Laos revisited
 

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.....

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

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.

Thank you much for that flashback of Laos memories!

Surfy

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....

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

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.

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

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.

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

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

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

Magic
 

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....:scooter:

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.

Its excellent, well done. I have been many places in the world, but not SE Asia, closest was Hong Kong. All being well, its a place I would like to go and see.
I am uncertain about Vietnam, one of my friends brother had a very bad allergic reaction to anti-malarial tablets and died in Hanoi, and I feel a bit uneasy by the event, it was rough, but I suppose part of real life, sometimes it doesnt go well.
Anyway, take care and be safe and kind regards.

It was indeed a fun trip. And yes I had also noticed earlier on, especially during my 30 day trip all through Laos in 2015 that gas stations were far and few. But that had really changed a lot. Nowadays even remote gravel stretches had gas stations with no huge distances inbetween....

Day 7 - riding from Phongsali to Nong Khiaw.

This was a ride of around 350 kms and the first 95 was backtracking to Boun Tai, then further to Oudomxai and then to Nong Khiaw.

It had again rained heavily that early morning and the fog hang low over the province of Phongsali. So I had to ride slowly and just a few kms out of town I ran straight into a landslide that blocked the road totally. And excavator had already started to clear the road but it was huge so it would be some time until the road was passable. Some bystanders pointed me up a goattrack over a small hill. It looked dubious, where would I end up taking that track? Then a couple of local scooters came and rode straight up the hill and disapeared over the top of the hill. Ok - if they can I can too. So I set up across the hill and the steep descend on the other side led me straight through a village so that chickens, dogs, ducks, geese, kids, pigs and goats jumped aside as best they could - and voila I was back on the main road. Unfortunately I didnt take any photos of this incident, something I regretted afterwards.
The roads on this stretch in unbelivably winding and curvous. Its one hairpin bend after the other for tens and tens of kms. It makes the more famous Mae Hong Son loop in Thailand look like a straight racetrack in comparison.
So 350 kms might not sound all that much - but even with an early start (to be me) at around 9 am I didnt arrive at Nong Khiaw before after dark.

Pic 1 - It was a misty morning riding out of Phongsali
Pic 2 - And the road wasnt all that much to boast about further down either
Pic 3 - A truck that didnt make the last hairpin turn
Pic 4 - Just a pic of dusty screen of my GPS to illustrate how winding this road stretch is
Pic 5 - Local bus transportation

Ouch - he died from an allergic reaction to anti malaria medication? Thats very tragic and sad. Must he RIP...

Day 8 - a mountain hike in Nong Khiaw

Nong Khiaw is a pleasant small rivertown who lies at a bend of the Nam Ou river. It has a tiny traveller/backpacker scene but one are not going to be overwhelmed in any way by the amount of tourists in town. Its maybe not even correct to call it a town, a village would probably be more correct. Prices are not inflated, I had a simple bungalow for 80 000 kip a night (~ 7 €/8,5 $) and slept like a log there with a frog choir lullabyed me to sleep.

There are many tours and activities one can spend time on in Nong Khiaw, jingle treks, river trips, trips to waterfalls and hike up to surrounding mountain summits. I spent 2 nights and one day in Nong Khiaw and decided to do a hike to the nearest mountain summit and viewpoint of Phou Padaeng. There is a relatively conveniant hiking trail made up the mountain side thus its a tiny little fee to be paid. The entrance to the hiking trail is in the southern outskirts of the town. The altitude climb is 460 meters and average time up is said to be ~2 hours and down ~1 hour.
Some pics from the hike to Phou Padaeng summit and viewpoint...

Pic 1 - No, not this mountain - but it made for a good photo.
Pic 2 - The entrance to the hiking trail of Phou Phadeang viewpoint
Pic 3 - The first part of the hike isnt too bad and had a nice rest area
Pic 4 - One start to get a glimpse of Nong Khiaw
Pic 5 - Half way to the viewpoint

Day 8 continued - mountain hike in Nong Khiaw

Pic 1 - The trail gets steeper and rougher
Pic 2 - But soon at the summit...
Pic 3 - I made it to the Phou Phadaeng viewpoint/summit
Pic 4 - Magnificent view over Nong Khiaw
Pic 5 - Oh well, I wasnt the only one who made the hike that day

Day 8

Some pics from Nong Khiaw

Pic 1 - The Nam Ou river upstreams
Pic 2 - Sunset over the Nam Ou river
Pic 3 - Riverlife in Nong Khiaw
Pic 4 - Ditto
Pic 5 - For dinner I treated myself with a meal of delicious indian food

Day 9 - Riding from Nong Khiaw to Xam Neua

This is a stretch of around 325 kms through some amazing scenery. The road is again incredibly winding with hairpin bend after hairpin bend for a big part of the stretch. Starting late meant that I arrived late too, and the last 1-2 hours I rode in complete darkness. But fortunately I had mounted some extra headlights on the Crf and they were good to have that evening.
Didnt take much photos that day but here some of the few I took...

Pic 1 - Great Laos scenery
Pic 2 - Ditto
Pic 3 - Crop terraces
Pic 4 - Some parts of the road were good
Pic 5 - Other parts were more bumpy

An interesting observation - it was broomstick making season all over northern Laos in January/February...

Pics from different locations

Day 10 - Checking out the town of Xam Neua

Xam Neua is situated in the northeast of Laos, not far from the Vietnamese border. Its also the provincial capital of the Houaphan province. The town has almost 50 000 inhabitants and the whole province has approx 290 000 persons living there.
This area used to be the stronghold of the Pathet Lao communist movement and the town still have a Sovjet-ish style on the government buildings etc. In nearby Vieng Xai the old HQ of the Pathet Lao movement can be seen in a labyrint of caves. However I had been there last time I was here and this time I had something totally different in mind. However it was a cloudy day and it looked like it was going to rain, and I was also a bit knackered after a long day in the Crf saddle the day before - so I decided to stay in town and have a look at sights there.
Wikipedia about Xam Neua: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xam_Neua

Pic 1 - This monument is the first that greets you when you arrive in Xam Neua. It is called Suan Keo Lak Meuang and supposedly its an indipendence monument.
Pic 2 - And this mural must be something of a victory monument I suppose...?
Pic 3 - The government buildings in Xam Neua was a bit exaggerated
Pic 4 - Tourist information building
Pic 5 - Government building

Day 10 - Checking out Xam Neua

Some more pics from Xam Neua

Pic 1 - The Nam Xam river that runs through Xam Neua
Pic 2-5 Random photos from Xam Neua

Day 10 - Checking out Xam Neua

Some more pics from Xam Neua

Pic 1 - The Nam Xam river that runs through Xam Neua
Pic 2-5 Random photos from Xam Neua

One of my favorite activities in farflung places is to check out the local markets. There are always something interesting, strange, obscure and surprising things to be found there. Xam Neua didnt disappoint in that matter. Viewers discretion warning!

Pic 1 - What about some delicious toads for dinner? Cheap price for you sir!
Pic 2 - Can I tempt you with some rice paddy rats?
Pic 3 - So youre a vegetarian? Ok - fresh bamboo shots/roots anyone?
Pic 4 - This berry I could never find the name for....
Pic 5 - Poor Fido - little did he knew at dusk that he would end up on the local meat marked later that afternoon. RIP Fido!

I rode from Long Khiaw to Xam Neua a couple of years ago. Like you, the last hour was in full darkness. Unlike you, I did not have auxiliary lights. I was totally exhausted by then, and it was a bit hair-raising, but survivable.

Best thing I did in that area was ride out to Phou Pha Thi, where the CIA had a "secret" base, totally impregnable, for guiding bombing runs into North Vietnam. Of course everyone knew where it was, and of course the Path Lao overran it without much difficulty once they decided to do so. As an American it took a lot of finagling to get permission to wander around the remains of the old base, but it was a good glimpse into a different perspective on the era of my childhood. Unlike the tunnels, I was the only one there (along with mandatory military escort), and perhaps the first American.

Thanks for the photos and narrative!

Mark

Thanks for the memories Kurt, it was nice to see some pics of Laos, it's been a long time since we were both there.

Wayne

Thanks for friendly words mate! bier
Yes all those hairpin bends in total darkness is quite exhausting and it takes a lot of time to get through.

Phou Pha Thi and the radar station Lima Site 85 is coming up in next posting!

Day 11 - Visiting Lima Site 85, the clandestine radar station on top of Phou Pathi.

During the Vietnam war (called the American war in Vietnam) also the country of Laos was very involved. Mostly in was indirectly I guess we can say. The americans had airbases and radar stations in Laos and Vietcong build a several hundred kms long trail in Laos to freight supplies and personell further south.
This resulted in that Laos became the most heavily bombed country pr capita in the world!
Anyhow - as the Vietnam war was fought the US forces and CIA decided to build a radar station to guide theyre planes performing raids in northern Vietnam. And the best place to do this was of course in northeastern Laos, and further they decided on the mountain of Phou Pathi. So in 1967 the radar station was build but unfortunately it was only operative for a few months as the Vietcong found out about it and attacked and after a couple of tries left it in ruins and many of the US staff were killed in the battle.
Wikipedia about Lima Site 85: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lima_Site_85

Mount Phou Phathi lies around 65 kms north of Xam Neua and nowadays the road up there are mostly paved and in reasonably good condition. Only the last few kms is are gravel. But the scenery out there is again fantastic so I will first post some pics of the road and scenery out there.

Pics from the road between Xam Neua and Mount Phou Phathi

Day 11 - visiting Lima Site 85 continued.

Lima Site 85 on the top of My Phou Phathi was mostly closed for foreigners up until 2016-2017 if my sources are right. But the last few years the Laotian Army has started to let foreign visitors in. In the beginning it took a lot of persuation and some «tea money» to be let in, but for me I only paid a tiny fee to the Lao army checkpoint at the foot of the mountain. And the amount was «up to my heart» to decide. I gave them 20 000 kip (~2 €/2,5$) and they seemed happy with that.

Theres a decent climb up the mountain side but luckily the laotians have build some solid stairs - so all you to do is to climb these stairs. How many steps do reckon it was Markharf? Maybe around 7-800?

And its also quite a big area on the mountain plateu, maybe 1,5-2 kms each way to different locations - so its advisable to bring some light shoes/hiking boots and leave bikerboots and cloths at the bike. Also its advisable to bring a good bit of water and maybe even some lunch snack so you can have a bite on the mountain top.

A few pics of the stairs first...

Pic 1 - The Lao Army checkpoint building at the mountain foot.
Pic 2 - The stairs seen upwards from behind the checkpoint building
Pic 3 - The stairs seen from the mountain top
Pic 4 - The start of the stairs
Pic 5 - Part of the stairs to LS85

I'm really enjoying this thread. Makes me want to go back to SEA.

Africa first tho.

Day 11 - visting Lima Site 85 - continued

Even today more than 50 years after its heydays theres stlll a lot of remains of the radar station on the mountain top. Its however spread quite widely around on the mountain plateu so its worth having a couple of hours to spend there. Also worth thinking about is that this is a war battle site and several persons died here during the battles.

Pic - 1-3 Old guns of LS 85
Pic 4 - Show me your war face!
Pic 5 - A rebuild shed I suppose...

Day 11 - visiting Lima Site 85

There are amazingly many remains of the radar station on the mountain top!

Day 11 - Visiting Lima Site 85

More remains of the radar station and signs of battle...

Day 11 - Visiting Lima Site 85

Some last photos of Lima Site 85

Thanks mate! bier

Day 12 - Riding from Xam Neua to Phonsavan

Another day of glorious riding in the mountains of northern Laos. Neverending winding roads and spectacular scenery around every corner.
The distance was approx 240 kms. A relatively early start for me made it possibly to arrive before darkness sat in. Should have taken more photos, but at least I took some....

This is great! This section of your trip is a dead ringer for mine (although with a few key details changed). I also rode from Xam Neua to Phonsavan, and following my experience riding in pitch darkness I also started earlier. However, I hit whiteout fog at just above freezing in the higher elevation sections, and was getting hypothermic by the time I dropped down to Muang Kham. I remember barely being able to walk I was so thoroughly swaddled in fog-damp clothes.

I didn't count the steps up Phou Pha Thi, but there were definitely a lot--none of which would have passed building codes here in the States. To gain entry I had procured a handwritten letter from some functionary back in town (long story), but since it was in Laotian I never figured out exactly what it said. I lost much of the time I might have spent up top while the army guys debated each other, made innumerable phone calls to persons unknown, and attempted to interrogate me without benefit of any shared language.

Plus I was right on the verge of a total knee replacement at the time, so not very spry (<--deliberate understatement). Still, the whole affair was a highlight--even including the arduous riding getting there and onward. Looking forward to your impressions of the jars!

Mark

Day 13 - Some pottering around in Phonsavan

Phonsavan is the provincial capital of the Xiangkhouang province and has almost 40 000 inhabitants and the whole province has almost 250 000 persons living there.
The area is probably best known for being the «Plain of Jars». The area around Phonsavan is relatively flat and there are a whole lot of sites with very old huge stone Jars. It was decleared a Unesco World Heritage site in 2019. These jars are scattered around from 1 to many hundred jars at many different locations. But since the area is a heavy bomded area still few of these sites are cleared thoroughly for all UXOs and open for visitors. But they are opening up more and more sites as they are cleared of UXOs.

However - I have been to Phonsaven several times before and checked out most of the the open sites and even a closed site back in 2006 I decided to check out other sightseing spots in the area. I do of course highly recommend other travellers to go and check out some of the Jar sites in the Phonsavan area. Now as they are Unesco World Heritage sites I guess they will be more accesible and with more facilities.

I decided to check out the old capital of the province called Muang Khoune who are situated some 30 kms south of Phonsavan and especially the 500 year old temple ruins there.

So here are some photos from the old temple ruins at Muang Khoune

Day 13 - Some pottering around in the Phonsavan area

I found out that some clever villagers had started to use scrap metal from different UXOs to make cutlery and small souvenir items. It might have started out from scrap metal some years ago but Im not sure if thats the case today. However - I had a good laugh chatting with the women selling these «things made from bombs» and I even bought some as sovernirs....

So here are some pics from the «We make spoons from bombs» village.

Day 14 - Riding from Phonsavan to Luang Prabang

So after 2 nights and one day in Phonsavan where I had my undies cleaned my trip continued. Next destination was Luang Prabang, the second biggest city in Laos and another Unesco World Heritage site. The city center with its colonial buildings are a great gem of SEAsia. I first visited the city in 2006 and instantly fell in love with it. More on Luang Prabang later.
Todays ride was around 265 kms and as always quite scenic. One follows R7 out of Phonsavan and at Phou Khoun approx halfway one turn into R7. All the stretch was paved but the last half from Phou Khoun to Luang Prabang was quite broken up asphalt and lot of potholes. So those 265 kms became a good days ride and I arrived Luang Prabang just as the dusk set in.

I didnt take a whole lot of photos and an old iPhone camera wouldnt make the scenery justice anyhow, but here are some of the few pics I took that day....

Pic 1 + 2 Great scenery of Laos
Pic 3 - Cherry tree (?) in bloom
Pic 4 - A laotian house along the stretch
Pic 5 - Somebody had made a shortcut...LOL

Day 14 - Revisiting Luang Prabang

I first visited Luang Prabang back in 2006 and really fell in love with the place. Its the second biggest city in Laos but the town center is really small and lies on a peninsula of land where the rivers Mekong and Nam Khan meets up.
The town is on Unescos World Heritage list and is a little pearl of old colonial buildings and amazing temples. And right in the middle of the town is a steep hill where the locals have build a temple. Its called Wat Phou Si and the views from the hill is amazing. However a lot has happend to Luang Prabang since my first visit in 2006 and Im not sure its all good. The first thing I ran into beside the guesthouse I stayed in was a KFC fastfood joint. No - not that KFC! This was the Korean Fried Chicken. And the best restaurant in town - Le Elephant where I have always enjoyed a meal or two was now so expensive that I just couldnt justify myself to eat there. Oh well, maybe Im getting old, stingy and nostalic...
I stayed only one day and 2 nights in Luang Prabang. And here are a few pics from that visit...

Pic 1+2 View over Luang Prabang from the Phou Si hill
Pic 3+4 Bamboo pedestrian bridges over River Nam Khan
Pic 5 So I couldnt afford to eat at Le Elephant - but some Som Tam (papaya salat) and khaow niaow (sticky rice) was within my budget

Some more pics from Luang Prabang

Pic 1 - Sabai dee old fart LOL
Pic 2-4 Different boats on the Mekong river
Pic 5 - A bamboo bridge in the dark

Day 15 - Riding from Luang Prabang to Xayabouli

So one of my goals with this Laos trip was to visit some of the places I already have been to but of course also to visit places I havent been to before. So I decided to head for the town of Xayabouly. It was only ~ 120 kms from Luang Prabang and the road was mostly in good shape to be in Laos.

Just a few words about Google maps in Laos. Its for the most part absolutely useless! Google maps hardly have the very main roads in Laos correct. For example for this stretch between Luang Prabang and Xayabouly it told me to take a detour of around 300 kms! Where the R4 cross Mekong river there is now build a bridge and I think the bridge was ready for use in 2015. However Google maps havent got that little fact right and showed me to do a 300 km detour... Even today Google havent got this bridge on their map. Gee Google...:thumbdown:

Pic 1+2 - This bridge doesnt exist according to Google maps
Pic 3 - The Mekong river is really wide here
Pic 4 - I love the smell of fried brakepads in the morning...
Pic 5 - My truck (is) was loaded with bananas....

Day 16 - Checking out Xayabouli

Xayabouli is the provincial capital of the province with the same name. The town has only around 16 000 people but the whole province has almost 400 000 inhabitants. Its maybe not so much to see in Xayabouly town but I have heard rumours about an elephant festival taking place there and I hoped to be lucky enough to get to participate in some elephant action. I had both some luck and some bad luck, there was indeed an elephant festival taking place in Xayabouli town, but it was to start the next weekend. The good thing was that some of the elephants and mahouts were already in town and had started to show these magnificent creatures to the public and I got to participte in some interaction with elephants.

Pic 1 - The poster of the elephant festival in Xayabouli
Pic 2-5 Some more elephant pics

Day 16 - Elephant interaction in Xayabouli

Then it was time for this old fella to take part in some elephant interaction...LOL
Some really magnificent animals! And it was nice to ride something else for a change and I have to admit it had more torque than my Crf...

Day 16 - Checking out Xayabouli town

As I mentioned earlier in this thread - I always find it interesting to have a walk through the local markets and Xayabouli was no different.

Pic 1-2 Buffalo skin for sale, I wonder for what use?
Pic 3 - Home made meat sausages
Pic 4 - Some strange fruit/berry
Pic 5 - Duck eggs and chicken eggs

Day 16 - Enjoying Xayabouli

Welcome to Xayabouli - the elephant capital of Laos

Day 17 - Riding from Xayabouli, via Vang Vieng to Long Tieng (the secret airbase)

This was a long days ride and the distance was approx 320 kms. The first leg included the socalled Kasi bypassroad, a really scenic ride albeit both very steep and winding. Its not a problem on a motorbike but for big trucks it must be a challenge. After Kasi it was no drama pottering down to Vang Vieng where I had some lunch and then started the second leg to Long Tieng - the secret airbase. As Google maps is absolutely useless in Laos I used Mapsme to find the way for me. A few kms south of Vang Vieng Mapsme told me to take off from the main road and so I did. It was a gravel road and it soon detoriorated into a very rough partly deep sand, partly big rocks. And through some steep mountains and very winding. Actually it was so demanding that I considered turning back. It was steep sandy mountain sides road where I barely could crawl up in first gear. And then it was downhill in deep sand on the other side of the mountain too of coutse. But after 3-4 hours on this demanding track I came to a junction and a roadsign that said Long Tieng and the road was asphalt again. And voila - the last 20-30 kms into Long Tieng was done in a blast.

Again I didnt take many photos this day but heres a few of those I took that day, these first 5 are from the socalled Kasi bypass road.

Day 17 Vang Vieng to Long Tieng

A few photos from the last stretch this day, the mostly rough gravel and sand road from Vang Vieng to Long Tieng

Brilliant
 

Great trip and pics.

Day 18 - Checking out Long Tieng (The secret US airbase)

So this was maybe my #1 goal with this trip, namely to check out Long Tieng - the secret airbase that in its heydays during the Vietnam war held 40 000 people active there.
Situated deep into Laos’ jungles amongst karst mountains and rolling hills, faaar away from any other major towns lies the little village of Long Tieng (also spelled Long Cheng/Chaeng etc) During the Vietnam war US airforces build an airbase here, all done very secretly. In fact it was called the most secret place in the world. Even most US Air Force pilots that flew planes in the Vietnam war didnt know much this place.
You can read more about Long Tieng here: https://www.airspacemag.com/military...-tieng-284722/
And here: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Tieng

Today however the place is nothing more than a sleepy village but there are a few remains of the airbase and if you know what to look for there are several things to check out. The most obvious is of course the airstrip itself. Its readily visible and I think with maybe some maintainance it would be operational today.

Long Tieng wasnt opend for foreigners until a few years back and even today I have read reports that foreign travellers are turned back. However I met only one checkpoint going there and the soldiers there were friendly and asked me where I was going and when I said Long Tieng they just pointed further up the road.

There are only one place to stay and that is Mr Saysomones Guesthouse. And I got myself a primitive room there with bathroom outside, but the price was only 60 000 kip (~6 €/7,5 $).

Some pics from upon entering Long Tieng...

Pic 1-2 - Nice scenery close to entering Long Tieng
Pic 3 - Welcome to Mr Saysombones Guesthouse
Pic 4 - Some Lao Army shelters
Pic 5 - Not many food options in town, it was «Pho» or pho or maybe pho....

Day 18 - Checking out Long Tieng

The airstrip itself lies almost in the middle of town and paralell to the main road. Both cars and mopeds used the runway and some cows were relaxing along the strip.

Some Long Tieng airstrip photos...

Day 18 - Checking out Long Tieng

Just some more photos from Long Tieng and the airstrip there

Day 18 - Checking out Long Tieng

Some other photos from Long Tieng

Pics 1-3 The house of the Hmong general Wang Pao
Pic 4-5 - Some other buildings in Long Tieng

Day 18 - Checking out Long Tieng

Yes - some mandatory photos of me and my bike on the Long Tieng airstrip, once the most secret place in the world! :clap:

Thanks mate! Still more to come...bier

Day 19 - Riding from Long Tieng southbond to Viengthong

I was heading south and I didnt want to backtrack the really rough road to Vang Vieng so I headed east first and wanted to get into R1D as I have heard this would be a nice ride and a great newly upgraded and paved road.
But to get there wasnt easy. Google maps is just faaaar out, and even Mapsme turned out to be totally off.

I left Long Tieng around 10 am and passed through the town of Phanxai. After that it got more and more remote. Mostly gravel stretches with some short stretches of pavement though small towns and villages. But after a couple of hours more of riding the gravel road diminished into a goat track and it seemed to get worse in front of me. And in front of me was also a quite tall mountain range. Only small motorbikes and walking tractors would be able to go further and not any chance in the world this could be the main road to get into R1D even though Mapsme told me to continue. I felt defeated and turned back. I remember that I had seen a junction some 12-15 kms earlier. I got to the junction and turned off there. The road seemed a bit bettee and a few kms into this road was a countryside gas station. So this had to be the way to get to R1D. And indeed it was! Some fantastic scenery and and 1 more hour of riding and I was entering R1D - and from there it was almost a racetrack further south. On Mapsme the stretch was just shy of 300 kms but with that extra distance I have ridden it must have been something like 350-400 kms.

I reached the small town of Viengthong just after dark and found a place to stay for the night and got myself a plate of fried rice and pork and felt really adventorous.....LOL

Some pics from that day....

Day 19 - Riding from Long Tieng to Viengthong

Just some more pics from that days riding. There were a couple of forrest fires along the road that day.

Day 20 - Riding from Viengthong to Thalang

Distance - just around 140 kms. I had a late start and I also had a couple of hours wandering around at the bordermarkets in Laksao. And as I had also entered into the socalled Tha Khaek loop (a 3-4 days backpacker/tourist loop with several sightseing spots in the middle of Laos) and thus fancy coffeeshops was plentiful and I felt like stopping having a fresh brewed cuppa instead of instant coffee that had been the rule so far. So riding distance this day wasnt far. And when I passed through the tiny village of Thalang and found a cosy looking guesthouse with some nice looking bungalows - I called it a day.

The bungalows left costed 100 k kips (10 €/12$) and was quite good value for money. And the views and the vibe of the place felt good even though the nearby hydroelectric dam has left a lot land flooded and lots of trees dead. It was a really nice sunset to watch there.

So heres a few photos from Thalang

Day 20 - At Thalang

Some more pics from my evening at Thalang

Pic 1+2 From the guesthouse/bungalows I stayed
Pic 3-5 Some of all the dead trees in Thalang

Day 21 - Riding from Thalang to Xepon

This day turned out to probably be the most adventorous day of the whole Laos trip. I tried to find a route to Xepon from Thalang that I wouldnt need to use the main roads which also meant a huge detour. But to find a route between the R12 and R9E was difficult. Google maps was again absolutely useless, but with Mapsme it seemed to be a way around and through via a town called Vilabouly. But even Mapsme turned out to be ridiciously untrusty on this stretch.

The first leg from Thalang down to the junction off R12 was paved and easy peacy, but 100 meters into unknown territory the road turned to gravel. But it was the dry season and not too bad of a ride, although I could see that it would be a huge challenge in the wet season. After an hour or two the road detoriorated. It was just a trail and after a simple water crossing I ended up into some grassland and I was completely lost. According to Mapsme it was supposed to be a track here, but it wasnt. I had to ride back to the nearest village and ask for help. So luckily there were some people in the nearest village pointing out the same track that I came from. Hm - strange, as fas as I could see it the track ended up in a grazing field full of cattle. But I tried and took several different small tracks but all ended up blindly. So back to the village again and ask for more directions. And to my huge relive on of the guys jumped down on his old moped and lead me in a direction. And yes we ended up into the grazing field full of cattle again, and the guy just pointed across the field. I was doubtful - but rode slowly through the field and and the other end was a small track showing again. And after a while it got better and turned into kind of a road again and I even spotted some cars again. I was back on track again!

So it was all pure hapiness for a while but it soon ended. I had been riding through a small village and Mapsme told me to turn right. The problem was just it wasnt any road there, just a dry river bed. Yes the dry river bed showed as a road on Mapsme! Oh gheee, I jad another look at Mapsme and saw if I returned past the village it was another track that supposedly took me uhm.... in the right direction at least. And eventually after passing that village and turn in the other direction it seemed I was again back on track. And after an hour or so I entered the remote town of Vilabouly. I was hungry and thirsty but clock was around 4 pm already and it was max 2 hours of daylight left, and I for sure didnt want to ride in the dark on these roads so the it was just a bottle of water, a box of iced coffee and some crackers and GO! The 50-60 kms stretch of road between Vilabouly and Xepon had once been paved, but that had to be many years since. And the area was full of mines and heavy equipement - and they had sure taken their part of the surface. It was just huge potholes upon huge potholes upon even bigger potholes! I coulndt remember to ever have encountered such a bad road during my RTW trip. I spent almost 2,5 hours on that 50-60 kms stretch!

But eventually I reached Xepon, found a cheap room for the night, had a shower and found a restaurant to have a plate of fried rice and pork. I was happy again!:mchappy:

On Mapsme the route is said to be around 230 kms but in reality I rode more than 300 kms that day, and at least 200 kms of that was on sand, gravel and grazing fields...LOL

Some pics from that evetful day....

Pic 1 - The days route on Mapsme (not to be trusted!)
Pic 2 - The dam at Nam Theun near Thalang
Pic 3 - Hitting the gravel roads, happy it was in the dry season
Pic 4 - Still decent sand roads
Pic 5 - One of the 50-60 small wooden bridges I past that day. This was probably one of the best...

Day 21 - Riding from Thalang to Xepon

Some more pics from a really adventorous day in Laos

Pic 1 - The Crf is thriving in this environment
Pic 2 - The road might look good but there were quite a lot of washboards on this stretch
Pic 3 - Washboards had shaken loose some car parts
Pic 4+5 - Some carst mountains and caves along the route

Day 21 - Riding from Thalang to Xepon

Some more pics from a rough day in Laos

Pic 1 - The road is detoriorating
Pic 2 - The ubiquitous two wheeled tractors In Laos
Pic 3 - Now the road is not much more than a goat track
Pic 4 - A small watercrossing
Pic 5 - A happy lot riding their two wheel tractor

Day 21 - Riding from Thalang to Xepon

Riding through some grazing fields...

Pic 1 - Who could have known this was the road to Vilabouly and Xepon
Pic 2 - Eh - it looks like a grazing field for cattle....
Pic 3 - Eh, excuse me cows, is this the road to Vilabouly? LOL
Pic 4 - Yes it seems it is....
Pic 5 - Arrived Xepon, it had been a dusty riding day in Laos....

Day 22 - Checking out the Lao military museum in Dong and riding (a few meters) of the Ho Chi Min trail.

One of the main goals of my Laos trip was to get a new visa for Thailand. And from what I have read the Thai consulate in Savannaketh was the place to get that. And that was only 195 kms away. But I wanted to check out the area around Xepon first. And doing some research I found that it should be a Lao military museum with lots of artefacts from the Vietnam war and also it should be possible to see some of the Ho Chi Min trail nearby. Those two places were however in the opposite direction towards the Lak Bao bordercrossing to Vietnam. But not too far, Lao military museum was in Dong approx 30 kms away and an additional 22 kms was the accsess to the Ho Chi Min trail. It should be possible to check out both places and ride all the way back to Savannaketh.

The military museum in Dong was the first stop. And man did they have a lot of US army stuff on display. Apparantly the US army had launced an attack on the Ho Chi Min trail and the Vietcong in this area to try to stop the supply line for the Vietcong - but their planning was bad as they attacked the Ho Chi Mon trail at the end of the dry season. Thus the Vietcong had plenty of supplies at hand and could not only defend theirself well, they could really crush the US army attack and conquer at a lot of US army stuff. And much of it was on display at this Lao military museum.

Heres some photos from the Lao military museum in Dong:

Day 22 - Checking out the War Museum in Dong

Some more pics of the outside display of US Army stuff at the War Museum in Dong

Day 22 - Checking out the Lao War Museum in Dong

Some pics from the display inside the museum building. The first pic is a photo of the Vietnamese (north Vietnamese) leader and president Ho Chi Min (uncle Ho) and the Pathet Lao and later Lao president Kaysone Phomvihane

Day 22 - Riding (a few meters) on the Ho Chi Min trail

My research told me it should be possible to accsess the real Ho Chi Min trail (where the Vietcong freighted supplies to their troops in the south) and supposedly the only official accsess as well. There was a roadsign in Pong saying the Ho Chi Min trail should lay 22 kms to the south. So off I went after I had walked around at the war museum and after 22 kms I started looking for the famous trail. To my disappointment the only thing I could find was a trail paralell to the road through a small village fenced in by a 20-30 cm low rusty fence. The trail itself was full of trash and broken bottles and I was afraid if I rode on it it would cut up the tires on the bike. This fenced trail went on for a few hundred meters, maybe as much as a kilometer, and eventually I found a spot where it wasnt all that much bottle pieces so I rode into the trail and took a few photos and that was it! I had ridden the Ho Chi Min trail, apparently the only genuin accsess there is to it. But still I felt kind of underwhelmed. No signs, no information - and the trail was full of broken bottles and trash....oh well.

I got my photos though and here they are....

Day 23 - Getting a thai visa and relaxing in Savannakhet

After checking out the Lao military museum in Pong and riding a few meters of the Ho Chi Min trail I had half the day left which I spent riding to Savannakhet. That was an eventless ride along the R9E except from a bit of cows, dogs, goats, chickens, pigs, turkeys, ducks and geese on the road. I found a place to stay for a couple of nights after being turned down once because the owner was afraid of Covid.
Early the next morning I was at the thai consulate and handed over my visa application and documents. And I had the rest of the day to relax and check out the town of Savannakhet

I had been to Savannakhet a couple of times before and my first visit there was back in 2004. And at that time I thought the town was just a dusty place in the middle of nowhere with not much to it, neither of accomodation possibilities, places to eat and drink, and other things. But Savannaketh had really changed!
Yes it was still a dusty rivertown along the mighty Mekongs shores but now it had so many markets, restaurants, bars and accomodation choices that I was really surprised! I wish I had more time to check out the town - hopefully I will be ablr to do it at an later stage.

So here are a few photos from Savannakhet...

Pic 1 - St Teresas catholic church
Pic 2 - Uncle Ho (Chi Min) memorial

Day 24 - Picking up my thai visa and exiting Laos into Thailand and some final thoughts.

This was going to be my last day in Laos this time as I was going to the thai consulate and hopefully pick up my thai visa at 1 pm and then exit Laos into Thailand.

First I took the Crf to a car wash joint where I got dust and dirt for 23 days washed off at the price of 10 000 kip (~1 €/1.2$) And for that price I think the guys did a mighty good job.

Then I had a wuick lunch and coffee, then off to the thai consulate and to my relief I actually got another thai visa in my passport.

Then it was time to exit Laos. However this is not as easy as it seems. Despite there now are 5 socalled friendship bridges over the Mekong river and a couple of other land borders only 2-3 of these allows motorbikes to cross over. The bridge at the Savannakhet-Mukhdahan dont allow motorbikes to cross according to my research so I didnt even try there. I knew the one at Vientiane-Nong Khai did allow motorbikes but that was very far away and it is also the main bordercrossing between the two countries and thus very very busy. But a couple of hours north there was a bridge at Thakek-Nakhon Phanom, and I tried there and had succsess and I was out of Laos and in Thailand. I rode to the city of Udon Thani and spent the night there, and the next day I rode back to my base in northern Thailand.

I had been on the road 25 days and I have ridden 4700 kms upon the arrival back at my base. And what a trip it had been! Visiting a lot of new and remarkable places and also visitong several places I have been before. Riding a lot of roads new to me and a lot of them was remote and dirt/gravel roads. Beautiful scenery fantastic almost neverending winding roads. A true pleasue and Laos what a gem you are!

My bike the trusty Honda Crf 250 L, year 2012 had really performed fantastic throughout all kind of roads and conditions. One of the rear indicators had partly snapped, but fixed with superglue and gaffatape - and that was the only problem I had with the bike. Fuel consumption with 91 octane RON with 10 % ethanol Lao fuel had been between 35-37 kms to the liter. In other measurements it is 100-105 mpg Imperial and 83-87 mpg US. Not bad at all!

Pic 1 - The Crf got a thorough and much needed wash after 23 days on Laos roads for the price of approx 1 €
Pic 2 - The ODO after coming back to my base in Thailand. I started with approx 34 000 kms on the clock.
Pic 3 - Back into Thailand again....

That was it guys. I hope you have enjoyed this little write up on my Laos trip last January/February - just before the Covid madness hit the world. I hope it wont be too long to wait before we all can travel freely again - well relatively freely that is....

Comments welcome ?c?

Thanks for the writeup! It brought back some good memories and gave more ideas about where to go next time around.

Laos revisited
 

Really enjoyed that. Thank you.


I loved visiting Laos back in 2014, beautiful country and I had the best burger I’ve ever had in Vientiane!