JAB?…John, Ally and Boon:). Yes after a long break from our road tours; mostly because of me being tied up with the sale of The Brick Road Cafe; at long last me and Ally went out for one of our motorbike tours, and this time Boon came to.
As we needed to return to the motorbike market to complete the paperwork for the orange Wave we had agreed to meet Ally there at around 9am.
After sorting the paperwork and having a quick look at the bikes , we took coffee at Mee Mees’ before heading off on quite a lengthy tour.
First we cut across to the Doi Saket road and headed past Doi Saket into the mountains.
Taking the right hand turn towardds Ban Huaw Kaow, Ally first took us to what she called , ‘the alternative hot springs’. There is a Hot springs further up the main road, at Pong Nam Rorn, with a market and several food and drink outlets , which is used as a tour rest stop.
This one appears to be an abandoned attempt to develop one deeper in the mountains.
The water is, without a doubt, extremely hot , but is also disgustingly black in most of the pools and stinks to high heaven.
Interesting but not one to rush back to.For me the highlight of this visit was the small but proud looking chameleon we spotted.
A little further down the road we were ready for more coffee, we had been riding for an hour!
Ally, having done this road before, took us to The 196 Coffee Corner, a lovely little place that does extremely good fresh coffee at a fraction of the price you’d pay in town.
We were met enthusiastically by the owners golden labrador who refused to stop barking until we’d all said hello.
If you get the chance, take a walk up the driveway and take a peek into their private garden which contains the owners collection of wood ‘scuplture’. Another gem of a place in the hills.
All caffeined up, on we went, wending our way through the hills working our way over to our main destination of Doi Khun Tan National Park. It was a long and beautiful ride. On the way we made a slight detour to our surprise lunch destination,(thanks again Ally), Tharntong Kitchen, at Tharntong Lodges. This wonderful place, nestled up in the mountain forests, with a mountain stream running through it, has been beautifully landscaped and has many wood cabins spotted around in which you can stay if you wish. With the cheapest room being 1,200 baht a night , its out of my usual budget; but for the stunning surroundings and excellent facilities, including top notch food, I’d say its worth it.
Treating myself to wild pig in red curry sauce, (120 baht..excellent quality and good portion),
I managed to swallow a whole bay leaf that got lodged in my throat, very nearly requiring the Heimlich maneuver, thankfully a good slap on the back from Boon dislodged it.
If you find this place I hop
e you’ll get to say hello to the resident cockatoo who is extremely friendly and poses well for the camera. He was most gentle when taking the fruit that Ally offered.
So, happily fed, it came time to get back down to the road to Khun Tan.
We had turned off to the left for lunch, so it was back town and left back towards our destination, stopping briefly at the Cosmo Petrol station to refuel the bikes.
Another long, but very enjoyable ride, through more stunning scenery.
There was a long stretch where the tarmac road disintegrated into mud and gravel base, but the slow bumpy ride was worth it as it took us to one of the best view points, overlooking the Mae On Valley.
Ally warned me to take a deep breath as we walked the few steps off the road to the view point, and well I needed to. It was quite a sight indeed and we were lucky with the weather, so stormy in recent days, sunny and clear giving a crisp few for miles around.
After spending some time socking in the splendor of the valley below, we carried on down the road that would take , first through the valley and then on to Khun Tan. A few kilometres on we were back on to tarmac and very soon took a stop at Wat Maer Takai.
This relatively modest compound holds some beautiful Temple buildings.
But the most interesting feature is the huge and varied amount of images;
Buddha to Ganesh to King Rama and more.
That said, the front of the main temple building is also stunning in its artwork.
From here we then rode on, following our leader Ally , who took us into the National Park area and up to Khun Tan Railway station.
What a beautiful spot, its like something out of The Railway Children, with palm trees. Lovingly landscaped and manicured, you feel you are waiting in somebodies garden rather than a station. We came across a group of farang who had been staying in lodges and had a little gripe about how long they had been waiting for the train to come. I could only remark about what a wonderful place to have to wait.
We stayed for coffee and saw their train arrive, exiting the tunnel from the mountain, that looks too small from the platform.
Look out for the Khun Tan butterflies basking in the sun.
This quiant surprise of a place is well worth a visit, another one of those spots to kill some time in my sort of ‘comfort’.
We had had a long ride through the day, so from here it was basically continuing on to meet the Highway 11 at Mae Ta, where we also visited the train station. Although not in quite such a stunning location, this station was equally well cared for and landscaped, where waiting for a train could only be a joy.
Heading back down the highway towards Chiang Mai, another 20 odd kilometres got us home to Lamphun, where Ally stopped for coffee and to get her long lost memory card. Next week Ally?
For more photos from this day please visit our photobucket album here.
Making the age old mistake of not sorting the price first we then got a tuk tuk to the border crossing, stopping first at an agents where we booked one night in a hotel in Vientiane. We knew we’d be paying a little over the odds but i wanted to relax as much as possible.
Getting through the border was simple enough, and because we had booked the room the hotel had sent a minibus to pick us up and we were at the hotel by 11am. Having already decided to treat the trip as a mini holiday we were in no rush and spent the rest of the daylight hours in our room, showering and sleeping.
In the evening we found a very nice restaurant 5 minutes walk up the road. Well, the restaurant was nice, and the food excellent, shame that the service was very much on the slow side and barely a smile to be seen.
We had hired bicycles from the hotel and after putting in the application we went first to a nearby massage shop, for Thai massage, and then for food at a local cafe.
After some time at the famous concrete Gate and a bit more clothes shopping we returned for more scowls at the French Restaurant up the road, before taking another early night. We just didn’t find any inspiration for a decent night out there.
For 150 baht each we had access to the 3 pools available.
We ended up spending one more day, visiting Wat Phratat Luang, a large Temple complex.
Having booked into The Karin Hotel (400baht double aircon), we took a stroll around town.
Much higher on my list of return journeys than Vientiane.
After a brief walk around and breakfast at the cafe we set off for our next destination, Wat Pa dara Phirom. To get there we turned right out of the car park and carried on down the road which follows the continuing canal from Chiang Mai, to a small intersection with a bridge.Turning left over the bridge and immediately left again going down the otherside of the canal took us to the very impressive Wat Pa Dara Phirom.
This Temple wat developed in the 1890s, on land donated by a decendant of the great Lanna Princess, Phra Raja Jaya, born Chao Dara Rasmi, 11th daughter to Chao Inthawichayanon, one of the last rulers of Chiang Mai and the Lanna Kingdom. Doi Inthanon was named after this King. For an excellent 
The extensive compound holds various Temple buildings and Viharns and is has feast of historical relics spotted all around.
The plush main Temple has exquisite decorations on the outside and equally extravagant decor inside, including chandeliars and a silver metal beaten image of the Princess.
There is some remarkable art work inside the white Chedi to the right of the entrance, including an interesting ‘Buddha foot’ impression in the centre.
The gardens are as stunning as the architecture with such a wide variety of trees, many of which were in glorious bloom when we visited.
Turning left out of the Temple road, towards the mountain we soon came to another Temple at a small village,Wat Ampa Wan.
We then tried taking the side road that the Temple stood at the corner of and ended up on a mud track passing some local women harvesting Jack Fruit, who happily informed us that we could carry on and just keep turning left. Well we tried, but ended up returning the way we came. Still, it was fun.
Once on that road we stopped outside the Elephant camp for a fresh coffee, passing one of the camps elephants on its way home from work, before carrying on around the Loop that takes you around the western side of Doi Suthep and its neighboring peaks.
Look out for mountain streams;
a beautiful terraced landscaped resort which we discovered, on our next trip that way, has a Thai cookery school, with classes held in the wooden construction you see at the top of the garden area.
It is not until you get to the top of the entrance steps that you realise that the grounds then extend up the hillside behind the Temple and that there are many more steps to explore the whole site.
There is a wonderful Monks building to the left of the main Temple with a roof completely covered with a lush climber with orange flowers. There was also a large courtyard which then led through to a large school in the land adjacent to the temple grounds. For more photos, please visit our 
Wat Tay Par Lam (my translator is not 100% sure on this as the sign is in Lanna language)
Needing to get back to the business there wasn’t much time for stopping elsewhere other than to catch the many fantastic views along the way.
For more photos from this day please visit our 
Here’s yet another great day out for you. Quite a special one with lots of historical and cultural interest. We tend to start these days out at around 11am, due to business commitments, but if you were to set off a little earlier you’d give yourself even more time to take it all in.
When the River Ping changed course, during the Burmese period,the area became flooded and was buried under river mud and silt. In the 1980s, after rediscovery during construction of a football pitch, the ancient site was developed into an historical park.
There are several Temple sites revealed over quite a large area with a wonderfully rural feel to it.
A popular way to get around the whole site is by taking one of the pony and cart tours available.
So, after our brief visit to Wiang Kum Kam, it was a short excursion on the outer ring road (Rte 121) towards San Kampaeng and taking a lunch stop at Inter – Mini Golf, an 18 hole pitch & put obstacle course, on the San Kamphaeng Road opposite the turn off to Bo Sang.
Once again, even having been in Chiang Mai for 3 years now, I got that ‘newcomer’ feeling as we entered Bo Sang from the opposite direction to the one I have used previously.
Lo and behold I finally saw the main Umbrella factory that I have always missed on my previous visits.
Much more ‘touristy than the smaller affair mentioned in my previous Bo Sang report, from my family visit, it is nonetheless much more interesting, with a much better insight into what goes into the making of the famous Umbrellas.
Behind the huge shop is the ‘factory’ area, where you can stroll around at your leisure and watch the five stages of the manufacturing process.
If you are wanting to find out more than just what you get from looking it is possible to get a guide to go around with you, who can answer your questions.
A nice touch to the set up is that the artists, of which there are many, will, for a small fee, paint one of their many designs onto to virtually anything you give them. One present craze is mobile phones.
All that said, Wat Doi Saket is one of those that can be considered to be on ‘the tourist trail’, as many of the larger mountain Temples are.
Most notable for me was the Chedi ‘within’ a Chedi, something I’ve never seen before.
And the artwork inside the main Temple is another mind blower, with some quite surreal and futuristic works included on the huge walls.
At the top is a recently landscaped area with terraced lily ponds and even better views than you get from the Temple that it overlooks.
It has a grand statue of the Buddha aboard a multi headed pink elephant.
There are tables spotted around the terraced garden and it is a perfect place to sit in meditative thought. For more photos please visit our 
Now admittedly we were not there long enough to explore exactly what Phayao has to offer. The lake is huge, and I suspect good for boaters. But we were dissapointed to see no evidence of swimming areas and for me, apart from its size, I found the lakes landscape to be quite boring.
All efforts to find a guest house failed. The only information we got was on hotels costing 600 baht a night minimum and some lake side bungalows , which turned out to be closed down.
Having sorted our accomodation we went back down to the Lakeside where there are many bars and restaurants and had a very nice evening meal, where we ordered a few different dishes and shared. A little above Chiang Mai street prices but very good food and reasonable cost.
It was another baking day and we took it slowly again, always on the look out for more waterfalls , which proved to be quite elusive. We did find this small one just a little way into Chae Son valley.
Just a little way down the road we hit a long stretch of roadworks, where I thought it prudent to stop and put sunblock on as there was no let up in the scorching sunshine and my knees were starting to look very red.So it was a slow dusty ride for quite a way, and we were giving up all hope of finding the lake. It was around 2.30pm and we were about to turn around , when we spotted the sign post for Kiu Lom lake.
This trip was turning out to be full of anti-climax. I can only imagine that this lake increases in size considerably in the wetter seasons. Still we had been riding a long time in the heat of the day and it was still a nice place to take a rest and relax for an hour or so.
It wasn’t long before we found out why. And if I ever do it again I will use a more powerful bike. Be warned, the road from Mueang Pan is extremely steep in many places and takes you up and down several mountains as it takes you across to Doi Saket.
Once the light dissapeared it got bloody cold up in those fearsome mountains and all we had was our sunny day wear. Had we hit a problem, we had no tent, no chance of a phone signal, no food and little water. Ok , we had two bikes so hopefully one of us could have gone for help, but the look of those roads in places suggested that the chance of landslides ahead and behind us was not totally impossible. Just as well I hadn’t thought of all this before we started, or else we would have missed out on an awesome trip. I can’t say for sure how high we got but about half way down the last hill we passed a sign that read 14,500, (ft, i think).
This was just 3 weeks ago, in the first week of April, when Lars, a Danish plumber, with a penchant for interior design, had been visiting for a couple of weeks and was keen to get out and see more of Northern Thailand.
Boon had quite a busy schedule with his business, but we decided to fit in a couple of days traveling with Lars, who had turned up with Conga Dave, an old friend from the UK. Shame Dave had already gone home really.
Lars had been out and rented a 250cc Honda Chopper.By all accounts very comfortable and certainly handled the hills a touch better than my 150cc JRD., but then I did have a passenger.
By midday we were pretty much melting and on the hunt for a waterfall where we might be able to cool down.
It took a while but eventually we came apon a beautifully refreshing spot, around 30kms from Phayao, and free! Always the best.
We joined many Thais, including a bunch of village kids who had been taken there by a group of Buddhist Monks, soaking in the natural beauty, and getting soaked in the wonderfully cooling water that gushed down the mountainside.
The first is entered via an old stone stairway, which, apart from the very first few steps, which take you under a very impressive archway, is long but not so steep.
There are actually several small Temples of differing styles on this first site as well as quite an array of impressive stone statues, set amongst the mountain forest trees it is so peaceful, apart from the hums and buzzs of the forest insect life.
If ever I take the plunge and sign up as a Monk , this is definitely high on the list of places I’d like to do it.
So quiet, and so much beauty, both the architecture and the scenery, some great views of the surrounding countryside .
This Buddha was obviously very old and possibly in need of renovation, and looking across to the third sight where the replica of Buddhas Temple can be found.
Completely different in design to Thai Temples this blue/white stone edifice casts an imposing feature on the landscape. It is set in manicured landscaped gardens , another must for anyone interested in the Buddhist theme.
We had an amusing start, when we got quarter of the way from home and realised that we’d left the train tickets behind. We went on our motorcy and sidecart so that Boons friend Son could come along and take the bike home for us.
Arriving at Kaow San, somewhat shaken but also totally exhilarated, our destination was somewhat of a let down.
Many of the cafes reflect the presence of these people with their prices but it was possible, we found, to search out more reasonably priced outlets and some very good food.
Luckily they were able to sort the problem in about half an hour….but be aware that this is not an uncommon problem with the Thai bus tours.
We arrived in Surithani at around 6.30. At this point the passengers all split off for their separate destinations on connecting services. We had about an hours wait for our onward bus to 
So, in the afternoon we headed out of town to find the sea, and after about an hours riding around palm lined roads, through rocky gorges and quiet Thai villages, we came apon 
This huge beach stretches out over a couple of mile, to the west of Krabi Bay. It has a couple of Islets, reachable by foot when the tide is low. There are many eateries close to the beach, with many options, whether your budget is small or large.
Up early the next morning, we had a very good American breakfast before the transport arrived to take us on our trip.
The ride to our departure point, 
Our first stop was 
On to the paradise island, made famous in the 
The speedboat pilot didn’t let up on the open sea but did occasionally slow down as we passed other small islands so that we could appreciate the beauty, of which there was so much.
From Maya Beach it was of for lunch on Phi Phi Island. Yet another idyllic location, although for me it was a little spoiled by its commercialism. But dont be put off, if you are looking for a paradise holiday destination this place should come high on the list.
It has plenty of cafes and restaurants to choose from, a great market village, resorts and all the usual Island tours, diving, snorkeling , trekking, etc.
Nearby Monkey Island was our next stop , where we moored a little offshore and went snorkelling around the extensive coral beds. We had enough time to swim into the beach if we wanted and a couple of our fellow passengers took that option, to check out the monkeys on the beach. Boon and I stuck with the snorkelling in the deep waters, so many more fish to see, especially when the boat hands threw bread. This made the fish come in from all over and we were in the thick of them , some literally brushing past our goggles.
This was our last stop before heading back to Ao Nang Beach. The weather had worsened and the seas were even choppier than on the trip out. I had to retreat from the bow position, about half way back, because it was just too much.
The activity the day before had been quite tiring so we had an easy start the next morning, heading out on the bike at around 10.30. We first went in search of the Tiger Cave Temple, just outside Krabi. It was a nice ride past many mountainous rocks jutting out of the flat lands. A long tree lined road took us into the Temple grounds and we parked up to take a look around.
Above the Temple is a huge mountain rock, on top of which is a large Sitting Buddha and viewing platform. You just have to climb the 1237 steps to get there.Puffing and panting I dragged myself up. I have to admit to almost reaching my limit around 3 quarters of the way up. Foolishly we had forgotten to take water with us and there was scant shelter from the blazing sun on the steps.
