The Mae Hong Son Loop is a renowned motorbike route traversing the northwest of Thailand mostly in the Mae Hong Son province. It’s stunning landscapes and scenic allure drew me in and enticed me want to ride it.
Leaving Chiang Mai that morning was a relif, as I relished the sensation of escaping the bustling city. Entering the mountains once more, I passed several elephant sanctuaries and was always amazed by these animals. Also along the route, water buffalo grazed peacefully. They always looked angry however, so I’d pass them cautiously but they never paid any attention to me.
My journey took me to Doi Inthanon National Park, home to Thailand’s highest peak. Eager to conquer the summit, I undertook the challenging climb, though the descent presented an unexpected hurdle—a steep fine of around £20 for cyclists. This was apparently due to local riders cycling bicycles without even a chain down the hill recklessly, resulting in numerous accidents. When I inquired how I was supposed to get down, the guard at the base chuckled and told me to just ride slowly.
After a strenuous 2-hour ascent, my efforts were met with a disappointing lack of a view at the cloud-covered summit. However, the descent provided a stunning panorama once I emerged from the mist. Unsure how slow I was supposed to go, I cautiously maneuvered past the spots where I’d noticed guards were stationed on the way up and avoided any unwanted encounters.
That evening, I settled at a picnic area equipped with a swimming pool, opting to camp in a shelter for protection from the rain. However, my refuge was not without its drawbacks. I found myself under siege from a relentless army of ants that had infiltrated my tent through holes in the bottom, waking me repeatedly as they crawled over me and bit me.
The poor sleep, huge climbs and probably not eating enough left me feeling pretty exhausted the next morning, a bad start to another big day full of climbs. Pushing on, I eventually crossed into the Mae Hong Son province and reached the town of the same name.
Early afternoon I decided to find somewhere nice to camp so I could have a relaxing evening. I ventured 4km off the loop to a lake which had camping, only to find it under renovation and closed. This was quite frustrating having to do an extra 8km with no purpose. Next, I saw a sign at the side of the road for camping in what felt like just someone’s garden. The man wanted 300 Baht for one night, twice what I paid for a hostel in Chiang Mai. Attempting to negotiate a better price proved fruitles, leading me to settle by a secluded waterfall for the night. This was a beautiful spot where I could enjoy a wash in the waterfall and very quiet, only seeing one other person the whole evening. I set about patching the holes in my tent but to no success, with the ants still found a way in that night.
Continuing my journey, I reached the Su Tong Pae bamboo bridge. This was built in 2012 to connect the village with the temple each on opposite sides of the river and was an amazing sight. The route I had planned went over the bridge, but after getting a stern look from a monk when I arrived and seeing all the stairs on the far side I decided against crossing it with my bike. I therefore just walked around admiring this structure for a while before continuing.
That afternoon, I pedaled up a significant hill toward the Myanmar border, arriving in the surreal atmosphere of Ban Rak Thai village. This town felt very up market filled with beautiful holiday villas. Whilst venturing into the surrounding hills, I encountered four Myanmar men who kindly let me camp outside their residence that night. They were very friendly and keen to tell me about the ongoing civil unrest in their home country which they’d escaped and were now working as builders in Thailand.
Battling through relentless rain the following day, I sought refuge a few times in restaurants and cafes using it as an excuse to stop and eat. I also encountered my first other bikepackers in the country, a group of Thai men heading in the opposite direction.
I now had one more big hill between me and Pai. I hoped to get as much of it done as I could that evening to give myself an easy ride into the town the following morning. By 6pm it was getting dark and I couldn’t find anywhere good to camp, so ended up just on the side of the road slightly hidden under an abandoned hut. I didn’t sleep well that night due to the sound of trucks and motorbikes often waking me combined with the anxiety from being clearly visible from the road. Fortunately, I did managed to get up most of the climb complete so had an easy ride into Pai the next day.
Pai was an interesting place, definitely not what I expected. It didn’t feel like I was in Thailand, but definitely had it’s own vibe of being the quintessential hippy town. The place seemed to only cater for backpackers with almost every shop being tattoo parlours, bars or indy cafes and often being a combination of two these.
I checked into a hostel run by a French man and this was clearly the place the French speaking expats hang out as there were about 5 older men sitting round the bar smoking weed and drinking beer when I arrived at midday. They were very entertaining and it was fascinating to hear how they’d ended up living here. From about 5pm it started raining and continued the entire night, making me very relived I had a roof over my head.
The following day was again plagued by more rain however, the road was one of the best cycling roads I’d ever been on. After a long climb to start the day, the rest was spent going down a fantastic mountain road with some spectacular corners. So far, most of the descents have been very steep making them hard to enjoy but the low gradients of this one were brilliant.
After picking up some food from a market, I stopped at a temple to camp wanting some shelter from the forecast storm coming that night. I was greated by friendly monk, who spoke very good English as he was a pupil at a temple in Runcorn for two years. He didn’t seem too impressed by the north of England however, complaining that it was too cold!
Deciding against a return to Chiang Mai, my next leg involves an eastward journey through more national parks toward Chiang Rai. The loop proved to be more demanding than anticipated, with a multitude of steep hills presenting quite the challenge for my heavily loaded bike. Nevertheless, the breathtaking vistas along the way and feeling of being back in the wild when pedaling through the jungle make it an unforgettable experience.
Will Scam 