We made it to Lampang!! 130km, 6 breaks and 10 hours after leaving Si Satchanalai. Definitely our toughest day yet.
We set off at 6.15am to make the most of the cooler morning. It was 22 degrees when we left the motel and the air felt fresh and cool. As we travelled north out of the town, there was a low mist hanging over the fields. The roads gently inclined and declined and as we rose higher, visibility became poor and we found ourselves covered in a fine layer of water.
(Morning mist over the fields)
(Difficult to see what was ahead of us at times)
A couple of hours later and the sun had burnt off the mist. We had a beautiful ride to Wang Chin, with mountains all around and terraced fields either side. We took a short cut at one point which shaved off a few kilometres and found ourselves on a quiet, winding road. A few locals asked us "where you go?" and when they all nodded at our response, we knew we were on the right track.
(Our short cut)
(The mist beginning to clear)
(Terraced fields)
(The mountain pass ahead that we would climb to get to Lampang)
We arrived at Wang Chin after about 65km starting to feel a little fatigued from the day before. We found a small cafe just before entering the bridge and shared a rice dish and some cold drinks. It seemed like a lovely area to stay but as we crossed the bridge and road through the town, heading for Lampang, we realised it was very quiet, with very little to see or do. A few kilometres up the road, we hit the junction that would lead us onto the motorway and knowing we had a big climb ahead of us through a mountain pass, we stopped for another cold drink.
(The cafe at Wang Chin where we stopped to refuel)
(Our view from the cafe at Wang Chin)
(These little pillars mark each km to the nearest town.
We had to remember what the Thai script looked like for each town
so we knew where the pillars were counting down to)
so we knew where the pillars were counting down to)
The little man who owned the food stall was friendly and asked where we had come from and where we were going. As we were preparing to leave, he gave Nicky the thumbs up and said 'number one'. We thought this had something to do with the distance we'd done. Little did we know what was just around the corner.
(The stall owners at the place where we stopped before the mountain pass)
The mountain pass was a tough 7km climb. Every corner we rounded, there was another climb ahead. The bike computer read 41 degrees and there wasn't much shade on the road. At the 5km mark, Nicky pulled over feeling a bit dizzy and we rested in the shade for a short while. It was lucky there was no where to sit as we might not have got up. Once back on the bikes, and the final 2km behind us, we sailed down the other side, totally relieved and delighted. We passed through a police check on the way down and got the thumbs up from the men sitting there. We made up a bit of time on the way down and pulled into a nice roadside cafe for some lunch and to escape the heat.
(Our lunch stop on the other side of the pass. The place was full of old bikes)
About an hour later we were back on the bikes with the final 40km ahead of us. We had 5 more climbs to go, although none as long as the mountain pass but by that stage we were very stiff and the saddles didn't feel great. At 4.30pm, we finally rode into Lampang. Having spent the last couple of days in small towns with one main street, it was a strange feeling to arrive into a town with so many people, streets and shops. We had booked a couple of nights' accommodation at the Riverside Guest House and Paul lead the way through the narrow streets and laneways like he was a local.
(Not too happy to see the sign on the right. Our final big climb of the day)
The guest house contains traditional Thai style houses and we were greeted by the lovely owner who is a French lady. There are a few other European guests here, two of whom are a couple of French ladies who have just cycled here from Chiang Mai! They are heading south tomorrow so it was lovely to have a chat and exchange some information on roads to take and places to stay.
In the evening we walked down the street to the local market which was pretty big compared with what we've seen the past few days. Clothes, food, drinks and homewares were for sale. We found somewhere to eat dinner and had a browse around the stalls. It had a great atmosphere and we'll go back to explore other parts of it tomorrow.
(Lampang night market)
(Tentacle on a stick anyone?)
(We weren't game enough to try these but maybe another time)
(The guesthouse at night)
Tomorrow we're going to have a rest day here in Lampang. The city is described as a little Chiang Mai so we're looking forward to exploring on foot and maybe even a massage!
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