This is the blog: one post per trip. Every route here is one I've actually driven — the stops worth your time, the ones to skip, and how the days fit together on the ground.
Live now
Two weeks, one car, one-way: Danba's watchtowers, a nomad's black tent on the Tagong grassland, Litang, then Baiyu, Kathok, the Derge printing house and Dzogchen — and over into Qinghai.
Five days out of Chengdu: pandas at Shenshuping, the four peaks, Danba's watchtowers, the Tagong grassland and two monasteries — then a hot spring, a Zen temple and Leshan Buddha on the way home.
How this notebook grows
Every route here comes out of a trip I've actually driven — the stops I'd take you to, the ones I'd skip, and the notes that only matter once you're on the ground. Each one is written after I've driven it again, which is why they arrive slowly and why they're worth reading before you plan.
Prefer to browse by place? Open the map of where I've been — every location links back to the routes that pass through it. And if the place you're after isn't here yet, write to me — travellers' questions usually decide what I write next.