Bảo Lạc (day 11)

A gorgeous sunny morning welcomed us, and another casual start to the day with a couple coffees at a chic cafe & bar. S found us banana pancakes that he brought over from next door. Definitely a tourist hot spot as we saw many groups of doubles on scooter tours leaving town. Luckily the swarms of guided tourists stay to the main roads, so we had a relaxed ride on the side roads through picturesque valleys and villages. We found ourselves at a fresh pour of concrete for a 10m section of road. Thankfully there was a couple tire widths on the shoulder next to the steep hillside for us to skillfully not make a mistake 😯

Pulled into Meo Vac for fuel and a quick lunch, then we were off again, sticking to the main road this time. We pulled into a lookout point where our bikes were blocked in by a couple other bike tour groups. We waited for them to leave and quickly zoomed past them. After a few zig-zags on the main road S lead us off-road again. Unfortunately the route he had planned was under construction by the local village so we were forced to turn back. As fortunes would have it, we had to back track a couple more times before we did find a way through to the other side of the valley. We got to use our engine-off coasting technique on a slippy mud section.

Eventually we found our way to the Sông Nho Quế River where we drove onto a bamboo raft to ferry across. A steep slope awaited us in the other side to we reach what appeared to be the main road getting ready for resurfacing.

We enjoyed the warm ride, although rough in places, with the cool breeze as we basked in the afternoon sun. We zipped through little villages till we finally reached Bảo Lạc by late afternoon. It was 22C, and the streets were bustling with activity with throngs of people enjoying the endless street market.

After taking a moment to clean up and cool down at the hotel, we ventured out in the post-sunset twilight. We soon meet up with S, who took us to a riverside eatery, and bartered with a local vender for half of a rotisserie duck! Funny enough, it doesn't seem to be an issue in Vietnam to bring outside food in to an establishment, as long as you buy stuff from them too. We continued on our walk after dinner, eventually meandering back to the hotel for a much needed rest after 5 hours on the bikes in the heat. Quite the contrast from wearing many layers with rain last week! Alas, our hotel beds are pretty hard again 😩: duvet under for cushion and one on top for warmth.

Today's ride, 110km and 5hrs
https://calimoto.com/calimotour/t-4RE1VnIwkwOkumaya devam et