brass monkey
THAILAND | Saturday, 2 May 2009 | Views [361]
Before I gave the scooter back I decided to have one last blast on the road.
But where to go?
The
answer, for once, came from the guide book. About 100km away was Doi
Inthanon, the highest point in Thailand shooting up to just over 2500
metres above sea level.
For 60kms I was on a busy dual carriage
way, weaving past pick ups, trucks and the usual badly steered bikes
and scooters that appeared suicidal out of the side streets. The last
40k, after I had paid 120 baht to enter the national park, was
relaxingly green and quiet.
As the road climbed upwards towards
the summit, the hot air of the valley was replaced by ever increasing
cooler air. Riding through the mist that slowly swirled amongst the
tree canopy I arrived at the top. There was a car park, a sign
proclaiming where I was and lots of cloud. So, the views were non
existent but it really didn’t matter.
A while later I decided to
head back down the mountain. I got about 1000 metres before it started
to rain. I sought shelter under a tree on the roadside and waited. The
raindrops slowly dripped down through the leaves and branches and then
onto me. I was wet and I was actually starting to feel a little bit
chilly!! Twenty minutes later the rain stopped so I got back on board,
shuddered as my arse got wet from the seat and pressed the start button.
Going
slow (the tyres weren’t what you would call “full wets”) and keeping
upright around the corners I descended. A couple of miles down the road
was a small café. By the time I got there I was soaked!!!! It was after
all only a short gap between the downpours.
Hot coffee was being
held in my cold wet hands and as small drops of water ran off the top
of my bald head I was shocked to find myself with a sniffle. The café
was having a BBQ outside, complete with umbrella, how very English I
thought to myself. An hour later, blue sky came and said hello in a
small portion of the sky. I took this as a sign it was time to leave.
Back
on the bike and after 5 minutes I was having trouble keeping it under
control. It wasn’t due to the tyres but due to the fact that I was
shivering uncontrollably. My legs and arms weren’t under my authority.
The flesh not covered by my damp t shirt and shorts were covered in
goose bumps and if I went over 25kms the wind chill factor increased
the shivering spasms in my arms to a point where I thought I would lose
control and steer myself into the ditch. As I slowly progressed down
the steep road it gradually became well not warm but definitely less
cold until eons later the road became dry and the temperature was on
the right side of 30!
I completely warmed up next to a pretty
waterfall with another cup of Joe. Then it was an hour’s ride back to
Chiang Mai, in the heat of the valley…happy days!
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