Tom Grundy's Laos 2018 Trip Page

I started this trip a little early heading down to LA for the Tom and Tom show teaching slackline and some acro at the MAFF - Mountain Adventure Film Festival. This year it was at a climbing gym, so we got some climbing in too. I tried to concentrate on steep jug hauls. Steep routes without jugs would have been better, but that was out of my reach at the time. Then the next day we did some acro and slacklining at the original muscle beach AKA the green in Santa Monica. This was a bit of a circus - magnified by the people are awesome crowd who were filming something. Then one more day with a visit by Nalumon (who was cat-sitting in LA) and an acro class Tom was teaching. Then Nalumon gave me a ride to the airport on Tuesday the 2nd and I was off. First up was a long flight to Beijing. I picked out a seat that according to their little map was a window seat not over the wing - but when I got on the plane I saw it was smack over the wing. Sigh. The flight appeared to be completely full, so there was no easy changing at that point. As best I could see things were fairly cloudy from about Oregon to maybe Kamchatka, but I might have missed some good Sierra views as well as maybe some volcanoes and Denali poking through the clouds. Instead I watched a bunch of movies and tried to sleep a bit. It looked like I might have missed some good mountain views over Siberia and the approach to Beijing would have been interesting to see.

Once in PEK we had to go through a search process even though I was just going to another airplane. They were pretty thorough about separating out my electronics and camera gear. The one guy liked my home-made metal kindle case and held it up for someone else to see. Then I just had to wait a few more hours for the next flight. I never could figure out how to make the "free" wifi work (they wanted some sort of proof of who you are I think). However the T-mobile free roaming seemed to work for texts. Next up was a trip to Bankok. It was getting dark when we took off and soon it was fully dark, so despite an ok window seat there wasn't much to see - so I watched 2 more movies.

I got to Bangkok around 11:30 pm and with a little confusion got through customs (it wasn't clear if I had to go through the "visa on arrival" process or not - no. Which was nice, as it had a cost and required a photo. Then I changed some $, got my luggage, and went to the "meet your party" area. There were a heap of signs including one for the hotel with free airport transport I was staying in. So they called for the pickup and I waited a few more minutes. Then on to the hotel where Julie was waiting. I had mostly been up for about 30 hours so I was ready for sleep, but she had some talking to do and I sort of nodded and muttered before I finally went to sleep.

10-4-18 I woke up ok in the morning and went out for a very brief walk to pick up some food and then look at some large and plentiful catfish in a river next to a Wat. Then back to eat and repack for the next leg of the trip - back to BKK for the free shuttle to DMK, mailing off some stuff I brought for Jenny and then on from DMK to KOP - Nakhon Phanom on the border with Laos. There we had another free airport pickup and delivery to a hotel. Sadly this hotel was near the airport but not in town. We walked to what looked like a little night market we passed on the drive in but it was over and nearly packed up when we got there. The hotel was near a gas station with a 7-11 so we made dinner out of what we could get there - ramen plus mackerel and some cookies for me. Not too bad, but Thai food can be a lot better.

10-5-18 I walked back to the market in the hopes of some better food but it wasn't running. We paid for a ride to the bus station and then on to the border crossing - checking out of Thailand, driving across the Mekong, and checking into Laos. Or more technically the Lao People's Democratic Republic or something like that. Then to the town of Thakhek. The bus station was a bit on the edge of town, but we got lunch there and then got a ride to our hotel. After unwinding and a shower we went for a walkabout there - to the center of town and the Mekong and then back. It was decidedly less developed than most of Thailand that I have actually interacted with. There was often the smell of burning trash in the air and more motorbikes than cars or trucks on the road. Many of the motorbikes were loaded with up to 4 people - this was around the time school was letting out, so I think the kids were getting picked up from school. They seemed to be cheerful and full of energy. There were also the occasional chicken about and we also saw cows, goats, and turkeys. That night we ate at the hotel and turned in early.

picking up the kids from school - Lao style

old school no horns sign

one of the old colonial buildings near the Mekong

10-6-18 I went out early and found a place selling chicken noodle soup - more like pho than anything Thai. There are a lot of Vietnamese in this area. It is only about 150 KM from the border along a main transport corridor. Then we did some shopping for fruit and veggies and got a ride to Green Climber's Home. This is where most of the climbing is and we would be staying here for a while before moving out - back to Thakhek. This place was built by some traveling German climbers and features 2 separate areas with bungalows, dorm rooms, and tents available for rent. The second area isn't open yet but would open in November when high season really kicks into gear. The bungalow we were staying was pretty standard - a little expensive for what you get, but hopefully some of that goes into new routes and upgrading the anchors as well as keeping this place fairly environmentally sound. Julie worked on her writing and I went for a walkabout looking at some of the climbing areas as well as following a path that eventually petered out up over a very small pass between two karst mountains. This area is karst limestone with large steep limestone mountains and ridges rising about a fairly flat plain with plenty of caves all around. The climbing tends to be on vertical to overhanging terrain with pockets and various speleothems like vertical tufa ridges and stalactites. That evening we went out to do some climbing but only ended up doing 2 climbs as we got distracted looking at the roof and it got dark quickly. When we got back to our bungalow we were alarmed to see a mama scorpion with her back covered in little wriggling babies. It was a little horrifying. I tried to take some pics, but then trapped it in my tupperware and flung it into the bushes.

10-7-18 We got up early and eventually got out. Sadly the sun was up and hitting the roof area so we went back into the shade and climbed there but soon that was in the sun too. We moved to a much shadier area and climbed some nice long steep climbs there. Then we went to look at some other areas and went back for lunch. After lunch we investigated going through the nearby cave to get to the road and some food stands. It seemed improbable but once we had waded in a good ways we could see light from the far side. I was glad to have a headlamp and Chaco sandals as there was some walking on pointy rocks and blind wading in somewhat muddy water. On the far side there were some people fishing and we quickly got to the road and found a tiny restaurant/store and had some tasty pad Thai. Then we headed back - this time I was able to limit the wading to only waist deep - the cool water felt refreshing although Julie swam a bit both ways with her dry bag as a floatation device. Eventually we headed out for some climbing as it cooled down in the evening - another steep tufa climb before it got dark again.

Julie wades along the edge of the cave

This was the general plan for the next week. Some climbing in the shade, eating some food, sometimes in our room (veggie salads were good, ramen not so much), excursions to nearby caves or into town, and a fair amount of hammock time reading for me. It was frustrating how quickly we got worked on the steep stuff, but I felt like I improved eventually sending some 7a climbs (French grading system here - about 5.11d) I'm pretty sure the sweat bath did not help - it was somewhat reminiscent of climbing at Reimer's Ranch near Austin in the summer. While I was getting ready for one climb something fell out of the sky and bounced off of Julie's helmet (that was in her hand on the way to her head). It turned out to be half a giant millipede. We have no idea if it fell off of the overhanging cliff or was dropped by a lizard or a bird or what. By the time I finished the climb the ants were going to town on it. Other than spiders I haven't had any animal interactions while climbing although I did see a shed snake skin in a crack at the top of one climb and on the ground by another. There are supposed to be a number of venomous snakes here, but I haven't seen any snakes and only a few lizards. We have also seen various fish and freshwater crabs in surprisingly small puddles (they might be doomed as the dry season begins, or perhaps they can form a mud pocket and survive until the rains come again). One of the puddles got totally turned into a wallow by some water buffalo, so maybe the fish and crabs are used to that.

water buffalo on the way to a climbing area

there were a lot of nice butterflies in Laos

HDR image through a passage in Tham Sa Pha In

shrine in Tham Sa Pha In

For more on the climbing here check out Rock Climbing in Thakhek, Laos 2018.

After our reservation at the Green Climber's Home was up we moved back to town and prepared to ride the Konglor Loop, a popular motorcycle/scooter loop usually started in Thakhek.
I stuck the Konglor Loop trip report on another page here: Konglor Loop Motorbike trip report, Laos 2018.

Back in Thakhek things were really gearing up for the festival - Awk Phansa - or however you want to spell it - it is the end of "Buddhist Lent" and the end of the wet season and evidently the Lao are always up for an excuse to party. Their beer is "Beer Lao" and the liquor is called "Lao Lao". They built a stage on the road in front of the Wat and that night there were many little Lao performers singing and dancing. Also in the Wat they had a techno soundtrack blaring and various bouncy things - trampolines and inflatable bouncy houses and slides. There were heaps of street vendors selling mostly clothes, toys, hats, watches, glasses, and food plus a few carnival games - pop balloons with darts, shoot stuff with pellet guns and win prizes. There was a lot of amplified music and talking too. The street food was pretty good, although I have avoided the worst of the unidentified (or identified like chicken feet or dried frogs) things on skewers. I mostly stick to the noodle soup and fried stuff. The next morning the monks started chanting early and with serious amplification. I think they were calling out what people were donating - but I don't really know. It looked like a lot of people were dressed in fancy traditional garb and carrying shiny metal containers. With the amplified chanting it was far from serene though.

Laotian kids dance performance

more dancing

I don't know how they bend their fingers backwards

We switched gears from motor touring back to climbing and headed out. Pretty much every other or some times 2 days on - one day off we were out climbing. This is when I was projecting "Jungle King" but also trying to sample other climbs and sectors. We usually headed back into town with a nice sunset. One day there were some not so nice fertilizer trucks (that were really stinky) and driving slowly all over the road. I opted for a strategic right side pass. Dirtbags that we are we siphoned most of the gas before returning the bike. Then we put it into the next bike we rented. This saved us from either donating gas to the next renter or trying to time it right to use up all we bought. It also saved us a trip to the gas station each time we rented a bike.

The next day there were boat races on the Mekong, these were incredibly long skinny boats with large crews (I counted 33 in one boat but they might have had more for the race). At the ends there was only one paddler per bench but in the middle there were 2 with about 25 benches. Sadly the races were on the Thai side so we didn't have the best view. Some were pretty decisive victories and others went down to the wire - or perhaps I should say flag as they ended at a Thai flag. That night there appeared to be more fancy eating and serious drinking. Also the Lao power company and a cell phone company had dueling techno music out in front of the hotel - not very quiet.

boat race on the Mekong

Things just seemed to ramp up for the next few days culminating in Boun Oh Phansa (or maybe it is Awk Phansa) on the 24th - the night of the full moon and the end of so called "Buddhist Lent" when the monks end being cooped up in the monastary for 3 months (traditionally, I don't know if that is the practice today). That day there were the finals of the boat races with about 55 man crews and possibly both Thai and Lao paddlers. Around sunset there were a number of powered parasails flying around - mainly on the Thai side of the river. In the evening there were fire boats - really more barges or rafts with large bamboo scaffolding and torches depicting various things and occasional fireworks. The Thai ones were much larger than the Lao ones, but the Lao ones were a lot closer. They depicted dragon boats with people and jet airplanes and power lines going to a home and Buddha and temples and so on. People launched a few hot air balloons and floated a lot of krathong (little decorative floats with flowers and candles) down the Mekong. The traditional ones have a base of banana stem but a few used styrofoam - not the best thing to be floating down the river. They also had a huge concert on the grounds of the Governor's office.

the family planning group left a wake of smiles

krathongs and fire boats on the Mekong

The next morning they started taking things down and cleaning up, but this process took a few days with some booths and bouncy houses staying up for a while. There were definitely street sweepers (the manual kind) and trash trucks, but a lot of stuff got thrown over the embankment towards the Mekong and burned or just left there to work its way down to the ocean.

trash on the bank of the Mekong

At some point I need to describe where we were staying - the mighty Mekong Hotel. This might have once been the nicest hotel along the waterfront, but it has faded from its glory days. It has 4 floors with the outdoor hallways to the rooms going along balconies on the river side. Did I mention it might have seen better days? There was wifi, with many access points on each floor. Unfortunately most of them - including all the ones we could access from the room did not actually connect to the internet. This meant that we had to go outside to get internet, mostly either sitting in the stairwell or standing at the balcony. It was the dry season and they let the goldfish in the tank in the lobby experience it by having the tank only half full of water. There was an elevator on the front - it featured a fashionable glass wall - that faced the sun in the afternoon and left the elevator at an elevated temperature. I think it would rapidly become life threatening if it stopped between floors and you couldn't get the door open. We saw it had a Karaoke room but it was being used for musty storage. There was a massage place attached to one wing complete with blinking LED sign. Judging by the skimpy outfits of the girls hanging out there, it was not a therapeutic sort of massage place. The woman at the front counter seemed to be on for a very long shifts. Sometimes she was sleeping at the desk or on a bed in the back room. This was the sort of place that when you got up in the morning you could walk out onto the balcony in your underwear to see the sunrise on the Mekong and give a nod to the other residents that were doing the same. One morning some of the staff were sitting down in the parking lot for breakfast of fish and rice and invited me to join them when I pulled up on the motorbike.

second floor balcony/hall of the Mekong Hotel

at the Mekong Hotel the fish in the lobby got to experience the dry season too

twilight balcony view from the Mekong Hotel

We also took another excursion day - this time to caves. First up was Nang Aen cave. Before we did the tour I got some photos of a snake swallowing a frog. There was also a cat toying with a lizard. We did the full tour with boat ride, which was pretty cool although we had a guide which meant that I couldn't stop to mess around taking photos as long as I would have liked to. Some of the cave had rather garish colored lights but other parts had more normal white lighting. Also there were a number of concrete steps and guardrails, especially in the section before the boat ride. Back out of the cave the same snake was on the other side of the area with a fat spot in its middle. It got shooed away from the dining area by some locals. I think it was some sort of bronzeback snake - maybe a blue bronzeback. We stopped for lunch at the place you can walk to through the cave from Green Climber's Home.

stream that comes through the cave from Green Climber's Home

man showing off his fresh catch from the stream
this was at the restaurant where we were eating

The next cave was Buddha Cave or Tham Pha. This was rediscovered relatively recently and had a large number of bronze Buddha statues that were presumably hidden here hundreds of years ago. Now it is sort of a cross between a Wat and a cave. Sadly they do not allow photos inside. It had some really good cave features and the bronze statues were pretty cool. I am less impressed by the shiny mylar trees. There was another passage that went under it that would have been cool to explore with a boat.

I also walked to Paseum or Pa Seuam cave from here. It is partly filled with water and I waded into the entrance. There were some people fishing in there (it was Sunday) and they had been smoking, so it was a little stinky, but the water was clear and deep in spots and the catfish eyes reflected back the light from the headlamp. I spent some time taking photos and got some pretty good ones. I would have tried to go deeper but the fishermen were sort of blocking the way. I think you can go quite a ways into this one but it might involve some swimming or boating - this would be a perfect place for a packraft. I thought about doing this on the last rest day, but Julie wasn't interested and I decided that swimming into a cave by myself might not be the best plan.

boardwalk bridge on the way to Paseum
in a trip report from the wet season a woman had to swim above this bridge

Tham Paseum (I lit the water and rocks with my headlamp plus a little glow from the entrance)

One advantage of staying in town was a much larger variety of food available. We mostly leaned towards the street food and small local restaurants. Breakfast many mornings was noodle soup - very similar to Vietnamese pho. The last few days of the festival we discovered the soup woman who went around with a cart full of big pots of soup for sale. It was 5,000 Kip - about 60 cents for a bowl. Sadly we didn't figure out her schedule after the festival. Lunch was a bit more hit or miss - either more soup or sandwiches - which had some sketchy looking pate in them, or bags of noodles or spring rolls. If I was on top of things I could load up my tupperware, but sadly I didn't always have it with me or else the food was already packaged in bags or foam trays. Dinner had more options with a pretty good outdoor food court sort of place on the other side of the Wat and numerous small restaurants and street vendors around - especially during the festival. Sometimes we would each get a dish and then split a plate of mixed vegetables or morning glory. Sadly my Lao is very very limited. The numbers are the same as in Thailand, so that helped, but otherwise there was a lot of pointing at things and pantomime if they didn't understand some English. I like markets a lot more when I can tell what the prices are for various things, and usually the cheap fruit and veggies are the ones in season anyway. Some dishes were better than others but I don't think I had any that were actually bad. Some were a bit spicier than I would have chosen though and I prefer not having a chicken foot or mystery item surface in my curry.

grilled fish

Lao chicken grilling in Thakhek

Naga head in Thakhek

little fish drying in the sun

We left as we came - tuk-tuk to the bus station and a bus to Nakhon Phanom. We stayed near the bus station which was more convenient that day and was enough in town to allow some exploring. We had lunch at the food court in a grocery store/mall. That evening we walked down to the riverfront to enjoy the view from the other side of the Mekong. Compared to Laos, Thailand seemed very developed and industrial with a much cleaner walkway along the riverfront. On the way back we got some tasty soup and then after we were all full we ended up walking through a bustling night market. The next day we got a ride to the airport and headed to Bangkok.

In Bangkok we stayed with Jenny and Jay, I've known Jenny from climbing back when I lived in Portland and have seen her at a number of locations in the US like Lander, Wyoming and Maple Canyon, Utah as well as in Thailand. It was fun to catch up again. We also took an excursion to Ayutthaya Historical Park. I had never been there and it had been a long time since Julie was there. Now it is a World Heritage Site complete with crowds and admission fees. We took the train there and then rented bicycles to ride around. I took a lot of photos and Julie did some sketching. Then we waited longer than we wanted for the crowded train back to Bangkok.

iconic Buddha head surrounded by roots in Ayutthaya

typical chaotic wiring in Bangkok

Jenny and Jay

My flight out of BKK was early in the morning - just after midnight. I arrived in PEK - Beijing around sunrise. I had a long layover here so I took advantage of the short term tourist visa and after foolishly following the directions of the Chinese "helpers" who sent me towards departing flights despite my showing them the pass to leave the airport... I eventually got out of the airport and took the train into town. From there I walked briskly towards the Forbidden City zig-zagging my way somewhat randomly past whatever was along the way taking turns based on traffic and if anything looked interesting and then returning with some stops for snacks. I managed to see one wall of the Forbidden City, some parks, some Hutongs, interesting electric and other vehicles, and lots of people. Back at the train station at lunch time I found a food court serving up all sorts of goodies and had a rushed lunch before returning to the airport for a rather thorough security screening and a wait for my flight back to LAX.

flying into PEK at sunrise

big brother is definitely watching you in China

the north gate and moat of the Forbidden City

After another long flight with a few movies and a little sleeping I went through the usual border lines and then back to Tom Widdison's. That afternoon we went to a coastal park for some acro and slacklining before I crashed hard that night (I had been mostly awake for a long time even though it was nominally still the same day I left Thailand). As the sun set it got noticeably cold - a relatively new experience other than air conditioning, cold water, and Beijing I had not experienced in over a month. The next day I drove back home in time to vote.

Long Beach cranes

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