Chiang Mai, Day 2

This day was an action packed, jungle tour, mountain biking extravaganza! We met up our friend Ben at the the local mountain bike touring company, Mountain Bike Chiang Mai

There were many tours to choose from, but all of them started on the top of the mountain. This meant you had to be shuttled up in one of their open aired trucks. Bikes were on the top and any low hanging branches got smashed. This was not a "downhill" course, but rather a "cross country" ride. I have seen over the years a drastic change in the terminology used with mountain biking. Cross country, in no way means tht you get in a truck and get shuttled to the top on the mountain. That is what downhill riding is all about. Since this trail we chose had a steep hill in it, it got the cross country description. More and more riders are entering the sport, and the luxury of being toted to the top of a mountain is appealing, but please call it downhill. Cross country means you ride up, then ride down. Sometimes all at once, and sometimes lots of little hills. I guess that is my rant about modern mountain biking. Although, it was nice to ride up a few thousand feet to the cooler air and start riding through the clouds.

This whole event was new to me with a guided mountain bike ride. It started with a huge discussion about how to ride a bike and they even made us ride over a log to show our skills. I guess you don't want to embark on a 20 mile ride with someone that can't stop, turn, or hop their way through obstacles.

Our group was Katherine, Ben, Judy, the guide Luis, the guide in training Mix, and myself. We descended through a coffee plantation and stopped for a cup of the local fresh. All of the land in the past used to be used to grow poppies, but now the king has freely given it to the people as long as they grow legal crops. Surely, some stuff has to be growing way out there, but I didn't want to stumble across anything.

The trail was mostly 4WD trail with mud and many ruts. There were a few singletrack sections. I had not seen that type of terrain for years. The bike handles a little different on dry rocky terrain, like in Las Vegas.

We quickly reached a Muong village and were in for a trip into the past. These people live in the mountains and are completely self sustaining. Most of them are farmers for the coffee beans and the women make arts and crafts. There were dogs and chickens everywhere. I was only able to see a few of them through the doorways of their houses. We were told that they are afraid of cameras as they belive a photo will capture your spirit. I just kept mine in the bag.

Then came the rain. No more pictures since the camera got put into the dry bag and I gave Ben a back up plastic bag for his. Nothing got ruined, but we all got soaked! I mean downpour. The ruts in the trail had filled up with water and the mud got muddier if that is even possible.

In this rainforest, there is one tree that really caught my attention: The Dipterocarp tree. Holy cow! This giant of a tree stood out from all the others. We had a group of 3 that were out in the open and towered above everything. Some can reach above 80M and live for over 1,200 years. It was overwhelming to be riding a bicycle through a jungle with these trees.

The riding was great as well as the company. We even came across a giant scorpion in the trail. I don't even want to know what else is out there in the jungle. The ride finished as quick as it started. It ended at a lake right outside of town. We all went for a little swim and ate another wonderful Thai meal. The bike taxi took us to the bike shop to retrieve gear and took us back to the guest house. I am surely thankful to have had another great day in Thailand.

 

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