Chris.
Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture heavy
Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
Cheers Neil for the additional posts etc, brilliant
Chris.
Chris.
Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
I think we may have more coming as the first half of the trip was mentioned 
Love this thread.
(:-})
Love this thread.I wonder if the moth attracts snakes at the same time as scaring off other creatures with the snake like wing tips.
(:-})
==============================Enter the Darkside
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firestorm996
- Posts: 617
- Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2002 10:15 am
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Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
Day 8 of our tour of North Vietnam.
Hanoi - Hai Phong - Cat Ba Island
We had planned a well-deserved 'rest evening' for the previous day, staying in Hanoi before setting off again the next day. But after arriving back late due to the Minsk' calling it a day, that went out the window. We'd got back, dropped the bikes at Flamingo, decided to change the bikes rather than continue with the Minsks, and had to lug the gear back to the hotel. Once all that was done we were off out for a beer, and a lovely meal at the french place whose name escapes me.
Late at night on the way back to the hotel we encountered the bin lorry. Nothing unusual in that, you may think, that is until we noticed the bloke on the roof whose job it is to lift all the electrical cabling out of the way so the truck can get through.
The plan for today was to load up the bikes again (which had been stored at Flamingo overnight) and ride to Cat Ba island via a ferry. However, the day started out badly, with a severe thunderstorm over Hanoi. We actually sat there at breakfast, a lovely omelette with fresh bread and coffee, and seriously considered knocking the Cat Ba part of the trip on the head. Then we came to our senses and thought ‘baldrocks to it’.
We walked round to flamingo and did some settling up, as we'd changed the bikes from Minsks and the emergency Yamaha, to an XR250, CRF250 and XBR125. Then we loaded up and got underway amid the drizzle and wet roads. There was an early mechanical stop after a few hundred yards when Phil's Yam mirror fell off, quickly sorted by a mechanic that whizzed across 6 lanes of early morning traffic with a replacement.
We then settled in for a highway slog to Hai Phong which is a good 100km away. That might not sound much in UK terms but vietnamese highways are different. It's perfectly acceptable to lead your herd of cattle across the 4 lane highway, or cycle the wrong way up it (hard shoulder or outside lane) so traffic doesn't move too fast and you have to be seriously on your guard. No daydreaming here if you want to stay alive.
Riding a Honda XR felt all familiar again even though this one is not a model I ever owned. I used to have an XR650R, and after today I fancy another after this trip, maybe not the 650 though. It would have to be as well as my VTR and something cheap. I've also learned a lot on this trip about what you need and what you don't, and what gear works and what doesn't. My Kriega stuff has been excellent, especially the little kube pocket that velcros to the rucksack strap or to the handlebars on my bike. I have an olympus tough camera which I keep in there that can be used underwater, and that has a carabiner attached so I can whip it out quickly and take photos or get some pictures in the move. I'm happy to share my learnings if anyone is considering a trip like this. There's loads of stuff we brought which hasn't been used once, and that's equally as important.
My XR250
Phil's Yam YBR125
Del's CRF250
The downside to our open face helmets is that on the highway sections you’re a lot more exposed to the dust which trucks and buses kick up. Me and Del were wearing V12 goggles which are designed as shatter-proof eye protection for military and airsoft (paintball) usage. They did a great job but the downside is that they do let some air through and that includes dust on the highway. My advice to anyone doing a similar trip would be by all means use an open faced lid, it will be better 90% of the time, but take some proper motocross goggles or a visor for the times you’re on the main routes or it’s raining.
One thing I'm in favour of over here are the traffic lights that have a display that counts down seconds until the lights change. I was thinking as we rode along that we should do the same in the UK, but then I visited London and found they had started to put something similar on certain junctions. It helps people time their way through the lights and on the bike you know whether you've got time to faff or if the lights are changing in a few seconds.
We stopped for fuel then made it to Hai Phong just as the ferry was boarding. When I say ferry I actually mean small boat. They wouldn't let us take the bikes on the ferry we had booked because bikes like these are so much bigger than a typical Vietnam scooter, so we had to take the first ferry on foot with our luggage, and they would send the bikes on the next one two hours later.
The ferry trip took about an hour, and as crammed as it was on the boat it was quite relaxing watching the coast pass us by. Initially it took half an hour to get past the shipping port itself, with countless huge container ships docked. Then it was out to more open water and gradually the industry subsided and became coastal scenery. For the most part as we neared Cat Ba island the scenery was mountains covered in greenery. The ferry terminal was a half-built breeze-block and corrugated roof construction without the two largest walls. There was a nice lady there who ran the ferry ‘shop’ which was a couple of tables piled high with various types of packaged food. We relaxed and ordered some coffee and ‘Pho Noodle’ (think ‘pot noodle’ but just about edible) which was the best thing on offer. We spoke to a lad from California whose blacked out bike is in the photos, he is three countries into a south East Asia tour and is doing it on a shoestring budget. He was planning to sell the bike in the next few days when he reached Hanoi, and estimated it would have cost him less than $100 to ‘own’ it for the last several weeks.
The Ferry port:
The Ferry 'shop' - source of great Pho Noodle
After a couple of hours, during which we started to doubt whether the bikes would arrive as promised, the ferry turned up. Lo and behold the bikes were on board, so we unloaded them, inner-tubed the panniers back on then made our way onto Cat Ba island.
Initial impressions were that it was a very quiet but scenic place, the roads were mostly empty and we had a bit of confusion finding our way to Cat Ba town where we were booked into a hotel.
At one point we were forced to turn back when we found the road blocked off due to explosion activity ahead. Since the area we were in was quite far North Vietnam I expect this was mining rather than land mines, I don't believe the war made it this far north.
So to recap slightly, during the day prior to this one Phil’s Minsk had expired with a broken pushrod. Well today he broke his Yamaha. It started having fuel starvation problems where it would just cut out and lose power. We stopped a couple of times en route to Cat Ba town and each time it took longer than the last to get going again. Pinky had to get busy with the tools, always assisted by random locals who would just appear out of the nearest bush each time the Yam broke down.
To relieve the boredom during the numerous pitstops Del found a new use for his pannier rack:
By the time we made any real progress it was getting late in the day and we were treated to fantastic sunset views around the coast. We kept the speeds right down, no need to rush with very few km to go and scenery such as this.
We made it to Cat Ba town, and had a childish giggle when we saw that our hotel was called the Hung Long Hotel. However it was lovely and clean, and had an incredible view right out over the harbour.
We checked in, then met back outside in the carpark with a beer, trying fruitlessly to fix the Yamaha but the problem persisted. When the daylight started to wane properly we called it a day on the Yam and decided to let Pinky try again tomorrow since we hadn’t planned to be riding anywhere. Instead, we wanted to catch a boat out to Ha Long Bay, which to be one of the highlights of the trip.
Amongst the photos is a view from the balcony…a stunning sunset if ever I saw one, across the bay and with numerous floating bars in the harbour.
Hanoi - Hai Phong - Cat Ba Island
We had planned a well-deserved 'rest evening' for the previous day, staying in Hanoi before setting off again the next day. But after arriving back late due to the Minsk' calling it a day, that went out the window. We'd got back, dropped the bikes at Flamingo, decided to change the bikes rather than continue with the Minsks, and had to lug the gear back to the hotel. Once all that was done we were off out for a beer, and a lovely meal at the french place whose name escapes me.
Late at night on the way back to the hotel we encountered the bin lorry. Nothing unusual in that, you may think, that is until we noticed the bloke on the roof whose job it is to lift all the electrical cabling out of the way so the truck can get through.
The plan for today was to load up the bikes again (which had been stored at Flamingo overnight) and ride to Cat Ba island via a ferry. However, the day started out badly, with a severe thunderstorm over Hanoi. We actually sat there at breakfast, a lovely omelette with fresh bread and coffee, and seriously considered knocking the Cat Ba part of the trip on the head. Then we came to our senses and thought ‘baldrocks to it’.
We walked round to flamingo and did some settling up, as we'd changed the bikes from Minsks and the emergency Yamaha, to an XR250, CRF250 and XBR125. Then we loaded up and got underway amid the drizzle and wet roads. There was an early mechanical stop after a few hundred yards when Phil's Yam mirror fell off, quickly sorted by a mechanic that whizzed across 6 lanes of early morning traffic with a replacement.
We then settled in for a highway slog to Hai Phong which is a good 100km away. That might not sound much in UK terms but vietnamese highways are different. It's perfectly acceptable to lead your herd of cattle across the 4 lane highway, or cycle the wrong way up it (hard shoulder or outside lane) so traffic doesn't move too fast and you have to be seriously on your guard. No daydreaming here if you want to stay alive.
Riding a Honda XR felt all familiar again even though this one is not a model I ever owned. I used to have an XR650R, and after today I fancy another after this trip, maybe not the 650 though. It would have to be as well as my VTR and something cheap. I've also learned a lot on this trip about what you need and what you don't, and what gear works and what doesn't. My Kriega stuff has been excellent, especially the little kube pocket that velcros to the rucksack strap or to the handlebars on my bike. I have an olympus tough camera which I keep in there that can be used underwater, and that has a carabiner attached so I can whip it out quickly and take photos or get some pictures in the move. I'm happy to share my learnings if anyone is considering a trip like this. There's loads of stuff we brought which hasn't been used once, and that's equally as important.
My XR250
Phil's Yam YBR125
Del's CRF250
The downside to our open face helmets is that on the highway sections you’re a lot more exposed to the dust which trucks and buses kick up. Me and Del were wearing V12 goggles which are designed as shatter-proof eye protection for military and airsoft (paintball) usage. They did a great job but the downside is that they do let some air through and that includes dust on the highway. My advice to anyone doing a similar trip would be by all means use an open faced lid, it will be better 90% of the time, but take some proper motocross goggles or a visor for the times you’re on the main routes or it’s raining.
One thing I'm in favour of over here are the traffic lights that have a display that counts down seconds until the lights change. I was thinking as we rode along that we should do the same in the UK, but then I visited London and found they had started to put something similar on certain junctions. It helps people time their way through the lights and on the bike you know whether you've got time to faff or if the lights are changing in a few seconds.
We stopped for fuel then made it to Hai Phong just as the ferry was boarding. When I say ferry I actually mean small boat. They wouldn't let us take the bikes on the ferry we had booked because bikes like these are so much bigger than a typical Vietnam scooter, so we had to take the first ferry on foot with our luggage, and they would send the bikes on the next one two hours later.
The ferry trip took about an hour, and as crammed as it was on the boat it was quite relaxing watching the coast pass us by. Initially it took half an hour to get past the shipping port itself, with countless huge container ships docked. Then it was out to more open water and gradually the industry subsided and became coastal scenery. For the most part as we neared Cat Ba island the scenery was mountains covered in greenery. The ferry terminal was a half-built breeze-block and corrugated roof construction without the two largest walls. There was a nice lady there who ran the ferry ‘shop’ which was a couple of tables piled high with various types of packaged food. We relaxed and ordered some coffee and ‘Pho Noodle’ (think ‘pot noodle’ but just about edible) which was the best thing on offer. We spoke to a lad from California whose blacked out bike is in the photos, he is three countries into a south East Asia tour and is doing it on a shoestring budget. He was planning to sell the bike in the next few days when he reached Hanoi, and estimated it would have cost him less than $100 to ‘own’ it for the last several weeks.
The Ferry port:
The Ferry 'shop' - source of great Pho Noodle
After a couple of hours, during which we started to doubt whether the bikes would arrive as promised, the ferry turned up. Lo and behold the bikes were on board, so we unloaded them, inner-tubed the panniers back on then made our way onto Cat Ba island.
Initial impressions were that it was a very quiet but scenic place, the roads were mostly empty and we had a bit of confusion finding our way to Cat Ba town where we were booked into a hotel.
At one point we were forced to turn back when we found the road blocked off due to explosion activity ahead. Since the area we were in was quite far North Vietnam I expect this was mining rather than land mines, I don't believe the war made it this far north.
So to recap slightly, during the day prior to this one Phil’s Minsk had expired with a broken pushrod. Well today he broke his Yamaha. It started having fuel starvation problems where it would just cut out and lose power. We stopped a couple of times en route to Cat Ba town and each time it took longer than the last to get going again. Pinky had to get busy with the tools, always assisted by random locals who would just appear out of the nearest bush each time the Yam broke down.
To relieve the boredom during the numerous pitstops Del found a new use for his pannier rack:
By the time we made any real progress it was getting late in the day and we were treated to fantastic sunset views around the coast. We kept the speeds right down, no need to rush with very few km to go and scenery such as this.
We made it to Cat Ba town, and had a childish giggle when we saw that our hotel was called the Hung Long Hotel. However it was lovely and clean, and had an incredible view right out over the harbour.
We checked in, then met back outside in the carpark with a beer, trying fruitlessly to fix the Yamaha but the problem persisted. When the daylight started to wane properly we called it a day on the Yam and decided to let Pinky try again tomorrow since we hadn’t planned to be riding anywhere. Instead, we wanted to catch a boat out to Ha Long Bay, which to be one of the highlights of the trip.
Amongst the photos is a view from the balcony…a stunning sunset if ever I saw one, across the bay and with numerous floating bars in the harbour.
Firestorm996
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
Wow thanks for posting. I used to know a restaurant called Ha Long, it wasn't around for long though. 
(:-})
(:-})
==============================Enter the Darkside
Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
Good man Neil for the latest postings 
Great photo's, hard to believe that guy on the truck having to hold up the electricity cables so they clear it, H&S would certainly have a field day over here with something like that 
The ferry terminal looks fairly basic to what we're used to as well, still, at least they have one
Chris.
Great photo's, hard to believe that guy on the truck having to hold up the electricity cables so they clear it, H&S would certainly have a field day over here with something like that The ferry terminal looks fairly basic to what we're used to as well, still, at least they have one Chris.
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firestorm996
- Posts: 617
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Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
Day 9 - Cat Ba Island & Ha Long Bay
This post is going to be more photos than writeup. We took another rest day while on Cat Ba Island because we wanted to take a boat over to Ha Long Bay.
We got up, looked out of the balcony from 7 floors up to check on the bikes and they weren't there. Someone had moved them 50 yards away to the other end of the (empty) car park and there was a large wedding party forming. Plenty of guests arriving including some rather attractive young ladies in party dresses, at 8am. We got up, had a nice but uncomfortable breakfast in the huge dining area where there were considerably more staff than us, and where the buffet breakfast was about 20 yards long. For all 4 of us.
Phil was a little unwell so decided not to go on the boat trip, that left me and Del wandering around trying to sort something out. We made a new friend in a tours shop, the chap couldn't do enough for us and set told us we'd missed the early tourist boat to Ha Long bay, which we should have arranged the previous night if we wanted to go on it. However he offered to set us up with a smaller boat, we duly accepted, paid up and kicked around Cat Ba town for an hour until it was time to take the boat. Our new friend kept appearing up and down the town on his scooter, offering to give us a lift wherever we wanted to go. It's the first time in my life I've been three up on a scooter.
While going back to the hotel to grab some bits and pieces I spotted some of the wedding guests posing on our bikes having their photos taken.
So, time to get on the boat, off to the harbour for us. In true Nambusters style our boat was likened to a floating garden shed. It got us there in one piece, but if you can imagine the engine refinement of a ditch pump vibrating the whole boat. The captain of our boat had to periodically pump the hull by hand while we chugged along the coast.
Once at ha long bay we disembarked onto a floating house/dock type affair. I was offered a kayak to go and explore some more. Del opted out because he wasn't feeling too well.
Ha Long bay for those who haven't seen it is a collection of Thousands of Islands (maybe it's where the dressing comes from). They are vertical limestone kursts that become forested. I took my kayak around one of the sizable ones, and that took over an hour. People live in floating huts on the bay here, there is no dry land just rock and cliffs or water.
Once I'd paddled halfway around this kurst, it was suddenly as though someone had turned the world off. All the noise from boats or people stopped and all I could hear in this incredible place was the birds that nest up on the cliffs, some of them being eagles that were soaring overhead from time to time. I just floated there for 10 minutes soaking it all up because it's not often you get complete silence like that. It was great, no lifejacket, no mobile phone, no safety net, just me and an oar which I'd have been in trouble if it had fell into the water.
This fellow was circling overhead in case I ballsed it up...
Back at the floating dock Del showed me how, underneath some of the boards of the dock and inside a big net there was a fish which they caught 10 years ago and kept as a pet.
They had fed it with other fish while I was out kayaking, and apparently it was fast and teethy. It was about 1 foot diameter at its thickest and 5 foot long. Del had asked if they would eat it and they said no. Someone asked which fish they did eat, and they pointed to the dog. It's a guard dog until it gets old, and then it's dinner.
The square sections around the main decking area are all full of fish in keep-nets.
At one point Del disappeared to use the 'facilities', and I'm sure I heard him say he was going to see if he could nip onboard the presently-docked tourist boat because the one on the dock was well dodgy. Picture the scene 10 minutes later when he hadn't reappeared, and the tourist boat suddenly untied from the dock and set off across the bay. I was convinced he was on it and was shouting at them to return my mate immediately. They just waved back, fortunately he wasn't onboard and reappeared a few minutes later to a rather stressed Neil.
After an hour or two we all hopped back on the boat and enjoyed the trip back around the coast, arriving in Cat Ba town just as the sun was setting.
This fellow was busy moving house. Literally. There was a little boat with an outboard towing it along to somewhere else around the bay. Maybe he was having trouble with the neighbours or something.
Back at Cat Ba town, Pinky had been working on the Yamaha all day and managed to get it sorted out. Cat Ba town is a quiet place but it does attract gap-year students touring south east asia. We spent the evening at a nice upstairs bar with a view out across the harbour. I think at one point we played a game of pool against some French blokes, and with national honour at stake I'm happy to say we won. I think.
This post is going to be more photos than writeup. We took another rest day while on Cat Ba Island because we wanted to take a boat over to Ha Long Bay.
We got up, looked out of the balcony from 7 floors up to check on the bikes and they weren't there. Someone had moved them 50 yards away to the other end of the (empty) car park and there was a large wedding party forming. Plenty of guests arriving including some rather attractive young ladies in party dresses, at 8am. We got up, had a nice but uncomfortable breakfast in the huge dining area where there were considerably more staff than us, and where the buffet breakfast was about 20 yards long. For all 4 of us.
Phil was a little unwell so decided not to go on the boat trip, that left me and Del wandering around trying to sort something out. We made a new friend in a tours shop, the chap couldn't do enough for us and set told us we'd missed the early tourist boat to Ha Long bay, which we should have arranged the previous night if we wanted to go on it. However he offered to set us up with a smaller boat, we duly accepted, paid up and kicked around Cat Ba town for an hour until it was time to take the boat. Our new friend kept appearing up and down the town on his scooter, offering to give us a lift wherever we wanted to go. It's the first time in my life I've been three up on a scooter.
While going back to the hotel to grab some bits and pieces I spotted some of the wedding guests posing on our bikes having their photos taken.
So, time to get on the boat, off to the harbour for us. In true Nambusters style our boat was likened to a floating garden shed. It got us there in one piece, but if you can imagine the engine refinement of a ditch pump vibrating the whole boat. The captain of our boat had to periodically pump the hull by hand while we chugged along the coast.
Once at ha long bay we disembarked onto a floating house/dock type affair. I was offered a kayak to go and explore some more. Del opted out because he wasn't feeling too well.
Ha Long bay for those who haven't seen it is a collection of Thousands of Islands (maybe it's where the dressing comes from). They are vertical limestone kursts that become forested. I took my kayak around one of the sizable ones, and that took over an hour. People live in floating huts on the bay here, there is no dry land just rock and cliffs or water.
Once I'd paddled halfway around this kurst, it was suddenly as though someone had turned the world off. All the noise from boats or people stopped and all I could hear in this incredible place was the birds that nest up on the cliffs, some of them being eagles that were soaring overhead from time to time. I just floated there for 10 minutes soaking it all up because it's not often you get complete silence like that. It was great, no lifejacket, no mobile phone, no safety net, just me and an oar which I'd have been in trouble if it had fell into the water.
This fellow was circling overhead in case I ballsed it up...
Back at the floating dock Del showed me how, underneath some of the boards of the dock and inside a big net there was a fish which they caught 10 years ago and kept as a pet.
They had fed it with other fish while I was out kayaking, and apparently it was fast and teethy. It was about 1 foot diameter at its thickest and 5 foot long. Del had asked if they would eat it and they said no. Someone asked which fish they did eat, and they pointed to the dog. It's a guard dog until it gets old, and then it's dinner.
The square sections around the main decking area are all full of fish in keep-nets.
At one point Del disappeared to use the 'facilities', and I'm sure I heard him say he was going to see if he could nip onboard the presently-docked tourist boat because the one on the dock was well dodgy. Picture the scene 10 minutes later when he hadn't reappeared, and the tourist boat suddenly untied from the dock and set off across the bay. I was convinced he was on it and was shouting at them to return my mate immediately. They just waved back, fortunately he wasn't onboard and reappeared a few minutes later to a rather stressed Neil.
After an hour or two we all hopped back on the boat and enjoyed the trip back around the coast, arriving in Cat Ba town just as the sun was setting.
This fellow was busy moving house. Literally. There was a little boat with an outboard towing it along to somewhere else around the bay. Maybe he was having trouble with the neighbours or something.
Back at Cat Ba town, Pinky had been working on the Yamaha all day and managed to get it sorted out. Cat Ba town is a quiet place but it does attract gap-year students touring south east asia. We spent the evening at a nice upstairs bar with a view out across the harbour. I think at one point we played a game of pool against some French blokes, and with national honour at stake I'm happy to say we won. I think.
Firestorm996
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
Moor stunning Pic's...Brilliant...Keep 'em coming ...
Making up since 2007, sometimes it's true...Honest...
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firestorm996
- Posts: 617
- Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2002 10:15 am
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Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
We'll have done trip no. 2 before I finish this write up! Only one more day to go I think.MacV2 wrote:Moor stunning Pic's...Brilliant...Keep 'em coming ...
We're planning on returning next February/March to explore the north east region. Amongst other things we'll be riding Ma Pi Leng pass which is one of the most treacherous passes in Nam, and a fair old section of the Himalayas at proper altitude.
Firestorm996
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
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firestorm996
- Posts: 617
- Joined: Tue Jul 16, 2002 10:15 am
- Location: Oop North
- Contact:
Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture heavy
Day 10 - Cat Ba to Hanoi
Last day of the bike trip.
We woke up in Cat Ba to overcast skies, and mist over the distant islands. After breakfast we packed and loaded up the bikes for the last time. We hadn't rode them yesterday what with doing the boat trip around Ha Long Bay, during which time Pinky had spent some time trying to fix the intermittent problem with Phil's Yamaha.
While the others were packing the bikes up, I was foolishly taking more photos and failed to notice the looming rainclouds which quickly turned into a downpour. Since we were running a little late for the ferry, only about 15 miles away but on very twisty mountain roads, I seem to remember not having time to put my waterproofs on. I mean, surely it can't rain that hard can it?
Wrong. It bloody well monsooned the whole way didn't it. That'll teach me. My 16 year old spare touring jacket never stood a chance! And as for me £30 Lidl boots...oh well...
When we arrived at the ferry terminal (shack) it was obvious that waterproofs wouldn't have made much difference, everyone was soaked to the bone regardless. Imagine standing in the middle of a ferry port while your mate holds up a towel for you to strip off starkers, and change clothes. Well that's pretty much what we did but as with many of these things it's no problem in Vietnam!
After that we sat back and waited for the ferry. It was an undramatic crossing and soon we were back in Hai Phong with a couple of hours motorway between us and Hanoi. Yet again everyone on the roads was friendly, the complete opposite of what we find in the UK.
Now this is something I regret...we stopped at a family shack that sold wood carvings and refreshments, and for the first time on the trip I had a coconut which came as shown below. Lovely stuff, and great for sorting out dehydration apparently, I'll definitely be going with that rather than Coca Cola or coffee on the next trip. I made more enquiries about the possibility of obtaining a wooden frog for my daughter, but again to no avail.
All too soon we were back in Hanoi at Flamingo Travel, unloading the bikes and handing over the keys.
After reluctant farewells, we spent the rest of the day doing shopping for presents around town. Four days previously, I'd spoken to one of the girls who ran a shop next to the hotel, about finding me a wooden frog as a present for my daughter as requested. Well, miraculously she'd scoured the local area, spoke to a few people and managed to find me one! My daughter was over the moon with it, and me, well I'm just amazed that the girl had gone to such lengths to find that for me. Talk about above and beyond.
It had been an epic trip seeing amazing sights. It really is a world apart, and if you can see past the all too common squalor, what you'll find is a place that's incredibly vibrant, alive, and most of all full of incredible people.
We are now planning a return trip in Feb/March next year with 6 of us, to the North East area of Vietnam. We will again be using Flamingo Travel's great services, and have insisted upon Pinky as our guide. Well, we need someone to bash at the traffic lights don't we. Our plan involves amongst other things, travelling over the Ma Pi Leng pass, which has the title for the most dangerous road in north Vietnam. It's also known as the 'Happy Road' and links remote communities with the more modern side of the country. Certain sections of it were built by workers who literally roped down the mountainside, wedged dynamite into the mountainside, then lit it and scarpered up their rope as fast as they could. Incredibly, only 1 worker died while the road was being built, but there was such an expectation of fatalities that each worker was measured for their casket, and one made ready, before work began. Imagine going to work, doing a job where they had already built a coffin for you...
We will be tackling a good stint of the Himalayas along the way, and also be visiting the Ban Gioc waterfall which is one of the most amazing sights the country has to offer. All in all we'll be on the bikes for 7 days, which is as much as our good lady wives would let us get away with.
Some useful links that are invaluable for planning a trip like this:
Flamingo Travel
http://www.flamingotravel.com.vn
They also have a shop in HCMC (Ho Chi Minh City) / Saigon in the south, so if you want to ride the Ho Chi Minh trail or do a north/south ride they can sort you out.
Vietnamese Embassy for travel visa
http://www.vietnamembassy.org.uk
Don't use any of the VN visa 'services' you see online, many will not provide a valid visa and you'll only find that out once you land. Our visa was approx £55.
Government Foreign Travel Advice
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/vietnam
NHS Health Advice
http://www.nathnac.org/ds/c_pages/country_page_VN.htm
Be sure to check with your GP for what jabs and medication you need
Last day of the bike trip.
We woke up in Cat Ba to overcast skies, and mist over the distant islands. After breakfast we packed and loaded up the bikes for the last time. We hadn't rode them yesterday what with doing the boat trip around Ha Long Bay, during which time Pinky had spent some time trying to fix the intermittent problem with Phil's Yamaha.
While the others were packing the bikes up, I was foolishly taking more photos and failed to notice the looming rainclouds which quickly turned into a downpour. Since we were running a little late for the ferry, only about 15 miles away but on very twisty mountain roads, I seem to remember not having time to put my waterproofs on. I mean, surely it can't rain that hard can it?
Wrong. It bloody well monsooned the whole way didn't it. That'll teach me. My 16 year old spare touring jacket never stood a chance! And as for me £30 Lidl boots...oh well...
When we arrived at the ferry terminal (shack) it was obvious that waterproofs wouldn't have made much difference, everyone was soaked to the bone regardless. Imagine standing in the middle of a ferry port while your mate holds up a towel for you to strip off starkers, and change clothes. Well that's pretty much what we did but as with many of these things it's no problem in Vietnam!
After that we sat back and waited for the ferry. It was an undramatic crossing and soon we were back in Hai Phong with a couple of hours motorway between us and Hanoi. Yet again everyone on the roads was friendly, the complete opposite of what we find in the UK.
Now this is something I regret...we stopped at a family shack that sold wood carvings and refreshments, and for the first time on the trip I had a coconut which came as shown below. Lovely stuff, and great for sorting out dehydration apparently, I'll definitely be going with that rather than Coca Cola or coffee on the next trip. I made more enquiries about the possibility of obtaining a wooden frog for my daughter, but again to no avail.
All too soon we were back in Hanoi at Flamingo Travel, unloading the bikes and handing over the keys.
After reluctant farewells, we spent the rest of the day doing shopping for presents around town. Four days previously, I'd spoken to one of the girls who ran a shop next to the hotel, about finding me a wooden frog as a present for my daughter as requested. Well, miraculously she'd scoured the local area, spoke to a few people and managed to find me one! My daughter was over the moon with it, and me, well I'm just amazed that the girl had gone to such lengths to find that for me. Talk about above and beyond.
It had been an epic trip seeing amazing sights. It really is a world apart, and if you can see past the all too common squalor, what you'll find is a place that's incredibly vibrant, alive, and most of all full of incredible people.
We are now planning a return trip in Feb/March next year with 6 of us, to the North East area of Vietnam. We will again be using Flamingo Travel's great services, and have insisted upon Pinky as our guide. Well, we need someone to bash at the traffic lights don't we. Our plan involves amongst other things, travelling over the Ma Pi Leng pass, which has the title for the most dangerous road in north Vietnam. It's also known as the 'Happy Road' and links remote communities with the more modern side of the country. Certain sections of it were built by workers who literally roped down the mountainside, wedged dynamite into the mountainside, then lit it and scarpered up their rope as fast as they could. Incredibly, only 1 worker died while the road was being built, but there was such an expectation of fatalities that each worker was measured for their casket, and one made ready, before work began. Imagine going to work, doing a job where they had already built a coffin for you...
We will be tackling a good stint of the Himalayas along the way, and also be visiting the Ban Gioc waterfall which is one of the most amazing sights the country has to offer. All in all we'll be on the bikes for 7 days, which is as much as our good lady wives would let us get away with.
Some useful links that are invaluable for planning a trip like this:
Flamingo Travel
http://www.flamingotravel.com.vn
They also have a shop in HCMC (Ho Chi Minh City) / Saigon in the south, so if you want to ride the Ho Chi Minh trail or do a north/south ride they can sort you out.
Vietnamese Embassy for travel visa
http://www.vietnamembassy.org.uk
Don't use any of the VN visa 'services' you see online, many will not provide a valid visa and you'll only find that out once you land. Our visa was approx £55.
Government Foreign Travel Advice
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/vietnam
NHS Health Advice
http://www.nathnac.org/ds/c_pages/country_page_VN.htm
Be sure to check with your GP for what jabs and medication you need
Firestorm996
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
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firestorm996
- Posts: 617
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Re: Nambusters - our tour of Northwest Vietnam - Picture hea
Some random photos from mainly around Hanoi...
...and lastly our trip motto! Pronounce it how you see fit...
...and lastly our trip motto! Pronounce it how you see fit...
Firestorm996
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch
'98 VTR in black - road whore - track bitch