Day 116
It seemed that the maintenance worked and the trikes were running smooth today. Nothing is more detrimental to morale than mechanical problems. We were still mending the relationship between us and our trikes and today, as we began encountering our first hills on loaded trikes, I couldn’t help blame my sluggishness on the trike. I stopped periodically to inspect the wheels but they rolled freely and I was guessing that the engine is to blame. It had little sleep and I fed it a half bottle of red wine the night before. We were both relieved to find a place to stay right before entering Doi Khun Tan National Park, where we previously had a 2 hour ascent on the way to Chiang Mai 1 month ago.
As we turn onto Route 11 tomorrow we’ll be out of the mountains for the next 800 km and in a new territory. Hopefully as we get closer to the ocean, the temperature will become more regulated. Starting at 15 degrees Celsius early in the morning, the temperature slowly climbed until 3:30, reaching its maximum of 41 c. Our tactics include setting an alarm at 5:30 am, getting on the road as the sun rises, and retiring for the day around noon.
Great to hear that you all loved Mae On and Chiang Mai as much as we did. Tonsai/Railay was wonderful for me and I can’t wait for Cher to lead some 6cs at the Keep in Railay. Those were my first 6cs and I think that she will like Medusa’s Lover and Babo does Thailand. Now we are in the snow — skiing and only climbing inside on an itty bitty bouldering wall.
Safe biking and stay warm~