The drive from Chiang Mai to Mae Sot made for a long day, and was mostly driving. I really didn’t stop much! I managed to get out early; by 8:30 a.m.; was in the car, drinking my coffee, and under way. My goal was to get to Mae Sot before dark. I expected it to be 7-8 hours, just driving, which is about what it ended up being.
I did make it to province number 69: Mae Hong Son! That means I have now been to every province north of Krabi, and just have 8 provinces left to see in the far south of Thailand.
I really wish I could have stopped more. The area was beautiful, but I think the pictures would have been a touch boring, because it’s all so green! I passed by a couple of big rivers at the start and end of the trip, and did a lot of climbing and downhills. The temperature dropped to 22 Celsius at one point.
The road was extremely curvy, once I was in the mountains. Definitely had to be alert to not drive off a cliff! It rained heavily at times, and there were a lot of past landslides. At one point I went through one section that was being reconstructed. At the bottom of the hill it was extremely muddy, a single lane wide, and a mud pit at the bottom. I was worried I wouldn’t make it through, and more worried I wouldn’t make it up the hill immediately after! I did, but I was nervous.
Then there was a section of road that had fallen away and was being rebuilt. It was a single, narrow lane with probably a 30 metre drop to the left.
Later in the trip I passed by a large village that it appeared had no open entry to it. It was tucked up against, and up, the mountain rising behind it. From what I could see it was rustic! I think it would be fascinating to go there. I suspect I may not be so welcome. This village is right along the border with Myanmar, and was reminded by the numerous military checkpoints along the way.
I know this area has a lot of smuggling of various kinds, and refugees coming across the border too. A couple days ago there was a shipment of some sort of drug precursor seized in Mae Sot, where I was going!
My midway stop was in Mae Sariang. I stopped to see what I later discovered was the Mae Sariang Museum which, unfortunately, was closed. I did make a new friend there though. A Thai woman was there with a friend of hers, getting her photos taken. Her English is pretty good, I discovered, so I talked with her for quite a while. Her friend took photos of us, and I took some photos too.
Whenever local people stop and talk to me, I make time to stop and talk, even if I am on a schedule. I pretty much have always done that wherever I go anyway! It’s great if they know some English, but I’ve gotten pretty good and quick with the translate apps too.
I couldn’t stop a lot even if I wanted to, as there aren’t a lot of pullouts on this route, which is unfortunate. There are a few here and there.
After a long and interesting drive, I made it to Mae Sot, and another Hop Inn! Tomorrow will be another long drive. This time it’s back home to Bangkok.
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