18-Jul-2008 -- This is the ninth out of 23 confluences that I visited on my bicycle trip to the North-East of China. The story starts from 40°N 117°E.

The previous day, I had visited 44°N 123°E and had stayed in the town Tàipíngchuān (太平川镇). On confluence day I got up at 3:30 am and left the hotel at 4:30 am. I rode my bike 50 km further towards the north and reached the town Tōngyú (通榆).

My day’s plan was actually a visit of the neighboring confluence 45°N 123°E. But I was in particular curious to see this confluence due to its location directly in a town. To me, it is amazing that after 12 years of world-wide confluencing there are still unvisited confluences in cities. The previous eight confluence visits on my tour had always been ending up in agricultural areas and meanwhile I had gotten a little tired of taking pictures of corn-fields.

When I arrived in Tōngyú, there was a public bus just to depart to Qián’ān (乾安), where this confluence is located. I spontaneously decided to take the bus. I quickly deposited my luggage at a little restaurant and hopped on the bus. At 9:30 am, after a two-hour bus ride, I reached Qián’ān’s outskirts. At a distance of just 1.2 km I got off the bus, even if we hadn’t reached the town’s centre yet.

I walked along some main roads up to a distance of 250 m and then turned into one narrow alley that directly led to the confluence. I was eased when I entered the 100 m circle around the confluence, because I had made bad experiences with confluences in cities at 30°N 103°E. The minimal distance from the alley to the confluence turned out to be 13 m. The GPS was pointing directly to a house with a garden. Nobody was at home, so I could not get into the property. I also went into the next alley and reached the backside of the house, measuring a minimal distance of 10 m. Most likely, the confluence point is located inside the house. I didn’t hang about at the confluence. I quickly took the pictures and went away again. The reason for this was that some residents were looking suspiciously at me already. I wanted to avoid long explanations that would not be understood and might have attracted a crowd or even the police.

I took a picture of the next street where some ducks were plashing. Back in the town centre I had some barbecue and took the next bus back to Tōngyú (通榆). I arrived in Tōngyú at 2:20 pm and continued cycling towards the north.

CP Visit Details:

• Distance to an asphalt road: 200 m
• Distance to a road: 200 m
• Distance to a track: 10 m
• Distance of parking the bike: 68 km
• Distance to houses: 0 m
• Time starting the bus trip (hike): 7:30 a.m (9:30 a.m.)
• Time at the CP: 9:45 a.m.
• Riding time (distance) from Tōngyú: 2:00 hours (68 km)
• Measured height: 160 m
• Minimal distance according to GPS: 10 m
• Position accuracy at the CP: 9 m
• Topography: flat
• Vegetation: gardenland: tomatos, chives, herbs, corn, grass.
• Weather: cloudy, 25° C (felt temperature)
• Description of the CP: In the north-east part of Jilin Province. Directly located in the western parts of the district town Qián’ān. Squeezed between two alleys. Location most likely directly in a house.
• Given Name: The Blue Window Confluence

Story continues at 45°N 123°E.