Finding connections on ancient shudao

As the inspiration for a hiking book, a historic network of roads in Sichuan brings awe to Americans following the author's path, report Peng Chao and Zhao Junfeng in Guangyuan.

On an ancient road in Sichuan province, Sandra Dorothy Carpenter presses her palm against a one-thousand-year-old cypress tree, the scent of cypress filling the air around her.

"It feels like touching history," she says. "We're on the road with the ancients. It feels like you can even feel the earth's heartbeat."