You want boom boom ?

[bsacbob]

Day One

Well after little sleep in CK we rocked up to the crossing point at Chiang Khong at 8am to be greeted by hoards of Chinese drivers and their passengers who lined the ramp, not the best start. After queuing for an eternity the nice guy at immigration told we us had to go back into town for some paperwork (dont recall having done that last time but anyway) from the immigration office next to the police station, after the relieving each of us of 200 baht we got back to immigration and customs and waited.










We must have looked like aliens or film stars, not sure which, but anyway we had our pictures taken by most of the passengers on the ferry. Anyway to cut a long story short we entered, got stamped eventually with no fuss although it had taken us six hours to get this far and my brain was fried so an unscheduled overnight stop was called for since we could not make Hongsa before nightfall.






Day Two



After stocking up on baguettes to go, we finally hit the road on a misty morning in Houay Xai.















Wasn't long before we got to our first stream crossing to get everyone in the swing, here's Jay with a gungho approach.












Mark giving it a bit more respect.











This trail was great fun although dusty (thanks to Pounce for the gpx) in places and we reached the ferry point with no real problems.






I managed to get three of us across after careful negotiations with the skipper !









We stopped for noodles and chatted with a delightful young lady who invited us to her wedding later in the year.












Due to heavy traffic the trail got wider and dustier.









Wasn't long before it claimed it's first victim.













Looking at it won't help !









Some delays along the way.





















Shortly before dark we arrived in Hongsa (check out the time on the clock in the last picture) and settled into the Soupaphone guest house followed by a beverage or two.




For some the day had taken it's toll and my promises of an easier day to follow would bite me in the bum......

 

[KTMphil]

Fabulous Bob......looking forward to more.

Never sent from an I-Phone

 

[Ally]

Bob ! You certainly know how to raise a chuckle !

Great post. I guess you will need a good shower now !


Ally

 

[2wheels]

Where the hell did you get that title from?!
Looking good Bob.

 

[bsacbob]

Where the hell did you get that title from?!
Looking good Bob.

Well i was going to call it "beware of trouser snake and torch" but thought it was too obvious :RO

More to come on that one !!!!

 

[2wheels]

Titillating !!

 

[KTMphil]

Torch?

Well i was going to call it "beware of trouser snake and torch" but thought it was too obvious :RO

More to come on that one !!!!

Never sent from an I-Phone

 

[KTMphil]

Bob -- How were you able to get the red temporary registration plate for the new bike? I was under the impression that they were no longer available for bikes?

 

[LivinLOS]

They say they are not being issued as they are selling too many to keep up.. They ARE being issued..

Am amazed you could cross a border with a temp red plate tho..

 

[bsacbob]

They say they are not being issued as they are selling too many to keep up.. They ARE being issued..

Am amazed you could cross a border with a temp red plate tho..

The guy actually had all his paperwork green book etc but just needed to collect the white plate from CM, they never looked at the bikes and i wasn't about to make a point of showing them.

 

[johnnysneds]

Bob -- How were you able to get the red temporary registration plate for the new bike? I was under the impression that they were no longer available for bikes?

A bit off topic sorry, but in relation to this question you asked Phil. If I have a pickup with a red plate can I enter Laos without any issues?

 

[bsacbob]

Day Three




Since today's run was relatively short it was decided to wait for the morning mist to burn off before heading off on the 4B to Luang Prabang so i wandered the market for a while.






















This route i had done a few weeks earlier and was sure my riding partners would enjoy it as much as i had, armed with candy i had packed for the village kid's, off we went.












With the sky's looking ominously grey it wasn't long before we hit our first of the stream crossings.












We stopped at the first settlement after this crossing as the sky's opened, although briefly we thought.




I was riding ahead of the other guy's and around 35k in i came to a downhill section which looked innocent enough as i descended but heavy rain must have hit this section and the topsoil was slick with subsoil still soft and dry. In no time at all my tyres had choked up and engine braking or any braking was not slowing my descent and i was simply skating down the hill. I decided to lay the bike down (honest) before the rate of descent got the better of me and hauled my bike up onto it's stand, nursing a badly sprained ankle.




Pictures, as always don't do justice to the conditions it was almost impossible to stand, i screamed up to the other guy's in an attempt to warn them of the state of play, but too late sooner or later all the bikes littered the track, It was beginning to look we may be stuck for the night on this hill but we finally got the bikes to the bottom.







We cleared our bikes to the side so we could help push this small bus up the hill followed by an old Landrover that only just made it, i had hoped the passengers of the bus would help us walk the bikes down the hill, fat chance.














After that workout it was on to the village and candy time for the kid's




























One day i would like to spend a night in this place the kid's and the locals are a joy.


















More crossing's ahead, as always the local kid's on hand to clap and cheer if you ditch your bike...






The rest of the ride that day was uneventful and we arrived at the ferry point to try and haggle with the ferryman, to no avail.







We settled into the Souksavong Guesthouse @ 80K kip a night.






Later we ate at "The House" restaurant near the Dara Market which is run by a couple of Belgian guy's and the food is always good. It was agreed to stay an extra day in LPB, my bike needed the front end realigning because the incompetent Thai mechanic in Chiang Rai failed to tighten up fork clamps after changing my forks seals plus Jay's CRF had electrical issues as well as some the aftermarket twiddly bit's had broken.




A walk around the local market while getting bike repairs.
































I decided to take them up the road to the "Hive" and take in the ethnic costume show which is well worth a viewing if you have never seen it before. Several beers later we headed back and asked if anyone wanted to take in one of the local disco's near the guesthouse.




We strolled up and four rather attractive young ladies approached us and said "you want boom boom" i was of course shocked at this brazen advance and stupidly replied "i just want a beer" and left them looking slightly puzzled.




Inside would have been a real treat if you had night vision glasses, it was dark as hell and watching the girls line dance was something to behold indeed.




Sorry no pictures are available of these events but LPB is certainly changing.




After a day relaxing it was on to Nong Khiaw and the pocket torch trouser snake, that will forever stick in my mind.

 

[Ally]

But did you get your beer inside ?

Lovely report Bob, great pics.

Ally

 

[2wheels]

"i just want a beer"

Love it!
Bob, could you detail the technical issues re the CRF please?
May be of significance to other CRFers.

Well done, enjoying this report.
It's nice to see some 'black & white' and sepia images too.

 

[brake034]

Maybe a starter question, why in this post I see two faces blanked out?
Does this person no wanna be recognized?
And if so, why? Is he on some wanted list?

 

[bsacbob]

Maybe a starter question, why in this post I see two faces blanked out?
Does this person no wanna be recognized?
And if so, why? Is he on some wanted list?

Totally irrelevant question this is the Laos trip report section not Interpol. If someone wishes to keep their anonymity on a public forum that's up to them, much in the same way Brake034 you don't state your name in your profile. Kapeesh ?

 

[jimbobs]

Totally irrelevant question this is the Laos trip report section not Interpol. If someone wishes to keep their anonymity on a public forum that's up to them, much in the same way Brake034 you don't state your name in your profile. Kapeesh ?

is right no ones business....good on yeh

 

[VietHorse]

Bob ! You certainly know how to raise a chuckle !

Great post. I guess you will need a good shower now !


Ally

I think they need to flush their lungs, too.
Great report with impressive thread tittle.... It's been a while I had not been using that term since I left offshore. LOL...

 

[lakota]

The Guy with the blanked out face is Paul Newman. Obviously he wished to remain anonymous because he's supposed to be deceased.

or it could have been the Guy who innocently asked for his photo's not to be plastered all over the internet as he's a shy sort of a chap but didn't expect the op to oblige
....... unlike the Guy with the Torch and trouser snake who propositioned Paul Newman earlier in the evening by touching his genital area and uttering the words 'shop Puu Saii' . I believe Paul told the Guy he was just about to Die along with a few Thai expletives he didn't know he knew. I guess the upshot was that 'Paul' discovered he was a raving Heterosexual

 

[jimbobs]

This is getting off topic ...ha ha
Fuckin confused tho......but not sexually ....ha ha...
Please someone tell me this is not a Gay biker forum..
Ime not a homophobic but when eventually you find out who i am..you will want to ride with me...
Hetrosexual in the bedroom tho chaps ime afraid xx
But have many gay friends ...WHOS BOTHERED ..just dont fancy me x
Ride safe lads ..in both ways ha ha xx

 

[bsacbob]

This is getting off topic ...ha ha
Fuckin confused tho......but not sexually ....ha ha...
Please someone tell me this is not a Gay biker forum..
Ime not a homophobic but when eventually you find out who i am..you will want to ride with me...
Hetrosexual in the bedroom tho chaps ime afraid xx
But have many gay friends ...WHOS BOTHERED ..just dont fancy me x
Ride safe lads ..in both ways ha ha xx

Keep calm Jimbobs, next instalment is coming later, powers been off at the Ponderosa all day.....:MJ

 

[lakota]

OK, Back on Topic,

It was a great trip and my first bike trip in Laos.

The photo's don't do the road conditions justice, there where very steep inclines where we had the problems. Heavy Vehicles putting in the Electricity supply appear to have messed up some of the tracks but that's progress. We did find some 'real' naturally eroded tracks later in the trip which where fun, but I suspect they will be spoilt with the quick march of progress that appears to be going on in Laos.

ride them now before they disappear has been said many times before but I can't help feeling its true.

The remoteness of the Villages doesn't always come across in the photo's either. I suspect we where 50k from the nearest Tarmac roads on some of the Trails.

more river crossings than I could remember and some where borderline with the water lapping over my knees .

anyway, back over to bsacbob

 

[jimbobs]

Jimmys calm mate
But what do you have to do to get out biking with the in crowd...give a bit of love to a new boy....this clique is geting dated..av i got to get me own mates from liverpool to fuck around on bikes......
Ime on this forum and ride asia no one has said jump on this trip lad...ime back in 6weeks after 7 days of work in Mexico...i love the work but ime i am qn explorer...
If gt or ride asia dont invite me for a ride ime spewing the whole internet crap ..
Ile still ride but i want experience off you fellas

 

[lakota]

you may have a point jimbobs. Don't think I would have got an invite if his mate hadn't been away. it's a difficult one I guess.
this was ran like a military operation, had to be or it just wouldn't have got done. Did I make the grade, don't care really ... but its nice to get back to civvy street

can't just put a load of strangers together and expect it to work, need to get out together a few times before I guess and see if it works.

 

[jimbobs]

Is right son couldnt be doin with a military operation anyway...ile find a gang of loons who move when they want and stay and boom bom when they want....
Ime not an old or young man but ime going to cambodia.loas.china.india .burma.malaysia .lndonisia ..and any where else i can get to
Had a camper van since i was 19 done europe 20 times from st petersburg in russia to portugal with me old moped on the back...done south and north of the latin quarter on airoplanes...
Never had an interest in austrilasia......
But ime goin to hammer asia..if i do it on my own....so be it mate...if i have company .all the better.....

Nothing more to say...ile get a gang of lads on the buzz....still paying for this mansion my egotisim has got me inti
Safe riding lads

 

[bsacbob]

Day Five

Day five kicked off with the usual baguettes to go, leaving Jay to rest up for another day in LPB, well he is 70 (yes 70) and you have to make allowances.

We planned to meet up in Nong Khiaw the next day as we rode to Phonsavan on a new trail for me, i had two options planned, one heading south before the Nam Teu crossing and the other heading up towards the old airstrip.



This track was a blast with more river crossing than you could shake a stick at and for me the direction was perfect allowing us to ease into the trail following the power pole guy's and eventually passing them and riding the original trail.















We did have to stop a couple of times while the road was cleared.












Nice to see these guys still working.













Quick snack.








This was the only wooden bridge we dared cross.









Wonder how long how long this toll bridge will last.









New bridge already near completion along side.






First of many crossings.









Well as least the bikes and our kit had a good wash, finally it was beer and baguette time.






Some shots in the village.















It soon became apparent how remote our location was.









Candy time in another village.






Interesting faces and people.






























We finally got beyond the the power pole guy's.






But not the river crossings !









And the expectant audience.










Remote settlement.














We reached the small ferry crossing and was greeted by the buxom lady in red...











I asked her the price and at first i ignored her and we considered trying to ride the bikes across but it was too late in the day and the water was running pretty fast. I guess she's played this game so many times, i tried writing numbers in the sand in an effort to haggle but it was a waste of time she had us by the ball's and she knew it.












Having crossed, dry for once we thought we had seen the last of river crossings but no.













Quick gas stop.



This section proved to be the deepest riding across the river and then downstream and back across.








What proved to be the end of the water in this colourful jungle area.
















Soon after this we emerged into a totally different landscape.








The temperature had dropped dramatically and it was blowing a gale, it was like riding across the Pennines back home, we came across the old Air American traffic control tower.



We soon hit the highway after this point and onto Phonsavan in almost darkness and checked in the Dokkhoune Hotel on the main street for the night.It had been a long day but one i shall remember, so many smiling faces along the way, sadly the coming of the power lines will change things, maybe for the better. I doubt it.






War scrap display.

 

[brake034]

Kiss dusty boots of OP and discrete rider, I do apologize deeply for inappropriate question!
Now was that enough to stop Boom Boom phom khap phom??

 

[Pounce]

Enjoying this Bob.
It's interesting how much the scenery & plant life changes along that route.
There's lots of crossings along that route as you say. The water level looks a bit lower than in December though :G
I'm going to borrow your pic of the control tower too as out of the 6 of us, no one took a pic of it.

 

[bsacbob]

Kiss dusty boots of OP and discrete rider, I do apologize deeply for inappropriate question!
Now was that enough to stop Boom Boom phom khap phom??

Accepted, let's move on.

 

[brake034]

Owe you a boot shine and an espresso when you pass by on the 1020! Passing Thoeng towards Chiang Khong, about 3-4 Km that's where I do the boot shines :-)

 

[bsacbob]

Day Six

After a cracking Indian meal at the Nisha Indian Restaurant it was time for a day on the Tarmac on the fast road to Nong Khiaw to meet up with Jay at the Riverside.

But not before a hearty breakfast at the Bamboozle it was baguettes to go and off we went.










It was a cold morning and pretty misty on the mountain tops spoiling the view.




Wasn't long before the sun broke out and we watched some of the locals gather river weed.





























The ride was uneventful until we came to a small village and was flagged down by a group of exuberant locals, and was persuaded to stop for a small drink.









Apparently it was the house blessing of the guy in the lime green shirt.


















We finished our drink and bid them farewell although we would have been welcome to stop the night.







Interesting faces along the way.












We arrived as darkness fell on Nong Khiaw and pulled into the Riverside to check on our friend Jay who's bike was parked up. We tried to call him but his phone was off, the security guard informed us they were almost full and only one room left so we went off in search of rooms.







Tired we checked into the Vong Many GH 80k kip a night and got ready for a well earned beer.





It turned out our pal had booked us two rooms in the Riverside but couldn't contact us to confirm, we called to see the manager to explain we had checked in elsewhere and he reluctantly agreed to forget the matter, although the following morning he charged Jay half the room rate for the two rooms which i though was a piss take and told him so.







Anyway we headed to the CT restaurant for some food and beer, later Jay and i headed over the bridge to the new bar called the Hive. As we walked along a Laos guy on a motorcycle passed just by us and pulled over for a piss. He called over to us and we both looked around to see the guy holding a small torch pointing in the direction of his exposed manhood, we both laughed like school kid's and walked on to the Hive !







The next morning the other guy in our group explained he was trying to unlock his room door last night when another guy (not the same one) grabbed his meat and two veg. Blimey what's going on with this place i always thought it was a sleep picturesque village !!!!







Morning in Nong Khiaw.
















Next morning it was off to Luang Namtha and the dreaded 13N, i hate that road.




Hill tribe girl carrying grass for making brooms.













We arrived in Luang Namtha early afternoon, we had planned to head on to Muang Sing and do the trail back to Houay Xai but was Jay was not up for the off road section and since we had already split up previously we decided to play safe and stop in Luang Namtha, the trail would have to wait for another day.


The next morning was the short blast along the beautiful Route 3 to Houay Xai and the predictable three hour wait for the ferry, we made the crossing and bid our farewells (well some did) and over a coffee Jay and i reflected on the trip and both laughed at the nights events in Nong Khiaw…….

 

[bsacbob]

It's a deal i bring my boots, all of them

 

[brake034]

Sounds like a business! Only leathers or vinyl please! I am also good with dried out leathers (magic takes time!) such as vintage car upholstry.

Like the interesting faces (lol)!

 

[bsacbob]

Love it!
Bob, could you detail the technical issues re the CRF please?
May be of significance to other CRFers.

Well done, enjoying this report.
It's nice to see some 'black & white' and sepia images too.

Sorry for the late reply, missed your post Ron. Turns out turns out he had a new super loud horn fitted and it had been wired into the horn and indicator circuit and the original horn was still hooked up and kept blowing the fuse, problem solved now it's on a separate relay.

 

[2wheels]

Thanks Bob; nothing for us CRFers to be worried about then.