GT-Rider Mekong Cruise Part III

[brian_bkk]

Poompui;299655 wrote: Great...had this photo on my screen when my wife walked into my computer room......

"You looking at skanky porn again????!!!!"

Sigh........

I don't' think David has ever been called Skanky before

Seriously... That is one of the things I dislike about Laos the most.
Though it is getting better.

Checking in, ready for a nice sleep.. only to see the sheets have been slept in as well as other human matter left behind..

When it is that bad.. I will usually turn the sheets in side out and put a shirt over the pillow.

Cheers
Brian

 

[CraigBKK]

Try a silk sleeping bag liner. They are light, pack small and can be used as a bed sheet in these kind of 'second-hand sheet' situations as well as a liner for a bag on chilly nights.

Mine has a hood, which folds over the pillow to protect from the dirty pillow phenomenon.

 

[DavidFL]

The original scheduled departure time was 7.00AM, but "we" brought this forward to set sail at 6.30Am.

It was indeed a glorious morning in perfect conditions.

Breakfast was served & away we went

the bikes stowed on board towards the front

Note: I reckon it is a maximum of 8 big bikes, or 10 x 250s to be comfortable on a trip like this.
+ absolute maximum max for the most ease & fun would be 15, but around 8-12 is nice.
The boat normally can seat 40 people, but we get to take out the seats we dont need, stow bikes in 1/3rd of the space, another 1/3rd is for seating & the last 1/3 for wining & dining. The way to go for a mega sabai cruise.
For those who want to know, the boat is 40 metres, long 3.5 metres wide, & with a 1 metre draft. Very cool.

Before loading the day before this was how the boat crew passed the time by

& the happy guys after loading.

Not far downstream is the new Pak Lay bridge being built.

Then its plain sailing

The confluence of the Mekong & the Nam Heuang river, looking up the Nam Heuang.

the Nam Heuang is not a big river, but does separate Thailand & Laos.
In the dry season those naughty people who want to, can easily wade across the shallow river.

There is always something to see as you go downstream. IN fact you often don't know which way to look.
Some riverside housing.

& I reckon a lot of people are really lucky living beside that river. NO matter what side you are on - Thailand or Laos!

Timeless..

incredibly lucky kids - what a carefree life.

Sand dredging

I wonder how many thousands of tonnes come out of the river year?

The boat skippers wife & daughter, enjoying the scenery just as much as us

the skipper's daughter tells me she loves the river & living on the boat. She doesn't like being on land or staying in the family house in Luang Prabang. IN fact the family house in Luang Prabang is up for rent & they are going to live on the boat(s) full time. Her / their love of the river is very passionate; & it shows in their faces & happy contented nature. Wonderful people to be around.

 

[DavidFL]

A couple of temples

Laos

& Id love to find this temple & check it out properly with a chedi like that.

Thailand

Laos, approaching Vientiane

Wat Pha Tak Suea - Thailand

way way up on the hill, overlooking the Mekong from where I got these photos in 2010

What a view eh?

Sailing on past Chiang Khan

and this puts you into the Kaeng Khut Rapids, which was the highlight of the trip I'd been looking for.

The rapids are in a big bend in the Mekong

Kaeng Khut Khu is formed with a large rocks in the bend of the Mekong River. In the wet season, Kaeng Khut Khu is under water, but during the summer time the rocks are exposed along with big sandy beaches. The area around the rapids are particularly good for fishing; as are Kaeng Fa and Kaeng Chan in Amphoe Pak Chom.


In the dry season it looks like this

And we sailed through like this

Check the place out some time, 6 kms downstream from Chiang Khan.

 

[DavidFL]

After the Kaeng Khut Ku rapids, the river goes through amazing channels between the rocks, with the boat zig-zagging from side to side.
How they navigate is near unbelievable, but they do it.

In the dry season the river looks like this

Coming back from Vientiane after this trip I saw two cargo boats from a distance going in what seemed the opposite way through a channel.

but when I got closer I could see that the rear boat had zig zagged through the channel, almost doing a U-turn to navigate is way through a dangerous channel behind the lead boat.
Amazing to watch. Awesome navigation by sight & local knowledge.

 

[DavidFL]

In places the river widens & is smooth like a mill pond.
The water is a lot shallower & the often the boat chugs along very slowly, unsure of the depth & draft.

A local border checkpoint

Finally sailing into Vientiane in the shallows

Bor Pen Nyang Pub

Yeehar another magnificent trip done.
A VERY BIG thank you to the guys who made it
Brian Bkk
Jurgen
Robert Hoghead
Ron Webb
Ticino Peter
it was very much appreciated.

See you again on the next one - something special.

 

[David Learmonth]

Looks like an excellent, fun trip.
But probably too much for my leg!

 

[DavidFL]

Just a wee wrap up.
After coming down from Luang Prabang the skipper put the boat in dry dock in Vientiane for a couple of days to check & clean the hull, plus replace the prop.

Here's how she looks in dry dock

& for the record the boat has arrived back in Luang Prabang just today - 8th June 2014 - taking several days to sail upstream at a much slower pace against the current.

 

[DavidFL]

Davidfl;299681 wrote:

Not far downstream is the new Pak Lay bridge being built.

According to the latest news the Pak Lai bridge will open in June 2015 & that's fast work I reckon as far as Mekong bridges go.

(KPL) The ongoing Mekong River Bridge Construction Project spanning over the Mekong River from Nasack village in Paklai district, Xayaboury Province, to Khok-khaodor village in Sanakham District, Vientiane Province will be completed in June.

Construction of the 190-billion kip (over US$23 million) bridge started in early 2012. The bridge is 370 metres long and 10 metres wide and will have 1.5 metre sidewalks on both sides.

This is according to a report given to Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad by a project supervisor during a working visit to the construction project that he made early this month.

Mr Somsavat urged the project contractors and engineers to focus on the quality of construction and make sure that it meets international standards.

Upon completion, the bridge will provide convenient transportation of goods between the provinces of Xayaboury and Luang Prabang and link to neighbouring countries via the Phoudou International Checkpoint that links Laos and Thailand.

Source: http://kpl.gov.la/En/Detail.aspx?id=1828

 

[KhmerRik]

Wow. A great report. Beautiful and detailed pictures that really help me understand a part of the Mekong.

 

[DavidFL]

Here's how the Pak Lay bridge looked a couple of days ago.

Open in May 2015?? Well I too have my doubts too now.

Meanwhile the locals carry on queuing up for the ferry