Chinese Boy, Father Cycle 3,400 km to Lhasa in 46 Days
A 12-year-old boy who just graduated from primary school has captured hearts across China after cycling 3,400 kilometers from Wuhan to Lhasa with his father over 46 days. Li Ziyuchen and his father, Li Yaobin, departed from Wuhan on June 14 and arrived at the foot of the Potala Palace in Lhasa on July 29, according to NetEase News.
A Promise Made After a Few Drinks
The remarkable journey began with a casual promise. Li Yaobin, a 39-year-old drone repair technician, had long harbored a dream of long-distance cycling since his youth but had postponed it due to life’s obligations. About two months before departure, after drinking alcohol, he casually promised his son that he would take him cycling to Lhasa after graduation.
“To be honest, at the time I didn’t even know if I had the ability,” Li Yaobin admitted. But his son remembered the promise and kept asking when they would buy equipment, prompting the father to take it seriously. The pair prepared two second-hand bicycles, a tent, sleeping bags, and moisture-proof pads before setting off along National Highway 318.
An Epic Journey Along China’s Most Famous Highway
National Highway 318 is one of China’s most renowned roads, with the section from Chengdu to Lhasa—the Sichuan-Tibet Highway—considered among the most challenging and scenic cycling routes in the world. The father-son duo traversed diverse terrain, passing through Jingzhou, Yichang, Enshi, Chongqing, Chengdu, Ya’an, Litang, Batang, Mangkang, Bomi, and Nyingchi before reaching Lhasa.
According to China.com, the pair camped outdoors for approximately 90% of their nights to save on accommodation costs. They faced extreme heat and mosquito bites early in the journey, then freezing temperatures in the highlands. They encountered rain, hail, altitude sickness, flat tires, broken chains, and worn brake pads—and even a mudslide that blocked the road for cars but not for bicycles.
“Broken chains, worn brake pads, and frequent tire patches were the norm during the journey,” Li Yaobin said. “Fortunately, we had prepared a full set of repair tools and kept rescuing ourselves along the way.”
Pushing Through the Hardest Moments
The most difficult section was the Lichuan to Wanzhou stretch, where heavy rain and dense traffic tested the pair. Li Ziyuchen fell and scraped his knee, but insisted on continuing, saying simply: “Small problem, I can persist.”
They also crossed the Dongda Mountain Pass at 5,130 meters above sea level—the highest point on National Highway 318—requiring a single-day climb of 2,000 meters with 28 kilometers of continuous uphill. At Bangda Town, camping at 4,200 meters altitude, they endured a hailstorm with hailstones the size of soybeans, their shoes filling with ice water. The next day, they crossed a 4,000-meter mountain in slippers.
“In the first week, we had thoughts of giving up,” Li Yaobin recalled. “But thinking about how we’d already bragged about it, we gritted our teeth and persisted. Later we became more and more determined.”
A Message That Resonated Across China
The story went viral after a netizen encountered the father-son pair on Highway 318 near Tibet and posted a video. The boy’s white t-shirt read: “You go to tutoring, my dad is taking me cycling to Lhasa.” The video received tens of thousands of likes and shares, with nearly 10 million views in just three days, as Baidu Baijiahao reported.
The message struck a chord in China, where the summer after primary school graduation is typically a time for tutoring and enrichment classes. Li Ziyuchen’s mother, Ms. Jiang, said she initially expected the pair might not even make it out of Hubei Province.
“Going out to see the great mountains and rivers, experiencing different things and meeting different people, is definitely much better than playing with phones at home,” she said.
The journey also served as a special birthday gift for Li Ziyuchen, whose birthday fell on July 12 during the trip.
A Journey of Growth
The experience transformed the young cyclist. “At first I didn’t dare to speak up,” Li Ziyuchen said. “After the first time I went alone to ask for water, I felt like I had completely changed. My face got thicker, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I understand better how to interact with people and make friends.”
His physical education teacher at Aolin Primary School, Tian Bingjie, noted that the boy had been selected for the school’s track and field team in fourth grade and won 6th place in the 1,500-meter event at the district sports meet. “Parents are role models for their children,” Tian said. “Completing a long-distance cycling trip under harsh conditions fully tempered the boy’s quality of endurance.”
As Phoenix News reported, after arriving in Lhasa, the father-son pair planned to continue their journey to Mount Kailash for a pilgrimage. Reflecting on the experience, Li Yaobin offered simple advice to others: “If you have this idea, just go. Don’t hesitate.”
For Li Ziyuchen, the journey has given him a new perspective on challenges ahead. “If I can persist through such a difficult journey,” he said, “what are the difficulties I’ll face in studying later?”