THAILAND (18.4)
334 Km – 5 Days
18 January – 24 January 2019
THAILAND (18.4)
334 Km – 5 Days
18 January – 24 January 2019
18-20 January - Jomtien – Phale Beach – 60 km
Janice landed at Bangkok Airport following a
mega long flight from South Africa to Thailand. I met her at the airport and the
two of us hopped on a bus to Jomtien where one could kick back, eat noodle soup
on the beach and drink smoothies from the night market.
After three days of organising bikes and
panniers, Janice and I finally set out in the direction of Cambodia, where the
plan was to meet Erma and Megan for a month-long cycle around Cambodia.
Cycle touring comes with a kaleidoscope of
colours, sounds, smells and sights. This day was no different, and I thought it
overwhelming for a person on their first day of riding. Even though our ride
was only 60 kilometres, our route was filled with an abundance of interesting
sights. The first stop was at Ban Chak Ngaeo.
Ban Chak Ngaeo is a community of Thai Chinese
who still maintain their traditional lifestyle. The tiny settlement is adorned with
red lanterns and comes with an abundance of old, wooden shophouses. Next was
the enormous Wat Yansangwararam temple complex, set in a vast park, housing
several buildings of vastly different architectural styles, well-kept gardens,
and a large lake giving the area a peaceful vibe.
From there, minor roads led toward the coast where
we settled for Phale Beach. A guest house right on the ocean offered a place where
one could sit, wriggling your toes in the sand. No time was wasted dipping into
the lukewarm water of the Gulf of Thailand. At sunset, a walk along the beach revealed
fishermen preparing boats for their night at sea. Afterwards, a restaurant on
the sand provided an excellent meal and a marvellous way to end our first day
of the trip. The food was delicious, and we sat watching the moon rise over the
ocean. Well done to Janice who did amazingly well on her first day of riding.
21 January - Phale Beach – Ban Phe – 60 km
Following an early morning swim, the route
headed along the coast and through the Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate. The estate
is Thailand’s largest industrial area and the world’s eighth-largest
petrochemical hub. The day mainly consisted of riding past long stretches of
idyllic beaches with practically no one in sight. Coconut juice stops were aplenty
and we sat watching the ocean, eagerly digging out the soft coconut flesh inside.
Rayong was reached around midday but, being
early, we continued until reaching the coastal settlement of Ban Phe. Ban Phe had
heaps of accommodation as it’s the jumping-off point to Ko Samet.
The settlement is a major hub for processing seafood,
primarily fish sauce and fishing boats were anchored three to four deep along
the many piers. At sunset a meander led to the dock where boats carted people
to and from the nearby islands. Unfortunately, Janice came down with a cold and
didn’t feel well, and we thought it best to make it an early evening.
22 January - Ban Phe – Kung Witman Beach – 70
km
Like the previous day, our path continued
along the coast. The ride was lovely as it stuck close to the ocean for the
best part of the morning. It took us across bridges with scenes of numerous brightly
coloured fishing boats anchored along the banks. The surprising part was
finding a dedicated bicycle lane virtually the entire way.
Eventually, picturesque Kung Wiman Beach
signalled the end of the day’s ride. Kung Wiman is a one-lane fishing village sporting
accommodation across the road from the ocean. We’d barely offloaded our
panniers before drifting in the lukewarm waters of the Gulf of Thailand. Eating
from a beachside eatery, the sunset made an almighty impressive display.
23 January - Kung Wiman Beach – Chanthaburi –
61 km
In the morning, I jogged along the ocean, a
route that took me over two small hills to a lookout and then onto a tiny
fishing hamlet. Returning, Janice was already packed and my run caused a late departure.
Still, it became another marvellous day of bicycle touring as the road followed
the coast past fish farms and more of Thailand’s idyllic beaches. Shortly after
our breakfast stop, we met Kim, a cycle tourer I met on Facebook. Kim was
heading in the opposite direction and after chatting for a while each headed
off in our respective directions.
Janice and I continued to Chanthaburi where
King Taksin rallied his troops at the back of the fall of Ayutthaya. En route, a
bike shop fitted mirrors on our bicycles, a far safer way to travel. On crossing
the Chanthaburi River, the River Guesthouse caught our eye. The place was
reasonably priced and made a perfect spot to overnight. An amble to the night
market ran via Sri Chan Road, known as Gem Road due to its lively gem and
jewellery trade. The night market didn’t disappoint either and we found an
abundance of food vendors from which to choose.
24 January - Chantaburi – Ban Phakkat – 83 km
Leaving Chanthaburi via the Historic Market,
the oldest part of the city was highly interesting. Our route led along the
narrow lanes, and it felt like we were transported back in time. We pedalled
past old wooden shophouses, red Chinese lanterns and vendors selling fascinating
eats.
It didn’t take long until finding ourselves
on a rural road heading toward Khao Khitchakut National Park and the Khao
Bunjob Waterfall. The way to the waterfall was far hillier than anticipated but
it remained a beautiful and peaceful area. Searching for the waterfall, a
Buddhist temple and a paved road were spotted on the opposite bank of the small
river. Instead of retracing our steps, it made sense to look for a way across. A
short saunter upstream revealed a path through the forest as well as a
suspension bridge. The shortcut meant dragging, pushing and pulling the bicycles
through the woods and across the suspension bridge. On the opposite bank, and
to our delight, was a far easier way and we freewheeled to our original path.
However, the main road took us over a reasonably
steep pass. Still, at a slow and steady pace, almost anything is possible.
Shortly afterwards, a road turned off in the direction of the Ban Phakkat
border. Cycling all those hills, I was eager to give Janice more uplifting news
and mentioned that the road to Bam Phakkat would be more level apart from a few
small humps. Janice, later, claimed this camel had at least 12 huge humps!
Ban Phakkat is a relatively low-key border
crossing, and we were pleased to find a bungalow at the town entrance at 400 THB.
The route was challenging, and Janice did exceptionally well to make it up and
over those hills and to Phakkat.
