bsacbob
Administrator (Retired)
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2012
- Location
- Chiang Rai
- Bikes
- Honda CRM-AR 250, Honda CRF 250-L, Suzuki V Strom XT 650 Honda XR250 Baja BMW F650GS
Day 7 from Phonsavan to Lak Xao (Kham Khuet)
340 Km 10 Hrs
GpxViewer
After a hearty breakfast in the Bamboozle (the best in town) i was on a mission to get as close as i could to the Mig fighters, so roadworks near the Airfield made access a bit tricky but surprisingly i scooted around without a problem.
Saw a few soldiers whom i gave my royal wave and poked around until i came up with these shots, they look as if they have been moved around since i last saw them, but anyway they are not flying any time soon.
Outer perimeter
Getting closer
Boom !!!
The dusty graded road out of town was a race track for the buses and pick up’s and not the best of rides, but the countryside was full of terraced fields.
Not the typical Wat you would see in Thailand, in Laos they make a grand entrance way but the actual Wat is pretty basic.
Still some moist bit’s from the earlier storms
Plenty of fuel drums available.
New bridge in progress, look at the huge tree’s awaiting who knows what
Hope the old bridge survives till the new one is commissioned, on reflection this trail should be called the Bailey Bridge Trail i must have crossed a hundred of them this day.
Rocky graded sections
Architecture is different from the further North.
Not the most enjoyable riding surface.
Again you can see the huge investment carving out these new roads.
Came to a real gas station to fill up and grab a snack, the owner's kids were just back from playing Songkran the red face (and hair in lots of cases) is part of the festival in Laos.
More Bailey Bridges.
Even more moist sections.
One of the nicer Wat's i had seen on this trip.
Now heading into the mountains and new graded roads not on the GPS
This section was more like a mining area than a road.
Every one of these rocks i saw had been split open as if they had been looking for some mineral inside each one.
Came across this new housing project, almost complete but deserted. Not sure if this is for the road construction but it looked too permanent so i guess for some mining works.
Rain clouds forming, time to push on.
Translation anyone.
Saw this solitary lone monk i asked for a picture but ensured his iPhone headphones and cigarette had been hidden away.
Logging trucks headed for Vietnam
House with a view in a million
Clouds closing in
The scale of highway construction in Laos is truly amazing
Today was a very hazy day as the smoke hung in the mountains
Coming into the township of Mork.
Leaving Mork a heard of cows blocked the road, so i stopped to let them pass next thing two of them kicked off almost knocking me off the bike so time to get the hell out of there
More of these split rocks along the route
Not good fun if it rains i guess.
Broken down logging truck ahead
And more rocky sections
Almost all of these bailey Bridges had a 5 ton weight limit so the logging trucks had to make alternative crossings.
Isolated communities
Came across this logging camp and found a fuel drum.
Nice graded section a welcome sight.
End of the gravel and hitting smooth tarmac was a real blessing after all those rocky sections
Meeting the junction of route 8
Nam Ngouang river looks beautiful after all the dust.
Wat next to the river
Route 8 is littered with huge logging stations and sawmills with high walls surrounding them along with many charcoal making plants
Route 8 is very well paved and a real sports bike run.
Mountain range looking to Vietnam
Poor attempt to get a picture while riding of the hardware salesman
One of the few fires during the day
Approaching Lak Xao
More logs heading to Vietnam
Made it into town and checked in at the Souriya Hotel 100K Kip
Grabbed a couple of beers and watched the world go by
Walked around the local market but the light was failing and my camera was between settings so crap pictures
The local crazy going around begging for scraps from the stall owners
Think he liked me
Almost dark
Headed into the One Restaurant just across the road, huge place but i was the only customer
The fridge was full so all was well and spent the night chatting with the owner's daughter
Morning at the hotel and market
Breakfast
Oh dear looks like i lost something along the way
Day 8 to follow the day of dead ends and screw up's
340 Km 10 Hrs
GpxViewer
After a hearty breakfast in the Bamboozle (the best in town) i was on a mission to get as close as i could to the Mig fighters, so roadworks near the Airfield made access a bit tricky but surprisingly i scooted around without a problem.
Saw a few soldiers whom i gave my royal wave and poked around until i came up with these shots, they look as if they have been moved around since i last saw them, but anyway they are not flying any time soon.
Outer perimeter
Getting closer
Boom !!!
The dusty graded road out of town was a race track for the buses and pick up’s and not the best of rides, but the countryside was full of terraced fields.
Not the typical Wat you would see in Thailand, in Laos they make a grand entrance way but the actual Wat is pretty basic.
Still some moist bit’s from the earlier storms
Plenty of fuel drums available.
New bridge in progress, look at the huge tree’s awaiting who knows what
Hope the old bridge survives till the new one is commissioned, on reflection this trail should be called the Bailey Bridge Trail i must have crossed a hundred of them this day.
Rocky graded sections
Architecture is different from the further North.
Not the most enjoyable riding surface.
Again you can see the huge investment carving out these new roads.
Came to a real gas station to fill up and grab a snack, the owner's kids were just back from playing Songkran the red face (and hair in lots of cases) is part of the festival in Laos.
More Bailey Bridges.
Even more moist sections.
One of the nicer Wat's i had seen on this trip.
Now heading into the mountains and new graded roads not on the GPS
This section was more like a mining area than a road.
Every one of these rocks i saw had been split open as if they had been looking for some mineral inside each one.
Came across this new housing project, almost complete but deserted. Not sure if this is for the road construction but it looked too permanent so i guess for some mining works.
Rain clouds forming, time to push on.
Translation anyone.
Saw this solitary lone monk i asked for a picture but ensured his iPhone headphones and cigarette had been hidden away.
Logging trucks headed for Vietnam
House with a view in a million
Clouds closing in
The scale of highway construction in Laos is truly amazing
Today was a very hazy day as the smoke hung in the mountains
Coming into the township of Mork.
Leaving Mork a heard of cows blocked the road, so i stopped to let them pass next thing two of them kicked off almost knocking me off the bike so time to get the hell out of there
More of these split rocks along the route
Not good fun if it rains i guess.
Broken down logging truck ahead
And more rocky sections
Almost all of these bailey Bridges had a 5 ton weight limit so the logging trucks had to make alternative crossings.
Isolated communities
Came across this logging camp and found a fuel drum.
Nice graded section a welcome sight.
End of the gravel and hitting smooth tarmac was a real blessing after all those rocky sections
Meeting the junction of route 8
Nam Ngouang river looks beautiful after all the dust.
Wat next to the river
Route 8 is littered with huge logging stations and sawmills with high walls surrounding them along with many charcoal making plants
Route 8 is very well paved and a real sports bike run.
Mountain range looking to Vietnam
Poor attempt to get a picture while riding of the hardware salesman
One of the few fires during the day
Approaching Lak Xao
More logs heading to Vietnam
Made it into town and checked in at the Souriya Hotel 100K Kip
Grabbed a couple of beers and watched the world go by
Walked around the local market but the light was failing and my camera was between settings so crap pictures
The local crazy going around begging for scraps from the stall owners
Think he liked me
Almost dark
Headed into the One Restaurant just across the road, huge place but i was the only customer
The fridge was full so all was well and spent the night chatting with the owner's daughter
Morning at the hotel and market
Breakfast
Oh dear looks like i lost something along the way
Day 8 to follow the day of dead ends and screw up's
Last edited:
No surprises there Auke, likewise mine was mid April and it certainly was not 100% dirt...
