At the start of the day we visit the local market and Marg makes a new friend in this "Silver Dzao" woman, so-called because of the elegant headgear.
Garry and Marg during the long and arduous ascent. Both are very strong riders, but Mike was way ahead - He's the "King of the mountain" while Marg is "Queen of the mountain".
"We continue on our way through scenic hills and valleys with one climb over Giangma Pass, before tackling the Hoang Lien Son Pass (aka Tram Ton Pass), Vietnam's highest at 1900m. [Note to Group 2 - if you haven't been using masks, bandanas, etc., today is a MUST on account of extensive road construction causing red dust plus smoke from outdoor fire pits as well as a cold enveloping mist - We suggest masks are a necessity from Dien Bien Phu onward!] Finish the day with another great descent to Sapa (popn 36,600 plus lots of European tourists, elevation 1650 km). Sapa is in a magnificent setting (so we are told - we arrive in a pea-soup fog) in the mountains and an attractive little town (crammed full of restaurants, including Italian and Indian as well as Pizza parlours). NB Keep a warm jacket and gloves handy for the descent, as it can be very cold at the summit (agreed!)".
We board the bus at the hotel to avoid cycling the Giangma Pass which is reportedly an 11 - 13% grade! En-route to the the top of the pass we visit a local market and have fun trying on
Silver Dzao ethnic costumes, bartering for hats and fancy belts, and taking photographs. The market is very colourful with several ethnic minorities in traditional dress selling ducks, chickens, live pigs, fruit, vegetables, meat and household items. Bingh literally drags Chris back to the vans and we head off into the fog. Gary, Chris and Marg hop on their steeds at 12.6 km, for a short lived downhill just before commencing the climb to Tran Tom Pass. The route is very steep, unsealed and extremely dusty. The whole road is under construction and at times it is almost impossible to see or breathe. Undaunted, we carry on and meet June, Janet, Jean, Faye, Mike and Jim who join us for the rest of the ride to the summit. The dusty, rocky road and chest pain took their toll on Janet, Chris and Faye who elected to rejoin the rest of Group 1 in sick bay and motor to the summit. The fog refused to lift and we can only imagine the magnificent scenery that we are missing. As we approach the summit, the going gets tougher and tougher and the last two km seem to go on forever. Gary is pushing on with about half of his lung capacity. Road construction continues almost to the summit. On arrival we are served a local cup of hot, naturally sweet tea by a local lady in her tarp lean-to. The tea is very much appreciated. Several packets of the dried leaves will be making their way back to Canada. In addition we taste some rice cooked in bamboo tubes and some very tasty BBQ pork. The temperature at the top of the pass is considerably lower than in the valley so we wipe the grime off our arms and legs and put on all our warm clothing for the exhilarating ride to the bottom. As we drop elevation, the fog intensifies and we brake as it is almost impossible to see. The fog is actually like a Scotch mist. Bingh leads us through intersections that we can barely see and finds our restaurant for a wonderful hot lunch. Most of us opt for tea to warm up, but Chris gets the bargain of a lifetime, an amazing large bottle of beer for 1500 dong ($o.75).
Once again we hop onto our bikes and cycle the last km to the Bamboo Sapa Hotel which has wonderful heated rooms and absolutely the best showers we have encountered on our tour. Dinner is a more formal affair than we have experienced to date and we are given time to savour each dish - of which there were many. The local Vietnamese Dalat wine is surprisingly
good.
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