Luang Prabang to Kiewkacham

Thurs 19/12/13, 80km

Wrench though it was to tear myself away from Luang Prabang, it had to be done. Plan was a two day hop to Phonosavan, spending the night at Phu Khoun some 130km away.

Of course, things didn't quite work out like that. The elevation profile on the map I have indicated there were two major climbs in the first 80km, the first around 700m ascent and the second around 1000m. After this there were a series of climbs and drops of varying heights for the next 50km, with the altitude staying around the 1400m mark.

So, I set off after a hearty breakfast with a bag full of peanut brittle ready for the day. Getting out of town was easy enough and I picked up a hand of apple banana on the way.

The first climb starts some 25km out of Luang Prabang and is around 15km long. I'd guess it's mostly around a 5% gradient so not too bad and very scenic. There's a nice drop back down 600m which left me needing a jumper (wind chill) then the road reaches a stream with a couple of stalls selling food before it immediately starts to climb again for about 20km of steady 5% until finally a few kilometres later the road is curling around stunning viewpoints and into Kiewkacham.

By this point it was gone 2.30 and there was no way I was going to make Phu Khoun before sundown so I got a room in the Bounthan, one of the three guesthouses there, and called it a day. None of the guesthouses were particularly inviting but this one was OK for a night. Shared squat toilets, and with a much needed hot shower  for 50000 kip (with a tad of bargaining). A nice plate of noodles with veg and egg set me back another 15000 kip which I ate whilst admiring the stunning view out of the back of the place.

After this I wandered down the road a away to find a good spot to take photos of some of the peaks. As I did so my landlady pulled up and told me there were a couple more cyclists approaching. Naturally it turned out to be Dave and Cindy. They ended up in the same place so we had a couple of beers dinner then huddled round the guesthouses owner charcoal fire for a bit: the temperature was around 3 or 4c by that point.