A Tale of 3 Borders....

The rumour was that the main road from Luang Prabang south to Vientiane was a shocker. Having been ruined by trucks with no maintenance carried out for years. A diversion down route 4 and then 4c and back on to the bad route 13 near Vientiane seemed the best option.

It was a wise move and a great ride most of the way, now with the mandatory astonishing views. It only got bad on the road down from the mountain and the approach back to the main road. As advertised, route 13 was in an appalling state. Fortunately, it wasn't too many miles to the stop for the night at Vang Vieng.

I pulled into my hotel and promptly dropped the bike; I blame the fatigue from the bad road.

4C over the mountains 

Great views

The bad road down from the mountain 

The views made it worthwhile 

Back on the shitshow Route 13

Sunset over Vang Vieng

Approaching Vang Vieng

I'd been to Vang Vieng a couple of times before and while it is in a beautiful setting, it attracts lots of hippies and twatpackers smoking dope and "finding" themselves (or just getting blind drunk). Not for me, so just a one night stop and then back on the road.

From Vang Vieng, I tried to get on the new China-Lao toll road (a grand project to link the 2 countries; but the money had mysteriouly disappeared after the first stretch was completed; all the flash new cars owned by government officials was a complete coincidence!). 

The toll road was a stretch of new pristine tarmac stretching all the way to Vientiane. But an official jumped out barring me from using the road, they were insistent, so I turned around and headed south on Route 13. Fortunately, this stretch was in better condition than that north of Vang Vieng. I guess as most of the heavy traffic uses the toll road, it has been spared the damage evident on the rest of Route 13.

Sunset over the Mekong

On to the capital, Vientiane. A small town by most countries standards, but a nice relaxed place to spend a couple of days. Met up with Martyn, Ali, Sirpa, Paulo and Gerald at a bar where we assumed control of the music selection. An evening of early 80s classics ensued with much drinking and dancing!

The original plan had been to carry on south through Laos to Cambodia, but Martyn and Ali had met an expat living in Vientiane who warned them of bandits on the road. I tried to verify these rumours, eventually talking to a taxi driver who'd driven down that way a couple of weeks before. Apparently it was OK during the day, but not a place to ride at night. The first "safe" town was over 200 miles away and the taxi man said the road was in a terrible state (in Laos, really?!?!?). It had taken him almost 9 hours to cover the distance.

So, being the brave, adventurous type, I bottled it and went to cross the border to Thailand at Vientiane instead.

This was a potentially tricky border as a rule to demand a pre-booked guide is randomly enforced. 

Border Crossing #1 Laos-Thailand (Vientiane to Nong Khai).

I managed to ride several miles past the border post before realising that the bridge I'd passed crossing the Mekong River was the only way across. Good start!

The Lao side was pretty straightforward, getting my passport stamped and handing in my TIP. Then across the bridge to the Thai side. I parked up and went to the first of several windows to get forms and official stamps on bits of official paper. 

One official asked for 200 Baht for something?! I only had Lao KIP, so a Laotian in the queue paid for me and I I paid them back with a load of KIP. But myself and the bike were in, each with a 30 day stamp!! Less than 2 hours to cross through both sides of the border. The relief was palpable.

Then it was a meander down through Eastern Thailand for a few days along good roads to get to the coastal border crossing with Cambodia near the Cardamom mountains (the prettiest bit of Cambodia).

It was an uneventful run, back on the predictable road surface (but unpredictable drivers!). Good to be back on Thailand with good quality fuel and copious 7-Elevens (the best shop, ever!!).

The rainy season was yet to end and I had a few torrential downpours to contend with; just enough to wash a bit of mud and dust off the bike!

The night before crossing into Cambodia, I stayed at Khlong Yai (about 10 miles short of the border). A torrential rainstorm once again scuppered any notion of exploring, so I concentrated on getting all my paperwork in order ready for the next day.

Border Crossing #2 Thailand-Cambodia (Bam Hat Lek to Cham Yeam)

I'd filled in my online TIP form to maximize my chances of success and after breezing through the Thai side of customs, I approached the Cambodian side. First thing was my visa on arrival, for which they asked for 1300 Baht ($35). I politely asked if it was not $30? "Oh yes, yes, $30!

Then on to the bike: I had to wake the guy up who dealt with vehicle imports as he was asleep on a hammock in his office. Fortunately, he was extremely patient and helpful. I'd made a couple of mistakes on my online TIP, which he corrected for me and stamped my bike in for 11 days (which is what I had asked for, a rookie mistake!). He even gave me advice on what to do if I was stopped by the police ("ask for a receipt!").

Then I was in to Cambodia and I hit the road along the coast. It had deteriorated in the year and a half or so since I last rode it. It seems the monsoon season really takes a toll on these surfaces. There was also a lot of road building/repairing going on. Fortunately, compared to Laos, even the bad bits were relatively smooth.

Arriving in Sihanoukville to see it still rocking that Beirut circa 1970 look. Half-finished and abandoned buildings dominating the skyline. Weird place.

I'd been warned about National Road 4 as being a dangerous "death road" due to the aggressive or just oblivious drivers. I wasn't allowed on the new toll road, so NR4 it was. It was fine. You just need to tune in to the local driving style and then go with it, rather than fighting it and applying a western mindset.

The only problems started when I arrived in Phnom Penh as it was peak traffic time and blisteringly hot. I sat in stationary traffic for what seemed like hours as I slowly melted. When I finally crawled my way to the hotel, a few beers were consumed to restore some body fluids. Again, not too long in Phnom Penh as I'd been before and seen the sights.

On to Siem Reap for a couple of days where I found Nigel and his astonishing capacity for beer. I didn't bother with Angkor Way this time, having been twice before (and it's pretty expensive). 

Compared to last year, there were a lot more foreign tourists milling about.

Border Crossing #3 Cambodia-Thailand (O Smach)

I chose this crossing point as I'd read online that it was the best one to avoid the mandatory guide rule. Cambodia side was quick and easy, not so the Thai side.

They seemed a little confused to see a UK plated bike. A guide was never mentioned, but they initially only wanted to give my bike 14 days. As I wasn't due to leave until around 20 days later, this could be problematic. Little English was spoken, but I pleaded my case; pointing out that I'd been granted 30 days at the Lao-Thai border. So, the officials conferred with each other, asked about my itinerary up to this point and my plans for Thailand. 

Phone calls were made to officials higher up the food chain as I waited patiently.

To be fair, they were understanding and really trying to help me, however, at one point it looked as if I may be denied entry altogether; but then the TIP appeared, stamped for 30 days. They asked for 100 Baht (?), which I gratefully paid. All in all, it took about an hour and a half to cross both sides of the border.

Soundtrack: "Zombie" - The Cranberries.