Another great ride out with my good friend Ally.
Making sure I was properly prepared for the cooler weather we have now, I eagerly awaited Allys arrival at my home in Mae salab, keen to get a much needed break from the day to day running of The Stratton ABC Foundation.
Just after 9am she duly arrived and we set off on our journey, riding up to Banthi and left towards San Kam Peang.
Turning right at the main road from Chiang Mai to San Kam Paeng Hot Springs we headed up into the mountains around Doi Saket.
Our original destination was actually was Chae Hom Dam, via the winding mountain roads that, whilst looking like short cuts on the map, are a much longer ride than the highways due to the extreme inclines, hairpins, and potholes along the way. But all this taken in to account , treat the route with due respect and you will enjoy some spectacular views, peace, fantastic mountain air, and friendly greetings along the way.
Not far into our journey we started to see trays of coffee beans laid out at the roadsides, drying in the sun.
A little further we rode through a delightful village and came across further stages in the coffee production process…..follow this link for more.
After enjoying the delicious coffee as well as tasting some of the freshly roasted beans,we pressed on.
There is something about the lush green mountain forests and those twisting roads with their overhang tree ‘tunnels’, brightly coloured flowers and sounds of the wide variety of bird and animal life that means that I can never get enough of it.
Around midday we joined the road that Boon and myself had ridden before , on our way back from Phayao. That ride had been in the early evening and we were not at all prepared, for what was a freezing cold trip in the dark,
in extremely treacherous conditions.
Ever since that crazy ride I had been itching to take that trip in the day time.
The road appeared to be in mildly better condition than the previous time but there were still stretches of potholes that would appear suddenly; stretches where the forest was doing its place to reclaim the road, making it very narrow at times; and most concerning, places where the mountain was reclaiming the road.
This means that even in the daytime you retain an almost constant sense of nervous anticipation; a branch cracks and falls somewhere along the roadside and you quickly look for signs of slipping mountainside; then you look through the gaps in the forestation and gasp as the stunning beauty of it takes your breath away and whatever trepidation you may have about the state of the road fades to insignificance.
We soon realised that our extended stop at the ‘coffee village’ had delayed us enough to mean that reaching Chae Hom Dam and getting back in daylight just wasn’t going to happen.
So instead of carrying on to Chae Son and Muang Pan we took a right through the National Park. At the check point Ally explained that we were simply passing through on route to Chiang Mai and not actually visiting the waterfall there, and so we avoided having to pay.
We did stop for lunch at the National Park restaurant which sits beside a delightful mountain stream and we spotted many varieties of rarely seen birds as we ate.
From there it was more winding roads, more great views and many picturesque fords on the way to Huai Kaeo and the main road back to Chiang Mai.
Before reaching Huai Kaeo we stopped to see Mae Kapong waterfall, which is just a few metres from the roadside and then stopped at a wonderful new coffee shop in the village that has a great balcony overlooking the main village in the valley below.
For more photos please visit our photobucket album here.
For a more precise instruction on the directions we took and more photos please visit Ally site here.
Well worth the trip yet again:) I got back to Mae Salab a little after 6pm as the sun went down.
We had arranged to meet at the point where we had parted company last week.
Ally had promised more hills, lakes and a Cave Temple this week, so off we went heading out towards San Kampaeng Hot springs but almost immediately turning off onto a dirt track that follows the irrigation canal there.
Whereas the terrain along this canal route was not especially exciting , sometimes it is enough just to be away from the main drags, surrounded by trees and passing through genuine rural communities, and then out of nowhere coming across…a Temple.
With no English translations we had to photograph the Temple name sign for translation later to Wat Doi Zill.
Reaching our first planned destination was delayed a little when we took a diversion, turning right, across a small bridge over the canal, to another reservoir, that appeared on Allys GPS, as Thi Reservoir; not to be mistaken for the Thi reservoir we visited last week, a few miles away at Banthi.
The track ended up veering off into the forest, and although we continued into the trees a ways we turned back when it was clear that there were no other visible motorbike tracks.
Heading back to the canal and soon returning to tarmac we headed right,up to Huai Hong Khai 7 , a huge reservoir. Riding into the government buildings there, Ally pointed out the restaurant. Food at last!
The coach party were clearly late and the caterers took pity on us and promptly laid out 4 different dishes plus rice and water. A much nicer lunch than we would likely have bought elsewhere. The chef and waiter were very friendly and chatted with us for a while and refused to let us pay, although we did insist on leaving a tip.
It was not so far then to the 3005 where we went to the 196 Coffee Corner. Ally is now good friends with the proprietors, Khun Keung and Khun Chai, a lovely Thai couple. Whilst we chatted and drank our coffee they handed us bananas from their own trees, deliciously sweet and great with the coffee.
Be warned, the steps here are deceptively steep, especially if you’re an out of shape smoker. Luckily there are not so many. But still, by the time we got to the viewing platform I did wonder how on earth I made it up the 
The bigger problem for me was more steep steps to the lower levels.
We detoured on the route home, through San Kampaeng, navigating our way through the Saturday Street Market and on to a Coffee shop on the way to Bo Sang.
Our start point was Wat Pang Yuu, which you will find by taking the Hang Dong turn off Highway 11, the one that actually carries on to Samoeng. The Temple is on the left with the entry road being just before the river bridge.
Ally informed me that, although it was not the first time she had visited , she was very impressed with what is clearly a relatively recent facelift. On her previous visit it had apparently been a very run down and neglected place.
Also, don’t miss the ancient looking Buddha scene, under the trees to the left of the pond. Though not lavishly painted like the newer statues you see from the road, for me this image has the real Buddha spirit about it somehow.
And very nice it was to. The River Ping, away from the city centre, certainly on this stretch towards Lamphun, has a wonderfully relaxing effect and a look that belies its size and strength. With the many ancient overhanging trees, floating water plants and its many twists and turns it feels more like a beautiful winding stream.
Didn’t actually get the name of the place but it appears to be a Thai concern, that, the lady who served us our coffee informed us, specializes in fish dishes along with other common Thai options. It is right on the river bank, looking towards the large weir we would visit shortly after. A lovely quiet place for coffee and a very likely meal out place in the future, being not so far from home.
after coffee it was just a couple of minutes ride before we reached the impressive looking weir, which looks to be a fairly new addition, or has at least been recently refurbished and acts also as a river crossing for pedestrians and motorcys. It is at this point that the canal system for Lamphun starts. The surrounding area is quiet lovely, with a nice size gazebo on the banks of the canal, which was occupied by a friendly bunch of local youngsters at the time.
All along the way, apart from the river there are several amazing buildings, from lavish homes to ‘wild shacks’ as Ally calls them.
On the way back to Chiang Mai we spotted a few fishermen in the water hauling nets; stopped for lunch at a local Thai outlet, very tasty food and only 20 baht!;
and shortly before parting at 1.30 , took a short detour to a very nice coffee shop just off the super highway.
So leaving here at around 10 am we first stopped at the Car Wash outlet underneath Tesco Lotus at Kamtieng.
About half an hour later we left on a shiny JRD, barely recognisable from the filthy wreck we rode in on.
We then popped over to The Brick Road Cafe where I sat and had drinks while Boon went off to Central Plaza for a haircut. And very smart he looked when he returned.
After feeding the fish for a while we spotted a stall selling plain plaster figurines, along with small amounts of various colour paints. Behind the stall was a shelter where there were a few brushes and a pallet available for customers who wished to sit and paint there figures whilst enjoying the ambience of the day.
oh and heres the orange Wave!
There are some wonderful sights to be seen out and about the Chiang Mai area. I spotted this big fellow whilst out on my motorbike for the day and couldnt resist getting this shot. Carved from a single block of wood this excellent piece of work stood a good 5 foot tall and at least 3 ft wide and would set you back 40, 000 baht if you fancied ordering one,(including delivery within 20 kms of Chiang Mai City). Chatting to the craftsmen I discovered that he produces pieces of many different sizes, with a range of prices. Check back in a couple of weeks when I hope to have posted a special feature on his work, from untouched block to the finished job.
