15/3/25
We managed to get away, after a couple of coffees, by 6:30am. The more desirable first morning light had gone but we still had a golden sky. We turned straight back onto the track we used the day before. We’d been able to hear the sound of the busy highway all night. It never stopped. We weren’t going to ride against the traffic.
After a longwinded wiggle we ended up back at the restaurant where we’d had dinner with Tim, then joined the busy highway, which was more like the A14 than we’d experienced so far. Luckily we turned off after about 4km onto a single carriageway road lined with familiar looking stalls. It would have been rude not to buy some coconut pancakes, sweetened bean paste and a pack of dried bananas.
We weren’t going to the national park where this road ended up eventually, instead we turned off early. Riding amongst the coconut palms and the cows grazing below. We weren’t sure what they used all the cows for. Perhaps it was for all the carnation condensed milk. We hadn’t seen much beef being eaten.
We eventually stopped to eat our snacks. We’d tried to hold out for anywhere good, but settled for a random small bench. The hills then began. Because we were avoiding the highway there were quite a few hills us to go up and down today
Some were quite steep but none of them classed as an official climb by the sacred garmin. We were on back roads, but they were well surfaced and signposted apart from the occasional pothole. We enjoyed waving and saying hello to the friendly locals who were out and about. We were grateful for the encouragement.
We were riding on the Sing Khon pass very close to a Myanmar border crossing. Just a few kilometres. Apparently it was only open to Thai and Burmese people. We’d seen lots of different wildlife on the way today. Birds with very long tails, lively chattering birds in the trees and a quite common, blue tinted bird. Not quite the bright blue insect catcher, but pretty nonetheless.
Another two kilometres and we arrived at the end of the road leading to Wat Khao Hin Thoen. A temple built into boulders. Obviously in the past the puzzle of how the boulders were ‘moved’ made for a mystical setting. They were randomly present in an otherwise barren landscape. It was odd to be fair.
We left the temple and passed under a sign that said ‘Welcome to Thailand’. The road suddenly turned into a perfect tarmac surface as we started going downhill. We were heading back towards the coast after our little highway avoidance.
We happened to turn off onto a minor road, passing under a temple archway. This temple was under construction. The most completed part had a number of columns that set it apart from what we’d seen before. Not to mention there was a bicycle propped up, no bags, but there was a Belgian man. He apparently visits every year for a couple of months and cycles around. He’d been waiting for them to finish at least part of this temple.
We’d stayed away from the highway on the east coast for as long as we could. A 4km straight dual carriageway, broken by a quick fruit stop, took us across busy highway 4. We were heading into the town to find a vegetarian restaurant. We were starting to feel hot now.
After a lengthy 4km we reached the restaurant, shaded by plastic banners covered in the yellow ‘jay’ symbol. It looks like the number 17 but it means they’re selling vegan food. We were trying to figure out the different types of food when a Thai man, mixing his big silver bowl of goodies, interjected in perfect English. Always a pleasant surprise. We ordered a big silver bowl just like his and a plate of rice with different proteins. It was crazy cheap only 130 baht. We enjoyed it so much we had the same again.
Now bursting with a healthy amount of vegetables, we left the restaurant and immediately turned onto the seaside road. It was a beautiful coastline with large karst islands, covered in greenery, surrounding the bay. Turquoise blue water too. There was a temple on top of a hill with a very long staircase. We slipped round the bottom, close to the sea and passed a large group of monkeys that seemed to have created an enclave off limits to humans.
We were back on a road lined with resorts and stopped at the ever helpful 7-Eleven to get some water and some random snacks. Banana candy and salted papaya. We then set forth to cover the final 10km.
We eventually turned away from the coast again and cycled down a long causeway across some weird desolate wet landscape. It felt industrious but there was a temple on the other side of a large crater of water. At the top of the railway crossing we stopped for the briefest of chats with another western cycle tourist. We all felt obliged but at this time of day, with no shade, the interaction lasted all of 30 seconds.
We were still hunting for some bananas. Although we’d almost given up it was then that we happened upon a stall with 3 big bunches. From ripe to not ripe. Their main feature was actually tempura banana and what also appeared to be tempura sweet potato. So we of course bought some of everything.
The last 4km to the resort was stupid hot. The road was unbearably exposed to the, now directly above us, rays of death. We were begging for some air conditioned accommodation. But first we had to cycle back along highway 4 to find the cheap place we had our sights on. At first it was a worrisome sight. Abandoned shacks. But round the corner there was a row of newer, but not new, rooms.
The woman came out to greet us. We’d booked online but she couldn’t access it on her phone and with great difficulty took a photo of our phone. The room was perfectly comfortable but it did have an unusual layout with no door on the bedroom which contained the air conditioner. Still it got cold enough. It was odd being in these windowless pods. We could be literally anywhere in the world.
A lazy afternoon and evening began. We had no need, or want, to venture outside anymore. We’d already eaten. Lying around nibbling on random snacks and fruit, while watching more Rivals. What a fun Saturday night we had!
Surly They Won't Make It 