A Rest Day Well Spent in Mae Sariang!
After two days of amazing but brutal riding with over 5000m of elevation gain, the bodies needed some recovery. So, the planned rest day on day 3 in Mae Sariang was very welcome. Our stay in the teak house called River House right next to a river was an ideal setting to spend the day.
“Life and Mae Hong Son are all about Ups and Downs!” – Sampath Valluripalli
After the well spent rest day, we were ready to roll out of the River House to ride the 97km to Khun Yuam from Mae Sariang. There was a slight drizzle and the roads were mildly wet at the start.
I thought it was appropriate to wear my Project852 jersey given to me by my Belgian friend from Hong Kong, Kris Guns, for what looked like a slightly Belgian weather at least at the start.
As I was wondering if there was ever a flat kilometer in this part of Thailand, my ride partner, Sampath, quipped “Life and Mae Hong Son are all about ups and downs”. I agree with that 100%. He speaks very few words but those, I felt, were definitely wise words.
At about the 50km mark we stopped at a coffee shop and had our cold coffees and cold cocos taking in the scenic beauty that the spot had to offer.
After 50km, the roads got more windy and flowy. It felt great to descend on those roads. Those downhills can be quite exhilarating to ride on with clear line of sight, great ride surface and very little traffic most of the time. I can totally understand why the loop is so famous among motorists.
As we got closer to Khun Yuam, the tree cover was sparse and the sun was in full glory. We hardly felt the heat on the downhills as at those speeds there was ample breeze to cool the body down. On the uphills however, it was a different scene altogether.
I began to feel the heat while climbing and began to slow down significantly. Sampath came to the rescue by slowing down and pouring water on my head and at the back of the neck to cool me down. It helped greatly and we made it to our lunch spot Dad’s Garden just outside of Khun Yuam, a couple of km from our stay for the day.
We ordered food and demolished it in no time as we waited for others to arrive.
What’s Ahead!
Tomorrow is a short ride to Mae Hong Son! 67km of rolling terrain with more downhills than uphills. It should be fun!
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