Motorbike the Mae Hong Son Loop
Ok I’ve heard that this route is like a right of passage with some motorbike enthusiasts so when we got a chance to do the loop I thought yeah lets tick this one off.
With a lot of research done by me ever diligent wife, all the hotels and little out of the way places were booked. And I some cases there were literally full, I mean booked out! In the township do Pai we had to secure two different properties for two consecutive nights and one of those was the honeymoon suite in a luxury resort…. Ok one night of pampering after the journey is deserved.
The plan was to complete the loop traveling in a clockwise direction. As this way we can get to grips with the bike on the smoother part of the journey.
Form the city of Chiang Mai to the township of Hot (yes that’s the towns name) we took highway 108 before stopping for lunch as we turned right at the roundabout in the centre of town.
Stopping just 50m from the corner at a roadside local eating house we discovered that is seems the only dish offered to Farang, the name for foreigners was Pad Thai. Oh yay here we go again. But if your cruising through this area try it as we found out the servings are twice the size of any restaurants in Chiang Mai and half the price.
From here highway 108 turns toward the Burma border and heads up and I to the mountains, the turns get a little tight but riding a Kawasaki ERN650 in made short work of the journey. Seriously you don’t want a cruiser on this piece of road, more power than a 650cc is pointless as there is not much more that a bigger bike would be required for, and trying to hire one is next to impossible.
There are plenty of places to hire bikes in Chiang Mai and it lays to do a little research before you part with your money as there are some dodgy dealers in the north.one of the best sites for information is GT Rider. Using their site we deducted that the best place for us to book in with was Mr Mecanic, and here we are now kitted up on one of there bikes.
The road to Mae Saraing
Heading south east out of Chiang Mai we had our first unscheduled stop. Elena broke her sunglasses. While normally that’s no biggie, try finding a pair in a large shopping centre… not an easy task. Elena spent what seemed like eternity as I waited outside in the now midday heat.
The ride to Mae Saraing takes two directions, either through the mountain town of Mae Chaem or via the town of Hot. As we were getting our bearings we opted for the town of hot to get to grips with the bike and the roads.
Mae Saraing to Mae Hong Son
Rising early the plan was to get on the road as early as we could, but with Black Ant Coffee supplying a complacently American breakfast we just had to sit by the river and soak up the last of the atmosphere in Mae Seraing. If you love you coffee come to this place, it’s strong and dark and a real wake up call in the morning. Elena opted for tea. As Thai people don’t use dairy products much the milk in the tea was condensed milk which gave an orange colour and the most sweet cuppa that Elena’s had in a long time. Apparently it’s what she would do as a child in Russia.
Next stop for two nights was Mae Hong Son…
Mae Hong Son to Pai
The plan was to get up early and get on the road but Fern Eco Resort has a little trick up its sleeve that makes you sleep until almost 8am each morning, the surrounding hills and mist each day dims the light into the cabin and with such a comfortable bed it’s hard to get going. After a breakfast of fried rice and Thai noodles, then and omelette with sausage and followed by fruit we were packed literally and ready to take on the most demanding section of our ride to date. We wanted to check out a small village Ban Rak Thai about 27km off the main 1095 road. There’s also a massive waterfall and from the main road it’s best to look for the Pha Sua waterfall sign first. It makes a good pit stop before to up and up and up ride to the village. The switchbacks just kept coming and I was concerned about the trip back down again.
Ban Rak Thai formed as a result of Chinese Nationals fleeing the communist regime of China in the early 50s and finally settling in this highland valley in the late 50’s. Bring with then the skills of creating fine Tea’s the village is popular with both Thai and international visitors. Nestled around a small man made lake with a large dam there are two distinct shopping areas. One is on the main road as you enter the village, the other is accessed by continuing on through this part of the village then turning right and following the road around the the dam in a clockwise direction. Once leaving this second shopping area be sure to still have your camera out as there are some pretty picturesque photo opportunities as the road passes across the to of the dam. Don’t forget to snap a shot of the mud and bamboo houses that serve the local community.
Apparently there is a dirt road from Ban Rak Thai that leads across the boarder into Burma that’s only 2km long but with thoughts of entering a country that is controlled by a military regime without the relevant travel visa we decided that we wouldn’t tempt fate.
Missing a turn on the way back we lost a little time and clocked up an extra 20km but we were happy to be back on tar sealed roads, part of the road to Ban Rak Thai consisted of concrete and yet is serves well on the autobahn of Europe, it was as bumpy as hell and hard on the bike and passenger.
After descending for what seemed eternity the road followed along a short valley filled with rice fields before making its way up again snaking its way over the highland mountains of Northern Thailand.
This ride is turning out to be quite a demanding ride and for those who arrive in Chiang Mai and have never ridden you’re going to find the loop a bit of a challenge. I’d only recommend this ride to fellow bikers who have had experience on larger bike and have ridden for at least a couple of years. Although there will always be some guy on a scooter who, while getting a bike that he’s comfortable with will underestimate the sheer size of the loop and the massive height of the mountainous terrain that you have to traverse.
Pai To Chiang Mai
This was to be the most challenging section of the ride and by doing the loop in a clockwise direction I’d become comfortable with the bike by this stage. We’d gotten up early as we wanted to clear the town before to crowds turned up for New Years. the mist had rolled in heavy off the mountains and the air was cool and damp.
Stopping for fuel and making a run up the valley we soon discovered a couple of the local tourist attractions, and so had half the town. the road was bumper to bumper and reminded me of rush hour in a large city. Getting around traffic was easy though you just have to be brave and hope that all the cars coming the other way would give you a little space. The bikes keep left rule also helped as you can overtake cars on the left as well (if your game) the villages seemed bigger and with only a couple of stops on the way for coffee and comfort stops I was a little disappointed, mainly because of all the traffic and didn’t really get to give the bike a bit of a work out. However once clear of all the corners I opened it up for the last 40km back into Chiang Mai.
6 Days…. Exhilarating, Cultural, Mystifying and simply breathtaking.
I can totally understand people turning around and doing the ride twice… Oh for more time!
