We did not make it to Vientiane tonight. Just made it to Vang Vieng which is 106km away from Phou Khoun.
After resting 2 nights at Luang Prabang, we set off for the Plains of Jars at Phonsovan. It was around 250km of ridingto reach the Plains of Jars. We only went to Site 1 as time was not on our side. It has become an archeological site protected under UNESCO. No one knows the origins of the jars. Looks to me like some granite material and they are strewn all over the site in a haphazard manner with sizes ranging from 3feet by 2 feet to as big as 6feet by 5 feet.
After taking some pictures with the mysterious Jars, we ride back to Phou Khoun which s the junction linking to Vientiane. It was near to 6pm local time by then and sunset is imminent. We have no choice but to push at a faster pace down south. Taking a dinner break at Kasi, we decided to push the last leg and rest at Vang Vieng for the night. After some 13 over hours of hard riding, all i can think about is to get down to the nearest massage parlour and unwind.
Today, the tally board of near hits and misses have some new addition. Our oldest member, uncle David slip on some diesel patch while negotiation a bend just before reaching Phou Khoun from Luang Prabang. The Bike skidded and fall on the left side, while Uncle David with quick reflexes for someone his age push away from the bike and slided a good 10 metres before coming to a stop. He was not injured as the fall was minor and he is well padded in his gear. The bike suffer a bent gear shifter and the left side box aluminium cover of his GS650 got totalled and came off. After a quick fixing and the bike is good to go again.
As for roadkill, from the few days of riding we had things like squashed piglet and run over chicken and even a dog was involved. Today's latest kill was a chicken as well. Why do the chicken cross the road you ask? Well, that now is a deeply confounding question we all can't quite figure out. By the way they love to run back and forth only when a vehicle approaches, i can only guess that they are just trying to get themselves killed.
Tommorrow, we will have another tough ride. We will attempt to ride all the way to Vieng Kham, then over to Nam Phao Vietnam border. It is a 600 over km ride which we hope will offer us lesser mountain roads and endless corners that really slow us down plenty.
Monday 21 January 2008
Saturday 19 January 2008
At Luang Prabang
Today is day 8 into my trip. We have reached Luang Prabang. I was told this province use to be part of Thailand. But during the French colonizing of Laos, they sort of arm twisted Luang Prabang from the Thai King. It was either the whole Thailand or Luang Prabang.
Since we started our riding in Laos, we have a need to do changes to our trip iteniery due to time lost while transit in Bangkok. We went Xieng Kok as projected to hang our banner near the Mynmar border. Along the way, we also visited the topless indigenous tribe and took some photos with them. But, they are getting civilised so not all of them go around topless any more.
I was the 1st bike to crash on the off roads out of Xieng Kok. Nothing major except a bend left hand guard, pillion peg broke off and the block suffer some minor knock. Another bike suffer a punture by sharp stones. Then my bike broke down while heading to Boten, near Mohan China border. Charlie, one of the biker in our group toll me for 60km all the way to Boten. It was a scary experience to be toll so far and at some point we were pretty fast too.
Boten was chilly and it is a town very much run by the chinese. They deal in RMB and the exchange rate to pay in Laos kips or USD is horrible. We had a good night rest in a 5 star hotel. Apparently, Boten is being developed by Fujian businessmen. The hotel has a casino and act as a means for Chinese from China to cross over and gamble. We scrap the idea of going over to China as our bikes are not allowed to cross and there is no available transport to ferry us to and fro.
From Boten, we head east to Nong Chiew to spend the night. We decided to skip Phongsali totally as the long boat ride we intend to take is too treacherous for bike bikes over long river distance. Aprojected 6 hours river ride is needed to cover the stretch we planned. Unneccessary risks for no cause, thus we scrap that. We took a short cut by taking an offroad stretch direct to Luang Prabang instead. It was some treacherous offroad riding today as there were numerous steep incline decent(12km worth of it). Not to mention the soft sand paving the path taking away any kind of traction. One side is cliff wall, and the other side the cliff drop. One wrong skid and its off into the ravine. Most of the time, we were going at 30-40km/h maintaining 1st and 2nd gears only.We were so glad to clear the whole 60km of killer offroads into normal offroads that we went at a really fast pace. One of the BMW adventure manage to rupture his front wheel tyre on sharp rocks in the process and had to get a worm patch to fix the hole.
It was a relieve to reach Luang Prabang in one piece. Now its time for some massage and relax from the hard riding. Tommorrow will be sightseeing and some easy riding. I will update on our progress soon.
Since we started our riding in Laos, we have a need to do changes to our trip iteniery due to time lost while transit in Bangkok. We went Xieng Kok as projected to hang our banner near the Mynmar border. Along the way, we also visited the topless indigenous tribe and took some photos with them. But, they are getting civilised so not all of them go around topless any more.
I was the 1st bike to crash on the off roads out of Xieng Kok. Nothing major except a bend left hand guard, pillion peg broke off and the block suffer some minor knock. Another bike suffer a punture by sharp stones. Then my bike broke down while heading to Boten, near Mohan China border. Charlie, one of the biker in our group toll me for 60km all the way to Boten. It was a scary experience to be toll so far and at some point we were pretty fast too.
Boten was chilly and it is a town very much run by the chinese. They deal in RMB and the exchange rate to pay in Laos kips or USD is horrible. We had a good night rest in a 5 star hotel. Apparently, Boten is being developed by Fujian businessmen. The hotel has a casino and act as a means for Chinese from China to cross over and gamble. We scrap the idea of going over to China as our bikes are not allowed to cross and there is no available transport to ferry us to and fro.
From Boten, we head east to Nong Chiew to spend the night. We decided to skip Phongsali totally as the long boat ride we intend to take is too treacherous for bike bikes over long river distance. Aprojected 6 hours river ride is needed to cover the stretch we planned. Unneccessary risks for no cause, thus we scrap that. We took a short cut by taking an offroad stretch direct to Luang Prabang instead. It was some treacherous offroad riding today as there were numerous steep incline decent(12km worth of it). Not to mention the soft sand paving the path taking away any kind of traction. One side is cliff wall, and the other side the cliff drop. One wrong skid and its off into the ravine. Most of the time, we were going at 30-40km/h maintaining 1st and 2nd gears only.We were so glad to clear the whole 60km of killer offroads into normal offroads that we went at a really fast pace. One of the BMW adventure manage to rupture his front wheel tyre on sharp rocks in the process and had to get a worm patch to fix the hole.
It was a relieve to reach Luang Prabang in one piece. Now its time for some massage and relax from the hard riding. Tommorrow will be sightseeing and some easy riding. I will update on our progress soon.
Tuesday 15 January 2008
Today is day 4 of our trip and we hav finally arrive in Laos local time 3.30pm.
Much have happened in the last 4 days after leaving Singapore.
On the first night, Uncle David in our group has a flat tyre from hitting a nail on the Northsouth highway jus before one of our petrol rest point. He is lucky it did not drag a long distance as it is a tubed tyre and will eventually crack apart.
The beginning of our trip was paved with more set backs then we expect. Upon reaching Hatyai, we found that there is a limit to the number of bikes allowed to be loaded on the train. We were also splitted into 2 train trips. As for the bikes, they were split into 4 train trips.
When we reached Bangkok, we were told our bike luggages were not loaded up with the bikes and the second group after us had to lug it into their cabins just before the train take off. To make matter worse, the third and fourth train did not load 4 of our bikes and were delayed till the next day. If we think its the end, more problems surfaced. One of the 4 bikes was on a the next day train which broke down half way resulting in more delay in our schedule. All this while, we were stuck in Bangkok waiting and wasting precious time for our actual trip to ride in Laos.
After all the hassle to get the bikes to Bangkok, we have totally lost trust in Thailand's train system totally. When we found that all the train tickets were sold out till 1 and half day later, we booked a bus ride from Bangkok to Chiang Khong. But due to the late arrival of our bikes, we had no choice and cancelled our booking and lost half the bus fare in the process.
For now, we are finally landed on the shores of Laos in Huay Xai. Tommorrow, our expedition shall begin in earnest. We will still proceed to Muang Xing and visit the Topless indigenous tribe leaving near the Mynmar border. From there we will ride east to Boten and stay the night. Due to the delay in Bangkok, we are expecting to amend some of the trips iteniery to buy back some lost time. One possibility is we will have to forgo heading south of Laos to visit the four thousand islands.
I will try to load some pics if possible. So, do stay tune to my blog and support our trip.
Much have happened in the last 4 days after leaving Singapore.
On the first night, Uncle David in our group has a flat tyre from hitting a nail on the Northsouth highway jus before one of our petrol rest point. He is lucky it did not drag a long distance as it is a tubed tyre and will eventually crack apart.
The beginning of our trip was paved with more set backs then we expect. Upon reaching Hatyai, we found that there is a limit to the number of bikes allowed to be loaded on the train. We were also splitted into 2 train trips. As for the bikes, they were split into 4 train trips.
When we reached Bangkok, we were told our bike luggages were not loaded up with the bikes and the second group after us had to lug it into their cabins just before the train take off. To make matter worse, the third and fourth train did not load 4 of our bikes and were delayed till the next day. If we think its the end, more problems surfaced. One of the 4 bikes was on a the next day train which broke down half way resulting in more delay in our schedule. All this while, we were stuck in Bangkok waiting and wasting precious time for our actual trip to ride in Laos.
After all the hassle to get the bikes to Bangkok, we have totally lost trust in Thailand's train system totally. When we found that all the train tickets were sold out till 1 and half day later, we booked a bus ride from Bangkok to Chiang Khong. But due to the late arrival of our bikes, we had no choice and cancelled our booking and lost half the bus fare in the process.
For now, we are finally landed on the shores of Laos in Huay Xai. Tommorrow, our expedition shall begin in earnest. We will still proceed to Muang Xing and visit the Topless indigenous tribe leaving near the Mynmar border. From there we will ride east to Boten and stay the night. Due to the delay in Bangkok, we are expecting to amend some of the trips iteniery to buy back some lost time. One possibility is we will have to forgo heading south of Laos to visit the four thousand islands.
I will try to load some pics if possible. So, do stay tune to my blog and support our trip.
Thursday 10 January 2008
Final Prep
It has been quite a tiring last few days of prep. The trip will be tonight and yet it all feels so unreal. I am really going to do this. Just got up to the morning sun and i hope this kinda good weather will hold through out the day. The last 2 days was a battle with my body constantly. The impending trip and all the prep work or maybe just the erratic January weather has caused my body to break down. I had flu yesterday and it aint a pretty sight. Coupled with the fact that i still need to ride out and run my errands did not help me much. So i took an awefully strong dose of flu meds to knock myself out. The virus is at bay, for now.
My bike is all set and serviced for action, all i am left now is getting my final luggage in order.
Namely my AV equipment. As i am tasked to film for Channel 8, they have very kindly provided me with a pretty big video camera. The extra load has come with other gadgets not to mention my own devices like batteries for video cameras. Yes i have a few cameras, namely 3. One from Mediacorp, one which is my own, and one surveillance camera that is converted to a bike mount camera. Not to mention my walkie set which is a compulsory for this trip,thus i am running out of storage space to even load in my DV tapes for the video footage.
All the load does not include my clothes and bike equipment plus some spares which i brought along. Being quite encumbered, i will have to find someone in my group to help me share some of the weight. Who will be the lucky guy...hmm..
I can tell my map is not the most fantastic in the world, so i have decided to break it down in to smaller pieces for easy viewing. As for this blog, i will try my best to update the latest as and when on the trip for you guys.
My bike is all set and serviced for action, all i am left now is getting my final luggage in order.
Namely my AV equipment. As i am tasked to film for Channel 8, they have very kindly provided me with a pretty big video camera. The extra load has come with other gadgets not to mention my own devices like batteries for video cameras. Yes i have a few cameras, namely 3. One from Mediacorp, one which is my own, and one surveillance camera that is converted to a bike mount camera. Not to mention my walkie set which is a compulsory for this trip,thus i am running out of storage space to even load in my DV tapes for the video footage.
All the load does not include my clothes and bike equipment plus some spares which i brought along. Being quite encumbered, i will have to find someone in my group to help me share some of the weight. Who will be the lucky guy...hmm..
I can tell my map is not the most fantastic in the world, so i have decided to break it down in to smaller pieces for easy viewing. As for this blog, i will try my best to update the latest as and when on the trip for you guys.
Tuesday 8 January 2008
Channel 8 Coverage
Yesterday was a milestone on my biking career. Channel 8 arranged a meeting with our Laos expedition group to film our pre-ride preparation. Furthermore, as i will be the unofficial videoman for the Channel 8 Mediacorp, they did an interview of me and the organiser to add to the Laos footage.
It was a strange experience being behind the camera and told when to talk or where to stand. But overall it was easy and natural as the crew put no stress on us. The biggest setback for the filming was the rain that dampened everyone's mood for posing. We were at East Coast Beach Sea Sports Club, but the rain prevented us from doing any on bike filming. The camera man have to make do with whatever shelter and camera angle he have. Which is not very much.
For anyone interested to send us off, we will be having a flag off at LC Foodcourt along Tanjong Katong road opposite Chelsea Lodge on Friday 8.30pm 11th January. Mediacorp Channel 8 will be there to film our flag off too. We are expecting a team of POM POM boys as highlight of the send off. In addition, Singha beer will be there and i heard that its free-flow of beer. So, please come down and support us for our Laos riding expedition.
The Channel 8 program will be aired on the 1st of Feb just 4 days after we get back from our trip. Do watch out for this program "前线追踪" which is where we will all have our debut appearance on national TV.
It was a strange experience being behind the camera and told when to talk or where to stand. But overall it was easy and natural as the crew put no stress on us. The biggest setback for the filming was the rain that dampened everyone's mood for posing. We were at East Coast Beach Sea Sports Club, but the rain prevented us from doing any on bike filming. The camera man have to make do with whatever shelter and camera angle he have. Which is not very much.
For anyone interested to send us off, we will be having a flag off at LC Foodcourt along Tanjong Katong road opposite Chelsea Lodge on Friday 8.30pm 11th January. Mediacorp Channel 8 will be there to film our flag off too. We are expecting a team of POM POM boys as highlight of the send off. In addition, Singha beer will be there and i heard that its free-flow of beer. So, please come down and support us for our Laos riding expedition.
The Channel 8 program will be aired on the 1st of Feb just 4 days after we get back from our trip. Do watch out for this program "前线追踪" which is where we will all have our debut appearance on national TV.
Monday 7 January 2008
The 12 Adventourers to Laos
The Participants on two wheels for new estimated distance travelled (11 bikes and 12 people):
On Bike - 5800km
On Train - 3190km
Total - 8990km
1. Alex Quan Ban Thong @ Adventourer (BMW R1200GS Adv)
2. Helen Tay Chwee Whaye aka Ah Ma (Professional Pillion)
3. Robin Ow Yong See (BMW R650GS Dakar)
4. Loh Nyen Yiu (BMW R1200GS Adv)
5. Eric Ow Tai Chun (BMW R1200GS Adv)
6. Christopher Liu Chern Yoong (BMW R1200GS Adv)
7. Terry Ng Tock Chieng (BMW R1100GS)
8. David Tay Choon Hock (BMW F650GS)
9. Peter Ng Chong Meng (Honda VFR800)
10. Shaji s/o Valiathan Gopalan (Yamaha Diversion 900)
11. Charlie Tseng Teck Chuang (Honda Nighthawk 750)
12. Steven Yap Tzyy Miin aka Wravern (Suzuki DR650)
On Bike - 5800km
On Train - 3190km
Total - 8990km
1. Alex Quan Ban Thong @ Adventourer (BMW R1200GS Adv)
2. Helen Tay Chwee Whaye aka Ah Ma (Professional Pillion)
3. Robin Ow Yong See (BMW R650GS Dakar)
4. Loh Nyen Yiu (BMW R1200GS Adv)
5. Eric Ow Tai Chun (BMW R1200GS Adv)
6. Christopher Liu Chern Yoong (BMW R1200GS Adv)
7. Terry Ng Tock Chieng (BMW R1100GS)
8. David Tay Choon Hock (BMW F650GS)
9. Peter Ng Chong Meng (Honda VFR800)
10. Shaji s/o Valiathan Gopalan (Yamaha Diversion 900)
11. Charlie Tseng Teck Chuang (Honda Nighthawk 750)
12. Steven Yap Tzyy Miin aka Wravern (Suzuki DR650)
Singha Laos riding expedition - 4 days to go
Its been awhile i last posted regarding my Laos trip. Prep for the setoff day is reaching an end.
Counting down now to the last 4 days before setoff date.
By sheer providence, our group has been given the opportunity to get TV publicity on the trip. Channel 8 from Mediacorp wanted to feature our riding trip on one of their lifestyle program. To add cherry topping to the cake, i have become the unofficial videoman for Mediacorp. My job is to film the whole Laos riding expedition and provide them with the footage to air. It will be quite a challenge to switch from trip participant to actual trip videoman. Not to mention, my role as the writer remains foremost on my task of things to do.
Oh yah, there have been some changes on the trip participants too. Will need to update the latest on who is really going.
Counting down now to the last 4 days before setoff date.
By sheer providence, our group has been given the opportunity to get TV publicity on the trip. Channel 8 from Mediacorp wanted to feature our riding trip on one of their lifestyle program. To add cherry topping to the cake, i have become the unofficial videoman for Mediacorp. My job is to film the whole Laos riding expedition and provide them with the footage to air. It will be quite a challenge to switch from trip participant to actual trip videoman. Not to mention, my role as the writer remains foremost on my task of things to do.
Oh yah, there have been some changes on the trip participants too. Will need to update the latest on who is really going.
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Laos Map A11
24th Jan 2008. We will do a day trip down south to Veun Kham which is linked to Dong Calor Cambodia's border. We will also cover Pakxong and visit Bolaven Plateau fabled for their coffee plantation. 25th Jan 2008. We ride out of Laos border via Vang Tao into Chong Mek Thailand. From there, we will ride to Ubon Ratchathani.
Laos Map A10
23rd Jan 2008. From Thakek, we will push another long stretch all the way to our next stop point, Pakse.
Laos Map A9
23rd Jan 2008. This is the longest stretch we will cover. From Nam Phao, we will attempt one of the toughest off roads in Laos drawn in purple line, There will be a river crossing at Nakai which is often deemed impossible. If the route is not passable, we will have no choice but to back track out to Vieng Kham and take the West Coast road south to Tahkek.
Laos Map A8
22nd Jan 2008. As it is a pretty long stretch, we may choose to stop for the night at either Pakxan, Khoun Kham or Lak Xao.
Laos Map A7
22nd Jan 2008. We will attempt to ride across central Laos from Vietiane via Pakxan all the way to the Nam Phao which is linked to Cau Treo Vietnam's border.
Laos Map A6
21st Jan 2008. We will take the most commonly travelled route by bikers coming into Laos from Thailand. From Luang Prabang, we ride south all the way to Vientiane.
Laos Map A5
20th Jan 2008. We head to Luang Prabang to stay and sight seeing.
Laos Map A4
18th Jan 2008. Riding via Vieng Thong to Xam Neua, then we will do a back track down to Hou Lao and rest. 19th Jan 2008. From Hou Lao, we ride through Muang Kham and Phonsavan where we will visit the acclaimed "Plain of Jars". Rest the night in Phonsavan.
Laos Map A3
17th Jan 2008. From Nam Bak we will head east to Vieng Kham for the night.
Laos Map A2
15th Jan 2008.From Luang Namtha we will ride a day trip up to Myanmar border at Xieng Kok and ride back out to Boten which is the border town into Mohan of Yunnan China. At Boten, we will stay the night. 16th Jan 2008. Leaving Boten enroute Oudom Xai, we ride north into Phongsali to stay at Hat Sa. 17th Jan 2008.The next day we will choose to either take the alternative river transportation drawn with purple line down to Luang Prabang or back track down Oudom Xai to Nam Bak in the south.
Laos Map A1
14th Jan 2008. We will enter Huay Xai Laos from Chiang Khong Thailand and proceed to Luang Namtha for our 1st night's rest in Laos.
