11 Day Southern Exposure
11 days - 2500 km - start and finish in Vientiane

Highlights

This intense ride in the south of Laos rides along beautiful karst limestone valleys, along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, deep towards the Cambodian border, along challenging single track paths, through remote villages and combines highway runs and river crossings that will leave you wanting to ride them again.  The days, like most of our tours are relatively easy and have time built into them for stops and any unforeseen delays we encounter along the ride.  Your skills as a rider are put to the test sometimes as well as easy, enjoyable times in beautiful country. Options to finish in Pakse can be arraigned.

Brief itinerary

Day 1: Vientiane - Nahin
Day 2: Na Hin – Konglor Cave - Laksao
Day 3: Laksao - Villabury or Xepon
Day 4: Villabury or Xepon - Tadlo
Day 5: Tadlo – Bolaven Plateau - Pakse
Day 6: Pakse – Don Khong
Day 7: Don Khong – Kingfisher Lodge - Attapeu
Day 8: Attapeu – Paam – Ta Oi
Day 9: Ta Oi  - Villabury or Xepon
Day 10: Villabury or Xepon – Tha Khek
Day 11:  Tha Khek - Vientiane

Day to Day Itinerary

Day 1: Vientiane - Nahin

Meeting Vientiane at 08:30 from the Remote Asia Office, we get an orientation on the bikes used for the trip and get our protective clothing in order.  We are taking time today to set the ride up with gear, how to load/pack your bike and some refresher information on riding a Honda Baja or XR.

We’re on the road by 10 and start riding down Highway 13 South.  We’ll stop along the way for a stretch and safety check and then again about 140 km out of Vientiane to get in a little off road riding practice and skills check. Lunch follows in Paksan.

Another 100 km of Highway and we turn east to Na Hin for the night and stop along the way at some scenic points.  Overnight and dinner in Na Hin.

Riding Time: 6 hours
Road Conditions: Paved
KM: 290

Day 2: Na Hin – Konglor Cave - Laksao

Breakfast at 08:00 and we take a short 40 km ride to the entrance of Klong Lor Cave and then a boat tour through the 7 km long cave.  Lunch at the end of the boat tour and we return to Na Hin for our luggage.  Along the way to Lak Xao we explore some side roads and check out boats made from fuel tanks of B-52 bombers and get an look at a hydro-electric project.

We arrive in Lak Xao and check into the hotel, then go for a short ride around the area on some secondary roads.  Dinner and overnight in Lak Xao

Riding Time: 4 hours
Road Conditions: Paved, secondary dirt roads
KM: 160

Day 3: Laksao - Villabury or Xepon depending on time

Breakfast in Lak Xao, a traditional Vietnamese noodle soup and we are riding south over the Nakai Plateau.  We’ll stop along the way to look over the resettlement villages from the massive hydro-electric project and have lunch in Gnommalat.  We ride east further towards the Vietnam border and then go south into Savannakhet Province.  We ride over the Ho Chi Minh Trail but it’s been upgraded and easy to ride but dusty.  We overnight in Villabury or Xepon depending on time.  A section of the day’s ride takes us on a 25 kilometer stretch of bad road and one river crossing by a remote village. 

Riding Time: 6 – 7 hours
Road Conditions: Paved – Poor quality paved – dirt road – track – Paved
KM: 320

Day 4: Villabury or Xepon – Tadlo

We continue riding south and the road conditions deteriorate.  We’ll encounter sand and deep powder dust for some time and several detours around bridges being constructed before coming to one last river crossing that we may ride or take stand up boats across depending on the water depth.  We have a lunch in the jungle and then continue to the sealed highway and a small eco-resort near Tadlo Waterfall for the night

Riding Time: 6 – 7 hours depending on rider skill level
Road conditions: Paved, dirt road, jungle track, water crossings, dust roads
KM: 220+/-

Day 5: Tadlo - Bolaven Plateau - Pakse

Late breakfast and a small sleep this morning and we are off to ride around the Bolevan Plateau and the coffee country of Laos.  On the road to Pakse, we divert south to Champasak and Wat Phou for a late afternoon visit to the temple.  We take a dirt road back to Pakse for the night.  We have a western meal and then Beer Lao local style along the Mekong tonight.

Riding Time: 6
Road Conditions: Paved, dirt road
KM: 200

Day 6: Pakse – Don Khong

Breakfast and we’re on the road south towards the Cambodian border and our destination is the 4000 island region.  We go a little further than the island to visit the Mekong waterfalls at Khone Phapheng.  We return up the road and arrive for lunch on this island and then take an afternoon boat trip.  This is one of the only places to see Irrawaddy freshwater dolphins in Southeast Asia and if we’re lucky, a sunset ride back to the island on the boat.  Dinner tonight on the island.

Riding Time: 4 - 5 hours
Road Conditions: Paved
KM: 160

Day 7: Don Khong – Kingfisher Lodge – Attapeu

Departing the island early we are on the way to Phou Asa and the Elephant reserve for a short ride and visit to the protective area.  Lunch is at Kingfisher Lodge and we then get ready for the jungle track and many water crossing along the bottom road of Laos to Attepue.  This is one of the most enjoyable and challenging rides with good tree tunnel cover, multiple water crossings of various depths, remote villages and finishes with a ride through the Xe Nou River.  Check into the hotel and get our boots washed and set up to dry.  Dinner tonight is at the best restaurant Remote Asia has found in Laos – a gem among many and outstanding Papaya Salad.

Riding Time: 5 – 6 hours
Road Conditions: Paved – dirt road – river/water crossings – jungle dual tire lane track
KM 220

Day 8: Attapeu – Paam – Ta Oi

We depart Attapue over the Xekong River and ride through Paam where we’ll check out a war relic, a SAM 2 missile left behind by the Vietnamese.  We turn north and ride dusty roads and have a lunch in Salavan and then take on a 3 hour ride to Ta Oi.  Today’s rides will touch paved road for a while but the majority is dirt road and bull dust roads.  Our overnight in Ta Oi is a little remote and quiet as not much happens here.  We need a good rest for the morning as we’re headed up a difficult portion of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

Riding Time: 6 hours
Road Conditions: Dirt road, dusty roads, paved
KM: 220(variable)

Day 9: Ta Oi  - Villabury or Xepon depending on time

We depart Ta Oi and encounter a few nice challenges while riding like water crossings and a bamboo bridge.  We’ll stop along the way for an explanation of the US bombing of the area during the American War in Vietnam.  Lunch is in the jungle and this ride is one of the most challenging of the trip.  We end up back on firm roads later in the day near the Vietnamese border and make a short stop at a museum of war junk being put together in Dong.  We overnight in Xepon or Villabury.

Riding Time: 5 – 6 hours
Road Conditions: dirt road – river/water crossings – jungle dual tire lane track
KM 150 (variable)
 

Day 10: Villabury or Xepon – Tha Khek

Departing early we are on the way to Thakhek and retrace a little road we did on the way down but it’s remote and scenic.  We pass again over a different section of the Xe Nou River and then along a nice stretch of road to Xaybuathong and a side track not on most maps taking us back to Highway 13(note: this portion of the ride is not always open and is dependant on rainfall).  We arrive in the Thakhek area and take a small off road ride to see a smaller but non-tourist laden Buddha Cave carved into the Karst.  We arrive in Thakek and enjoy a cool drink along the Mekong and later, dinner in town.
                                                                                                                                             
Riding Time: 6  hours
Road Conditions: nothing you can’t handle by now.
KM: 240 (variable) 

Day 11:  Tha Khek - Vientiane

Breakfast and we are on Highway 13 north.  We make stops along the way to break up the highway and maybe rip up a little mud if we can find some.  Lunch along the road and our destination is Vientiane where upon checking in, we take long showers and then are off to massage at Papaya Spa to tend to strained muscles.  Dinner tonight is along the Mekong either at Remote Asia’s office or in town.  Photos get traded and CD’s made for each other.   

Riding Time: 6 hours
Road Conditions: Highway
KM: 350 

Note on accommodation and services – Some locations we stay overnight are somewhat limited on services but we stay and eat at the best possible places.  All locations have been scouted by Remote Asia staff several times for quality and service.  A guest commented on an overnight stay to his friends at home he “was in a No Star Hotel but it was great to sit on the terrace and watch the cows wander around the town like they owned the place”.  Every hotel will have a comfortable bed and hot water for showers.  Meals will be large and keep your energy levels up for the day’s rides.