Walking Around Erhai

The Plan

I did cycle around Erhai (洱海) some time last year, and this time around I want to walk around Erhai to kick off the year. The original plan was to do it on the first day of the year, for 3 days. Day 1 was supposed to be an easy 30km, and then day 2 & 3 are longer 45-50km days. Unfortunately, I fell sick, and even my foot became swollen. I guess the world was conspiring to tell me something. Anyhow, I recovered and I eventually did it. And this is what happened.

The Experience

I started around Caicun (才村) and I walked about 30km the first day, heading north. I found a hotel 4km north of Xizhou (喜洲) to stay for the night. It took me 7 hours. The weather was perfect, sunny but with a constant cool breeze. The west side of Erhai is properly landscaped for about 40km, with running and biking lanes, so you can see many people there enjoying and playing.

There is this calmness observing the slow waves of the lake. It is rather delightful to see the playful birds and ducks on the lake, with the ever present Chang Mountain (苍山) overlooking the inhabitants of the valley. Walking at night was quite a different experience. Everything quiets down. It is just my foot steps, the starry night, and the cold wind.

I had a ton of time to think and reflect about my own life, and my relationship with the world around me. By the end of Day 1, my thighs and feet were starting to sore.

The morning of Day 2, I covered the northern part of lake, and arrived in Shangguan (上关) for a quick lunch. By the time I reached Shuanglang (双廊) it was already 3pm. I only covered 25km so far. It was going to be a very long day. By the time I reached my hotel room in Wenbicun (文笔村), it was 8:45pm, and I had been walking for 12 hours, with some breaks.

At times, you can really smell the sea. I really enjoyed the views of Erhai. It seems I can’t get enough of it, especially on this east side of the lake as it is more raw and less landscaped. I’d say Erhai on the west side is pretty but on the east side it is beautiful. I remember stopping many more times to take a quick photo of the view at that moment. It is a contrast of our human desire for perfection and mother nature’s natural imperfections.

I was not sure I was going to complete the walk. The physicality of it was making it a bit less fun. I could push myself to complete it, but I didn’t want to complete it for the sake of it. So I decided to end the walk at Wenbicun.

Although I had done marathons in the past, I have not been too active since COVID. I can really feel the gap between myself now, and my more active days. That being said, I almost did 2 marathon distances ~80km, back to back over 2 days. Nothing to sniff at.

At the end of the trip, I have a lot of thoughts on my relationship with our tools (or technology). Walking is such a simple way to bring us back to our core being. A typical 25-30 minute car ride, becomes a 3-4 hour walking ordeal. It really made me feel small.

What are we without our tools?

I am so grateful of the technology that we take granted everyday: clean water, hot showers, a warm house & bed, a flushing toilet, the Internet, and so much more.

Thank you, Erhai.