2017: Q6 4-Nation Ride

“The strongest people aren’t always the people who win, but the people who don’t give up when they lose…”

A week before my South America trip I had a bad fall that hurt the small of my back.

I was overcome by anxiety attack when we were in Sacred Valley Peru, a day before our excursion to Machu Pichu. At an elevation of 4,000 meter above sea level, I was experiencing severe back ache, short of breath and light headedness, all at once. The next morning before boarding the train to Machu Pichu we were advised to drink cocca tea to prevent altitude sickness. After drinking a few cups I was suddenly well and fine. It was either the cocaine in the tea or the excitement of visiting one of the Seven Wonders of the World that made me high and happy while tracing the Inca Trails in Machu Pichu.

It’s been three weeks since we came back from the South America trip and I am still nursing my sore throat and back pain. In a few days’ time hubby and I are planning to go for the year-end ride crossing borders of Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam over a duration of approximately 24 days. The first seven days we will be riding with the KKB gang to Ayutthaya, Thailand. The next ten days we will ride solo from Ayutthaya to Cambodia and into Vietnam. The last seven days we will join the JBMC and the Truecolors gang in Pai, Thailand and will ride back home with them.

Part I: KKB gang - Malaysia/Thailand

Date: 24 – 28 November 2017

Route: KL – Hatyai - Chumphon – Kanchanaburi – Phitsanulok – Route 12 - Phu Tubberk - Khao Kho - Petchabun – Ayutthaya

Total Distance: 2,465 km

Part II: Solo Ride – Thailand/Cambodia/Vietnam 

Date: 28 Nov – 10 Dec 2017

Route: Ayutthaya – Koh Kong – Kampot - Ha Tien - Phnom Penh – Ho Chi Minh – Siem Reap – Prachin Buri – Kamphaeng Pet - Pai

Total Distance: 2,990 km

Part III: JBMC and the Truecolors gang – Thailand/Malaysia

Date: 10 - 16 Dec 2017

Route: Pai – Mae Hong Song – Mae Sot – Kanchanaburi – Chumphon – Dannok – KL

Total Distance: 2,630 km

This kembara biking trip will be the last trip for 2017 and will be our 6th. We have been doing the year-end kembara like this since 2012.  As it is going to be a long trip for us, it’s easy to underestimate just how much preparations need to be thought of, right? We don't wish to be caught by lack of preparedness, or a case of been-there-done-that mentality.

Semoga di permudahkan urusan kembara kami ini, insyaAllah, Aamin...

My Travel Blog: munmus.blogspot.com

Next Trip: Ireland and Iceland