Another trip with the Thai-Lao-Cambodia Brotherhood to Long Chieng and other areas

[Lone Rider]

Another trip with the Thai-Lao-Cambodia Brotherhood to Long Chieng and other areas

In 2011 I was invited to join a TLCB mission to Laos (http://www.rideasia.net/motorcycle-forum/laos-ride-reports/336-laos-tlcb.html and http://www.rideasia.net/motorcycle-forum/laos-ride-reports/345-laos-tlcb-part-2-a.html and http://www.rideasia.net/motorcycle-forum/laos-ride-reports/351-laos-tlcb-last-part.html) and recently Mac asked me again to join in another trip to Laos. This trip took us from Vientiane to Xaysomboune onto Long Chieng. Unfortunately, this time the powers that be did not allow us to continue to Phonsavan so we had to back-track to Pakxane and then head north to Phonsavan. Along the way we visited school projects in Khi Xang, Long Chieng, Phonchalern, Xamkothong while, once in Phonsavan, we visited the schools in Naxaithong and May before heading back to Vientiane. Here are some of the pictures we took along the way:

The market in Xaysomboun

The Phou Bia Gold and Copper Mine

On the way to Long Chieng

The former Control Tower of LS 20-Alternate with a new community hall built right behind it and SkyLine ridge in the background.

Old building at the Ramp area of LS 20A

The dormitory for the students at the Long Chieng School

The dormitory for the teachers at the Long Chieng School

Shortcut road at the Phou Bia Mine area

The suspension bridge for pedestrians and bikes at Thavieng which links with the road to Xaysomboun

From Thavieng it is only 60 Km. to Xaysomboun versus over 300 Km. for cars in case they can not cross the river here to take the direct route

Truck used to carry cars over the river when the waterlevel is too high or too fast flowing (cost 100-200,000 Kip per trip)

Land slides along Road 1D

Early morning sun-rise in Phonsavan

Late afternoon on the way back to Phonsavan history repeated itself as, just like during the first trip in 2011, we got caught again behind a truck stuck on the road and again there was a grader nearby which quickly graded a new road along the stuck truck so everyone could pass.

On the way back to Vientiane

 

[KTMphil]

How was the military presence in the area compared to the last time you went in?

 

[Lone Rider]

The military was less visible this time but they were still there. However, around Phonsavan the police was active and we were stopped twice for reasons unknown. This may have had something to do with the large Hmong congregation in Phonsavan for the Hmong New Year with quite a few former residents of the area who now live in the USA and other countries participating in the festivities.

As some people have shown an interest in this particular area I might later put up some more pictures of the Long Chieng area - a kind of pictorial ride through the village of Long Chieng with some historical pics added.

 

[alexuk]

Sad to see the leopard cat in the bush meat market

 

[KTMphil]

I think we'd all like to see those pictures for sure.

 

[Lone Rider]

Sad to see the leopard cat in the bush meat market

Yes, unfortunately that is still quite common to see bush meat in the Lao markets in particular in rural areas - they had also a few bamboo rats in cages below the table the leopard cat was lying on as well as skins from other animals on the walls in the restaurant we had breakfast and dinner

 

[Lone Rider]

Long Chieng aka Long Tieng aka LS 20A aka "The Most Secret Place on Earth"

Over the last two years or so I have been twice to Long Tieng and people ask me how it looks like - difficult to describe visiting a small village which basically consists of a single road running along a runway of a former American base while on the other side of the road you will find a Guesthouse, houses, shops, a market, etc. Therefore I decided to try to illustrate the visits through pictures taken by various people starting from the Phu Bia Gold and Copper Mine onto Long Chieng from where you can travel to Ban Xam Thong and Phonsavan. But before that a few pictures of the Long Chieng Air Base known at the time as Lima Site 20 Alternate or LS-20A (Lima Site 20 was located at Xam Thong a bit north of Long Chieng). The Air Base was also known at the "Most Secret Place on Earth" as well as the most busy airfield in the area. I have uploaded the compilation of pictures to YouTube and hope you will like it:

[video=youtube_share;H246dkVhgok]http://youtu.be/H246dkVhgok[/video]