Australia). They met each other on the way out of Taipei, and have been cycling together. I helped Jaden with some bicycle issues. I started a load of laundry. We walked to a nearby Thai restaurant for dinner, and spent the rest of the evening chatting at the hostel.
Tomorrow I make the climb over Shouka Pass, the big climb for the trip (although Sun Moon Lake is higher), and then work my way up the coast. I’m waiting to see how the day goes before selecting a place to stay. It’s off-season, a weekday, and places appear to have multiple beds available along the way.
I also think I figured out my routing problem with National Cycle Route 1. I think it used to route onto Highway 199, but now routes onto Highway 9. Once I passed the turnoff to Highway 9, the signs on the road were for National Route 1-9, but I could see spots where National Route 1 had been scraped off the highway.