Visit to North Thailand

Apr 20, 2008
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Dear all

I'm new to this forum and will be riding up from M'sia on 16 May to Chiangmai and thereafter to MHS and ChiangRai. I'll be taking 16 days to complete the trip alone (cause no buddies to ride with) and be back home by 31 May.

I'll will look forward to vsit the Kafe in CNX to purchase the GT shirt and hope to meet some of the GT guys there.

Now I'm in the stage of planning the route and schedule. Mostly likely I will stay for a couple of days in CNX & MHS.

This trip will also depends on my bike (@T RD07) as it is still at M-Technic, SG as the new absorbers will be ready by this week.

Meanwhile, I will most appreciate if any of you can provide some useful tips or info to enable me to plan better for the trip.

Thanks.

Warmest regards

Lip Meng

Perak, West M'sia.

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Apr 20, 2008
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Here's some pic of my ride

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burnjr

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Dec 28, 2005
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lipmeng,
u can get davidgt..moderator of this web,his a nice and help person.he stay at
cnx..pls pm him for any help needed.have meet david one went my ride to loas last febuary..
have nice ride bro.. :D
 

DavidFL

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lipmeng wrote: Dear all

I'm new to this forum and will be riding up from M'sia on 16 May to Chiangmai and thereafter to MHS and ChiangRai. I'll be taking 16 days to complete the trip alone (cause no buddies to ride with) and be back home by 31 May.

I'll will look forward to vsit the Kafe in CNX to purchase the GT shirt and hope to meet some of the GT guys there.

Now I'm in the stage of planning the route and schedule. Mostly likely I will stay for a couple of days in CNX & MHS.

This trip will also depends on my bike (@T RD07) as it is still at M-Technic, SG as the new absorbers will be ready by this week.

Meanwhile, I will most appreciate if any of you can provide some useful tips or info to enable me to plan better for the trip.

Thanks.

Warmest regards
Lip Meng
Perak, West M'sia.
Lipmeng
Aha, like your bike.
No trouble to meet up with you when you arrive or are in the area.
How many days do you think you will have in the North?

My suggested route would be left (west) at Tak, go to Mae Sot - Mae Sarieng - Mae Hong Son – Pai - Chiang Mai –Fang – Tha Ton - Doi Mae Salong - Doi Tung - Mae Sai - Golden Triangle - Chiang Saen - Chiang Khong - Phu Chi Fah - Chiang Kham - R1148 - Doi Phukha / Nan - then home. This should take in everything, but to do it all you might run out of time.

An alternative would be straight to Chiang Mai, meet up & then we could discuss a new master plan- straight north to the GT, then east along the Laos border to Nan, or back west for the Mae Hong Son loop & a run down the Burma border to Mae Sot / Tak & then home.

Most guys don't fit it all in the first time round & always plan to come back & do the rest. Some make it back, but most don't.

Whatever, keep in touch, we can meet up & look after you. Some of us might ride out & meet you somewhere for a ride.

Now if you're a good man you could twist Chan's arm & pick up my AT parts order (if they are not already on the way) & EMS them to me from Hatyai on the way through (no need to carry them all the way.) Do this & the GT Rider shirt is free.

See ya soon.
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Thanks David, Ian & burnjr for the info & tips.

I've yet to finalise the exact date of arrival in CNX and the schedule of MHS & GT ride is still in the planning stage .

Nevertheless, I will post it once I've decided the schedule.

Looking forward to meet you guys there.

Warmest regards

Lip Meng
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Dear all

I'be riding to Northern Thailand tomorrow morning @ approx 6.30 a.m. from Ipoh, Perak. This time I 've a riding buddy with his wife on @T RD07 White.

Expected to reach CNX by 17th or 18th May as my journey depends on the overnight stops at Surat Thani (1 night) and Kanchaiburi (1 or 2 nights ) before reacvhing CNX.

Most probably will stay @ Jordanna Guest House (which I've not made any reservation yet) as it is next to the Kafe.

Looking forward to see you guys there.

Warmest regards.

Lip Meng
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Hi David

Thanks. Is it rainy season now in northern region? I thought it is pretty hot during this time as the wet season starts in June.

See you there mate.

Regards.

Lip Meng
 

DavidFL

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lipmeng wrote: Hi David

Thanks. Is it rainy season now in northern region? I thought it is pretty hot during this time as the wet season starts in June.

See you there mate.

Regards.

Lip Meng
Aha. Looks like it's started early. e.g. Cyclone Nargis & supposedly more on the way in the next 4-5 days.
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Hi David & Beddhist

It was raining for a bit as we were riding from Lampang to CNX. However it stopped just a fast as we ride ahead towards CNX. The weather was quite fine yesterday when we are riding from Kanchanaburi towards Tak.

It was raining as we are having breakfast this morning in Viang Tak Hotel in Tak.

I checked in at the Top North Guesthouse this evening as I couldn,t fine my way to the Jornadda Guest House which I would like to stay.

My riding buddy and wife went for the cooking class upon checking in as the couple are restaurant owners back home.

Will be staying in CNX till Monday and rides to MHS on 20th (Tues) morning and hopefully the weather will be kind enough for us to ride.
 

DavidFL

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Lip Meng
Just missed you at your hotel, Monday morning.
Sorry we missed yesterday - busy on the Samoeng Charity Toy Ride & at the X-Centre for MotoGP.
But yeah, let's meet 8pm tonight (Monday) at the Kafe. RobertH will be back in from Bangkok in the wet today.
Anyone else want to come on down, please do.
 

DavidFL

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Lip Meng
Lost your phone number after meeting you in the Kafe that night.
Got a message from Mr Mechanic today to call you?
What's up / how's it going / everything ok?
I should be on the road tomorrow for 3-4 days up around the GT.
Sent you a PM with my mobile number again.
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Hi David and guys

I'm back to M'sia yesterday late noon after checking out from Hatyai in the same morning.

Just busy sorting stuff and cleaning up the gears & bike today. Also the photos for the trip that needs to be uploaded to my pc. A bit of dissapointment which I'm not good in photography and should have stop for pics at places which have extraordinary views even have to make a detour for it.

Will keep an update of the trip and upload the selected pics for sharing.

Thanks and for the advice and time for meeting up in CNX.

Will keep in touch.

Warmest regards

Lip Meng
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Dear all

Here's the brief summary of my recent ride to north and some pics of the trip.

15 May 08 (Day 1)
Ride from home to Hatyai and board an ordinary train together with bikes from Hatyai Junction (railway station) to Nakhon Pathom at noon.
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16 May 09 (Day 2)
Arrived @ Nakthon Pathom in the morning approx 8.30 am and did some sight seeing around the town. Rode to Kanchanaburi after lunch and visited the Bridge of River Kwai. Stayed overnight in Kanchanaburi before riding to Tak next morning.
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17 May 08 (Day 3)
Checked out of Kanchanaburi after late breakfast and head towards Tak.
Arrived in Tak late afternoon and stayed overnight.
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18 & 19 May 08 (Day 4 & 5)
Rode towards CNX after strolling the local market in Tak. Arrived in CNX late noon and was amazed by the huge expressway leading towards city of CNX. Met a canadian RTW rider on Kawa KLR650 in city of CNX and helps us to get to the TopNorth Guesthouse.
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Stayed in CNX for 2 nights before departing for the MHS loop.
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20 May 08 ( Day 6)
Checked out of CNX and rode towards Doi Inthannon national park and took pics upon reaching the peak. Descended the hill and rode towards Hot and the proceed to Mae Sariang for overnight.
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21 May 08 (Day 7)
Ride out of Mae Sariang after breakfast and through the hills and twisties beofre arrive @ Mae Hong Son. Stayed overnight at the Piya Guesthouse near the lake. have my Thai massage for the 1st time in Thailand despite more than 12 trips to various parts of Southern Thailand.
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22 May 08 (Day 8)
Ride out of MHS after having breakfast at the local market....best pork porridge I ever had....as I don't not take porridge for breakfast.

Missed my way to the Long Neck village in MHS but continue to ride towards Pai. More hills and twisties as ever but scenery was great.

Arrived in Pai at afternoon and stayed overnight at Baan Pai Village Guesthouse.......best accomodation ever despite no air-condition and plenty of mosquito at the lobby area. Friendy staff and cheap rates...300 baht. Nothing much in Pai as it seems to be a haven for backpackers and food there is not great.

23 May 08 (Day 9)
Rode out of Pai after breakfast and head towards Mae Salong. Long ride but enjoyable. Made few stop overs for petrol and refreshment.

Riding up towards Mae Salong was great. Fantastic scenery again with many tea plantations and cool climate. Stayed overnight at Mae Salong Villa...great views again from the hotel room and dinner was good.
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24 May 08 (Day 10)
Rode up to the temple at the hill top after breakfast and took some pics.
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Visited the local market and checked out of Mae Salong thereafter. Ride towards Mae Sai with stopovers for lunch and fuel.
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Arrived in Mae Sai late afternoon and chekced in to the Piyaporn Hotel which was located along the main road to the border and is within walking distance. Room rates is reasonable considering with buffet breakfast for 2 @ 800 baht and room is excellent.

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25 May 08 (Day 11)
Visited Taichilek, border town of Burma and did some sight seeing on a saengthaw @ 150 baht for 3 persons. At least be able to see the Long Neck tribes @ the cultural centre for tourist located next to the golf course in Taichilek. Plenty of Chinese stuff & electronic gadgets for sale at the bazaar near the border gate of Taichilek.......
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Stayed for 2 nights in Mae Sai before departing for Golden Triangle.
26 May 08 (Day 12)
Rode out of Mae Sai late in the morning and headed towards Sop Ruak. Visited the Opium Museum in GT (as the govt opium musuem was closed as it's a Monday). Took some pics at the "GT arch" and bought some stuff at the museum boutique before heading towards Chiang Saen via the Mekong river bed. The ride along the Mekong river side was enjoyable as there are some great spots with fantastic scenery along the way to Chiang Kong.
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Stop at Chiang Kong for late lunch and bike couldn't start due to electrical faults....ignition key lock faulty resulting no supplyof electricity to the front. Managed to repair the fault with the assistance of a local wireman and rode towards Chiang Rai for overnight.

Arrived in Chiang Rai late evening as it was a long ride from Chiang Kong...maybe the delay in Chiang Kong affects us. Stayed overnight @ WangCome Hotel and the hotel is good for the rate of 800 baht with buffet breakfast........waffles great.

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Visited the night market and took dinner at the bazaar’s foodcourt. Food was great and it provides a cultural show at the stage for tourist to enjoy.
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27 May 08 (Day 13)
Ride out of Chiang Rai after breakfast and head towards Sukhothai and the ride was a long one indeed. We past an area where it was hilly and met 2 working elephants in the middle of the road somewhere before reaching Tachai( near Sukhothai) for a coffee break.....the young lady of the coffee stall along the main road was indeed a fine lady with pleasant personality.
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Reached Sukhonthai late evening and stayed overnight before heading further south.
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28 May 08 (Day 14)
Rode out of Sukhonthai towards Hua Hin and it was another day for a long ride.

Unable to reach Hua Hin as earlier intended as the front headlights of my bike is without main lights and the weather was bad as we reached Pretburi late in evening. It was raining heavily and we decided to stay overnight in Pretburi before heading to Hua Hin next morning to repair the front lights of my bike.
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29 May 09 (Day 15)
Ride out early morning after breakfast at the hotel and reached Hua Hin after a short ride.
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I was amazed by the seafront resorts in Hua Hin and definitely it is a par with international standard. Riding toward the town of Hua Hin was truly enjoyable indeeed . It have 8 golf courses which I came to know after doing some research fro the brochures and the green fees is reasonably cheap when one opts for the golf package with accomodation. Took my bike for repair at the local bike shop, CP Bikes and the guys there are friendly and helpful.
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Didn't have the time to explore the place except for lunch as I was at the bikeshop while my riding buddy & wife went exploring the town.

Will definitely make a trip to Hua Hin by this year end if possible as the guesthouse has good rooms and food are aplenty here....especially seafood I guess.

Ride out of Hua Hin after late lunch and headed for Chumphon for overnight.

30 May 08 (Day 16)
Stayed at the Suriwong Hotel in Chumphon and room is cheap @ 450 baht. Ride towards Hatyai early morning again it was quite a long boring ride.........heavy traffic without much scenery.

Reached Hatyai in the late afternoon and stay overnight before departing for home next morning.

31 May 08 ( Day 17)
Departed Hatyai after breakfast and reached home safely at late noon.
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Note: I will updated the links for the photo albums later and keep posted.
 
Dec 26, 2007
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Congratulation Lipmeng for your successful ride. Looks like you had a jolly good time exploring more places than I had the last time I did the GT Loop. Not only you met the GT Legends but was able to take in lots of sights in one trip. Amazing achievement!
I hope to return to North Thailand this end of the year with my buddies and check out the places I've missed out.
 

Dougal

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Dec 18, 2007
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Thanks Lipmeng for a great report and photos.

It seems there may be a few riding up to Chiang Mai end of year and the Chiang Mai Bike Week is the first weekend in December (5th. & 6th.).

Let us know when you are planning to go and will try and meet up with you.
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Hi Doungal

Can't confirm whether I can come up to CNX this Dec as I will be taking my kids for year end holidays for 2 weeks. Destination will be determine later by them but I'm trying hard to sell the idea to the kids that driving up north will be enjoyable.

But most definite I will endeavour to ride up north again during Jan next year as I think it is still the best place to ride...enjoyable and safe.

This coming 4th july I 'll be riding to Hatyai for the bike week. Maybe I pose some pics to share.

Will keep in touch.
Bye.
 

Marco

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Oct 15, 2006
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Lipmeng

What a fantastic report,,,you guys did a nice tour and report,

We are planing the tour around February (Late) somewhere up north if you wanna delay your Jan tour till then.
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Hi Marco

Just want to keep you updated on my riding plan up north next year......tentatively during Feb 09 as the Chinese New Year falls on end of Jan whereby I need to be with my family.

I have a new riding buddy for this trip who is 65yrs young and just bought a new Kawa Versys 650 as his existing Kawa ZZR1200 aka Mickey Mouse is not suitable for the long trip.

We intend to ride for 23 days of which at least 6 days will be travel to & fro M'sia to CNX. Our plan is to take a train again from Hatyai to BKK or Nakhom Pathon and rides up to CNX to start the northern rides...to Tak - Mae Sot -Mae Sariang ,MHS loop, Mae Salong, GT loop and most importantly I'm planning to take a ferry from Chiang Kong across Mekong River to Huay Xai, Laos.

From Huay Xai, I intend to ride to Loa Nam Than and reach the Chinese border and then enroute back to Chiang Kong.

However, I need some more info about the road conditions in Laos (especially the route that I mentioned above) and the stops for fuel and overnight accomodation. I estimated that this will take at least 3 days.

Hopefully the plan for the trip will work out as there is no other better places to ride in this region.

Regards.

Lip Meng
 
Jul 28, 2007
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lipmeng,

Thanks for taking the time to post your report and pictures. I took that road from Huay Xai,(Houei Xai) to Loa Nam Than, (Luang Namtha). in November of 07 on a 250 Honda. The road was brand new. You can make it there in three or four hours. We stayed in Luang Namtha and did a side trip up to Muang Sing and the Chinese border. We also went to Boten on the Chinese border. At Boten there are many Chinese shops and a casino/hotel complex.
All the roads are paved and in good shape. Thanks again. I'm trying to get back to that part of the world as the people are fantastic.

Pete
 
Apr 20, 2008
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Hi Pete

Thanks for you info and are still in preliminary stage of planning for the trip next Feb 09. Definitely will be doing it as I'm now getting a few more guys to ride along otherwise there's only two now.

Keep in touch for future trips or who knows we will meet somewhere in north one day.

Warmest regards

Lp Meng