The Idea
So its December 26 2015 and I have decided to go on a nice week long end of year cycle trip up North. Never really seen these areas, so looking forward to some surprises along the way.
Also going to keep it "relatively" low teck on this trip for a change, no internet access phone, one single fixed focus lens, one battery, one memory card, ok...and an e reader.....and a GPS.
My proposed route up north
Not exactly NO tech, but definitely LOW tech by comparison.
Day 1 - 27 December 2015
Paksan to Namphaeng - 115 km, 650m accumulated elevation.
Pleasant relatively easy day along friendly roads, hot. The last time I travelled this section on my motorbike about 4 years ago, the tar sections were all dirt and the dirt sections all tar which points somewhat to the level of maintenance in relation to the construction of new roads.
I made an absolute rookie mistake of fitting the bike with a new saddle at the start of a long trip and struggled during the day to find the right settings. This mistake would cause me immense pain and suffering during the trip, almost causing me to pack it in altogether in the days to come.
Irrigated rice planting during the dry season on the way to Ban Thasi
Wooden suspension bridge provides access to a small village on the way to Namphaeng
Day 2 - 28 December 2015
Namphaeng to Phonsavan, 119 km distance, 1380m total accent
Poor saddle and wrong position wrecked my knee and gave me open blisters on the part of my body in contact with the saddle!. Not fun I can tell you. Both pairs of cycle shorts, vaseline and Nivia could not even prevent this. The day was a bit of a nightmare really, don't know how I managed to to get in, but I did. Grave concerns about continuing the next day, mainly due to my knee.
The route was ok, if a little dull with long hot climbs on wide tar road, not the best, but still great to be outside. Coming into Phonsavang I could see the mountains rising above the road in the direction i would be going the following day. Good diner at "Craters" the restaurant opposite the UXO (unexploded ordinance) headquarters in a town routed in the history of "the secret war"
Hmong girls dressed in traditional clothes for a local ceremony in their town.
Road side villages cling to ever eroding river banks.
Day 3 - 29 December 2015
Phonsavan to Ghot Lieng, Distance: 97.8 km, Total ascent: 1,714 m
Finally found the sweet spot with the saddle, and immediately felt the relief on my knee. As long i kept it in riding position it was fine, anything out of that arc was not. Sitting is still Agony.
Riding was good, loads of climbing and quite cold, with a low mist settling in towards the afternoon.
There was no guest house in the villages I passed, but a young guy offered for me to stay with him and his family for the night. They had just lost their father a month earlier and were still struggling to pick up the slack left by him. They did try to get me drunk on "Lao Hi" but only half succeeded.
Always a humbling experience to be saturated by the generosity and hospitality of people who can barley afford to care for their own needs. My personal motto in these situations:
"Rely on the kindness of strangers, but quietly leave double the normal guest house rate on the counter on your way out"
This guy insisted on showing me his "secret war" battles scars, and his papers of commendation for bravery.
Nice to be back in the mountains again.
Day 4 - 30 December 2015
Grot Lieng to Nam Nern, Distance: 42 km, Accent: 409 m
I know, I wimped out, but really, i just could not sit down without ccursing and i was worried about the sores getting septic. I decided to rest out the day after a short ride, mostly uphill, but with a welcome standup 18km downhill into the town of Nam Neum with its one brand new guest house.
The ride itself was really quite beautiful, wet and silently misty in the morning, men huddling around wood fires watching the woman work, the mist clearing as i dropped down towards the river. Small Hmong settlements, houses strung out like wooden beads clinging to the side of the road, life lived as much on the road as off.
After a breakfast that was not noodle soup, I slept for three hours solid before doing some washing and servicing the bike. Visited the chemist and stocked up on more plasters and vaseline.
Exhale.
early morning mist and rain high up in the mountains, just before the long downhill.
Some welcome R&R in Nam Nerm town
Day 5 - 31 December 2015
Nam Nern to Meung hein Distance: 67 km, Accent: 1,550 m
Fantastic ride today,hard work with lots of climbs but well managed, narrow winding roads and big vistas, ample reward for the climbing.
I left without breakfast to make an early start, and then struggled to find a village with someone prepared to make me something to eat. Ba-na-na! and crackers came to the rescue.
Thick mist forcing me to pack away the camera and haul out the rain jacket at times in the morning, but better than the searing heat and humidity of summer in these areas.
Arrived in Viengthong, the town of our (WCS) field office for the nam Et Paloy NPA. Its new years eve so most of the better restaurants are closed, but still found some good food at the bus station.
Quote of the day "Damn, this bum thing is a real pain in the ass"
Banana and crackers. Emergency fuel.
Day 6 - 01 January 2016
Viengthong to Nong Khiaw
With only a limited number of days remaining I was forced to make up some distance by busing through from Maung hein to Nong Khiaw. This would give me a day to make it through to Oudomsay in time for my flight back to Vientiane.
Woke to a slightly slower Viengthong after their new years celebrations but did manage to find a decent breakfast spot. The bus only left at 12, so I rode around the town a bit and went to visit the NEPL PA office. The bus journey was a welcome change and hardly hurt at all.
We arrived in Nong Khiaw about 30 mins before sunset and was completely blown away by the dramatic beauty of the place, I just didn't expect it. I literally thew my gear into the first guest house I saw and raced around taking photos before the sun went down.
With so many restaurants to choose from I ended up having two dinners, steak at one, hamburger at the next. Damn! that felt better.
Bike on bus, bus to Nong fhiaw
Day 7 - 02 January 2016
Nong Khiaw to Oudomsay, Distance: 114 km, Accent: 1,869 m
Got off to an early start in cool misty conditions. The first 30 km went quite fast, the dramatic scenery of the days before subsiding as we dropped down into the valley.
After the turnoff at Pak Moung, the road became wide, new, guttered and edged and ominously empty. A number of road construction stops later revealed the reason. I always managed to work my way past the string of cars, trucks and motorbikes to carry my bike over wet tar, duck under a swinging excavator arms or scramble through the bush at the side of the road.
The weather flipped from streamy to cold to rain throughout the day, the road climbing all the way till the last short blast into the city of Oudomxay. In actual fact, the trip really finished on the top of the mountain and it was with a vague sadness that I descended into the untidy, noisy outskirts of Oudomsay.
Roadside tap, free water.
Day 8 - 03 January 2016
Oudomxay to Paksan
I had to run around looking for something I could use to make a box for my bike and eventually found a damp piece of cardboard. Was more tape than box, but it worked and got onto the flight back to Vientiane and survived the bus to Paksan.
All said, it was an amazing trip into areas of Lao I have never seen before. I loved the climbing again and the mountains and hill people. Definitely heading up that way again in the future
Probably the ugliest bike box I've made so far.
Short video of this trip