Thanks John. It’s great hear from you.
Taiwan is turning out to be an excellent cycle touring region, especially the eastern side. It feels and looks very similar to the NZ South Island west coast.

And yes it is very grim at home for exactly the reasons you mentioned. I suspect we are living through some sort of major ecological tipping point. It’s hard to imagine that South East forests will ever recover from these mega fires. It might be a transition phase to major new ecosystems of more drought and fire tolerant vegetation as climate change dries and heats the continent. I’ve visibly noticed the changes in local bush land over the past decade.

A few friends have lost houses in the NSW South Coast fires. Many more farmer friends and colleagues are struggling because of the prolonged drought. There’s no sugar coating it. These are hard times in regional Australia. That said, I’m am grateful my own family are well, and able to enjoy life, and I’m especially pleased I’m doing this current tour with my eldest son.

All the best to you and your family.

Thanks for your splendid story and photos, Graham -- especially liked the description of the monastery and spa in the hills. Nice contrast to our -18 windchill last night.

Thanks too for the info on your bikes. Good choices of machines and gear -- they seem to do the job very well.

We are watching the catastrophic fires from afar, all too conscious of that the fires mean for people throughout Australia. The areas we drove through in January 2018, from the great Ocean Road to Canberra and Sydney, are now either engulfed in flame or threatened. Of course we are anxious about our family in Gold Coast, but--so far--they seem to be in a corridor of relative tranquillity, with moderate temps and rain.

And, we think of you and your family, and other cyclists we know at a distance, such as Mike and Mary in Vic, and Sam and Kat in Newcastle. With too few exceptions, governments around the world seem unable to act with the imagination, creativity and scale of resources that the catastrophes and science demand. We have in Canada a comparable combination of political inertia, vested interests in fossil fuels, and stasis-cum-denialism that seem to afflict Aus as well. The interviews with Canadian firefighters, which we hear daily on the CBC, underscore just how how fierce and unprecedented these fires are.

I hope your family is and will be OK, and I can only imagine your own feelings just now.

Take care, John

Thanks Scott. The bikes fine and I’m OK, but it was a surprise to be hit side-on in a bicycle lane!

The driver was highly apologetic with lots of bowing and fussing. He simply didn’t see me even though I was in high vis with a flashing light on.

The front left side of the bike took bit of hit, but the quick release folding mechanism saved it by not being too tight. The wheel and front fork were pushed 180° out of alignment to the handlebars. Easily fixed because it’s a quick release tightening mechanism.

Oh my gosh. I’m so glad you weren’t seriously hurt. That’s really scary. You really have to keep alert there, including in the smaller cities. And watch out for the scooters, coming at you from all directions at once.

Thanks for yet another good tip Scott. We are also considering staying in Taipei for an extra day to see the New Year celebrations at One Zero One. We saw it being set up yesterday. Looks like it is going to be impressive.

The Grand Hotel! I don’t know what your schedule is like, but if you have time you might take a walk up into the hills just behind you in Jiantan Park; or walk a short ways east to see the changing of the guard at the National Revolutionary Martyrs’ Shrine.

Have a safe flight, and enjoy your respite from the fires. We’ll look forward to following along.

Hi Scott,

Thanks for thinking of us.
Yes the extent, ferocity and duration of these bushfires are dreadful. They’ve affected many people, and vast numbers wildlife. Something like the area of Wales has been burnt, and the fires will continue burning for weeks or months.

Other than being covered in dense smoke (our house smells like a wet ashtray:) our city hasn’t been directly damaged.

Being in Taiwan in a couple of days will be quite a contrast.

Thinking about you and the dreadful fire situation, Graham. Hope all is well with you.

Hi Scott yes folding pedals are easier for packing the bike, but they are especially handy when putting the unfolded bike onto crowded public transport, or even just wheeling the bike along crowded streets. They just make the bike less wide, so less likely to bump or catch fellow travellers on the shins.

I’ve used folding pedals on my Bike Friday Tikit for several years. They work well.

What is the purpose here? Ease in packing?

I’m always hesitant to recommend hotels, because everyone has such different standards. This one worked well for us though - reasonably priced, a good location, and they were very accommodating about storing our luggage.

Thanks Scott for the encouragement. I’ve just passed your 2019 journal link into my planning page. I read the first few pages of your journal, and can see it will be a very helpful guide.

Would you recommend that Royal Hotel in Taipei? I was planning to book 2-3 nights in Taipei at tour start, ask the hotel to store our bike packing stuff, then return for a couple of nights to the same hotel at tour end.

We’ll probably only ride parts of the east coast, the centre and in and near Taipei. I’ll work out the tour details when we arrive. It’s my son’s first bike tour so I want it to be more fun than epic.

How great! I’m really looking forward to following along on this one. We’ve taken two tours of Taiwan now (both blogged here, and possible references for you), and wouldn’t be surprised if we make it back a third time one of these years. You’re going to love it.