Yangshuo biking – great trails right from Village Inn
With numerous trails that take you past some of the most dramatic local scenery, Yangshuo biking is a great way to explore the countryside and see a lot in a short time. We have provided you four of our favorite routes all starting from Yangshuo Village Inn.
You can rent the following bikes from the Yangshuo Village Inn
* Mountain Bikes in two different sizes
* Standard bicycles
* Tandems
1/2 day = 30 RMB
Full day = 50 RMB
Biking routes to Moon Hill
Duration: Times vary according to route taken
Head out of the village and cross the main road turning left. Bike along the road for 200m and you will arrive at the gate to Moon Hill Park. Leave your bike inside the gate at Moon Hill and climb to the top. It take about 90 minutes round trip to climb up and down. Once back, you can take your bikes and head left out of Moon Hill gate along the main road about 1km to a small concrete service road heading in to the left. Follow it and continue on. This route will lead you through Feng Lou Village, Phoenix Village and others along the Yulong River. You can cross the Jin Bao River near Feng Lou school at the dry concrete weir. Head out left and explore the various trails. To your right is the Yulong River and Yangshuo Mountain Retreat. If you continue on and stay left, you will eventually find yourself about 2-3 km up the highway in Gaotian from Yangshuo Village Inn. Look for the radio towers on the hill across the main road. It is about 1km past Moon Hill Village and theYangshuo Village Inn.
Dragon Bridge
Duration: all day
Head out of Moon Hill Village and right on the highway. About 2 km down the road you will cross the Yulong River at Moon Hill Bridge. Immediately after the bridge on your left is a narrow concrete road that leads 1.5km to the Yangshuo Mountain Retreat. Note: There is a copycat hotel called Dragon River immediately before the Mountain Retreat that looks very similar.
Continue along to Chao Lang village. From there make your way through Yi Ma and other small villages, rocky paths and paddy fields for the next 20km, leading you eventually to the 600 year old Yu Long Bridge. The quaint village at the bridge makes for some great photos, and there are plenty of spots to swim along the way. About half way to the bridge you can stop at the catch-your-own fish farm have a break and grill your catch while enjoying the surrounding scenery.
Note: If you’re feeling daring and the weather is favorable, you can jump safely off of the Dragon River Bridge. The drop is about 10m. CAUTION: Be sure to have someone spot for you on the other side of the bridge to make sure no bamboo rafts are passing beneath you.From the Yu Long Bridge there are many ways back so here are four options:
The first way takes you through a small nearby town called Baisha. From there it is about 10 kilometers back to Yangshuo West Street and another 5 km to the Yangshuo Village Inn (all on main roads), so you’ll have a shoulder to ride on but there will be some vehicle traffic.
The second option is to cross the Yu Long Bridge and follow the dirt track heading down along the river past Tongmen Mountain (Copper Gate), through Phoenix Village, Feng Lou Village, across the Jin Bao River and out the narrow concrete service road out to the main highway across from Yangshuo Village Inn. This option has fantastic scenery but will take longer as some of the trails are very bumpy and muddy, so less experienced riders may need to get off and walk their bikes.
The third and longer choice takes you up river to a modern big bridge, which is wide and high enough for vehicles to cross. Cross the River here and toward Jin Bao Town then on to Gao Tian which is south of Moon Hilll. It’s about 17 km from the Yu Long Bridge to Gao Tian and a further 1km back to Yangshuo Village Inn. Look for the radio towers on the nearby Gaotian Hills as a reference point, as they are only 1km South of the Moon Hill Village.
The final option is to simply head back the way you came!
To Yangshuo West Street
Duration: 50 minutes
Head out of the village to the main highway and right. Cross the Moon Hill Bridge and take the second path to the left. After about 600 meters there is a narrow path splitting off to the right, this is the way to Jianshan Temple, a renovated Buddhist shrine. Past Jianshan, head back to the path you came from and follow it along the Yu Long River in the downstream direction until you reach the first main road. Cross this road and follow the path until you cross over a second bridge which takes you to another main road. This road takes you to Yangshuo.
Note: Check with Yangshuo Village Inn reception for a local map of this area.
Liugong Village
Duration: all day
From Moon Hill Village, head to the main road to the right and take the first path down to your right, same as if you were heading to the temple and on to Yangshuo. Follow the to the main road at Aishan and continue on South toward Yongcun Village. The road to Liugong is half way between Aishan and Yongcun on the left hand side and about 18km from the Village Inn. Take this road all the way to the end where you’ll enter the quiet Li River village of Liugong. You can have lunch here and walk the 800 year old streets of admire the architecture and walk around the ancient cobbled streets of this 800 year old village.
Close to the village are the remarkable three-color ponds. The water level in the ponds always remains the same throughout the year regardless of the water level of the Li River. As the name suggests, the ponds have three distinct colors, contributing to rich local folklore about their supernatural origins.
Note: Please check with Yangshuo Village Inn reception for a local area map for this tour
For more information on Yangshuo biking, or if you’re considering an extended bike tour in China, please visit Bike Asia
For more great Yangshuo biking pictures, please go to this Flickr gallery.