A few years ago when I heard about the Doi Inthanon climb and its difficulty comparing it to Kalahatty, I wanted to do it someday! It is about 39-40km of climbing through Doi Inthanon National Park with a total gain of 2500m of elevation with the final 14km of the climb gaining nearly half of that elevation at 9.3%. If one were to attempt it non-stop, it would be harder than Kalahatty (1150m in 11.5km at 10%).

Then when I happened to see that my good friends at The Bike Affair have a bike tour called the Mae Hong Son Challenge in which Doi Inthanon climb was part of, I wished to join them someday. As luck would have it, Krish spoke to me about branching out their touring wing as BarnOwl Adventures and invited me to experience one of the tours first hand and possibly document and give feedback on the experience. I was only too happy to take up the invitation and booked my flights to Thailand.

The tour starts in Chiang Mai, in North West part of Thailand which is a far cry from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok.

Mae Hong Son Challenge follows a route that’s famous among the motorcycling enthusiasts that goes through the extremely hilly terrain of the region covering a bit over 600km with 1864 curves. It goes through a bunch of national parks along the way and gains a little over 12,000 m of elevation gain over that distance.

Day 1: Chiang Mai to Mae Chaem

To save time, avoid riding on the less pretty highway, Krish suggested that we load up the bikes and drive 40km down the route and start closer to the Doi Inthanon National Park. We were all up for that as it’ll keep us fresher for the monster climb.

BarnOwl Adventures tours are specially curated tours and cultural experiences that can accommodate only about 10-15 for most of their tours. It is as much about riding as it is about experiencing the places we ride to and through and indulging in the local food. Knowing Krish for as long as I do, I know that he would ensure that the food experience is top notch and that we would put on a few kilos by the end of the tour despite the challenging riding.

There are nine of us riding this particular tour including Sampath, who is a support crew and rider.

The first 20km or so is a flat stretch that gives us ample time to warm up for the Doi Inthanon climb.

11km into the ride, I had a flat in my rear wheel which Sampath quickly helped with and we rode together towards the national park.

There are two check points for the Doi Inthanon National Park. One at the start of the climb about 40km from the top, and the second one at 9km to go to the top. To enter the last 9km of Doi Inthanon, one needs to buy a 300 Thai baht ticket. You can buy the ticket at either of those check posts. If you were to make it to the top, you’ll reach the highest point in Thailand and get to see Thailand’s national observatory.

To reach our destination for the day, Mae Chaem, one doesn’t need to do the last 9km of Doi Inthanon and take a left to descend down the last 20km or so. The riders have the option to choose. I was pretty sure I wanted to climb all the way.

As the climb started, I was riding with Sampath and Balaram. At about 35km into the ride, after climbing about 10km or so, we got to Wachirathan waterfall.

We posed for pics at the waterfall, had coffee and cold coco etc at the cafe near the falls before starting to ride towards the lunch spot for the day which was another 10km of climbing away. Parts of the climb were in double digit gradients and needed all the gears we had.

The Final Push to Climb up the Monster! Doi Inthanon!

Balaram, Murali, Ravi and myself decided to give the final 9km monstrous climb to Doi Inthanon peak, a shot while the others started their descent down towards Mae Chaem.

By the lunch spot which was 17km away from the top, we gained 1200m and we had 1300m to gain in the 17km with the final 9km itself gaining nearly 850m.

I reached the second check post where Krish took the ticket for me and off I went.

The climb started gently in the first few metres and kicked straight up soon after. I had to quickly move up the gears and stay there almost all the way up.

There were a few long stretches at 15-16% that felt like they would never end. I had a 36 cassette at the back and I was thanking myself for having the good sense to change to that from my 28 cassette I had on before the tour. The front chainrings are 46-33. So, the lowest gearing I had available was 33-36 and I had to use it most of the time so that I could turn the crank and move forward.

My goal was to keep the effort manageable so as not to stop till I reached the top. I didn’t want to stop not because of ego or pride but for the simple fact that it would be difficult to start riding again once we stop on such a steep climb.

There were many signs by the roadside advising the vehicles to use low gears because it is so steep. I did not need any such special appeals. I was using the lowest gear I had and barely moving.

There were a few narrow sections on the climb where if there was a car behind, it was difficult for them to pass us without getting too close. The drivers here are so polite that they never honk. One particular driver was behind me for a long time slowly following me patiently as there were barricades in the middle that were restricting him to go to the other side and cross me wide.

I was trying to go as fast as I could feeling bad for slowing him. I was signaling to him that it was okay to pass. It was only after other vehicles gathered behind him that he finally went past me giving as much space as possible. Some vehicles crossed the barricade like things, went to the other side of the road to pass me. They are amazing people here.

To calm myself down mentally, I told myself that it was only 850m which is like a little over doing Nandi twice but in only 9km. The problem with the climb is that there were not so steep sections at 5-6% that meant there were long stretches between 14-16% that just broke the legs. At places the front wheel would lift up ever so slightly.

The climb feature on the Garmin ran out of the hues of red to indicate the steepness and went closer to black/brown.

When I managed to find the courage to lift my head up and see ahead, the views were breathtaking with the clear blue skies and glorious sun out to show the beauty of the surroundings.

In the last 1-1.5km the Garmin moved from red to green and it flattened out a bit as we got closer to the finish. I wasn’t complaining. It was fantastic to see the board that said “The Highest Spot in Thailand”.

Murali and Ravi tried their best but decided to get in the car after about 5km of the climb as it was becoming too much.

Balaram finished the climb strong although he apparently had to take a couple of breathers along the way to let the traffic pass on the narrow sections.

By the time he got to the top, the cloud cover came in and it got really cold. We were not allowed to descend Doi Inthanon and got in the support car. It was so cold out and so warm and cozy in the car that we decided to skip the downhill ride and drive directly to our hotel in Mae Chaem.

In the evening we went out to the local market to buy some fruits and try some local delicacies before heading to a cozy little place called Mae Chaem Gate. The food was amazing and the desserts were world class. To find such gems in such remote areas, full credit goes to Krish. What a delightful start to the tour!

What’s Ahead!

Day 2 is another big climbing day with about 3000m of climbing to be done over 129km ride to Mae Sariang.

Also Read..

Day 2 Mae Chaem to Mae Sariang

Day 3&4 Life and Mae Hong Son are all about ups and downs! Mae Sariang to Khun Yuam