I had to get a few extra days stay and my two month visa was about to expire, so it was off from Chiang Mai to Mae Sai for me.
Hired a CBR250, and with some very wise advice from Geoff, I headed off on a scenic run. The route is here :
http://www.motowhere.com/maps/route/20866 (but the latter part is less accurate due to a problem with motowhere's autofollow)
After my usual hassles of finding my way out of the city , I headed up the 1001 to Phrao, then took the 1346 north. This little road had me thinking I should have chosen a motard style bike at the beginning, but soon the pavement smoothed out and it was a pleasure to be riding in a scenic area with almost no traffic. Lots of Longan and mango orchards line the road at first, but give way to jungle
This was at the beginning of the 1346
Joining up to the 107, I headed around on roads I'd ridden in 2009, though they seemed busier than I recalled. Fang and Thaton were soon traversed via the 1089, and I decided to deviate to Doi Mae Salong.
As I turned off and headed up the steep climb, I could see a stupa glistening on the ridge ahead. It's being newly built - the monks are living in jungle huts besides and below.
Strangely the Buddha's have their backs turned to the view.
And this is what they are missing - view back down the road to the turn-off:
This is all being built above a corner of the road. The Buddhas face towards the road that is steeply descending from above, so I can only hope that not too many drivers/riders do a full Wai as they pass, or the monks will be busy doing first aid!!
The road is being widened past this point and was slick clay with steep inclines for about 2kms - scary for me but hopefully tarred by now. Maye they intend doing the complete way to Mae Salong - but it'll take awhile. It struck me that Mae Salong is looking like it's doing well.
The rest of the ride was pleasant but uneventful. My only other excitement was getting confused in Mae Sai and ending up riding around through the covered market during peak pedestrian time - felt just like a local, though the CBR was less manoeuverable than a Honda Dream!
The return run the next day was pleasant, and I had an extra 15 days in my passport. The CBR250 was more than adequate for this sort of job
Hired a CBR250, and with some very wise advice from Geoff, I headed off on a scenic run. The route is here :
http://www.motowhere.com/maps/route/20866 (but the latter part is less accurate due to a problem with motowhere's autofollow)
After my usual hassles of finding my way out of the city , I headed up the 1001 to Phrao, then took the 1346 north. This little road had me thinking I should have chosen a motard style bike at the beginning, but soon the pavement smoothed out and it was a pleasure to be riding in a scenic area with almost no traffic. Lots of Longan and mango orchards line the road at first, but give way to jungle
This was at the beginning of the 1346
Joining up to the 107, I headed around on roads I'd ridden in 2009, though they seemed busier than I recalled. Fang and Thaton were soon traversed via the 1089, and I decided to deviate to Doi Mae Salong.
As I turned off and headed up the steep climb, I could see a stupa glistening on the ridge ahead. It's being newly built - the monks are living in jungle huts besides and below.
Strangely the Buddha's have their backs turned to the view.
And this is what they are missing - view back down the road to the turn-off:
This is all being built above a corner of the road. The Buddhas face towards the road that is steeply descending from above, so I can only hope that not too many drivers/riders do a full Wai as they pass, or the monks will be busy doing first aid!!
The road is being widened past this point and was slick clay with steep inclines for about 2kms - scary for me but hopefully tarred by now. Maye they intend doing the complete way to Mae Salong - but it'll take awhile. It struck me that Mae Salong is looking like it's doing well.
The rest of the ride was pleasant but uneventful. My only other excitement was getting confused in Mae Sai and ending up riding around through the covered market during peak pedestrian time - felt just like a local, though the CBR was less manoeuverable than a Honda Dream!
The return run the next day was pleasant, and I had an extra 15 days in my passport. The CBR250 was more than adequate for this sort of job
