KLX from Bangkok to Sangkhla Buri and back

by **mikehohman** » 16.12.2009, 22:23

Bought a new KLX 250 a couple weeks ago, and finally managed to get out of Bangkok for 4 days/3 Nights, up to the Sangkhla Buri area and around Kanchanaburi province.

Some notes on the trip and some photos are below.

Would love to meet up with any dirt bike riders, especially around Bangkok, who would like to go riding! I made this trip alone, and it was fun, but I do enjoy riding with others (and I think itâ€™s a little saferâ€¦).

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Mike

Day 1: Bangkok to Sai Yok: Getting to Kanchanaburi pretty much sucks. 120 km of nasty asphalt and trucks and smog. But once past Kanchanburi, the landscape opens up and itâ€™s quite nice. I headed to the south side of the Kwai Noi river to make my way up the valley, and found some decent dirt roads, 1 in particular (that they are in the process of tarring).

Day 2: Sai Yok to Sangkhla Buri. I spent much of the morning trying to find a way thru the mountains over to the west side of the Srinakarin Reservoir. Iâ€™ve already been up 3199 to the dam, and I wanted to find a different way though, preferably dirt. Not much luck, my first attempt â€œdead endedâ€

by **Marco** » 16.12.2009, 22:36

WOW, Amazing quality pictures, so my question is what camera and how long you have been Pro in picture talking,,, really nice pictures

by **Dougal** » 17.12.2009, 08:17

Hi Mike,

Most probably heading that way in 10 days or so but on a road bike.

Stunning photos and a great report. Thanks.
.

by **SilverhawkUSA** » 17.12.2009, 10:29

Yes, terrific photos. I really like the color shades. Nice work.

by **Franz** » 17.12.2009, 10:34

Mike, stunning fotos, you've got 'the eye' for the perfect shot I must admit !!!! Cheers, Fr

by **mbox999** » 17.12.2009, 10:53

Absolutely amazing pictures....and i like this KLX a lot too. 2 flat tires in 4 days sounds a lot though. Hope to see more of your pictures....
mbox

by **Captain_Slash** » 17.12.2009, 21:34

Youre right about the Bangkok to Kachanaburi bit being unpleasant, its great up around Sangkhlaburi and you did a great report with some stunning photos there

by **Fishenough** » 18.12.2009, 08:10

Fantastic pictures, that is the best rice paddy picture ever!

Looking forward to your future trip reports, hope the BKK crew meets up and you get out together often.

Ally and you take pictures of your bikes that if Kasawaki saw, they might wanna pony up a little cash for them.

Cheers

by **mikehohman** » 18.12.2009, 10:59

Thanks everyone for your feedback, much appreciated!!

I have a Canon S90, a new compact camera. Its pretty cool, big sensor for a small camera, has full manual controls, and a pretty wide lens. And its really small, i have a DSLR too, but don't want to carry it on the bike, its not convinient for making quick photos, and dangerous if/when i go down...

I think 2 flat tires in 4 days is too many too. The first one, the nipple seal blew, which makes me nervous. The pressure in the tire was right, so i think it must be a weakness in the tube. The second one, well, there was a nail sticking out of the tire that required pliers to pull out. Not sure how it got there, i was coming downhill on a dirt road at the time. Lucky for me I was almost out of the wilderness...

Thanks again for your compliments!! See some of you on the trail i hope soon.

Mike

by **Davidfl** » 18.12.2009, 17:48

Mike
Thanks for the report & brilliant pictures.

by **burnjr** » 24.12.2009, 15:27

NIce photo br
photos and a great report. Thanks.

by **Muzz** » 27.12.2009, 13:25

Mike,

Stunning pictures. Well done. Now where did I leave my camera????

by **Robin Holmes** » 27.12.2009, 15:36

Great Pictures Mike. I have been looking at the S90, but can't seem to find out it it takes Video.
Everything I read tells me it doesn't, is this correct? If this is right.......pitty, the lesser camera I have (IXY1000) does and I'd miss it, but your pictures are stunning.

by **mikehohman** » 30.12.2009, 20:38

S90 does do video, but its only VGA 640 x 480 and not HD. Your IXY1000 will do 1024 x 768 at 15 fps, and also standard VGA 640 x 480 at 30 fps.

So, the video on the S90 will probably be fine. That said, if you want some good video in combination with a great point and shoot, you should have a look at the Panasonic DMC-TZ7, an all around bad ass camera with x12 zoom, killer HD Video, and pretty damn good photos too. That's my everyday camera, and i love it....

Good luck, and thanks again everyone for your encouragement.

Mike

by **mikehohman** » 28.01.2010, 16:12

Panasonic is releasing a new version of their ZS3 that includes:

1. Build in GPS (geotagging for all photos)
2. Full Manual Controls
3. Extended Zoom

This would be pretty much the perfect camera for dirtbike riding...

[url]http://gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/27/panasonic-adds-gps-to-its-slim-super-zoom/?scp=2&sq=panasonic%20&st=cse
[/url]

by **mikehohman** » 28.01.2010, 16:17

Panasonic is releasing a new version of the ZS3, the ZS7. Building on the awesome ZS3, it adds

1. Integrated GPS
2. Full Manual Controls
3. Extended Zoom

This will be a most excellent camera to take dirtbike riding...

You can read a press release here:

http://www.dpreview.com/news/1001/10012605panazs7.asp

by **Craypot** » 31.01.2010, 15:33

Brilliant photos. Kind of wish i bought the S90 instead of the Lumix now. Havent been to Sangkla Buri for about 17 years. Still looks like a nice place to visit.

by **dirthonk** » 31.01.2010, 22:01

bloody hell those photos are gorgeous!!
great report.

KLX from Bangkok to Sangkhla Buri and back

KLX from Bangkok to Sangkhla Buri and back

New camera from panasonic

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