Day 35 - 1st jan
We've set the alarm early......6.50 and we are both up.... Looking forward to leaving this dump well behind....
Destination - Dong hoi - 210km.
We pay our bill and make for the bike but there's an issue.... The frame that carries our bags pretty much falls apart as we load it up....
Great !!! So much for a early start.
I leave Shiree in the guesthouse carpark and go off in search of help....
One very good thing about Vietnam is that your never far from a welder so within 5 mins if leaving the guesthouse the frames getting welded back together.... I also get the stand repaired as this has bent under the load of our bags and fill it up with fuel... I get the rack strengthened and the remaining welds re-welded so the rack should cause anymore issue now....
I get back to Shiree, load everything up and head off.... We are going back to the Ho Chi Minh trail, only this time we are a lot better prepared.... Using the Ho Chi Minh trail means we are not travelling on the most direct route so today will be another full day of riding.... But should be much done in a much nicer environment..... The Ho Chi Minh road is deserted.... There areno cars using it, or lorries or coaches, only push bikes and mopeds and its a welcome change from the last few days.... It's lovely... And reminds me of driving through the New Forest with the animals using the road at will... Only this time there water buffalo or a type of cow with something like a camels hump on its back..... These cows are also used for farming....
The scenery is stunning.... We pass through the Vietnamese highlands which are largely farming lands but done on a much smaller scale than at home, but many more plentiful... With every house having to produce enough food for the family the farming is important and the whole family appear to work on many small plots of farm land... The land scape is either flat wet farm land or jungle covered mountains..... After a few hours riding we stop to take a few photos.... With the sun high in the sky It's warmed up a little and as we've stopped I offer Shiree the chance of driving.... This was something she wanted to do so on this flat, smooth, entry road she gets her chance... I am stood on the side of the road talking her through the bikes controls again.... It's been a few days since Laos so I just run though the basics again... The bags are still in place and I tell her its not going to be easy.... The bags affect the bikes balance quite a bit when the speed is low.... I tell her to put the bike into first gear and give it a healthy amount of throttle.... Getting the speed up quickly is the easiest way of making the bike less wobbly... Shiree does this and has a slightly bumpy start.... She kind of runs with the bike propping it up with either her left leg or her right, and before long she's stopped... She gives it another go and she's off..... And looking quite the pro too... She heads off down the road into the distance in her own.... I know that she will not be going that fast so she's doing really well..... A huge American style truck passes me and heads down the road towards Shiree... I wait with baited breath for it to pass her, and it does, without issue.... The road is rises about 10 ft above the waterlogged fields on either side and I take some photos of a farmer whilst Shiree returns... I tell her ill get on the back and we'll continue if she's happy......
Shiree goes to turn the bike around but gives it just a little bit to much power whilst trying to turn in the road.... Turning in the road is the hardest manoeuvre to perform on a normal bike, let alone one so ladened up.... So her lack of experience, the heavy bike and the needs for speed ended up in Shiree panicking.... Grabbing the throttle even more, loosing her balance and driving the bike straight off the bank on the far side of the road.... The farmer with the plough probably thought his luck was in when Shiree came down the bank at a reasonable speed towards his field with a look of intent on doing a little ploughing of her own, but thankfully she remembered to let go of the throttle before enough speed had been reached to project her into the field itself... Half way down the bank was far enough for Shiree.... Her Ho Chi Minh trail riding days had just come to an undignified end.....
The Ho Chi Minh trail really is a bikers dream.... The road cuts through a national park with is pretty much just jungle and mountain.... You go though remote villages, the odd small town and up and down mountains..... All within perfect, untouched jungle or rice field farm land.... Mile after mile you travel and you don't see another vehicle, the mountain roads are your typically tight bended steep roads that really tested our bikes power, forcing us down to second gear a number of times as we climb the mountains, but we are then rewarded with about 5 miles of just rolling..... engine off, just letting gravity do the work....
Along this route, with the grounds of Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park is Paradise Cave and as time is on our side we stop in....
Paradise cave is one of many caves in this national park ( one being the largest in the world ) so we stop in....
The carpark is a fair hike from the cave mouth but when we actually get there its worth all the walking.... It's absolutely huge and beautiful.... It's very well lit and has a very good wooden walkway inside.... The a very impressive sight and is far and away the best cave either of us has ever visited....
Once back on the bike we notice the lights fading and we still have 30 miles to go, so we open the throttle and get on with it... When the sun goes it gets cold sand dark quickly and we don't want to be in the same situation as yesterday.... Whilst lying in yesterday's hell hole a booked us into a nice looking hotel tonight in Dong Hoi and it's not long before we are there.... The bikes huffing and puffing but just as the light goes we find our hotel... It's lovely, and serves food, so we have our first hot meal since leaving Hanoi, then off to use a shower with hot water and into a nice clean comfy bed..... Lovely !!

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thiên_Đường_Cave