Fastest man on 2 wheels and bird on bird competitions

December 16^th – Trang to La Ngu - 61.14 miles, Av. 10.9, Max 38.2, Ride time 5hours 32minutes

This was a great day of riding despite the temperature after lunch cresting the heady heights of 47 degrees. My fastest speed of the journey so far and 42 miles by lunch meant we arrived at our potential overnight stop by 12 noon. We however decided to press on to the next major town so that tomorrow we have an easier final days riding in Thailand. We are into serious rubber plantation land which also means more people and a great day of hollering many hellos in the general direction from where the originating ones come from. Pick-ups with workers are now slowing as they pass to get both a good look at the loonies on bikes but also to share many hello’s and where are you going? We have watched the workers during our stop move from tree to tree emptying the little cups of rubber resin that has been bled from the tree and then moving gracefully on to the next. We now know that the pick-ups with the tanks in the back are collection vehicles from the communities of workers who harvest the rubber and take it to the tanker points and onto the huge processing plants we have passed.

Leaving Trang was again an experience of the driving and riding antics of the distracted and reinforcing why cycling in Thailand can be a tad risky. But seeing men walking their bulls in the morning on the side of the road as one would walk a dog in the UK was amusing and just on our way into our lunch stop we witnessed our first bird sing off competition.

Birds here are a massive part of society, I have yet to identify for sure the type but since Ranong everyone seems to have a cage with an ornately styled hanging hook. We have seen men sitting in front of a stack of 4x4 cages watching and listening as intently as if it were a Thai boxing competition. To witness 30 cages hanging from an open sided tent and see the judge and his whistle at work was a sight and sound that will last with me for a while.

Tonight we found a little bungalow complex about a kilometre outside of La Ngu and very near the largest Tesco lotus we have had the pleasure of frequenting. We arrived and checked in and within 20 mins there was the most rain I have seen fall in 90 minutes ever.

I also had a doorway incident tonight. All door ways to bathrooms - wetrooms as there is no bath are well under 6ft high. Standing in them and standing up straight very quickly almost rendered me unconscious and needed a lie down. Before venturing anywhere. I have been here for 6 weeks you would think I would know!

We are always exhibits when we venture out to local shops or restaurants. Very few westerners ever come to these towns to stay. Most pass through the transit towns that have bus depots and change points versus some of the larger outlying towns where there really is no reason other than curiosity to take you there. Tonight we were under the microscope again not just for our dashingly beautiful looks but also the contents of our shopping basket. You become immune to it after a while but because we were in a Tesco’s in just made me smile a little bit more than normal and after smacking my head on the bathroom door I don’t blame anyone for thinking that I was even more off my rocker.

We cheated on dinner tonight by cycling into town unladen and frequenting KFC. Wow in the UK we have so got it wrong, this was full table service KFC and whilst they only had spicy chicken it was awesome and a first that G can remember for her.

December 17 – La Ngu to Satun – 32.11 miles, 10.6 av, max 29.5, ride time 3 hours.

We rose much later than our normal 5.30a, knowing we only had 30 miles to crack out before we reached our final destination in Thailand. Rubber plantations now gave way to lily pad meadows, lots of hellos and a reduction in traffic. The road became a little like a rollercoaster but we still made good time into a town I am sure needs to be renamed Satan. It is not much to write about and to stay in is an experience.

It is the safest way however to cross from Thailand to Malaysia without the threat of being shot or kidnapped so advisable we think to put up with the ancient helicopter coming into land fan over the bed and pillows that are so crusty that we both almost vomited when we looked at them – they looked like crocodile skin until we realised that those shapes and stiffness had been made by fellow humans…

Ons is a great little restaurant/café/hang out and with a large screen TV we did chill and watch a significant proportion of 101 Dalmatians. Met another long distance tourer from Manchester staying in the same hotel – he was so chilled about routes, travelling and language that I would not be surprised if he were still at the same hotel today.

December 18 – Satun, Thailand to Port to Boat to Langkawi, Malaysia – 19.87 miles (6 in Thailand the rest crossing Langkawi), 2 hours ride time in total, journey took another 90 minutes on top.

We were up and out with the larks this morning and the earliest we had ever left @ 6.30 with a boat crossing booked for 8.30ish. We got the fast direct boat to Langkawi after much negotiation around bikes yet again.G slept for the crossing whilst I stood outside to watch the changing scenery and our arrival in Kuah on Langkawi.

Now it takes us a little longer to unpack and repack the bikes than those with one piece of luggage so no wonder we seemed to completely bypass immigration to emerge in the duty free mall sans visa. After much frustration we manage to find a guy in the usual jeans and t-shirt who said he worked for the port and could help us. We wandered back past immigration and another came out of an office, big smiles, disappeared into the office with our passports and came out a minute later with stamps in them. How different this is to the EU or any of the countries I have travelled through so far. I think I am going to like it here.

My first 1000 miles and a canine encounter

13^th December – Khao Sok to Thap Put – 53.68 miles, Av 10.8, Max 28.5 and 4.56 hours ride time.

Magnificent, majestic and mesmerising are the 3 m’s that best describe the scenery we have cycled through and past today. And I am personally chuffed with my first 1000miles! It did not rain last night or this morning so packing up camp was almost a joy. The road was undulating allowing our bodies to get back into the rhythm of cycling with our loads. Limestone cliffs and scarps rising out of the jungle, some naked allowing sight of the caves and clefts that pock mark their faces. Some covered in the green of trees all the way to their spires. Clouds cling like candy floss to some and it is just awesome on the grandest of scales to witness nature in this way and at time utterly breathtaking. No lens would be able to capture it in the way that your sight can and the impression it leaves in your mind. It was so tranquil and after a break for sugar intake we turned south once again, leaving the environs of the park and moving into the rural plantations and terracing of hills. Water bottles at the ready now as we have now discovered these are a useful dog deterrent as we move into more inhabited areas.

Lunch in a village that yet again our cartographer friends seemed to have overlooked. Not sure what we had but being next to the school brought many hellos and the practice of English. We arrived at the junction of the main highway and with the help of a pick-up driver turned right into town despite the map saying left and found yet another pay by the hour establishment. Awesome as the space for the car that all would normally turn up in became a camping drying area and dinner was interspersed by watching the local youth population on their uprated moto’s cruising the main drag in town with the loudest hairdryer noises I have yet to hear.

December 14 – Thap Put to Klong Thom – 63.63 miles – Av 10.8, Max 29, ride time 5hours 49 minutes

Undulating, if a 10% gradient can be called that. Rain, hot, rain, spikey rain, steel rod rain, hot spikey steel rod rain made up todays riding weather. Saw a sign for Jam Island and wondered if I could buy it. Saw a restaurant called ‘Condoms and Cabbages’ and wondered at the madness of registering business names.

Had a couple of minor incidents today, first riding uphill stacked it quite spectacularly down the embankment, shaken but not stirred continued on and made the decision to this time stop at one of the chicken rotisseries at the road side. OMG I have never had chicken quite like it, a whole one between us at 9.30am was probably a little too much but it was yum on every level. G noticed that my back panniers looked odd. Umm no wonder as my early stack had caused the entire rear frame to come apart and it had been held on for 20 plus miles by a bungee cord! Repairs commenced and after 20 minutes we were back on the road. We stopped for lunch in Krabi and watched some industrious cha making before an afternoon of rain riding.

it is not pleasant to watch but this is the person who said they did not want any!

The second incident was of the canine variety. We had some very polite advice from a dad on a moto with his 3 children who inquired as to where we were going then suggested a number of hotels in the area. We searched for the first one without luck and decided to follow a road through a residential area that seemed likely to possess a bed for the evening. There were a number of hounds that showed a keen interest in us but after checking in and deciding to ride back into town for breakfast ingredients one of the same hounds decided that I was game on and went for me. I was probably doing 15 miles an hour when its canine teeth went through the empty rear pannier. I don’t quite know what speed I then got up to but was a little shaken by the time we reached the sanctity of yet another 7eleven.

Dinner was in a small restaurant opposite the hotel and Cow Pat Moo as it is phonetically was the best we have had to date.

now where did I park my pick up?

December 15^th – Klong Thom to Trang – 54.25 miles, Av 10.5, Max 21.7, Ride time 5hours and temp 41

Overloaded pick up trucks and hills that seemed to be never ending along with an n increase in the temperature meant today was a tough one. We are back into more of a rural landscape heading to Trang. The heat today got to me and by the time we arrived I was in need to sugar and rehydration. Trang is a funny old place, allegedly known for its BBQ ribs, bull to bull fighting and bird to bird sing offs. The café we found in the main square became our base for the evening and more westerner style food was our menu of choice. G also felt the heat today so we ate carefully and headed back for an early night. I did however manage to find Mr Bicycle in Trang and purchased for the first time out here a tube that would actually fit my bike and a sturdier lock to replace the one we left behind in Ranong.

Rainforest enlightenment and reflection

December 10 – Takua Pa to Khao Sok National Park – 26.24 miles – av. 8.6 – max – 36.4 and ride time of 3 hours

Ummm are we glad we did not push ourselves to get to the national park as an add-on to the end of a day. We climbed over 2000ft in a 4km knee trembling 6-10% gradient that took us up to the highest road point in southern Thailand. Bit of a shame that the map maker had forgotten to put this level of detail on the map, but then as we have found they have missed many roads and communities that we have discovered by chance.

This was my first real test of both physical and mental strength but with the encouragement of G and the many truck, coach and pick up drivers who gave us a wide berth and many a subdue toot of their horns we crested the top. It was a magnificent day and the sounds of the jungle were beneath us. The ride down the other side, and my highest speed so far, were exhilarating and almost worth the climb.

I am so glad that the watermelon got it!

a rest stop in a Thai bus stop

you have to be joking!

We entered the park, a 160 million year old rainforest and set about our first campsite with much vigour from two people who both know best! We are camped by a river with the bikes secured against a tree and the sounds of the jungle around us. The nearest restaurant is also our ablution block! Laundry, dinner and emails and bed were very much the order of the day.

This is the first day where I questioned my sanity of undertaking this venture. I have left behind my 2 beautiful children who miss me as much as I miss them every day, Skype helps but cannot replace a hug. I have walked out of one client who had put a job offer on the table that I was surprised and delighted with and is a client I dearly want to work for if they ever see fit to have me back with them, I have left my family to manage my house, car and all of the things that can’t be done by world wide web including looking after my children on weekends when I would normally have had their company. I have suspended my business which was on target for beating last year’s turnover and making me have a slightly more comfortable 2011. For what I asked myself as the mileage computer on the bike heaved round at less than 3 miles an hour, my quadriceps, calf muscles, knee joints screaming for release as I struggled up the mountain determined after a good talking to from G not to stop and push.

I have done this for me. I have been in the eyes of many extremely selfish in my undertaking and the speed at which I went from decision to airport. It has cost me around £10000 to do this including the purchase of a bike to train on and my tourer. I am not asking for sympathy in this endeavour. I have done this to challenge myself in all of the norms I have existed with so far. Those that know me, also know that over the last 5 months I have changed or maybe unlocked what I had thought needed to be locked away. I am more trusting, I am more forgiving, and I am more present every day and live with what will be will be. I feel more alive each day, I feel that I am and on my return to normality will be a better person than I have been. I know I owe many a debt of gratitude that will be difficult to repay as their kindness in listening, sharing or just being there when I have need an ear is a challenging act to follow.

It has been challenging in both physical and mental ways some of which I had given passing thought to and others that I did not even know existed. I have been sharing openly how I feel about the day, my legacy to date and the present. I have given some thought to what the future might hold. All I know is that right now I have 2 beautiful children who miss their dad and know that he loves them very much and in 6 weeks or so time we will be able to hug each other for real.

I have done this for me and also to be with a woman whom I admire, respect, am proud of, am challenged by and love very much. She is doing this for far higher purpose than I and in the achievements we now complete together it reminds me of the fact that there are others out there completing random acts of kindness because they can and want to, some of these need our support. All I ask is that you have a look as others have done at the following link and think, it maybe Christmas, it may be snowing, cold and an inconvenience to plans but can I spare a little to those to whom it would mean a lot.

first time seeing a man out walking his elephant

I know exactly how these sharp shooters felt when I reached this sign

December 11-12^th Khao Sok National Park

Think Jurassic Park and you are not far off. I have never heard such noises in the night let alone the day emanating from the environment which surrounds us. I have named this the screwfix/toolstation/machine mart orchestra of rainforest life. There is one particular individual or group as they remain elusive despite my quest to find the source, the dremel insect – it is such a high pitched screech that at times it can reach a level where we have had to talk loudly from a foot away just to be heard. There is also the strimmer, chainsaw, angle grinder on steel as well as concrete, the tile cutter and the bandsaw. All of these noises come alive between 5am and 7 am and begin again at 5pm. It is spectacular to listen too except when you are woken by them and then virtually impossible to get back to sleep.

Home for the next 3 nights

Yup, we were underneath in a canoe

Campcraft

I understand also that rainforests are exactly and most appropriately named. Trees and rain like I have never previously experienced whilst lying on a thermaest under nylon. We began our day with a canoe trip down river with a guide. We had both hoped to paddle ourselves but soon got used to the need to duck and weave and heave the boat over small whitewater and round the debris of heavy rains the night before. I was magical to see a baby monkey, a seriously scary black and yellow snake asleep on a branch above us, many of the allegedly elusive kingfishers – elusive to the lens of a camera undoubtedly. Herons that looked like miniature versions of what we have in the UK took flight as they saw our craft approaching. Butterflies as big as birds and as colourful as I have ever seen. It was an awesome start to day one of rest! We came back after almost 3 hours out and decided to baptise the camping stove I have carried for the last 900 plus miles. After some minor pyrotechnics, noodles, sausage and tomato were served up with 2 coffees and then we retired to our little café down the road where the owner did say to us to make ourselves at home.

Day 2 in the park saw me on an elephant, trekking up through a watercourse which I would not necessarily have braved in stout walking shoes and appropriate attire but these elephants were like mountain goats. It was a little different for G, or Dora the Explorer as I have named her as this was not the first or the seventh time she had done this. The difference was the location, the challenging terrain and that she got to sit astride its head for the journey down. I will leave the photos to tell the story.

our trusty steed

one of us has done this before and is slightly more relaxed!

here is some mud

what should i do with it?

yup

the view

if you look closely you can see one of the leeches in motion

Jacket potatoes at the Travellers Rest on our return and then Dora and I decided to undertake a jungle trek ourselves. The paths in the park are well marked, wet and muddy and with that brought out leeches which seemed to be particularly fond of female blood. This was my first time seeing them in action and with instruction and a lighter it soon became a little bit of a challenge that was in a very bizarre way, fun. There are wild elephants here but we would not be lucky in seeing one, many of the warning signs of the dangers are in Thai whereas the way markers are in English…umm are they trying to tell us something one wonders. It is somewhere we would love to bring Em and Nathan too, we would however by staying in one of the many treehouse resorts and be accompanied by a guide…

More time at our now very accommodating café, research on the next leg of our journey and booking of accommodation for Langkawi and Christmas in Penang is now done.

Tsunami reflections and a little bit of extras

8^th December – Ranong to Suk Samran – 56 miles – Av 10.4 – Max – 30.9 – ride time 5hours 21mins

Our intended destination was a little further than Suk Samran but sometimes the things that happen along the way, the unplanned, unresearched turn out to be what can only be described as awesome! I struggled today and think that yesterday took more out of me than I realised when we left this morning. Our first mountain pass climb probably did not help or add to any sense of prescribed take it easy day of riding. Temperature was back up to 39c and the combination meant that after another hour of rain that felt like steel rods being pummelled into my body we arrived at a little town called Suk Samran. It is only on the map as it is a road junction of some importance and for the first time since arriving into Thailand we saw a sign that told us what guesthouse was in English and Thai. Most strange but with a thumping headache and the possibility of another 15miles in the saddle the decision was made to stop here. A quick scan of the town located 7eleven (breakfast), a few market stalls (fruit for breakfast) and a picture of the guesthouse we needed to search for.

Down a side road between houses and we arrived at our home for the evening and met PP. The guesthouse is a relatively new build attached the USAID’s funded ICT centre, Tsunami museum and guesthouse all in one. The guest houses are built on stilts and for good reason. This is one of the areas that was affected by the disaster of 6 years ago. PP who is the manager, guide and our host for the evening spoke excellent if fast English (takes one to know one!) He could not have been more welcoming or accommodating. Sometimes places that don’t feature in guide books are most definitely a good thing.

We dined in the restaurant in town and the Muslim influence we are now touring through was very much in evidence in the food we had, probably the best potato roti I have ever had despite being perched upon my bottom, at a low table just next to the crash barrier of the main road. It all added to a perfect meal.

We wandered back and took up PP’s offer of a tour of the museum. It was a moving, emotional and learning experience to hear first-hand how things were from the perspective of those who had lived through it versus how the media had portrayed it. We also learnt more about life post this natural disaster and how aid agencies had both got it wrong and right in the same degree. The tour and videos we watched afterwards also helped us make sense of some of the signage that we had seen that day with ‘Evacuation points’ or ‘Evacuation Paths’ on them. Helpfully in English!

The money that poured in as a result of the tragedy and generosity of many nations in the main went to the right places to rebuild what had been in some cases completely destroyed. One story however sticks with me today. 7 of the local villages were each given 1 million baht and that in rural Thailand is a lot of money. Today only one of those villages still has the money as an investment totalling 3 million baht. The other 6 through lack of education, lack of banking knowledge, corruption, lack of banks altogether or any understanding of finance are back almost to the same financial state they were prior to 2004.

PP also gave us a very illuminating analogy to take away with us. It is not enough to catch the fish and give it to the man, nor it is enough to teach the man to fish himself. The only way to make the man understand what it is he needs to do is to help him understand how to fish sustainably. Since 2006 mostly westerners have visited the museum and local Thai people. It is crucial that more Thai’s understand what to do in the event of natural disasters such as this and the recent floods that claimed another 2500 people’s lives but gets limited if any press coverage in the west. Many people die from causes that come down to ignorance of what to do not willingness or motivation. Basic CPR techniques taught to local villagers in the area around the town we stayed in have meant far fewer deaths from water based tragedies. An important part of the work done by PP is to educate local Thais on the use of technology and the World Wide Web so that they can communicate with the outside world that seldom makes it presence felt in person until the next big disaster.

It is certain that there will be one as the recent events in Sumatra have shown. That was another Tsunami but on a smaller scale but still 100’s died. The work done by agencies of various governments in the aftermath of the tsunami has undoubtedly made for a better life for some and a semblance of life for others. However PP showed us how the evacuation routes for the elderly residents of one village took in a 200m climb to get to safety which is ludicrous considering there was a tsunami proof government building 20m from their houses and in another story which we found to be very true as we have travelled through Thailand, many of the houses that were rebuilt on stilts to proof them from flooding have had the area under the houses filled in to make more living accommodation making the whole structure a liability.

Education, education, education not all the money in the world can make up for it.

PP is a man on a mission, he loves Liverpool FC, he provided us with extra water for our journey and gave G a miracle rose which as he said it would turn from white to pink as the day wore on.

10^th December – Suk Samran to Takau Pa – 49.97 miles, Av 10.8, Max 31.1, ride time 4hrs 32 mins

A 5am wake up call from the man at the Mosque meant we were roused from our slumber and in the distance could hear others also calling to prayer. We sat outside our house on stilts and had a huge breakfast of fruit and honey/nutella and banana sandwiches interspersed by yoghurt, fresh orange juice and iced coffee. The food of champions and also the food of mad cyclists. We stopped at a little wayside restaurant in a town that yet again did not appear on the map and were unsurprised that English was spoken by at least one of the girls running the kitchen. We watched her and her one year old daughter go through the ritual of wash after not quite making the loo fast enough which was a highly entertaining spectacle as was the policeman who came over with an ice cold beer for one of the patrons.

There are many vehicle checkpoints in Thailand and the use of mooring rope as speed bumps is a particular favourite. It is unfair however on the bottoms of cyclists let alone there wheels.

Takau Pa is a transit town, you come here as a westerner to change buses and move on. We stayed in Hotel Extra, what the extra’s were we don’t really know but judging by some of the ladies leaving the establishment in the morning we did have to guess.

I had a slow puncture today and by slow I mean I did 50 miles on it with 2 sets of pumping up. We changed the tube in the reception of the hotel, something we are adept at doing as if it were the most normal thing in the world. We researched a little more on our next destination and went to bed happy that tomorrow we would both be discovering something very different.

Rest...what rest and the longest day

6^th December – Chumphon  a very rainy rest day!

Now when I say rest day you may imagine a lie in, late breakfast, a wander around to take in the sights sounds and culture of yet another new town. Ahhh if only that were so..rest days are and in no particular order – laundry, research including reading Lonely Planet hardcopy and softcopy plus Footprint, planning, internet – email/blog and if there is time a an hour of doing nothing but drinking Sprite or coffee and watching the world go by. These are rest days as I now know and love them, very different to my previous interpretation of the word rest…

I have also had the chance, 22 minutes, to muse on how I should change my blog, do I keep on writing a daily update or do I change to writing some longer more thought provoking posts that are a summation of my time on the bike and pull from my daily written diary. I am writing this post 14 days after it happened which seems a little bonkers but the time in the evenings at the end of a day’s riding are normally full of searching for a place to lay our heads, cleaning the days grime from our every pore, finding breakfast ingredients and then dinner. By the time dinner is over it is definitely time for a repack and nunnights before the next days 5.30am alarm call.

My 22 minutes was not really long enough today so we will see how we go on trying to do both…

7^th December – Chumphon to Ranong – 78.17 miles, Av 11.1, Max 31.6, ride time 7 hours

OMG x a gazillion, this was and is so far my longest day both in the saddle and miles covered. It was also G’s same personal achievement. In addition this was my first experience of a tropical rain/thunder storm that last for the whole day until about 5 miles from Ranong! This is part of what this adventure has been about for me, the ability to test myself physically as well as mentally. We had been discussing this day for a number of days before hand as it was going to be a serious undertaking. We had a halfway point planned in should either of us need it but I think both of us were determined that we would make it to Ranong today.

It was also the first day that hot coffee was required as the temperature plummeted to 23 degrees, add the speed of riding plus the fact that no waterproof would have ever stood up to the weight or the rain, so we were soaked through meant that our first break at 28 miles (another record) found us at a little store on the road side that provide welcome warmth. Thunder, lightning (counting the gaps as it got nearer), the largest snake we have seen so far (assumed dead as in the road but too damn scared to stop and prod it), bloated toads and beautiful lush green jungle made up the view from under my helmet cover.

One of the things I am most concerned about however is the increasing understanding that Thai eyesight is so unbelievably powerful. I am not sure whether this is a recognised threat to global peace but if I were in charge of anything I would most definitely want to ensure that the Thai’s were on my side. Thai’s drive everywhere, we are often not only stared at because we happen to be the only westerners in town overnight but more of the stare is directed at the fact that we are walking. From birth Thai’s, dependant on the level of income are born to passenger on a motorbike or pickup. The balance they have is awe-inspiring but today proved that eyesight needs to be added to the list of talents.

They can see, round bends, through rainstorms, over the top of hills, round hairpins and switchbacks, past coaches who are overtaking Lorries who are overtaking motorbikes. It is amazing and at the same time for a cyclist truly horrifying to think what may be or could be. But in the entire time of riding to date we have yet to witness anything other than the fact that their eyesight must be as powerful as I am led to believe as a first hand witness.

I climbed my first switchback today and as it was towards the end of the day most parts of my body did protest very very much. But made it to the top in the bottom of gears and then cracked my highest speed so far through the 10 plus switchbacks on the way down the other side and into Ranong.

We found a lovely little place to stay – Dahlas – and in our own little bungalow patted ourselves on the back for a day well ridden and went off to find dinner. Crocodile steak for me.

Back in the saddle

1^st December –  Bangkok to Pak Tho (except it doesn’t exist) – 61.56 miles, Av 12.9, Max 24.7, Ride time 4.45

Exiting Bangkok by bike is not, I repeat not, for the fainthearted. It is a titanium nether region and owl like vision activity. I had worked out the route and tried to memorise it and it was by far the maddest journey yet. Imagine if you will the size of the M25 but in a city where every mile or so it is bisected or connected to another M25 type road. There were times when we left the hard shoulder to go down an off ramp to find it joins the fast line of the next highway. Only the very essence of SE Asian culture comes into play here and drives slow, swerve but never get aggressive as they would in the UK…well not that we know due to the heavy layers of tinted windscreens.

Lanes ranged from 3 to 8 in each direction, all moving at motorway speed, the mirrors we both bought at Probike are already invaluable to know where you both are in relation to each other and traffic. Smog is heavy, sweat is free running but the sense of being back in the saddle oddly rewarding.

Salt plains with windmills, lorries, accidentally cycling on an expressway for 8 miles and cycling on the hard shoulder avoiding the detritus of the combustion engine made up the almost all of my first 60 miler plus day. We were given bananas and coconut custard for free with our lunch and saw on the opposite carriageway some sort of cycle tour with more support vehicles than riders…pah!

We began searching for Pak Tho according to the map but ended up suddenly on the Highway 4 heading south and our learning of the Thai word for Hotel came into action. I stopped mimed being asleep and was pointed 200 metres down the highway to an establishment that I will describe as a by the hour payment or overnight. Many mirrors adorned the room as did some interesting viewing content on TV were the giveaways plus we were not allowed a key…we wandered up to the service station, oh what a life, to buy breakfast and stopped on the way back at a roadside café for dinner. This was without doubt the hottest chilli fest of food we have had to date. My tongue and lips were screaming and the fact that we had extra dried chillis and chilli sauce placed on the table made me think that maybe Thai people have asbestos linings to their mouths.

The plus side is that any soot and dirt that had ingrained its self in any pores soon came out in a chilli sweat….how pleasant. A lovely evening sunset stroll along the hard shoulder back to our den and a much needed sleep.


the view from the door of our by the hour accom



getting up at 5.30 really makes G come alive!



stranger things have been sighted



2^nd December – Pak Tho to Hua Hin – 60.57 miles – Av. 12.1 – Max. 20.1 – Ride time 4.56

Out of our curtained establishment at 7.35am! Stopped for a break after usual 20 miles at Big C – never again and an experiential learning at its best. Opened at 9 allegedly but supermarket was so big took 25 minutes to negotiate but banana muffin and can of tango makes up for it til next stop at Cha Am after a sweaty 42 miles – awesomemungus just off the beach and able to watch the world go by over lunch. This town is currently hosting the 2012 Olympic qualifying heats for beach volleyball which I saw on TV last night but it would have been way too distracting to go and watch for real so onwards we go but not until I had admire my first quadem – think tandem but for 4!

Many more police, paramilitary and army roadblocks to smile and wave through as I think the King was at his holiday home in Hua Hin some time over the weekend. Well it was his 83^rd Birthday on Sunday and the flags all along the hard shoulder seemed to have been put out overnight.

There is also a motorbike show over the weekend in Hua Hin so there was a distinct increase in the number of proper motorbikes we heard and saw including an ever growing understanding and appreciation (for me) of the distinct sound of the Harley Davidison.

Hua Hin however is an odd place. All of the big global hotel brands are here well 10km either side of town and line the highway offering ever more extravagant lifestyles and then you happen upon the town and after finding the road suggested in the guides we promptly dispatched with their advice and stayed at a cool little place perched on stilts above the beach called Bird Guest House. A quick change and lotion application and off to the beach and my first swim since arriving. It was very good to be in the sea and let it wash the days yumminess from me…

the view from home for the night

Watched the fisherman bringing in their catch from the end of the stilted guest house then after the wonders of hand washing our gear from the day we set off to explore and settled down at a very good Italian just opposite the guest house. Now here is a thing, my challenge here is that I had a very good pizza but this could have been anywhere in the Mediterranean. There was a distinctly Germanic feel to much of the language heard and advertising done here. I succumbed to a peppermint tea at a little coffee shop, then it was back to bijou home for the night.

3^rd December  - Hua Hin to Prachup Khiri Khan – 58.23miles – Av. 12.4 – Max. 32.4 – Ride time 4hrs 39mins

This was my first day of hills/slopes/not flat, made some decisions today also – life changing they are not but they are worthy of note. When you see a dog racing towards you faster than you are riding – speed up and howl at it – worked a treat. Secondly Caltex services are the best by far. Wow earth shattering I am sure for the average reader but when you see the blue flame sign of the above services you know that food, 7eleven and coffee are sometime within the next 30km. First decent downhill and up to over 32mph was a great compensation for the climb up. Seen a couple of racers today and a few mountain bikers all kitted out in Lycra. Had a brief chat with a guy on a moped he bought in Vietnam then decided to carry on going similar route to us til now.

2000 miles today!

sunrise from our room

We are staying at Nings guest house a massive room in a beachfront Folkestone-esque style property decorated by its Austrian owner and his Vietnamese wife. He was probably once a man of the moment and great artistic talent but this has moved on to alcohol and Lennon/Elvis fuelled eccentricity.

Had an excellent seafood dinner at Ma Prow’s overlooking the beach and watched the Harley’s cruise the seafront. It was the first overcast day we have had which made a blessed relief from the sun however I of course still managed to catch it.

4^th December – Prachup Khiri Khan to Bang Saphan – 61.88miles – Av 11.1 – Max. 25.2 – Ride time 5hrs 31 mins

Longest undulating ride so far by a couple of yards. Our route out of Prachup took us through a naval base, over their runway and through their town which we discovered we could have hotel’d or camped at. Both decided probably not the best and most relaxing thing. Odd bloke doing unmentionable rode up alongside G and had I been next to her versus in front then I would have lost it with him I know, I thank the stars that I bought the horn for her as a couple of toots on that certainly gets my attention. We negotiated our way back to the Highway with the use of my new compass (thank you A & CK).

I had 2 lunches today as the food was so good and so fresh and with many undulations my fuel reserves were depleted by the time we stopped for our half way rest. Today was much like yesterday in terms of road users, speed, crazy overtaking and heat.

I only nipped off to the loo to find G resting!

undulating....

We arrived in Bang Saphan then headed another 4km’s south to the guide books listings. A quick trawl through a couple of odd sleep places and we ended up in a bungalow on stilts in the jungle. Wow! Dinner in their restaurant listening to the sounds of the unidentifiable but wild imaginations did flow. Met a Canadian couple doing similar as they have for the last 6 years in SE Asia – 2-4 months at a time touring these nations. I know for sure that if health, wealth and happiness are with me I will come back here. You can only do so much in the timeframe we have and there is the whole of the mountainous north to explore for another time.

5^th December – Bang Saphan to Chumphon – 62.19miles – Av.11.1 – Max 32.7 – Ride time 5hrs 34 mins

OMG! Hills, where did they come from. My thighs know that tonight I have added another layer of ache. Each hill which started when we left our overnight stop, had the upside of a down hill and my fastest speed not trying so far. Deserted beaches, jungle either side, beautiful birds and doughnuts will be my memories of today.

We discovered at our morning stop the delights of mini ring doughnuts and there is most definitely a prize if you can guess how many we consumed during the day. We needed the sugar honest!

This was our first day of riding on secondary roads and it made such a difference to the ride style and views and was far more relaxing to enable you to take in the lives going on around you in the jungles of southern Thailand. Our lunch stop was an absolute bargain and I think my taste buds have either adjusted or been burnt away as the food went down a treat without the usual mouth on fire aftermath.

Watched egrets sitting on the backs of water buffalo and alongside the mouths of cattle as we waited for the unearthing of their next meals, saw rice out to dry again which I have seen since Cambodia, heard hello’s from homes as we rode past and could not believe how much I had missed them.

we both just laughed

We are staying in Chumphon for a day to rest and blog and plan the next leg of the journey. We dined in Fame and just sat relaxing knowing that the interweb awaits us tomorrow. Dropped off laundry on way back to watch the whole lot go into the machine unsorted!!! Ummm tomorrow will be much pink me thinks.

Bangkok - ummmm

26^th November – 30^th November – Bangkok

A longer than expected stay in this city of differences but we needed to spend a day planning the next leg of the route.

The Grand Palace is as its name states, the Emerald Buddha beautiful, Bangkok Art Gallery the best free thing to do for the day, the shopping in Siam Square ridiculous in its opulence, the traffic crazy in its static state, Wat Pho is majestic, Pro Bike shop is ok but not for tourers more racers but they are getting there, the tuk tuk driver scams are ever more cunning, the weekend market amazing in its size, scale and layout, the sky train by far the best method of seeing Bangkok north to south. Finally Bombay Blues Lounge next to our hotel has the best Indian food I have tasted since PP and the most awesome introduction to chocolate and mint Shisha!

The only thing that I still cant fathom is the badged and bespectacled touristas who spend a set amount of time as their tour guide will allow in these beautiful and amazing historical places. I know that they will have missed the detail on the pictures that hang around the Reclining Buddha because they spent so much of their time snapping, zooming, shoving and clicking with little regard to any religious, ethical or politeness that I see as being the way it should be. Hey ho, I will learn that sometimes you just have to let things be, observe, and comment only when it affects your experiences directly. So I leave Bangkok with you in picture format as that is the only way I can think to describe it. You will love it or hate it depending on how you land there and where your mind is. It has everything and yet seemingly no heart or soul in one place.

Chinatown is smaller than I thought and had read about and Jim Thompson’s house was well worth the visit to learn how one man on a mission who understood the culture of Thailand revived their silk industry.

So we leave having seen much, learnt some and very keen to get some miles on the clock

Wat Phra Kaeo

detail

dignitaries

demon like

detail

entrance to palace

a quiet day in Bangkok

art in public

art in a gallery

Add captionJim Thompson's bedroom

and hall

awesome signage

Chinatown

1st Christmas Decorations

Reclining Buddha is enormous

The next leg to Thailand

21st November - Battambang to Sisophon - 41.29 miles. Temperature 39c

5am wedding music................aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaggggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhh, no comprehension whatsoever of our ride ahead today, the music thumped through the hotel and no one batted an eyelid other than it seems me. Even G seems impervious to the throbbing, wailing and thumping noise that seems to permeate ever molecule of my body...anyway a good ride out and back into the swing of things with a break at 20miles and lunch at 30 then into Sisophon and a Lonely Planet recommended guesthouse, shower, wander, dinner, chat, sleep. A pattern I will become used to I am sure. The only thing to disturb a much needed nights rest were the explosions. Fireworks we assume but from under the sheet difficult to ascertain clearly.

She stands proudly over our 4th roundabout in Cambodia..the lady of Sisophon..at a guess

22nd November - Sisophon to Watthana Nakhon (Thailand) - 47.71 miles - Temperature 47c (53c when not riding!)

A day of 2 halves - the morning spent belting along at an average of 11.2miles an hour in Cambodia and then an afternoon doing the same in Thailand but a tad faster. A change from dollars to baht and I grace the saddle in my second country.

Part one was Sisophon to Poipet on the border of Cambodia and Thailand. This is where the first of a couple of big changes happened within the space of an hour. Developing world to developed. Passport control in Cambodia – a window and no smile. 100 metres further on not only a smile but the man behind the desk mimicked the sounds of machines applying stamps to my passport. Each sound different dependant on the size of the stamp. Clearly he enjoyed his work!

The difference between the 2 nations is as simple as road surface and signage. Oh and now we are on the left. The highway is broad, wide and fast and the hard shoulder is the preserve of cycles and scooters. Oh and when you feel like pulling over in a truck or car just get about 20 metres ahead of us and pull in taking up the entire space so we end up in lane 1 of the highway…

We arrived at in Watthana Nakhon and after some searching (thai alphabet intriguing) found a hotel well off the main road, bikes securely inside, shower and out for a wander. Amazon Café attached to the local petrol station and iced coffee before introducing G to the delights of 7eleven. Now is it me and my advancing age or did we in the UK have 7eleven grace our streets in the 1980’s? I am pretty sure we did, they did not last long but they are in Thailand in force and very very welcome. So if you do remember and it is not my mind playing tricks then please comment…

my dream bike he was thinking as he drove past!

23^rd November – Watthana Nakhon to Prachin Buri (with some help!) – 58.73 miles – Temp 47c – Av spd 12.9 – Fastest 24.1 – Ride time 4hrs 32mins

We left at 8.05 and 42 miles later stopped for lunch in Sa Kaew at Groovy’s. That is the most mileage covered before lunch and just goes to show the difference in road surface, you can really blat along, not much chance for conversation as the highways are busy, just head down riding. My knee is playing up, G’s eye was leaking gunk and her knee was out in sympathy with mine so don’t quite know what possessed us to cover such ground but we did. We stopped late afternoon to look at the map, as we had just passed a hotel and it was the first we had seen and a series of events happened that still make me smile.

We were suddenly asked in English if we needed any help. After a brief conversation we were invited into the business of Whoppii (not sure how you spell her name but this is my version). Coke and water followed with a sit down on some of the furniture she sells. The business was just like one I used to work at – cross between a timber yard and furniture manufacturer. After we explained what we were doing and where we had come from our new found host insisted, and I mean insisted, that we travel in her brothers pick up to a town with much better hotels for us than the one we had stopped outside of. Bikes and kit loaded we set off in aircon luxury to Prachin Buri about another 20km from where we had stopped.

I doubt if we would have found the hotel, negotiated the rate, unpacked everything up to the room in the time we did without her help and she left us with a gift from her store. I was amazed at her kindness and thank her immensely for this. It was not cheating really as in the morning we knew we had to go 10km’s north before rejoining our route.

A wander through the night market and purchase of donuts and freshly cooked chicken sorted any aches and pains.

24^th November – Prachin Buri to Thanyburi – 57.83miles – Temp hot – Av 10.9 – Max. 19 – Ride time – 5.15hrs

I had an uncomfortable start to the day which delayed setting off proper but after an hour or so the speed and energy was back and we were off. Many drivers tooting and thumbs up, many pick-ups and in fact this is the chosen vehicle in Thailand. If you have money you pimp it up but all are tinted on every glass surface. Our lunch stop in Ongkharak was an amusing show and tell by the owner of food he was serving to other customers and telling us in Thai what it was so we could learn. Then on our second leg the largest grasshopper ever landed on me, in fact hit me and would not depart my shirt until I stopped and forcibly removed it. 3 minutes later had first puncture and being at the neck of the valve means not repairable and will have to find a replacement.

Made the mistake of leaving gloves and helmet on the ground, so spent next 5 mins shaking and picking ants out of all 3 as they bite. As we pulled back off the hard shoulder a driver stopped to give us fresh pineapple. Awesome.

I rode today with the water bottles loaded on the front panniers for the first time, adds weight but much needed so now carrying just under 4 litres on my bike and have mastered the art not only of drinking whilst riding but the more precarious bottle swap over.

A big Wat

The major education points for me in this part of Thailand are pick ups are the mode of choice for transport, U turns happen in the fast lane, car component bling shops line the highways, wood yards and garden centres vie for your attention and the transportation of whole trees seems to be very common practice from sapling to forty foot complete with foliage – all zinging past at 70mph plus.

We are nearing Bangkok and the traffic has definitely got busier and heavier. We spent about an hour trying to find somewhere to sleep tonight and eventually lodged in student digs in Thanyburi. A wander along the street, noodles and 7eleven.

25^th November – Thanyburi to Bangkok – 34.04 miles, Av 9.8, Max 20.8, Ride time 3hrs 26mins

Just before I tell you about this next part of the experience I just wanted to point out that the ride time is the time calculated by my onboard computer that the bike is moving. So when we stop for refreshments, lunch or at the countless traffic lights and junctions as we have today it really does not mean that we only did stuff for 3 and a half hours…honest.

We left at 8.15am and by 1pm we were sitting down for lunch in the old part of the City for lunch watching the many back/flash/sad/should know better packers wander past with their myriad of body art and for many the newness of art covered in cling film.

This was a bit of a stress ride for me as this was my first time riding into a major city, so why not pick Bangkok eh! Fortunately my companion takes both my stresses and safety into consideration and is becoming a master at telling me what to do and not to do! There is no forgiveness in Bangkok, on a bike you are the lowest of the low. Buses will nudge you, cars will pull out and stop infront of you and your response is to be patient. I am learning as my natural inclination would be for finger and vocal gesturing my the energy that would use would be fruitless.

We arrived almost without knowing it in the heart of traveller country in Bangkok. Over lunch we met Fed and Daniel from Australia, a bike mechanic from Seattle and a guy from Holland all curious and interested in what we are doing and more importantly why.

We spent an hour or so after lunch looking for accommodation and settled by good fortune at the ‘Secret Garden’ – no an establishment recommended by lonely planet or Footprint but awesome and unspoilt gem near enough to everything but quiet enough so sleep can takeover when needed.