http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/index.html Follow along as Tim and Mike embark on a remarkable journey into China's wild western frontier. © 2006 Media Ventures en-us http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/video.html Tim Boelter spent a month traveling the northern and southern Silk Road in China capturing images of the people and places he encountered along the way. Video from China's Silk Road 6/13/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060611T_final.html It may take me a few more weeks just to compile all my thoughts about this extraordinary journey. Much of it is a blur simply because the amount of information we had to digest in such a short period. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 6/11/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060611T_everest.html Back in January when I first decided to embark on this journey, I had to make a very difficult decision about another project. I was asked to go to Mount Everest as a cameraman to film an expedition's climb of the mountain. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 6/11/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060611T_equip.html From the day we decided to do this trip it was a risky venture. The act of spending money on a trip rather than making money on a trip is a risk in itself. I really have to believe that going to China and driving the Silk Road is worth passing up a paycheck and trip to Everest. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 6/11/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060611T_lao_wang.html Lao Wang isn't an average Chinese guy. In fact, aside from being an entrepreneur he is someone who really enjoys adventure and exploration. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 6/11/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060530T.html The drive from Xian would take us to the Army of Terracotta Warriors where we spent three hours visiting and filming in two of the three excavation pits. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/30/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060524T.html They were threatening to also take the vehicle. As we watched Lao Wang get ushered into a van by a group of men Mike and I looked at each other in disbelief. I was thinking, wow I'm experiencing first hand the effect of a government that rules with an iron fist; this was indeed Big Brother in action. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/24/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060523T.html The sky turned a dark orange and suddenly I felt as though we entered another world, perhaps Mars. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/23/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060519T.html Sadilk said that Jon is a good friend of his, so through my relationship with Jon, Sadilk considered me a friend also. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/19/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060517T.html This massive conglomerate arch was probably created by erosion and wind forming what must be the largest natural arch in the world. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/17/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060517M.html We were quite possibly the first westerners to stop there. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/17/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060515T.html When you're dealing with unpredictable pedestrians, bicyclists, donkeys, farm animals and tractor drivers who can't hear something is bound to happen. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/15/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060505M.html Suddenly we came across a wall about 15 feet high coming in from our right as we headed northwest. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/5/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060506M.html Tim and I were bitterly disappointed. We almost had a falling out with our driver. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/6/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060507M.html I climbed onto the stool and sat astride the camel between the two humps. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/7/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060508M.html There are three great building feats of ancient China: the Great Wall, the Grand Canal and the Karez System. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/8/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060509M.html It was crazy affair, as the cars did not slow down to enter, being on a fixed cable. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/9/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060512T.html As we were departing a tollbooth gate three police officers were in the process of pulling cars over to the side of the road. Once the officer saw us, he motioned us over also. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/12/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060511T.html This mummy is 4,000 years old and is the corpse of a 47-year old woman who was Caucasian with possibly red hair. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/11/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060510T.html Lao Wang warned us of the dangers, but I trust in his abilities as an off road driving professional. He said that most drivers consider this region very dangerous. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/10/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060507T.html At this point I was livid and didn't hide this fact. I started to raise my voice and through a feeble attempt to communicate with Lao Bei I tried to explain that this was unacceptable. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/7/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060508T.html Turpan is a true desert oasis and one of the great examples of an irrigation-engineering feat. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/8/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060509T.html I was already thinking about returning to climb in these beautiful mountains. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/9/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060506T.html I was truly impressed and felt privileged to see this amazing structure so far from where most people usually see it (Beijing). Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/6/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060505T2.html Every two minutes someone would be saying cheers! And it is custom to drink the full glass, so that we did. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/5/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060504M.html Lao Bei and Lao Wu both made mobile phone calls and within twenty minutes a breakdown vehicle arrived with three men. One did all the work and eventually managed to get the wheel hub off by hitting the brake assembly with a hammer. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/4/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060503T.html As usual the sky was bright but hazy. It seems that every time I come to China the sky is yellow. It isn't a true overcast but rather a dull yellow haze that still allows just enough sun light through to cast a shadow. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/3/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060503M.html The front indicator glass had been broken and a heated discussion started joined by any one just passing. We became the object of a lot of curious glances and the bolder types came and stood right in front of us to stare. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/3/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060505.html After leaving Wuwei we felt like we were in scenes from Lawrence of Arabia. We are surrounded by desert and sand dunes for as far as the eye can see. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/5/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060504.html We broke our axle coming down a very steep hill. We're in deep because every single lug nut sheered off. We were coming down a hill and the vehicle - we almost rolled over. Unbelievable. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/2/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060502.html I'm used to packing this kind of weight when headed off on a serious mountain climb into the Himalayas. But this trip is different. We're not climbing a Himalayan giant. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/2/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060501.html A short round-faced man with glasses started to walk with us. We found out that his name was "Fifi" and that he was a professor of Art. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 5/1/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060430.html The scale of Beijing is difficult to grasp. It's nearly the size of Belgium. There are tall cranes everywhere, there outlines softened through the pollution. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 4/30/2006 12:00 CST http://www.adventure-video.com/taklimakan/dispatch_archive/20060429.html The two weeks previously had been a like a roller coaster ride with the sudden death of my father. Our original plans were dumped as I came to terms with his passing. Dispatch from China's Silk Road 4/29/2006 12:00 CST