Setting Out · Chengdu
Day one of cycling 318. Roll out of the Land of Abundance across the flat Chengdu plain — rapeseed gold, bamboo groves and paddy fields all the way. An easy day to find your legs.
Plan the day
Chengdu to Ya'an — the road, food, lodging and gear for this stage.
Road & riding
About 140 flat km across the Chengdu plain on good tarmac; traffic eases once you clear the suburbs. The perfect break-in day to dial in saddle height and rhythm before the mountains arrive.
Food & resupply
Sichuan food the whole way — dan dan noodles, mapo tofu, and hotpot in Ya’an. Stock some snacks here for the thin-air days to come.
Sleeping
Ya’an, "the rain city," has plenty of budget hotels and guesthouses by the Qingyi River — an easy, comfortable first night.
Gear & body
Warm, humid basin air: a light jersey is enough, but pack a rain shell — Ya’an lives up to its rainy name.
Landmarks
Chengdu
The start line at 500 m — teahouses, the Land of Abundance, and the official kilometre-zero of the Sichuan–Tibet Highway.
Xinjin
Where the Min River braids past riverside parks — the first town out of Chengdu as the plain rolls south.
Pujiang
A tidy county town famous for its citrus and tea, set among low green hills before the road climbs.
Datang 318 Cyclist Station
A roadside rest stop built for riders — a place to refill, stamp your passport, and snap the kilometre marker.
Baizhang Lake
A quiet reservoir ringed by tea slopes near Mingshan, mirroring the green hills on a calm morning.
Mingshan
A tea-country county seat in the foothills below Mengding, the last town before the tunnel down to Ya'an.
Mengding Mountain
The birthplace of cultivated tea — terraced gardens above Mingshan, the last green hills before Ya’an.
Qingyi River
The jade-green river that escorts riders down off the tea hills toward the gates of Ya'an.
Ya'an
The "rain city," gateway to the mountains where the plain finally ends.
Questions about this day
Is day 1 of cycling 318 hard?
No — day 1 from Chengdu to Ya’an is the gentlest of the whole route, a flat roll across the Chengdu plain from 500 m to about 792 m. In the game it’s the day to find your legs: try the pedal, brake and shift, and let the roam gear carry you at an easy spin.
Where does the Chengdu–Lhasa ride start?
At kilometre zero of the G318 in Chengdu, at around 500 m. The first stage runs west across the Land of Abundance to Ya’an, the "rain city" and the gateway where the plain finally meets the mountains.
What does the Chengdu plain look like in the game?
Rapeseed gold, bamboo groves and paddy fields all the way. The four seasons change the fields under you — spring brings the gold rapeseed bloom, autumn the ripe paddy — and the weather can turn the sky from clear to the soft drizzle the region is named for.
Ride your own 318
Cycling 318 turns the road to Lhasa into a daily, cozy ride. Check in at the landmarks, collect a postcard from each, and fill your 318 passport.
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