Detailed travel notes on a self-driving trip to the Northwest, one car per person

Traveling to Qinghai has always been an idea in my heart, but I have no chance to realize it. This summer vacation is almost over! If you don’t go after September, you will miss the last chance of this year! I don’t want to have any regrets this year. This time, even if I’m alone, I want to go.

Preparation work:

Car maintenance, comprehensive inspection, replacement of third filter, oil change, and brake pad replacement.

Apply for an ETC card and recharge it.

Buy emergency starting power supply and towing rope.

Buy car mp3 and download your favorite songs.

Buy food, mineral water, etc.

Buying a car air mattress, I am used to taking naps, and I plan to take a nap every day on the road, just half an hour.

Book Mogao Grottoes tickets online. Among the many scenic spots in the Northwest, this is the only one that requires advance booking. The reservation is on July 13th.

Before leaving, I suddenly thought that I should bring a fire extinguisher bottle. I bought a small fire extinguisher bottle for 26 yuan. Later, it proved that this was a wise decision.

Physical condition:

In the past 2 months, my gastrointestinal condition has been bad. During the treatment, this is what I am most worried about. So, I will be honest and eat more during the trip. I like pasta, but it’s better to stay away from all kinds of northwest delicacies.

I brought gastrointestinal medicine and cold medicine. As for rhodiola rosea to prevent high fever, a small box costs more than 100. It is for prevention. I thought it should be fine, so I didn’t buy it. I prepared a box of glucose. .

Make up my mind:

Although I am alone, even though no one in my family or friends agrees, even though my physical condition is not ideal, I am determined to go! People have to have some pursuits and some hobbies. , life must have some color, there must be adventure, not just enough to eat and sleep well. In short, I just want to go!

Completion status:

The first step is the hardest to take. , once you take the first step bravely, you will find that difficulties are always overestimated, and there are not so many hardships and dangers in the outside world!

From From July 8th to July 27th, which lasted for twenty days, my solo bicycle self-driving tour of the Northwest was a complete success. Before leaving, I only had a rough planned route, and I adjusted it as I went. In the end, I walked more than 9,200 kilometers. The travel route map is shown below:

Detailed travel notes:

The first day, 07.08 (Changzhi-Dingbian)

I didn’t sleep well the night before the trip. This is my routine. It may be affected by my emotions. The anticipation and excitement are involuntary. , I had no way to control it and could only let it take its course.

On July 8, I woke up at 5 a.m., got up, packed my things, and went to the car. I didn’t sleep well, I felt uncomfortable in my stomach, and my body was not good. Not in the best condition, but the arrow is on the string, I have to shoot, I have to start! Adjust your mentality, be a little confident, and enjoy the fun of driving alone!

After breakfast, we set off from Changzhi at 8:10. It's raining lightly, and the light is green all the way out of the city. Go north along the Erguang Expressway, turn to the Qingyin Expressway at Yushe South, and turn westward to Pingyao South Service Area at 12:00, and have lunch. After passing the Jundu toll station, we entered the Loess Plateau, with ravines and cave dwellings everywhere. I was wondering if the mountains could be leveled and the ravines filled up, could this area be turned into fertile farmland?

3pm, Zizhou Service Area, I rolled out my mat and wanted to take a nap in the car, but it was so hot and stuffy inside that I couldn’t sleep at all! Before I left, I thought that I must take a good nap every day. I really wanted to More! After lying down for half an hour, we continued on our way. As we approached Dingbian, we saw grassland on the side of the road, but the grassland was uneven and covered with small green mounds. In life, every time I see a new landform, I'm always very excited.

We will arrive at Dingbian at 6:30, which is still more than 100 kilometers away from Yinchuan. It's the first day of traveling, so don't be too tired. Just stay in Dingbian tonight. How far to go? I booked Zhongxin Express Hotel for 108 yuan. The conditions were good, the backyard was large, and the parking was convenient.

On the first day of the trip, I was in a good mood and drove more than 600 kilometers. Driving around in the car, listening to music and singing, I felt so happy.

Have dinner across the street, noodles with soybean paste, 16 yuan, very tasty.

I watched TV at night and didn't go to bed until almost 12 o'clock. I didn't sleep well and woke up early. For two nights in a row, I slept for about 5 hours at most. I was so worried!

Second Today, .07.09 (Dingbian-Northwest Film and Television City-Zhongwei

When I woke up in the morning, my head felt dizzy and I obviously didn’t get enough sleep! During the journey, it is important to have a calm mind and not be overly excited in anticipation of the beautiful scenery; be content with the situation and not Being anxious because of the difficulty of the journey; it is extremely inappropriate to have a regular life. For example, I stayed up too late to watch TV last night. Only in this way can I have fun and sleep well, and the trip can be "sustainable".

< p> I didn’t have breakfast, so I set off. When I got on the expressway, I saw a long queue at the entrance, and I passed the ETC channel without any obstruction. I felt more and more that ETC was really convenient! At 7:30, I had breakfast at the Cai Jialiang service area. Instant noodles.

At 9:30, we arrived at Zhenbeibao Northwest Film and Television City. We originally planned to go to Shahu Lake, which is also a 5A scenic spot and we have to go north. Its style is probably similar to Shapotou. After thinking about it, I gave up.

The Northwest Film and Television City has now become a landmark attraction in Yinchuan. Some people say that if you don’t come to Yinchuan without the film and television city, your visit is basically in vain. Zhang Xianliang presided over the construction of the Northwest Film and Television City. Yes, he was a famous writer who was once a "rightist". He was decentralized to work and was in a miserable situation for a time. Later, he fought back. There is a memorial hall for him in the film and television city.

The film and television city includes Qingcheng, Mingcheng, and Lao. There are three areas in Yinchuan Street. When I first entered, I felt very fresh and quite big! After walking around, it was actually nothing. There were mud houses with mud walls, and there were signs indicating that this was the filming location of a certain movie and TV series. After looking at it, I feel that it is nothing more than that. The old Yinchuan street is even less interesting. There are many houses in the back that I am not interested in going in.

But the Northwest Film and Television City has indeed achieved a lot of "business cards". "Famous directors and famous actors", this is a blessed place for film and television people. There is a city gate in Qingcheng called "The Gate of Fortune". It is said that many works filmed here have become popular. It is the city where Zhizunbao and Zixia Fairy stand face to face.

Northwest Film and Television City

The Gate of Fortune

In the 1980s, Xie Jin's "The Wrangler" and Zhang Yimou's "Red Sorghum" made Northwest Film and Television The city became famous, and it was "Westward Journey" that really made the film and television city popular all over the country, and its popularity reached its peak. The film and television city also has the most and most eye-catching signs of the filming locations of "Westward Journey"! "Ten Thousand Years" back garden, you will know how small it is when you go there.

Back garden "Love You Ten Thousand Years" filming location

Leave the scenic spot at 12:30 noon , I went to Yinchuan City to buy wolfberry. This was a task given by my wife. I had to rush to Zhongwei City in the afternoon. I didn’t want to delay in Yinchuan City for too long. I searched online and found that authentic Ningxia wolfberry could be bought in a large supermarket. So, I searched the large supermarket on Baidu Map. , I found the nearest large supermarket, which was more than ten kilometers away. I looked there and saw that it couldn’t be any smaller. Of course, your grandma has no legs! How dare you mark such a small supermarket on Baidu map? Supermarket!

Going east towards downtown Yinchuan, I looked at two small supermarkets, but there were no wolfberries in them. At 1:30 in the afternoon, I asked the locals and they said that the nearby Tongxin Road Comprehensive Market had wolfberry, which was cheap and of good quality. I felt relieved and ate a big bowl of braised noodles first. It tasted good and the portion was really big. Afterwards, we quickly went to Tongxin Road Market and successfully completed the task.

At 2:30 in the afternoon, I set off for Zhongwei City. With plenty of time, I decided not to take the highway and take County Road 751, which is said to be a desert highway. First take the Yinchuan Ring Expressway and then transfer to the Yinba Expressway. Ningxia is really too small. We didn’t go far before entering Inner Mongolia. On the roadside is Helan Mountain, a barren mountain. In the midsummer when everything is growing, the mountains here are bare, earth-colored, sand-red, and stone-colored, but there is no green in sight. I noticed that at the foot of the mountain, you can often see cemeteries. They are very simple, with small stones forming a circle and a tombstone in the center. These cemeteries should not cost money to buy, right?

X751 County Road

X751 County Road

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After crossing the mountains, the desert in the distance can be seen, and we get off the highway at Barunbieli. Going south along County Road 751, it is said to be a desert road. In fact, both sides of the road are not deserts, but grasslands. Occasionally, you can see sheep. However, the grasslands are not dense and mottled. It is a semi-prairie and semi-desert landscape.

This section of road is under construction. It should be built into a highway. The road condition is already very good. What's even better is that there are no surveillance cameras installed. Driving as you like is more enjoyable than taking the expressway.

At the end of the construction road, there is a fork in the road. If you want to go to Zhongwei City, turn left and turn right to Shapotou Scenic Area. I chose to turn left, and then took the 004 rural road. The road is narrow but in good condition, and there are few surveillances.

Arrived in Zhongwei City at 6:30 and went directly to the Red Sun Parking Lot of Super 8 Hotel. I was really lucky. I followed the navigation on my mobile phone and made many twists and turns. In the end, I finally found a parking lot, and it was a free parking lot. I couldn't find the Super 8 Hotel, so I booked the nearby Jinjiang Hotel for 147 yuan and the conditions were pretty good.

I am tired and sleepy! I went downstairs for dinner at 7:30. I felt that I should eat some meat to replenish my physical strength, so I ordered porridge and meat buns. After dinner, we walked to Red Sun Square. It was so lively! There must have been more than a dozen groups of square dancers, each with its own music and dance, without affecting or interfering with each other, filling up a large square. I asked about the wolfberry store next to me and found that the price was indeed higher than that at Yinchuan Tongxin Road Market, and the quality was average. Fortunately, I bought it in Yinchuan.

Zhongwei City, Red Sun Square Dancers