Meandering around Mae Hong Son

[KTMphil]

Beautiful, beautiful weather, not too cold, not too hot, couldn't be better for a ride up in the mountains.


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Getting out of Chiang Mai can be a bit tricky, no way around the traffic these days

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First destination was to take everyone to the top of Doi Inthanon, the highest point in Thailand. Special lane avoidance in place over the holiday period to prevent accidents.


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....More to come

 

[KTMphil]

The temperature gauge at the top Inthanon said 10 C, it felt a lot warmer, maybe all the body heat generated from the pilgrims heated the localized air


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Like herding cats down the hill, trying not to lose anyone at the turn


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All going well, great weather


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Chasing down the antique fire engine


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Then onto some beautiful twisty roads


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With the holidays over we almost had the roads to ourselves

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The grass going brown with no rain for a month


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But not everywhere

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[KTMphil]

You dont often see this right on the apex of a corner, highly dangerous as right in the middle of the blind corner


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Through the drama and westwards towards Khun Yuam, what a road!!!


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Stupendous afternoon ride


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Not another vehicle on the road for miles


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Twists and turns


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Khun Yuam photo shoot


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Re-grouped and northwards towards Mae Hong Son


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One handed photos in the corners are pretty scary at the time but worth it


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A bit of sporty riding on the empty roads


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[KTMphil]

Beautiful Shan Wats as we approach Mae Hong Son


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Even approaching Mae Hong Son the road is still a blast


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Late afternoon light bring out the autumn colors in the trees


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Lots of different speeds, the group had spread out quite a bit, we didnt lose anyone.


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Golden trees as we approach Mae Hong Son for the night


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Mae Hong Son always feels like a special destination for the night, no matter how many times you've been there, especially after the hundreds of corners you've just ridden


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[KTMphil]

Isn't this one of the most special backdrops you could see when off riding in the morning?


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Salaween River Restaurant does the best breakfasts in town


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MHS fueling up is always a bustling place

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Today a day exploring around Mae Hong Son

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[KTMphil]

Ban Rak Thai was going to be the first destination for the day


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Up into the mountains towards the border with Myanmar


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Through some ethnic Hmong villages, a real Chinese feel about the area already


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& we're there


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Some chaps on scooters that had ridden up from Bangkok


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Lots of traditional Chinese tea shops in Ban Rak Thai


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The Myanmar border checkpoint, currently only a locals crossing, not an international point of entry


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Back down into the town of Ban Rak Thai


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The new resort on the hill


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Some Chinese tea, then off south


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[KTMphil]

Next point of interest would be the long bamboo bridge over the rice fields that leads to a Wat - Khun Mai Sak Temple and the bamboo bridge


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Amazing how strong bamboo is


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Looks like a long walk to the temple then some steep steps


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Lisu ethnic tribe

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The bridge collapsed last year during a ceremony with 100's of people on it, this is the makeshift repaired part


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Here's the part that collapsed


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What a beautiful bridge


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Khun Mai Sak Temple on the hill ahead

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Shame about the tablet


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The bridge looks spectacular from the temple steps



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The Shan temple on the hill is worth the walk


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[KTMphil]

Still plenty of daylight and a side trip to the Ban Na Soi Long Neck Village, one of the less commercial in the region. The last couple of km's is easy dirt, not really a problem


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The Long Neck Lady liked the CRF's the best, better for off-road there she said


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A pretty remote village, the refugee camp nearby has 12,000 people


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Even tunes while we looked around


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Traditional weaving


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A hidden gem


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[KTMphil]

Getting late, just enough time for a stop at the old suspension bridge


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One of our riders gingerly walking out along the broken rafters


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[KTMphil]

A pleasant evening in Mae Hong Son, then time to head eastwards around the Mae Hong Son Loop.


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A cool morning departure, it will warm up pretty quickly


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Into the sweepers


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Around the Pai area the road looking much better

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Still some construction in places


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Overall still a beautiful ride

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[Lone Rider]

Getting late, just enough time for a stop at the old suspension bridge


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Just some background information on the old suspension bridge. The bridge was built around 1983/84 by two Peace Corp volunteers Steve Blanchard and Jacques Landy as the local community normally crossed the river by a wood plank bridge but in the rainy season, when the bridge normally was swept away, they had to go by boat to get to Mae Hong Son.

 

[KTMphil]

We were talking about its age when we were there. One of the riders said it wasnt that old as there were no forged rivets which show older fabrication methods so he was right. Thanks for that.

Just some background information on the old suspension bridge. The bridge was built around 1983/84 by two Peace Corp volunteers Steve Blanchard and Jacques Landy as the local community normally crossed the river by a wood plank bridge but in the rainy season, when the bridge normally was swept away, they had to go by boat to get to Mae Hong Son.

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[KTMphil]

A couple of stills from the GoPro


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