BAD LUCK Tour
I had planned to do a route for 8 days in north laos. Some tracks I wanted to do but flexible if something came up. I had downloaded someone else's tracks, but they were only about 200points each so when the track said 50km total, it was more likely 75km.The real problem with this is that at times I didnt know how much further I had to go.
I left chiang mai to nan with george, who bought my old KLX. It had been running well.After Phayao, his bike wouldnt start,We got to Dok Khamtai and kawasaki shop there played with it,and kept it overnight.
We stayed in a short time hotel,the only choice. Nothing interesting on the tv, was a total waste of time. then nan next day, finally found the Amazing Guest house,. geo caught up with me but more probs so after breakfast at Nan Steak house by the river, I went on to muang nguen for the next night. The ATMs in Pua wouldnt pay out,with my thai bank card, very strange. It was looking like rain near border. problems on thai side,as I'd misjudged my visa dates, and overstayed. So 500baht a day... but no hassle really, through there about 5pm,but the barrier was down on the laos side, so I went round it and the laos staff were out, but after a half hour got all paperwork,from 3 windows,.2 weeks permit for the bike(I should've asked for 3 weeks). noone was in the insurance offices so went to hotel.Didnt want to stay in the cheap guesthouse (3) on right,once bitten twice shy, and new Xaysan on left before junction looked good for 60k fan room, but I went left for a look and found a nice place for 50k.
It poured down that night, 1st rain for months
DAY1 Muang Nguen to Luang Prabang 26 March 2012
It was fairly dry in the morning, so I got some insurance near the border and around noon I took the road to Luang Prabang,I remembered the turnoff/sign onto dirt road but got lost at the village shortly after. Back on track and in Luang Prabang by 4pm.167km 5hrs
DAY2 Luang Prabang to Phonxai and back
There's a track nr Phonxai I'd failed to do twice so (on the road to Phonsavan)off I went.
lots of road upgrading, on the old dirt track,not sealed yet though,to turnoff at the red pillared suspension bridge on the left, through the field/gate and right on the track which takes you up the hill.
Someone was working on it, moving rocks, large ones, and I struggled up picking all the wrong lines.
You could probably get a good 4wd up there now.
Got to the top and it goes on through valleys for miles, then you come to a gate.
Beyond there's a village
and the track carries on back down to phonxai,where there is gas, shops a guesthouse and I returned to Luang Prabang without joining the main road. Took 3hours from the bridge round to Phonxai. Total 153km
Next day was a rest day,
DAY3 Luang Prabang to Phoukhoune
I wanted to ride to Vang Vieng the day after, down a track east of the main road, on the gps map and I was told it was a good option. So 3 hrs to phoukhoun, then 10km down the phonsavan rd to the turnoff. Was a nice track through the countryside, 32km I got almost to a junction, but there was a barrier and some army people dashed up and would not let me through. So I turned around and headed back but 10 km later, passing the army camp in the village, I was stopped by soldiers, and ordered into their compound at 3pm. They took me to a room and asked me why I was there several times,for an hour, and took my passport. They didnt speak much english. :MG
Then they had a rubbish old little truck , and put the bike and I in it, and drove back to poukhoune, to see their boss,who had three plops on his shoulder. He got a translator to ask me the same stupid questions again and again, and state that I had done something wrong, and it eventually became clear that he was asking for money. He wanted $100, and said otherwise I would be kept for 2or3days, and maybe taken back to the army camp to explain why I didnt wish to pay for their petrol etc.I offered $10, I needed to get to Vang Vieng that night, or I'd have to wait till tuesday for the visa, and wouldnt have time to ride the places I came to do. We agreed on 1500baht in the end, and it was 6pm so I stayed in a Poukhoune guesthouse for 50k.Nice girl there, but she stayed out of the way. I suppose I shouldnt have given in to such corruption, and see if they let me go , or locked me up etc.
They dont have bathrooms there, just oilcans full of water outside the house to wash in. I couldn't find anything to eat either, as it looked like they were serving everyone else before me so I had to walk out. Being semi-vegetarian doesn't help. Got some fried eggs in the market. I wouldnt stay there if I didnt have to, but I really dont want to drive in the dark, on the main highway.
DAY 4 Phoukhoune to Vang Vieng
Off early for the 2 hours to Vang Vieng, lovely windy road, to kasi, then nearer Vang Vieng the sealed road was
regularly broken up with dirt sections, which I could hit at speed,standing up and fly past every other vehicle.
Coming into town I had to pass a bus stuck behind an artic, then a wheel shot off the lorry, rolled down the road, almost demolishing a cafe, and then the other wheel came off, and rolled off down the other side of the road, as the lorry slid to a halt.
I explored a bit the other side of the river in the afternoon, stayed in a nice 60k(?) room by the river.
DAY 5 Vang Vieng to Luang Prabang
Realising there was no longer any point going to vientiane for the visa, next day I went back to Kasi (1hour) then northwest to Muang Nan.
This is all big highway under construction, none of it sealed yet,but mostly completed, just occasional short stretches of farmtype tracks.
No villages for a long way.1.5hrs
When I got to Muang Nan, I got some gas, but got lost, couldnt find the main route 4 from xayaboury to Luang Prabang( I was on it).So ended up riding along the mekong all the way to Luang Prabang.
<3hrs It rained that evening and noone was setting up stalls at the night market
DAY 6 Luang Prabang to Nong Khiaw
I wanted to try the route from Pak Ou,the nam ou /mekong confluence, and take the boat up river to Ban Lathane and on to Oudomxai. There is/was only some sandy bamboo steps down to the boats. The boatman wanted 350000kip for the journey, 250k was my max, then I realised he wasnt talking about the tourist boat, he had a little boat which was bound to sink, and the tourist boat wanted 600000kip! Probably better to try to get a boat all the way up from Luang Prabang. So I turned round in the soft sand, and the bamboo steps looked much steeper from below. I got halfway up before it dawned on me there was no way I'd get to the top. I got my towrope out and the boatmen came over and pulled as I walked beside the bike so was on the top in 5minutes.
I gave them some kip for beer and bamboo, and rode off quick to the Nong kiaw road, with just a few scratches and a torn shirt from the barbed wire by the steps.
It's a good dirt road that goes NE from Luang Prabang 120km up to Route 1C and took me 3 hours. I got gas 50km up the road at Pak Xeng. From the Rte 1C there it's a fun windy tarmac road for 65km to Nong Khiaw.(1.5hrs)
Stayed in the Sunset guesthouse which was too much at 100k but it was sunset, the room and bed was nice, had a great riverside view and I could park the bike and unload it just a few yards away
DAY 7 NongKhiaw to Nale
Hoped to get to Luang Namtha for the night
30km sealed Road was OK for 1hour until I got to Route 13, then the way to Oudomxai was horrible 75km dirt then tarmac and potholes and dust, really was an uncomfortable hour and a half.I had a good lunch at Meuang Nuea restaurant. then rode west on a dirt track to Nale 85km away.
after a village it got worse(better), singletrack and streams, but no problem on a klx.
Took me over 3 hours
Got to Nale at 4.30pm and was offered a room on the crossroads for 40k It was too late to make Luang Namtha 87km away.Found a restaurant by the river for some good egg fried rice twice, A couple of power cuts in the evening,quite normal in Laos
DAY 8 Nale to Luang Namtha
In the morning off to Luang Namtha and a dirt road beside the river along Nam Ha protected area took 4 hours. Had to stop for 30mins cos of roadbuilding. Couldnt see much cos of the vegetation, but very pleasant. A few m/cs coming the other way made me careful to stay on my side, not that it would make much difference, Stopped to help someone with a puncture and a bite and chat with some natives
Went to Zuela guesthouse for 70k and very pleased not to be woken up by the local temple at 5am. They must've wised up since last time I was there. Good food there. I rode around the fields in the afternoon.
DAY 9 Luang Namtha to Muang Long
Drove 65km to Vieng Poukha down the fast main tarmac road, and turned right/north on dirt road by the protected area up to Muang Long(85km, 3.5hrs).
Last 25kms or so it turned into a wide bulldust road through the mountains and I had no idea how long it was to go on for as it started to rain and I wanted to get into town before it all turned into a slippy mess.
The rain died off as I got to town but looked like it would get worse, and I was very tired so I didnt realise it was only 22km to Xieng Kok and I stayed in a nice guesthouse in M.Long and eat in the restaurant there.
DAY 10 Muang Long to Huay Xei
Last day in Laos I wanted to ride down the mekong to huay xei,nice dirt track, ok for 4wd, there was a tree down but I guess it would be cut out of the way the same day.
I got onto the track by Phangam. 2hrs,60km.
It was in good condition, except that it felt like lots of little bumps, so was a drag riding it, and it was red clay dirt, a bit wet from last night, it was a long way to go and I wanted to cross the border that day, so after 12km I didnt want to take the chance and turned back, to take the track south from Phangam to Huay Xei. 3hours, 110kms. A pity, as it looked like a good way to go otherwise.
Got into Huay Xei, stamped out by the tourist ferry, then got lost trying to find the vehicle ferry to return the motorcycle import papers, and customs.About 5pm I was on the ferry, 500bt worse off, plus the fees at customs.
Didnt take long to sort the paperwork on the thai side, and I found a guesthouse.Didnt seem right, but I got a room for 200bt.
Found a restaurant on main street, had a really nice green curry and beer and conversation with the guys there who are also bikers.
About midnight I woke up itching and realised why it didnt seem right, bedbugs. I couldnt facethe rest of the night there so I left everything there andcrossed the road and got a nice clean room for 250bt. The lady there said a couple of girls had done the same the night before. So I wont be staying at the Boom House guesthouse again. I feel sorry for all the backpackers starting their trip in Laos/Thailand covered in bites
NEXT DAY in Thailand
Got up, crossed the road, packed the bike and left, had some brekie at a cafe,lady makes her own bread. Rode back to chiang mai by 3pm
3 fails, 5 success makes 62.5% No rain (almost),in Laos, makes a massive difference. Worst thing was not having panniers,un/loading was a hassle. I lost some old gloves on the way, but had spare ones, and forgot my new fake crocs at a guesthouse,but they gave me blisters anyway.
The KLX was faultless, just needed half a litre of oil. I had 2 bottles of gas one day, but otherwise it was all from the pump or those big cans with the glass on top.
It was ride and sleep,mostly, I had no energy for anything else.
Seem to be lots of ATMs in Laos now, and my thai card works with them!!
More fotos here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21921110@N ... 394020772/