Caution : Road Hazzards

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Aug 22, 2024
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This twisty mountain road was resurfaced about two years ago ...beautiful billiard table smooth fast mountain riding.

Unfortunately the bitumen is crumbling and shedding rice grain size and sightly bigger stone chips...the small chips can be difficult to spot, especially in the shadows and on fast descents and ascents on corners.

Here's quick example photos, now showing start of potholes.

The really concerning breakdown has no potholes but plenty of very fine rice grain size stone shedding.
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Be very careful.

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And the reason for the race to get here is...a coldie at newly opened Arees Place.

Aree is a young Akha entrepreneur who recently returned from 2 years working in hospitality in Frankston, Victoria, Au. Switched on and now offering very good value meals and drinks. Unfortunately run out of Beer Laos which is usually available.


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Get in there quick for a purely Akha local village vibe before it takes off with visitors from farther afield.

Meet Aree, the welcoming and happy owner. Speaks good English and has great confidence from working in Au.
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One of my favourite roads has been wrecked by weeks of convoys of fully loaded 6 and 10 wheel trucks carting sand and also excavator flat bed low loaders.

The billiard table asphalt, laid on a clay base a couple of years ago is now shattered on most corners.

Convoys of full loaded trucks navigated the twisties and steep ascents and descentsl leaving behind plough furrows and mosiacs of asphalt and clay waiting to be swept away by wet season downpours.

The road was never designed for this heavy weight traffic, carting construction material to two landslide reconstructions at the army checkpoint area.

Sorry, no photos, as I always find it difficult to stop on that incredibly amazing twisty route.

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I'm feeling particular miffed as it's my regular weekly commute route to Thoed Thai/Mae Salong/Mae Ai and beyond.