Biking the Ho Chi Minh Trail
to say hello as we biked by
Before we came to Vietnam we seriously considered doing a bike tour, but all the tours we found online were either incredibly expensive or didn't coincide with our dates. By the time we finally arrived in Vietnam, the idea had gotten pushed to the back of our minds. So it was by complete chance that we found Groovy Gecko Tours, and are we ever glad we did! They do a five-day bike tour from Dalat to Hoi An that follows the Ho Chi Minh Trail through the Central Highlands. It not only fit within our budget (US$65 per person per day, all-inclusive), but it also fit with the way we like to travel -- we stayed in local guesthouses and ate the local food. And, because they needed only two people to run the tour, our group was nice and small -- just me, Ulrik, Thang (our guide), and Phuoc (the driver of the support van).
Day 1 (June 20) - Dalat to Lak Lake
total time on bike: 5:35
total distance covered: 112km
The first 15km was a fantastic adrenaline-rush of a downhill; the only muscles I used were those in my right forearm for holding the brake -- it was such a steep ride! Unfortunately, it came to an end all too soon. The rest of the day consisted of a lot of ups and downs, with two more big downs to enjoy. We stopped a couple of times; once to see a silk factory and once to explore a local waterfall.
Day 2 (June 21) - Lak Lake to Buon Ma Thuot
total time on bike: 4:30
total distance covered: 68km
A short day; we spent quite a bit of time off the bikes. We visited a local village, enjoyed the view from the King's former hunting lodge (now a hotel and restaurant), saw a local brick factory, and checked out two more waterfalls. Today's ride didn't have any major hills which, unfortunately, meant we also didn't have any fun downhills either. The highlight for me today was lunch! We had fantastic wrap-yourself fresh spring rolls; they were absolutely delish!
Day 3 (June 22) - Buon Ma Thuot to Kon Tum
total time on bike: 6:00
total distance covered: 107km
Loooong day today; we had a lot of distance to cover and we had no major downhills to eat up the kilometres. Today I learned what I was made of. We agreed at lunch to push on to 4:00pm, and if we did, we should make our distance for the day. By 3:30pm, however, with more than five hours on the bike and more than 95km behind me, I was so done. But with only about 10km to go -- of, unfortunately, flat, flat, flat road -- there was no way I was conceding defeat. We made our distance, and I was only 10min behind schedule.
Day 4 (June 23) - Kon Tum to Kham Duc
total time on bike: 6:15 (Lee) / 6:50 (Ulrik)
total distance covered: 99km (Lee) / 114km (Ulrik)
We had a big challenge before us today ... not only did we have a lot of ground to cover, but we also faced a 15km mountain pass that we would hit at the end of the day. It was our own fault really. Thang, our guide, gave us the option of starting closer to town and stopping before the pass or starting further from town and ending with the pass. Ego-driven fools that we are, we said we'd do the pass. I think we must have been on crazy pills!
Despite the heat and the feeling that we were going up a lot more than down, we managed to cover 50km before lunch. Thang told us that we had another 20km to go before we hit the mountain pass. Fortunately the weather had cooled down (it was actually a bit drizzly); unfortunately Thang lied! The pass wasn't 15km, it was actually 20km! And it didn't start in 20km, it started straightaway! (Good thing for him I couldn't catch him ...)
It was tough. All I can say is thank God for the rain. Most of the climb was a 10% incline (per the road signs) and, although there were a couple of short downhill sections, it took everything in me to get myself to the top. I came close to stopping and throwing the bike over the rail so many times. It wasn't so much my legs or my lungs ... it was my fanny! After only a half-day in the saddle I was in serious discomfort, and we were well into Day 4! And climbing just made it worse. But I managed to ignore it -- or, at least, ignore it enough -- to drag myself to the top. And it took me only 1:30.
I had assumed (because Thang had told us so) that once we got to the top we'd have a nice long ride down and then we'd be done. But after getting to the top and plying us with mangoes, Thang (the liar!) tells us that we still have another 40km to go and, by the way, there's another (albeit smaller) hill and a long flat. Wha?!?
So off we went. Took us far too long to hit our well-deserved downhill, but once we did .... Oh man, it was fantastic! Picture it ... we were surrounded by lush green mist-shrouded mountains; the rain was pelting us; mud was flying in our faces; the wind was whistling past our ears; our rain jackets were flapping; and we were just flying down this winding mountain pass. It was such an unbelievable rush.
Day 5 (June 24) - Kham Duc to Hoi An
total time on bike: 4:35
total distance covered: 80km
Our last day. And boy did we go out with a whimper ... literally, we were all practically whimpering, the road and heat and wind just beat us so bad. Although it was to be a short day -- only 80km -- it was by no means an easy one. The road was flat, flat, flat, with one nasty little hill, then flat, flat, and flat again. One thing I realized on this trip is that there are no truly flat roads. You either have flat-ups, where although it looks flat it does your head in because you're still pushing; or you have flat-downs, which are wonderful because you can actually coast for a bit and rest your legs. Today was mostly flat-ups. And the few flat-downs we had came with a nasty headwind that not only pushed you back so much that you felt like you were on a hill, but were also stiflingly hot. Despite the tough conditions -- even our usually chipper guide, Thang, was feeling the effect -- we managed to make our distance shortly after 2:00pm.
We had made it ... 466km in five days.
left to right: Thang (our guide), Phuoc (our driver), Lee, and Ulrik
Although I was looking forward to a break from the bikes, I was really sad that it was over. It had been a very challenging five days; but it had also been a completely exhilarating five days. I pushed myself harder -- and accomplished so much more -- than I thought I was capable. And a lot of the credit goes to Thang; he's a fantastic guide. He knows just how much to push, and he knows when to back off. He gives enough information, but not too much information. We would recommend him without hesitation. We should also mention Phuoc, the driver of the support van. It's a pretty inglorious job, driving the support vehicle, but it was always incredibly reassuring knowing that he was somewhere not too far behind us. I don't know if I would have made it up the pass if he wasn't there. Having him there gave me the freedom to push myself harder and use up everything I had because I knew if I did, Phuoc would be right there to pick me up off the road.
Cycling in Vietnam was such a wonderful way to see the country and the people. You get to see a little slice of life as you pass by. And everyone was so friendly; from the children who would run to the road to wave and shout hello or to stick their hand out so you can slap it as you go by, to the old man on a motorbike who gave me the thumbs-up and the most encouraging smile as he drove by me making my way up a hill, to the gentle and shy smiles of the young women walking along the road. We will remember them all as part of this incredible experience.
For more photos, see our Biking the Ho Chi Minh Trail photo album.
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