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Published: October 25th 2011
Chilli duck
At Ban Yo, on the road from Boun Tai to PhongsalyThis part of the trip was so jam-packed with interesting sights and sounds. Hopefully these few words, the photos and captions give a hint of this brilliant leg of the journey.
Basically we finished our trek at Bun Namly and were picked up in a minibus. From there back to Boun Tai to collect our extra luggage, and on to Phongsaly. The roads were good in places, because the Chinese are providing extra funding to help keep agricultural produce flowing, but in other places the roads were clearly suffering from repeated landslides and washouts. We stopped several times for heavy equipment to clear a path. Phongsaly is very high, perhaps 1800m, and a quaint outpost of Chinese culture within Lao. Unfortunately the weather was a bit smokey or misty otherwise I could imagine the views would be spectacular. Guide La, recommended the Lao Lao from here. Not sure what chemical gives it the blue colour: I shudder to think. From there down the mountain again to Hat Sa, where the boats gather for upstream and downstream transfers. We had missed the public ferry and so we had to charter an individual boat. While a bit faster, we missed the hurly-burly
On-going roadworks
On the road between Boun Tai and Ban Yo. The rocks just kept on rolling. of public transport. We found a craft, with skipper and deckhand. It was probably 30ft long and 4ft wide (sorry but boats are still measured by imperial if you ask me) with a full-on, unmuffled petrol car engine. The props are set so high in the water, that when the engine is accelerated, a long tail of spray shoots out. Not sure if this is why they call them “long tail” boats. The current was running pretty fast and so along with the engine power maybe we were doing maybe 15 knots down river. We were all surprised by the rapids. Fast running water, narrow chutes, sharp turns in front of rock banks and standing waves perhaps half a metre high. Navigating 30ft canoes under these conditions is no mean feat! We stopped a few times during the day to stretch our legs, have some lunch at a village, before pushing further on down. Standing up near the bow was a brilliant vantage point for enjoying the river running, spotting wildlife, or just generally watching the world go by. Sorry but my photo does not do justice to the brilliant blue of the kingfisher (?).
The first night was
Simple farm machine
At Boun Nua. Note the replacement engines lined up behind. at Muang Khua, where we enjoyed Seendat (Lao BBQ) on a balcony overlooking the Nam Ou. Beerlao of course. We met up with a Canadian traveller who had been freelancing in China for the last few months, and now enjoying some relaxation in Lao. We older folk, enjoyed hosting a young’n of our own kid’s age: perhaps someone will pay the favour forward to them? The locals were playing Boule (Bocce). Plenty of evidence of the development dollar flowing in, with new bridges and upgraded roads.
Another day, another skipper and this second day our boat had reclining car seats! Very upmarket. Called in at a small village which specialises in woven silk. The girls enjoyed themselves and made one particular lady very happy. Of all the ho-hum fabric we’ve seen, this place showed the most interesting and new patterns. More of the same along the banks of the river, though the landscape was subtly changing. Bigger mountains, steeper cliffs. Second night at Muang Ngoi – the second word being almost impossible for this poor Caucasian to pronounce. This place was a treat, and just a little off of the tourist track. We stayed in little bungalows where power
was only available from a generator run between 1800 and 2100 each day. Decorations included old casings from US bombs, dropped during the secret war of the late 60s. We enjoyed the evening drinking cheap cocktails on the balcony of the Riverside Cocktail Lounge! Wonderful host, and a collection of booze rivalled only by the old Lennons Hotel in Brisbane. This guy took customer feedback to new heights.
Final day, another boat, reclining seats, and now a muffler on the engine! Even better. This boat seemed even longer at maybe 35ft. No more beamy though, and so getting around the narrow chutes was even more skilful. The landscape now included sheer rock faces of the type one sees in Harlong Bay or southern parts of China. Finally met the mighty Mekong just north of Luangprabang and visited the Thousand Buddha caves there. Very strange to see a group of monks arriving from Thailand on a so-called “fast boat”. Apparently they will rip down the river from Chiang Mai at some 40knots driven by a car engine and natural gas. Seeing the skipper wearing the only crash helmet on-board would be a worry for me.
Last stop Luangprabang, and
The first ferry
Hat Sa. The Nam Ou was still navigable above this point. back to the same guesthouse we left 9 days ago. Amazing adventure, and a credit to the company Kumuka for pulling it all together.
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