Day 10: Waterfall and Bears

Wednesday, 10/30/2024

Woke to alarm this morning at 6:00am, but was not really sleeping, just still in bed.

Got ready and packed up everything, took the bag down to the lobby and placed in the pile for the truck.  I then went and got my stuff put on the bike, which the mechanic had already moved out onto the street in front.  While doing this I noticed my rear tire was flat.

Our mechanic, Long, was already aware of it and getting ready to repair it.  He also oiled all the chains as he does from time to time at stops.

My 2nd flat, this time the rear tire, went down over the previous 2 days.

We were on the road at 8:00am and headed along the river bank for a bit until we moved inland to catch the highway south toward our first stop of the day.

We turned off the highway and up a narrow twisty route to reach the parking lot for the Kuang Si waterfall.

We arrived at the parking area and the staff directed us over into the far corner by a maintenance shop and restroom building (and a few broken down taxi’s).  They must not like bikes much.

Walked a good distance to the ticket gate where Tan already had our tickets, then through a gate to the waiting area for the electric carts that would take us rest of the way to the village where the path to the falls starts.  In the past you would go to the village, but as the falls have gained in popularity, they pushed all the cars down the hill a bit and setup the carts to shuttle people back and forth.

Here we got our tickets punched and entered the park that contains the falls.

But before that, we pass by the Tat Kuang Si Bear Rescue facility and viewed a few of the current inhabitants.  The bears were mostly inactive and sleeping.   These are Moon bears that had been seized from illegal animal traders and bear bile farmers.

Mostly cubs taken so young that they would have a difficult time surviving on their own in the wild, and with habitat being very limited as well, they will most likely live out their lives in this sanctuary.  The facility is a partnership of the Laos government and an Australian non-profit.

1 of about 7-8 bears we could see in the enclosure, all sleeping.

We then did a good hike up the valley where you start to see the waterfalls.

The small river that forms the falls runs over a limestone and calcium rock region and has built up large pools and terraces along the route as it moves down the valley.  There are several fall areas, each seems to get more impressive with the rock walls around the pools and the sky-blue waters.

Eventually you reach the main fall which is at least 30m (100 feet) high and a third of that wide.  It is formed over several plunges.  Here they have a set of wooden walkways to help get you in the best spots to view the falls.

Kuang Si Waterfall main plunge.

Jerry, Mark and myself (taken by Joe)

At the falls (taken by Mark).

Interestingly, you can also get in the water in many of the areas as well to swim and wade around, though the main waterfall area is restricted.

I did notice more stairs moving upward still, so not sure if there are other falls nearby, or more falls above this one, or just some other things to see, but we were out of time and had to make the hike back down to the village.

Jerry, Mark, Joe, and I were the only ones to actually make it all the way to the main falls.  The rest of the group must have turned around, though Atti may have skipped the hike since he was not much of a hiker due to an injury he had received from a motorbike accident the previous year, which was likely aggravated by his fall the other day.

We took the carts back to the parking area and were back on the bikes after an hour break at the waterfall.

We came back down the road some and then took off on a little back road that was supposedly a short cut up to the more travelled highway we wanted to reach that would be in better condition than the minor one we started out on earlier.

This road became a full dirt road track (double track) with some very rough sections, a bit of mud, and a few water crossings, one of them quite large.

We took a few short breaks on this route to rest, and to oil the chains on the bikes due to the amount of water we rode through as well as the dust.

Pit stop to oil chains, get a drink, and bathroom break.

Pit stop to regroup, get a drink, and bathroom break.

We finally made it to the highway.

We stopped for fuel, and then most of us visited a decent sized grocery store on the site for snacks and drinks.

Here I finally found a nice micro fiber cloth to use on my helmet.  Bit larger than I would have liked, but at least something, and perfect timing for it!  Cleaned my visor from that morning and stuffed it in the outer jacket pocket for later.

It was also here that Jerry found a Unicorn!

So, the backstory on this is when he does his fly and ride adventures, he typically brings along a small stuffed unicorn, usually garishly pink and flashy (he actually has a supplier for them in Thailand.)  The concept is the rider who screws up the best or does the biggest goof during the days ride will be awarded the unicorn at dinner.

It will then be strapped to the bike the following day (Jerry typically puts it on his bike day 1).  Then that night, the current holder of the unicorn gets to choose who gets it for the following day, based on what happened, or input or encouragement from the rest of the group.

He had one with him when we rode in India, and yes, I did get to travel with it for a day!

He had not brought one on this trip as it was only going to have 2-3 days of actual off-road riding, so did not expect to find the challenges we had seen on the “paved” roads.  He had been watching for one and had now found the mother of all Unicorns; it was HUGE!  This giant, pink monstrosity was the size of a decent sized dog.

Atti agreed to take the unicorn on his bike for the rest of the day, but first Jerry did several photo shoots with it, and his bike, plus Joe had some fun with it as well (caught on video).

Either we are dropping a new album, or we are just nuts!

Joe takes a ride!

We got back onto the highway and soon crossed over the Mekong River.  Then the road started to deteriorate badly.

Ride over the Mekong.

It was full of pot holes and huge sections of just dirt, so was back to the low visibility and dust coating everything.  Also, as this was a main route, the traffic was heavier, so more dust and slower going, plus the challenges of passing in all that.  We did stop for another break finally where we could buy a drink if need.

Pit stop (taken with InfraRed camera).

The road then went up over a small pass where it became a bit better, but once back off the mountain it turned to crap again.

We were then told we would be meeting up with the truck down the road for our lunch stop.

But 50km (31 miles) later there was still no truck, and it almost seemed like we were lost?

But there is only the one highway here, so not sure why we were not connecting with the truck, but he did find us eventually.

We backtracked a short distance to a roadside karaoke bar we had passed and they let us use their large open air seating area for our picnic lunch.  The place wasn’t exactly open, but as with most businesses in Vietnam and Laos, the owners typically live onsite, so they let us use the tables and sold us drinks, but nothing else was going on.

Lunch stop place.

Though while we were getting seated, one lady was asking about what we wanted.  Mark jokingly asked for fried rice, and 20 minutes later a huge plate of it was brought out!

Mark did not actually seem to want it, so Kone ended up eating much of it, but a few others took a small portion.

Back on the bikes after our lunch, we continued on the crap highway a bit longer, but eventually the dirt and dust stopped and road became a bit less pot holed.

What the highway would become at random several times.

We could now start to make better time.

We stopped for fuel again and then a short way farther on we stopped in a small village for a break and some cold drinks.

Stopping for an afternoon break.

It was very hot and humid in this region so we hung out in the shade and tried to stay in the breeze.

Back on the road and we soon started to see heavy traffic again and more development.  We had arrived on the edge of Pak Lay.

Once into the small town we turned off the highway for a block to a small road running along the river to find our hotel for the night.  The area was a bit sketchy looking, run down and little if any businesses appeared to be around or open if they were.

But the hotel was nice looking and right on the Mekong River.

ANousone Guesthouse - Pak Lay (Taken next day in better light)

We parked the bikes up behind the hotel and got checked into our rooms.

My room was on first floor, next to the reception area and lobby, so probably going to be bit noisier. I was not sure if any of the large group of people that were having some kind of party at the covered deck in back were staying here or just renting the deck for the day.

Room. (Taken next morning).

I showered, unpacked, put batteries on the chargers and sat down to cool off.

I then went out to sit in the lobby (where it was not so cool), but was able to figure out the wi-fi as the sign in the room did not have accurate information.

Played online a bit, like the others, doing social media updates, posting and sharing photos, and then went back to the room to get my shoes (was walking on the tile barefoot) as it was time to walk over for dinner.

We walked about a block down the road to a restaurant where we were the only customers the entire time we were there.  I think one person arrived to pick up some food, but no others in the dining area.

Dinner.  I ended up sitting with the crew and guides.

I sat at one of the tables, then everyone else sat at the other table, leaving the guides sitting with me.  I never noticed the empty chair at the other table till later in the meal, but enjoyed hanging with the guides.

The meal was a bit different this time, some different styles of familiar dishes and the fish was fresh from the river.  We also had a plate of fried worms!  They looked more like a caterpillar, lots of legs, not sure exactly what it was but Kone called it a tree worm.

I tried one, and it had a decent taste due to the cooking process, was a bit chewy with a light crunch.  Really only eating the outer skin layer, most of the internal parts had dissolved away in the cooking.

I then filmed myself eating another one, just to freak out the folks back home.

Eating worms.

Once dinner was over, we walked back to the hotel where I tried, but failed to get a kitty cat to come over to me, it kept hiding under the cars and soon darted away.

We all were standing in the tunnel to the back of the hotel and noticed that there were quite a few geckos on the walls, good sized specimens.  A few would dart away if you got to close, but many let you get very close before they moved.

Hello Gecko!

I helped the guides move the bikes to a better spot under an overhang now that a few cars had left the area, then went inside.  I bought a few drinks from the reception desk and then went to the room to write today’s events in the journal.

Tomorrow we will go back to same restaurant for breakfast, then a 200km (125 mile) ride to the next destination, the nation’s capital, Vientiane.

We are being told it should be a better road tomorrow, but heard that before.  If so, we may be arriving at the hotel around lunchtime for once.

We are going to have lunch at the hotel and then go visit a local museum before coming back to check into the rooms.

If we do arrive early enough, I will see if we can take the bikes and a few of us can go visit the Buddha Park I know sits on the edge of town.

I will spend rest of the night sorting bags, probably read a bit and then go to bed!

Goodnight.