Into Vietnam through the Phongsali border finger

Finally got out of the mud section and heading south, huge relief


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Still had a few layers on in the cold, morning mist

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Cracking pictures Phil, making me jealous well done......:jump
 
Excellent stuff Phil. Hope you didn't wind those soldiers up too much!
 
Yep, wonderful pics of 'Phil's Excellent Adventure'.
Strange way to save hotel accommodation costs though.
 
An off-road detour to LMT


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Gathering


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A new mining company thats popped up, Laos is exploding with enterprise

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Luang Nam Tha is a backpacker/ trecking / activity tourist town & has some of the best value accommodation in Laos.




This fantastic place tucked behind the main street is 70,000 kip (280 bht) ! fully booked


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Looks like the "worn" Dokchampa Hotel is feeling the competition, 60,000 kip promotion on rooms


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Always interesting where they want you to park

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The BIG breakfast at the Forest Retreat in LNT might be one of the best breakfasts i've ever had, Andre is doing an amazing job with that business



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The new temple on the hill in LNT shame about the mist



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I wonder if this gets checked?

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All in all an excellent trip with goals achieved
 
We get back to Huoay Xai at lunchtime, so no ferries, with some time to kill we go visit Fort Carnot


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What a strategic position

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Looking west at the ferry ramp in Chiang Khong


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Looking north up the Mekong



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Absolutely stunning Phil, I had my heart in my throat for most of it, brilliant photos & I am glad you made it back to civilisation.

Ally
 
It was the nearest i've come to losing a bike, wasn't a nice feeling when it was all going wrong so far from anything.


Ally said:
Absolutely stunning Phil, I had my heart in my throat for most of it, brilliant photos & I am glad you made it back to civilisation.

Ally
Click to expand...
 
Well done Phil. :DD
An epic adventure and some superb images.
So glad you still have the CRF and not the Vietnamese Army!
 
"A time I wished for the KTM 300 2 stroke, 36 KG lighter and a helluva lot more power"

Truer words were never spoken...555

Great pics and a great adventure....good job not leaving her behind. They are heavy beasts, those CRFLs.
 
Great write up of a great adventure. Looks like I made the right call re the CRF - fairly easy to pick up (already had to) and not half the life savings lost if things go really wrong.
Tim.
 
Yes fantastic photos there Phil and you sure sound like you really enjoyed it
 
Gnasher328 said:
Great write up of a great adventure. Looks like I made the right call re the CRF - fairly easy to pick up (already had to) and not half the life savings lost if things go really wrong.
Tim.
Click to expand...




I think you made a good choice Tim, did you get it registered?
 
You don't notice it until you have to man-handle it, that's the unusual thing. They track and ride beautifully, but tricky single track clusterfucks, they are a big old beast, especially loaded for survival stuff (hammock etc..). You have to surrender to taking all the gear off the bike, then lifting the 140kg is possible.



Lao2stroker said:
"A time I wished for the KTM 300 2 stroke, 36 KG lighter and a helluva lot more power"

Truer words were never spoken...555

Great pics and a great adventure....good job not leaving her behind. They are heavy beasts, those CRFLs.
Click to expand...
 
Eric- have you been up "the finger"?


Lao2stroker said:
"A time I wished for the KTM 300 2 stroke, 36 KG lighter and a helluva lot more power"

Truer words were never spoken...555

Great pics and a great adventure....good job not leaving her behind. They are heavy beasts, those CRFLs.
Click to expand...
 
Great write up and pics Phil - see that you left out your thoughts during the night while sleeping next to the bike. Anyway, might add a few pics of the first and the last part of the trip (the part on the road to and from Muang Khoua) and my own experiences on the new road to Samphan on the east side of the Nam Ou in a separate post.
 
Sitting in M. Khuoa with LR the day before leaving for "the finger", LR said "I like to return at the end of the day to a nice hotel room with a hot shower and a clean bed". I replied " Nah that's not important when you're exploring, all that becomes unimportant" (when I was stuck in that hell hole, I would have paid USD$ 5,000 for a clean hotel room and a hot shower, how wrong I was).




Lone Rider said:
Great write up and pics Phil - see that you left out your thoughts during the night while sleeping next to the bike. Anyway, might add a few pics of the first and the last part of the trip (the part on the road to and from Muang Khoua) and my own experiences on the new road to Samphan on the east side of the Nam Ou in a separate post.
Click to expand...
 
Blimey, Bear Grylls would be proud of those survival skills!

I'm with LR on that score, roughing it to me means no ensuite!
 
Hi Phil
I got the certificate of residence, ( after queing for over an hour for a number ticket to be told I could have gone straight to the main desk for a res cert), then took it back to he bike shop and they started the reg process. They say the papers will be one month and the plate two momths. Not going to hold my breath though.
Hope to catch up soon, Tim.
 
I think one of the most important things to take on a exploring trip like this is a water filter pump. You dehydrate and go through water at an alarming rate using lots of energy in the jungle, being able to refill your water carrier with clean water from a stream is highly important. If you don't eat properly (snacks / cashews etc..) for a couple of days in this environment its really only a mild inconvenience, not having clean water could be life threatening.
 
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