Motorcycle Diaries -- Laos

Road Trip? Sure why not and Laos is the perfect place since even their main highway throughout the country is only a two lane paved road. Plus the cross streets are dirt. It was just the excuse we were looking for to rent a dirt bike and head off for an extraordinary adventure. Here are some basic facts about the trip:

Vehicle: Honda Baja 250cc (nickname "Fi Fi")

Distance Traveled: 1150 kilometer or 715 miles

Gear Packed (per person): 1 pant, 1 short, 3 shirts, 1 sweatshirt, 2 socks, 3 underwear, 1 pair of flipflops, 1 pair of tennis shoes, 1 rainjacket, 1 day pack, 1 helmet

Length of Trip: 9 days

Budget: $50 per day (actual $30 per day)

Top Speed: 70 kilometers - we had to pass the big dump truck to avoid eating its dust!

Average Speed: 40 kilometers per hour (60 on paved roads and 20 on dirt roads)

Type of Terrain: dried rice fields, single track, 4wd only roads, dirt roads and paved roads

Common Obstacles on Roads: chickens, geese, piglets, goats, water buffalo, ducks, cows, dogs and turkeys

Number of Times We Took a Wrong Turn and Ended Up at a Dead End: 2

Number of Times We Received Directions in Lao and Still Had No Idea Where to Go Except to Follow the Pointing: Too many to count

Number of Stares From Locals: Too many to count

Day 1 - Vientiane (the capital city of Laos to Ban Pako). Ban Pako is a village about 50 kilometers outside of Vientiane where there is a beautiful eco-lodge which overlooks a river. Once we left the main highway, it was dirt road for about 21 kilometers. It was good practice for the days too come. Not only did it help prepare out butts for those really bumpy days ahead but it also got Tony comfortable maneuvering pot holes and driving in gravel and deep dust (similar to sand). We arrived at Ban Pako in the early afternoon and found that we were the only people staying their. Nothing like having an entire jungle retreat all to ourselves plus a large staff to cater to our whims. First we unwound by relaxing in the hammocks on the veranda of our bungalow. Then we headed off to enjoy our herbal sauna and jungle bath. The herbal sauna is a wooden shack near a stream in the middle of the jungle. They gather leaves and roots from the jungle and put them in water over an open fire. The pipping system pipes steam into the wooden shack thus creating an herbal sauna. It was amazing and smelled so good. Plus if you got hot you could take a dip in the stream/bath area. Relaxed and refreshed, we then enjoyed a beautiful sunset over the river while dining on the best curry and traditional Lao food ever. We only hoped that we would discover more of these hideaways during our trip.

Day 2 - Ban Pako to Na Hin. This was a long day of riding and since I was riding on the rack behind the seat -- the seat was only big enough for one -- I could only do about one hour at a time. So riding for 6 hours today was a very long haul, but as Tony said, get to join the iron butt club now! After we turned off the main highway the road and scenery began to change. The road became quite windy as we began to climb into the limestone formations all around us. Of course, Tony loved all the S-curves and the fact that there was very little traffic (you'd might see one car every 10 minutes). At the top we stopped to enjoy an ariel view but had to continue on in order to get to our guesthouse before dark. At the guesthouse we exchanged stories with other travelers who had either done the journey (or parts thereof) that we were embarking on or were enroute as well.

Day 3 - Tham Kong Lo. 50 kilometers outside of Na Hin is a dramatic 7 kilometer long cave known as Tham Kong Lo. This is primarily why most travelers journey into this remote area of Laos. From Na Hin you travel 50 kilometers on a dirt road which is for the most part in fairly good condition. There are a couple of rough sections and one river crossing but that simply adds to the fun. The scenery out here is absolutely stunning. On either side of the road are rice paddy fields except this time of year they are all dried up. Beyond the rice paddy fields are huge limestone mountains/rocks which jet straight up into the sky. The darkness of the limestone contrasted with the yellow/white of the rice fields and the red dirt of the road is spectacular. As a bonus you drive through several villages and I'm not sure whether it was the bike or the white people which caused the locals to stare but you would have thought we were aliens. Some would wave back and say Sa Bi De (hello in Lao). Others would stand their transfixed by our passing.

Once we reached the final village we wound our way through the houses and down to the river where we boarded a long boat (about 20 feet long and only wide enough for one person to sit forcing us to sit one in front of the other). There were two guides in the boat (aka local village men who spoke no English) with Tony and I. One in the front of the boat with a battery powered miners head lamp watching for rocks and shallow areas and one in the back also with a battery powered miners head lamp steering the boat with the long-tailed motor. As we approached the entrance to the cave, we stopped and got out of the boat. We could see a path entering the cave so we followed along wondering if we were just suppose to explore on our own and then come back to the boat. But as we climbed the path we realized that there are some rapids at the cave entrance which the guides have to basically pull the boat through before we can continue the tour. Once on the inside we loaded back into the boat and within seconds everything around us was complete dark (except for the guides' lamps which in a cave as large as this provided minimal lighting). The passage was about 20 feet wide and at times the ceiling was 40+ feet tall. We were amazed at how well our guides knew their way around this cave. From the shallow places to the rocks to the different passages. They knew the exact line and route. Because its the dry season there were several places where we had to get out of the boat and wade through the shallow spots before getting back into the boat and continuing. There was also a section where we got to climb up into a cavern and see some spectacular formations. I wish we could have captured it on camera but the flash was lost in the vast space of this cave. After 7 kilometers the river simply comes out the other side and continues. On the other side we pulled up to an area to take a break and stretch our legs. On the shore I stepped out of the boat and Tony assumed he could follow suit. However, the edge of the river dropped off quickly and Tony ended up going for a swim :) After our break we made our way back through the cave except this time (since we were going with the current) we got to go over two of the rapids we had walked over before. Who knew you could take a wooden long boat over rapids?

Tonight we stayed in a guesthouse in one of the villages along the dirt road on the way to Kong Lo. The guesthouse was called Sala Houn Bin and once again we were their only guests. In the evening before dinner we wandered around the village observing their simple way of life . . . kids playing a game similar to botche with their flip flops, etc.

Day 4 - Sala Houn Bin to Lak Sao. Today we drove back through Na Hin on our way towards Lak Sao near the Vietnam boarder. In Na Hin, we had seen signs for a waterfall and heard from other travelers that it was a nice hike. So we bought some snacks at the local market and set off for the trailhead. Tony enjoyed driving the first 1.5 kilometers on what can only be described as a dirt track. Finally though it got rough enough that we had to park the bike and continue on foot. The trail was hard to follow as it basically wound its way through the dried out river bed and through the jungle. There were a ton of bugs and it was very warm. Finally we found a small waterfull and considered ourselves successful. Up above we could see a larger taller waterfall but we had had enough climbing over logs and using tree roots as handles and steps to maneuver our way through the jungle. Instead we enjoyed our snacks beside the waterfall pool before heading back to the bike.

The road to Lak Sao continued to be windy--very windy in fact. At times you could feel it push the bike sideways a bit. The temperature also dropped. By the time we arrive in Lak Sao, we were cold. It wasn't really surprising that Lak Sao is not a tourist town. In fact we saw no other white people during our stay. We were lucky enough to find one restaurant that was open and had an English menu. After dinner we wandered around the local market and I found my best purchase yet. A $3 soft fleece zip jacket. It was perfect for both the cold nights and as a cushion for my butt on the metal rack on the back of the motorcycle.

Day 5 -- Lak Sao to Tha Kheck. Today it was all dirt road. Now I appreciate some good vibrations on the back of a bike as much as the next girl but this was non-stop bone-jarring, teeth-rattling craziness for 87 kilometers. At first the road was very windy and steep but it later leveled out onto a "new road" which the government was in the process of building. However, all the construction lead to lots of big trucks which kicked up an extraordinary amount of dust! By the time we reached Tha Kheck everything we were wearing and our bags had a red tint (the color of the road). In Tha Kheck we found a nice little guesthouse. It was a common stopping ground for other tourists doing "The Loop" -- the route we were doing except we left from Vientiane and most people start and end in Tha Kheck. Some had driven from Lak Sao today also except they were on a 125cc moto. We can't even imagine how bad that must have been. Others were just getting ready to start on their adventure with little to no moto driving experience. We didn't recommend the dirt road to them. Regardless it was fun to share stories and experiences and from the sound of things, the fact that our bike never broke down and we never wrecked was a great trip!

Day 6 -- Exploration outside Tha Kheck. The last 30 kilometers of the dirt road into Tha Kheck is home to numerous caves. We didn't explore this on the way into town because we were tired and quite honestly couldn't handle any more bumps. But today was a new day and after a good nights sleep we thought our butts could handle a little more. The first cave we explored was known for its elephant head. Originally the stone inside the cave resembled a monster and the local people were scared of it, but after the village was plagued with a disease in the 1950's, they decided the monster was too much bad luck and they blasted the inside of the cave with dynamite. What was left was stone resembling an elephant head which they revere and worship. After seeing the cave, we decided they were stretching the elephant head a little far! The second cave we explored was a rather large cave but it was developed. By developed, I mean the cave had stairs and lights and charged an entrance fee. It was nice to wander around and explore a little (without being in the dark) but ultimately there was nothing extravegant.

The third cave was by far our favorite. The only directions we had was to look for a little dirt track near the house and the bridge. We originally found something resembling these directions, but when we asked (by asked we mean that I pointed to the name of the cave in the book and he pointed and spit out a bunch of directions in Laos and we smiled and nodded) an older man sitting on a log a couple of hundred yards down the path, he pointed down the road further. So we continued but believe it or not there wasn't much else that resembled the directions. Finally we asked another group of people who pointed back down the road from the direction we just came but they managed to tell us it was about 6 kilometers. Ultimately we ended up back at the same spot except this time the man was gone so we continued. When we couldn't go any further I got off the bike and decided to look around when we were suddenly greated by two young boys (12 years old or so). We said the word cave and they motioned to follow them. Why not? They led us down a path through the jungle which was clearly made by boys as we had to duck pretty much the whole way. We climbed over a barb-wire fence and down through a rocky gully (which definetely was full of water in the high season) before finally coming to the river. Now to explore this cave we were told you had to wade through the water. The boys pointed toward the cave and asked for some money (they were cute and had been very helpful so we couldn't resist). We assumed they would leave us to explore. Instead, they patiently waited for us to take our shoes off and showed us through the entire cave. They pointed when we needed to watch out for rocks, they held my hand when I needed some additional balance, they used our lights to find the way in the dark and they knew all the shallow canals and sandy spots. It was fantastic. Inside the cave we had lunch and gave them one of our sandwiches to share while we ate the other. At the end they brought us all the way back to our motorcycle and said goodbye. Our "tour guides" were well worth the $1 each :)

The fourth and final cave of the day was the buddha cave. This cave was discovered when a guy decided to climb up into the cave to hunt bats for dinner and instead found the cave to be full of lots of buddha statues in all different sizes. No one knows how they got there or why they are there. The cave itself is just one large room but locals come from all over Laos to worship here.

Day 7 -- Tha Kheck to Paksan. Today we sought out a sacred lagoon which is suppose to be 150 feet deep in the center and as clear as crater lake. Once again we had minimal directions. When we turned off the main road onto (once again) a dirt road everything seemed right, but after traveling about 5 kilometers we noticed that the road had turned into a track and was getting harder to follow. We continued another 5 kilometers or so and basically found ourselves in somebody's rice field. Hmmm we weren't sure what to do. We continued a little further and finally found a person. When I approached him with the book to ask (aka show him the name of the lagoon and point) he looked scared but ultimately he shook his head no and pointed back the direction we had come. Once we got back to the dirt road which actually resembled a road, we asked (in the same manner) some other people working at a rock quarry and they pointed us back to the main road. Clearly we had made a wrong turn although I know Tony enjoyed driving the motorcycle on that dirt track. At the next right hand turn off the main road we tried again except this time we had learned our lesson and asked the people on the corner at the turn off the main road if this was the right direction and they nodded yes. Now that we were on the right track we only had 16 kilometers to go. Just to paint a picture in your mind, this lagoon is about 30 kilometers from Tha Kheck--as the crow flies. But to get there you have to drive 25 kilometers up the main road and another 16 on the dirt road. Including our side-trip, we were already 2 hours into our journey. The dirt roads are very slow going. We knew were finally on the right road though because it had been described as very rough rolling hills. Once again Tony enjoyed the fun and I video tapped us "shooting the hills" on the motorcycle :) At each village with a split in the road, we asked for directions. Once again you would have thought we were aliens. I tried to imagine our equivalent in the US and the only analogy I could create was a group of friends sitting around and suddenly a hover craft pulls up and a person with green skin gets out shows you a book with something written in English and points.

At the last village before the lagoon, the locals waved us forward.  However the road we were on appeared to have ended in the village and there was nothing but dried out rice fields in the direction they waved us.  In the rice field there were two options . . . (a) drive on the hard bumpy field and up over the dikes (some of which were high and narrow enough to cause the bike to get stuck) or (b) drive down the very narrow single-track on the dike.  We managed a little of both.  Tony decided he preferred single-track on his bicycle rather than on a motorcycle.  Eventually we found the lagoon and it wasn't nearly as spectacular as we were hoping although it was quite clear and you could see the stumps and fish underneath the surface. But we certainly enjoyed the experience of getting there.

Before turning back onto the main road we stopped for a bowl of rice noodle soup with beef from the corner hut and it was the best noodle soup I've had in Lao. We arrived in Paksan just as it was getting dark and found a guesthouse. Like Lak Sao, Paksan wasn't use to seeing many tourists. This time we managed to find a restaurant on the Mekong river but there was no English menu or a person who spoke English. After writing it down we were finally able to order the Lao national food called Laap (beef salad) which is excellent and stir-fried vegetables. Our waitress knew the word for vegetables but didn't understand when we asked for stir-fried vegetables and chicken. Ultimately we got chicken Laap and stir-fried vegetables which was excellent. Close enough.

Day 8 - Paksan to Ban Pako. After having such a wonderful experience and excellent food at Ban Pako previously, we decided to stop again on our way back. This time however, there was a large group of Thai people on some sort of conference. So we didn't have the place to ourselves. We did however have another amazing time and were able to eat the best curry we have ever tasted once again.

Day 9 - Ban Pako to Vientiane. The last day was somehow the hardest. I think my butt had finally given up and it knew that a permanent break was so close. The first reward after returning was a hot shower and some fresh clothes. After wearing the same outfits for 9 days we were dirty and we smelled. Our second reward was a visit to a local wat where we relaxed by endulging in an herbal sauna and traditional Lao massage for $4. It was the perfect end to our first motorcycle diary adventure.