Displaying items by tag: Thailand motorcycle touring

This is the first of our tours to break the "1-week-long" format, 12days (11nights) in duration overall and we'll happily add a local tour from our selection to fill a fortnight if preferred: Or simply relax & soak up Chiang Mai's atmosphere, masses to occupy all

 

Overview
Arrival & Airport Transfer, Welcome Dinner, Day Ride, Cultural Dinner & Show, Thailand's Highest Peak, an Unbelievable assortment of roads & surfaces all the way from dirt to 6-lane highway! Visiting Mae Sariang, Mae Sot, Nakhon Sawan, Kanchanaburi, Kampaeng Phet, Tak.

 

As the name implies (Tip: It's not River Kwai...Kwai is a buffalo and mostly a derogative term) we spend a couple of nights in the town of Kanchanaburi, home to The (tribute) Bridge Over The River Kwae. The original was indeed destroyed by the Allies, however numerous graveyards, museums and even a Train Ride along the infamous "Death Railway" tracks using many of the embankments & cuttings which cost "A Soul For Every Sleeper Laid". We pay our respects to all those brave Servicemen, POW's and Immigrant Labour who lost their lives under the most brutal conditions.

 

Possibly the most poignant occasion for our visits here coinciding with various remembrance days observed in many countries. Various denominations hold Religious Ceremonies for those who care to attend, mostly commencing around 4am which equates to daybreak in Sydney. One Railway Cutting in particular, mostly overlooked by 99% visitors to the area - purely because it's over an hour's (quick) travel away from town; in fact is a "mustn't miss" you'll be able to see - each - and - every - hammer - blow - twist - blow - and - twist of the steel spikes they used to Hand-Drill the holes for dynamite charges into solid granite for blasting the 100' depth necessary for level track. If the evidence wasn't all around, everywhere clearly visible that no machinery was used, you would not, and still almost can not comprehend such an achievement.
Day 1) Arrival
Day 2) Day Ride. Shakedown for rider & machine, ensure both prepared & ready for the coming ministrations. And yes, if you're less than a half decent rider I will chuck you in the truck for the duration. No refunds.
Day 3) 320Km: Visiting temples, falls and a museum bearing opposite viwpoints - fascinating
Day 4) 230 Km: Visiting Burmese Refugee Camps, plus scenery & experiences only available through us, less Km's than yesterday while still more saddle-time. Good Value.
Day 5) 354 Km. Easy K's today. Cruising. Many, many possible attractions, TBA D2.
Day 6) 381 Km. Should be settling into the bike by now. If it ain't a part of you already...sure will be by the end of today! This one separates the wheat from the chaff, crescendo ending to the day with "the corkscrew", BEST bit of road in the entire country! Stay sharp!!
Day 7) 70 Km. Kushty. Often touted as "Thailand's most beautiful waterfalls", it's still worth a visit just to laugh at the 100+ Kg Russian ladies unable to understand they're actually offensive to the eye? Pictograph signs every 50-100m apart proclaiming respectable dress / respectful behaviour..which is why in the north here you'll see Chinese language rather than Russian, lesser of two...
Day 8) Off the bikes. If you like?! 100 Km or so to the aforementioned "mustn't miss", further if you like, we're entirely at your disposal, the "customer's choice" day.
Day 9) 350 Km. Northbound again, mountains to the left, plains on the right - avoiding those awful 6-lane wide strips of concrete & tarmacadam, home of the catatonic.
Day 10) 80 Km Half a day exploring some quite phenomenal archeology & architecture, before heading north to a fantastic little spot on the riverside... winding down, time to reflect upon the unbelievable amount of...stuff...crammed into such a short space of time and: It's over already?!?! We only left Chiang Mai the day before...oh, yeah, suppose so...
Day 11) 300 Km. Sweeping bends, chilled, relaxed, give the ol girl a handful every now and again. Become quite attached we have. Certainly never had a moment to begin those paperback thrillers bought on impulse in the airport, never pushed, never rushed, never had an idea there even was any form of schedule or timetable? And yet, never wanted for a thing, never had to ask...either...never actually had to worry, no concerns, don't enjoy admitting it but didn't have to..think..really? Appeared to be the entire country moved around our group, adapted itself to our needs, flawlessly, as if a whim of our collective wills.
Day 12) Wow. Refreshed, relaxed & even still a little shell-shocked! Return Transfer to CNX International airport seamlessly organised, beginning to wonder if it was all a dream and really I'm about to wake up on the Inbound flight, before the holiday? The TMT regular guests assured me this disjointed feeling totally normal on the first tour or two, those little "grin" moments just keep unveiling themselves months afterwards...