Tainan to Kaohsiung

November 16, 2024

A wet day thanks to Tropical Storm Usagi

It was stormy overnight from Tropical Storm Usagi, which seemed to pass farther north than expected. Tainan had thunder, lightning, and 110 mm of rain between the time we went to bed and when we got up. The forecast calling for a chance of rain was quite wrong! Other areas of Taiwan reported over 400 mm of rain, an amount that would surely cause huge flooding anywhere in North America or Europe. Here, it’s just a normal rainy day.

The hotel provided a good Taiwanese breakfast.

We decided to meet at 9:30 for departure. By that point, the rain had let up, but the forecast and radar clearly indicated that more could come.

Sue and Rick decided to take the train. It’d be good practice for their return to Taipei next week. I chose to risk getting wet, and to ride to the bike shop, which was about 10 km from our hotel in Kaohsiung.

My first 20 km was dry. Then the rain got heavier as I started back inland, but never reached a torrential or scary rate. I even saw a cycling club/team out for a group ride.

Despite the rain, people were still out on their scooters. Most had on rain capes.

I was on cycle route #1, and had a good lane for a lot of the day.

I think this ship had a bad landing, but it was a long time ago.

Roasted yams and tea eggs are available at every 7-Eleven. Great snacks!

Once again, there were SO many traffic lights. And some of them had a long wait - up to 90 seconds. The lights were out at one intersection, and there were five police officers controlling things.

Sue and Rick were on a commuter train, and had to stand the whole way (about an hour). But they were dry.

Despite the rain, I heard firecrackers being set off multiple times today. day. We heard them last night too.

I got wet, but it was very warm. And there was no wind. I made one 7-Eleven stop, but I didn’t linger long, wanting to get to the bike shop.

I passed under a train track, and was tempted to stop. But figured it was just as easy to continue in the wet conditions. And it was definitely the best test ever for my Arkel panniers. They certainly are waterproof.

There were lots of food delivery drivers out on their scooters today, but not a lot of cyclists. I met two German tourers in Kaohsiung. One of them had broken a spoke earlier in the day on his rental - he wasn’t very pleased.

I got to the shop at about 2:30, and they let me know via Google Translate that were expecting me.

I waited in the shop while he worked next door, so didn’t see what was going on. It took just over a hour, and my bike is apparently fixed, with yet another new shifter cable. This mechanic says nothing was broken, it just had an mis-sized cable (that was installed by the guy from Dongshi). And it needed lubricant. Now I’m confused . But I hope he’s right. It seems to be shifting perfectly.

There were separate lanes for bikes and scooters much of the day. Plus a wide sidewalk where bikes are allowed too.

It was a fancy shop selling Bianchi and Pinarello frames, with a computerized bike fitting system. There was a young woman getting her fit dialled in.

More great cycling infrastructure in the heart of Kaohsiung. It was an easy 10 km between the shop and our hotel.

The rain let up, and I was at our hotel near the water by about 4:30. It’s an older place that is well-located. Our bikes are in a room off the lobby.

We explored the food stall area near our hotel, which is a network of little alleys. We had a plate with three fish-related appetizers, all delicious. The chef said the fish was from Dongang, which we’ll pass through tomorrow. He recommended a local noodle place. The beef noodles were good, but the broth was not quite up to last night’s standard, which was very high indeed.

Residents heard the unmistakable call of the garbage truck, and gathered to deposit their wastes.

Alleyways near our hotel had tiny stalls, mostly selling food.

Despite being a Saturday night, it was quiet. One vendor said it was because it had been a rainy day.

Once again, I’ve failed to see much of what looks like an interesting city. But I have all my gears back, so I’ll call today a success. 😀

Today's ride: 69 km (43 miles)
Total: 550 km (342 miles)

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Scott AndersonWow. You Canadians are sure tough! Great news hearing your bike is repaired.
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2 weeks ago

Betsy EvansTo Scott AndersonThere’s a fine line between tough and stupid! I was lucky that it didn’t rain too hard during the day. And there was no wind.
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2 weeks ago