Day 32 Thu 29/07 - A 12 km Uphill Ride to Doi Suthep above Chiang Mai

Today Distance: 39.5 km       Total: 2053.9 km

Today Temp : 22 - 33c
Time on Bike : 3hr 11 min
Ave Speed : 12.3 kmh           Max: 55.5 kmh
Ave Climb : 5%                    Max: 13%
Altitude: 681m                      Max: 1015m
Today spending : 410 baht          Total: 13412 baht

The plan for today is to ride up the 12 km Doi Suthep (Doi means Mountain in thai ),famous for the golden wat Phrathat high on top of the mountain, and also highly recommended by Chris Wee.The morning rain has somewhat delay my start but not my spirit,with my super light breathable raincoat on,I am off at 8am.Felt a lot more lighter now riding without all my bags,but taking it easy with a relaxing pace on a wet road surface.I was forced to take shether again at a motorcycles shop for 30 min as the rain started to get heavy.After the rain,it makes cycling very unpleasant with patches of rain waters still remain on the road,but the drivers and motor bikers here are quite considerate to give way to me.When I reached the foothill,the Chiang Mai Zoo entrance looks very impressive,but my aim is the mountain ,not the zoo.The Huay Keaw waterfall too did not impress me.The winding roads up are wider with two lanes up and one lane down, smooth with beautiful curves, not too steep. There are few rest stops along the way and a scenic view point to the city below.The traffic is very light with only the tourist pick ups and tour buses. I saw two cyclists on their mtb up but soon were pick up by the support car halfway.It took me about 2.5hr to reach the top,and to see the Wat,you had to climb a 100m long with 45 inclintion Dragon steps.There is a Golden stupa surrounded by many smaller Buddha and lots of donations are from Malaysia and Singapore.Frankly I somehow getting a little bored visiting so many Wats since in Thailand, and yet they are such a beautiful architectural piece of artwork,besides the historical and religious aspect of it. But overall,I enjoy the ride. The cool breeze from the jungle green blowing on the face,feel very refreshing. For comparision,I think our ride on Fraser hill and Cameron are lot more tougher.So to our malaysian cyclists,start booking your Airasia ticket and have fun in Chaing Mai,you will love this place ,if you like adventurous sports.