Laos revisited

[Snakeboy]

I have travelled and spent time quite extensively in South-East Asia, and Laos has always been one of my favorite destinations there. Since my first visit back in 2004 (just a few days in Vientiane - the capital and then the dusty town of Savannaketh further south) the 2 day boattrip on the mighty Mekong river from Huay Xai to Luang Prabang in 2006 and further 13 day venture around the northern parts of the country (15 days visa was all one could get at that time)
The 2 weeks guided motorbike trip back in January 2013 I participated on, the week I spent coming through Laos on my RTW trip in October 2014, to my 30 day exploring all around the country in January/February of 2015 still on my RTW trip - I still wanted to see more of the country.

So in mid September 2019 I was finally back home in Norway after more than 5 amazing years on the road on a RTW trip (minus Africa) and I then I spent 6 weeks with friends and family around in my home country. But I had rented out my flat in Oslo until May 2020 so my last nights in Norway were spent on the couch in the living room of a friend. But that was ok and what I have planned. I did not want to spend the winter in Norway and my destination for the winter 2019-20 was again Thailand. There I had plenty of friends and a motorbike that I had bought 3 years earlier while my RTW bike was shipped from Australia to south America. Its a modest bike as its only a 250 cc Honda Crf, but when it comes to smiles pr gallon - its my favorite bike.

So I flew to Thailand late October 2019 and spent the first 90 days there. Did quite a bit of motorbike riding, met up with friends, and rode with friends, got some much needed dental work done and in general enjoyed life. But after 90 days in Thailand my visa was out and I had to leave the country. But I had a plan! And that plan included Laos and my modest Honda Crf250L.

So preparations were done. I had noticed that gas stations in Laos could be few and far between during my previous bike trips in the country. And the original petrol tank on the Crf only held only 7,7 liters which only gives me around 250 kms of range which I reckoned was not enough for a trip to remote parts of Laos so I found an aftermarket tank that held +12 liters and by that my range should be close to 400 kms. And that I reckoned should be more than enough. Then I hot a new set of tyres installed, a set of Dunlop 605s, really great 50/50 tyres for the Crf imo. And then I got the additional paperwork that was needed - and I was good to go!

Day 1

So January 27th last year I left from my base in northern Thailand to the Thai/Laos bordercrossing of Chiang Khong-Huay Xai. That was a trip of approx 350 kms and one bordercrossing. All went smooth as silk until the bordercrossing, checking out of Thailand was also quite painless and crossing the Friendship bridge #4 over the mighty Mekong river felt great but entering Laos was a bit more challenging. But eventually I got through and I could roll into the bordertown of Huay Xai just as the dusk set in. I found a decent but relatively cheap guesthouse in the outskirts of town and as often before they let me park my bike in the lobby. The stairs up there was quite steep so having a lightweight bike was a huge advantage.

Pic 1 - During a coffeebreak still in Thailand this cheeky HD parked next to my Crf....LOL
Pic 2 - Checking out of Thailand at Chiang Khong was smooth
Pic 3 - Parking the Crf inside the lobby of Bokeo Guesthouse in Huay Xai
Pic 4 - Passed 34 000 kms on the mighty Crf that day
Pic 5 - A good meal is needed at the end of the day

To be continued.....

[Snakeboy]

Btw guys, I am not a native english speaker so if there are shortcomings when it comes to the grammar, spelling, word order and in general with my written english skills - please fare gentle with me. I do accept critisism and appriciate notifications and and corrections when I make obvious errors.

Laos is a landlocked country in SE-Asia which is relatively sparsely populated. Its size is around 238 000 km2 and population is only just over 7 000 000. In comparison Laos neighbors of Vietnam 331 000 km2 and ~95 000 000 inhabitants and Thailand 514 000 km2 and almost 70 000 000 inhabitants are both much bigger in population numbers. Laos has a rich and extensive history, but this is not the right place to elaborate on that subject. Short facts is that Laos was a French colony from late 1800 century to after the second world war. Then there were years with a bit of domestic unrest until communist takeover in the 70s. A fact many doesnt know is that it is the most heavily bombed country in the world! This happend during the socalled Vietnam war when the US troops used Laos as a base for some of their airforce and radarstations, and the fact that the Vietcong used Laos as a transport area for supplies and weapons for their troops further south in Vietnam by the socalled Ho Chi Min trail.
More on that later on.....

Day 2

I rode from Huay Xai to the small town of Muang Sing and I did this leg by riding along the Mekong river up to the town of Xieng Kok and then further to Muang Sing. Thia was a distance of approx 250 kms and only the first 85 kms were paved. The rest was gravel and construction road, and some really beaten up asphalt pothole filled stretch from Xieng Kok to Muang Sing.

Pic 1 - Some really lovely scenery along the Mekong river
Pic 2 - China is heavily into developing Laos here, but it comes with a price...
Pic 3 - Lots of gravel and construction roads that day
Pic 4 - Some water crossings too...
Pic 5 - More beautiful Mekong scenery

[Snakeboy]

Some more pics...

Pic 1 - Lots of banana plantations up here...
Pic 2 - The Crf was in in its right surroundings...
Pic 3 - The roads were partly quite rough along the Mekong as I hot closer to Xieng Kok
Pic 4 - more rough roads
Pic 5 - Remote Laos road signs.

[Surfy]

Thank you much for that flashback of Laos memories!

Surfy

[Snakeboy]

Day 3

I arrived in the small town of Muang Sing late and decided to spend a day there to check out the town. Muang Sing isnt exactly the navel of the world, but still a thriving small town of northern Laos. The maybe most interesting fact about Muang Sing imo is that is consists of multiple etnic minorities who lives and exist side by side in total harmony and peace. Akha, Tai Lue, Tai Dam, Hmong, Tai Neua, Yao amongst others
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muang_Sing

There is a Tribe Museum there, a town square, a local market and it made for a lazy day of walking slowly around and take in the sights.

Pic 1 - The town square of Muang Sing
Pic 2 - All the etnic tribes had their place inside the town square
Pic 3 - The Etnical Tribe Museum of Muang Sing
Pic 4 - The post office of Muang Sing, note the us of french language
Pic 5 - A wall of Beer Lao at the local liqour store....

[Snakeboy]

Day 4, Muang Sing to Boun Tai (via Luang Namtha)

My initial plan was to ride from Muang Sing all the way to the northernmost province of Laos - Phongsali. But meeting new friends on the road and a long lunch in Luang Namtha did alter my plans and I ended up spending the night in a small junction town called Boun Tai.

Pic 1 - Met a nice korean guy on the road on a rented Crf which I ended up having lunch with in Luang Namtha
Pic 2 - Great scenery some kms out of Luang Namtha
Pic 3 - A good bit of that days ride was on gravel roads
Pic 4 - A shed of huge importance I guess LOL
Pic 5 - More nice scenery in northern Laos

[Snakeboy]

Day 4 continued...

So I wasnt able to make it all the way to Phongsali on day 4 but at least I got to thoroughly enjoy some remote scenery in northern Laos.

Pic 1 - Most of the days ride was on gravel roads
Pic 2 - Ditto
Pic 3 - The ubiquitous black pigs of Laos
Pic 4 - My fear of the lack of gas stations in remote Laos was somewhat exaggerated....
Pic 5 - A good meal at the end of the day.

[Snakeboy]

Day 5

Short days ride from Boun Tai junction to Phongsali, approx 95 kms.

So I had only 95 kms to ride this day. That might seem like not a whole lot but the road was in general very winding, narrow and partly gravel and often beaten up asphalt with a lot of potholes. So with stops it took me almost 4 hours. In addition it had rained heavily for a couple of hours during early morning and the temprature was dropping considerably as I was working my way up to the town of Phongsali at around 1400 meters altitude.

Pic 1 - Winding roads up to Phongsali.
Pic 2 - Always great to see that crops are grown
Pic 3 - Ditto
Pic 4 - Not everyday one spots 3 white water buffalos
Pic 5 - Welcome to Phongsali

[Snakeboy]

Day 6 - Checking out Phongsali

Phongsali is the northernmost province of Laos and also the name of the provincial capital. The whole province has around 180 000 inhabitants but the town of Phongsali itself has only approx 6000 persons living there. The town is heavily influenced by Yunnan, the nearby chinese province both when it comes to architecture, culture, food and languge.
The attractions here are the nearby mountain summit of Phou Fa (The Sky Blue mountain) a 400 year old tea plantation a few kms out of town, the little lake in the lower half of the town which is surrounded by some local restaurants and teahouses. The local markets are also interesting to check out.
Another interesting thing about Phongsali town is that the locals grow crops around theyre houses and all around town and the along the streets.

Pic 1 - Phongsali town
Pic 2 - Streets of Phongsali
Pic 3 - Streets of Phongsali, note the Yunnanese (chinese) influence
Pic 4 - Cobblestone streets in Phongsali
Pic 5 - The outside temp gauge on my Crf, 12 degrees celcius was the max temp that day, the min was approx 4 celcius.

[Snakeboy]

Day 6 continued - checking out Phongsali

Phongsali lies at the altitude of approx 1400 meters. So from November to March the tempratures often drops to single digits and sometimes near zero as well. And no houses have heating or any insulation to mention so during these months life can be a bit chilly. But the locals are clever and diligent, just look how they grow crops around their houses and along the streets...

Pic 1 - 5 Crops and plants growing in the streets of Phongsali

[Snakeboy]

Day 6 continued, checking out the 400 year old tea plantation nearby Phongsali town.

This is what Wikipedia says about the tea plantation nearby Phongsali:

« A 400 year-old tea plantation is about 18 kilometers away in the village of Ban Komaen, which according to some tea experts has some of the oldest tea trees in the world. The large root system of the old trees extends deep into the mineral-rich soil and gives the "Phongsali tea" a distinctive aroma and taste»

Supposedly it should be a visitor center and some facilities there but I never found them. However I enjoyed a half day ride through some really remote locations and saw a lot of teabushes and some tea making as well. And some remote villages.

Pic 1 - I found a nice sign who said 400 year old tea plantation, but I never found the visitors center.
Pic 2-3, Tea bushes at the tea plantation
Pic 4-5, Processing tea leaves

[Snakeboy]

Day 6 continued, checking out Phongsali

Some random photos from Phongsali

Pic 1 - Remote village in a mountain side past the tea plantations
Pic 2 - Bought some stuff at the local supermarket, 100 % chinese stuff
Pic 3 - Hiked the summit of Mt Phou Fa in the afternoon to watch the sunset. Its a 250 meter altitude hike that gets your hearbeat rate up a bit...
Pic 4 - Phongsali town seen from the top of My Phou Fa. Unfortunately it was a bit foggy that day...
Pic 5 - Sunset seen from Mt Phou Fa - Phongsali

[anonymous3]

Magic! Well done.

[Snakeboy]

Originally Posted by James1959

Magic! Well done.

Thanks! Im glad you liked it. I hope this tiny Laos tripreport from last year can cheer up some travellers now during this rather depressing worldwide pandemic.

And for those with an interest for the Vietnam war and the impact it had on Laos - I promise you I have some real treats for you. Stay tuned for further postings....

[gatogato]

That looked like a fun trip. I didn't realize Laos had so few people. My friend and I did a 2 week trip there back in 2013 and had a blast. We almost ran out of gas on one of the days riding down South. On that day, we didn't see a person, cow, building, or power pole for 8 hours. There are not too many places left in the world that are still that remote.