We climb steadily in the morning through forest, populated by H'mong people, with views to the distant mountains, before descending into a mountainous tea-growing region. Soon after we follow a long valley floor filled with rice paddies and dotted with Black Thai villages all the way to Son La. Allow time to visit the bargain-filled market.
CAVES, CLIMBS AND CANYONS
Despite early morning fog, and a delay to repair Jean's third flat of the trip, six of us bid a fond farewell to the Mai Chau Lodge Hotel and pedal up the street through the local market and out of town. We have a long steady uphill grind for 30 km, passing a elementary school yard where children were shovelling dirt into carts (photo), a bamboo logging operation (photo), a relocated village in the middle of nowhere. Towards the summit we encounter tea and coffee plantations, vineyards and H'mong girls with distinctive matching skirts and black gaitors (photo).
Meanwhile, the rest of the crew enjoy a trip to the magnificent cave (photo) across the road from the hotel. Note: Group 2, if you are reading this, be sure not to miss the cave. It is 500 meters in length and has four large galleries on two separate levels. But beware, a thirty meter python is said to be lurking somewhere inside. They also enjoy a leisurely visit to the town market before meeting the rest of Group 1 at the summit.
After pedaling 54 km we find our lunch spot at Quan 64 Restaurant - a huge sprawlling affair with a market place in the centre selling more "aphrodesiac" wines: silkworm, bee, lizard and cobra sake (photo). Lunch is a variety of spring rolls and the usual soup and greens. Gary brings our attention to an American unexploded bomb standing outside the market. We hope that it is not armed!!!!
The afternoon is a pure romp, almost entirely downhill to our pickup spot at Yen Chau village. We follow the canyon of a major river for much of the distance spanned by bamboo suspension foot bridges at regular intervals.
We drive the last 43 km to Son La on rough roads summiting the Tang Quai pass. Our hotel in Son La is the government-run, three star rated Ha Noi Hotel. It has the potential to be a three star hotel but unfortunately the staff work hard to reduce it to a half star. Some rooms lack toilet paper, other towels and soap, some receive a thermos of hot water, other didn't. The biggest challenge was turning on the hot water heater - this required 3 important steps: stick your key in the slot, flip up the breaker and turn on the heater under the sink. This is discovered through trial and error by the more intelligent in Group 1 (Jim and scribe Chris are not in the latter category).
During an indifferent cold plate dinner, we engage some American army lads in conversation. Their mission is to locate and exhume the remains of US airmen lost during the Vietnam War. The team dig was not far from Son La. They work with an anthropologist sifting the soil for bones, bagging them and taking them home for DNA analysis. A parallel team of Vietnamese out of Saigon focusing on identifying crash sites for investigation by the American team. They estimate there are about 1,000 unaccounted for crash sites still to be explored. One of the crew is dedicated to the destruction of unexploded ordance around the country side. This was the highlight of our evening at the Ha Noi Hotel.
We can only speculate on the qualify of the "free" hotel breakfast tomorrow AM. Stay tuned.
All in all, a really interesting day and a fabulous cycle - total distance, 120 km, and 1500 meter climb!! Not bad for seniors. Pedaltours have really done their homework and we are getting great value, exceptional cycling and cultural experiences in spectacular countryside, especially in the north. Not only that, the cycling weather is now ideal - warm sunny days and cool nights!
INTRODUCTION
In the fall of 2009 the Cross Canada Cycle Touring Society (CCCTS) announced a planned tour of Vietnam for sixteen participants to take place in November 2010, conducted by Pedaltours of Auckland, NZ. The response was overwhelming in that 48 members signed up! Thus there will be three groups touring. This blog is a rendering of the experiences of the first group who will travel between November 1st and 21st, 2010.
Vietnam is a fabulous experience. We stay at mostly 3* and 4* hotels and beachfront resorts and cycle away from the highway.
Our tour starts in Ho Chi Minh city (formerly Saigon) leading on to the beach resort of Nha Trang, historic Hoi An, and the imperial city of Hue. Thereafter we fly north to Hanoi and spend the next ten days exploring the scenic far North, including Dien Bien Phu. The Northwest is "the roof" of Vietnam, where the Hoang Lien Mountains (Tonkinese Alps) soar to over 3,000 metres (9,900 feet) and some of Vietnam's most spectacular scenery is to be found. This is definitely "the road less travelled"! Much of the area is sparsely populated and the mountains are still home to many ethnic minorities; the Montagnard women still favour elaborate costumes of brightly coloured skirts, tops and hats - each ethnic group favouring its own colour variation and design.
Sapa is an atmospheric former hill station with magnificent views of rice terraces and mountains; the temperature can drop to zero in mid-winter (January, when group three will be travelling).
We will travel by train, boat and bike as we follow the rugged Northwest route right to the border with China at Lao Cai; on several days venturing away from the civilised tourist meccas, cycling through traditional villages and staying in small towns with modest lodgings (Oh, Oh!)
So come prepared for the unexpected, for breathtaking scenery and bring a sense of adventure (and toilet paper!)
Thanks to the folks at Pedaltours for the text above and at the start of each days posts - NB There is no knowing at the start just how often we can update this blog since we don't know the availability of Wi-Fi, but by pre-posting the days activities all you armchair travellers will at least have an idea of what we are hopefully up to. Cheers.
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