I decided to take my rental motorbike on a drive through the countryside of Chiang Mai Province |
Initially north to Mae Rim on route 107 |
I then turned west on road 1096 through the Mae Sa valley |
Maesa Elephant Camp, Chiang Mai |
I didn't visit the touristy elephant camp, but you can see quite a bit from the road |
Maesa Elephant Camp, Chiang Mai |
Mahout leading elephant to the river, Maesa |
Maesa Elephant Camp, Chiang Mai |
Elephant bathing time, Maesa Elephant Camp, Chiang Mai Province |
Elephant bathing time, Maesa Elephant Camp, Chiang Mai Province |
Elephant bathing time, Maesa Elephant Camp, Chiang Mai Province |
Mae Sa Valley, Chiang Mai Province, Thailand |
Milestone, route 1096, Chiang Mai |
Caution - Forest Fires - it was very dry at the beginning of the hot season |
Brush fire, Chiang Mai Province |
Brush fire, Chiang Mai Province |
Welcome to Samoeng |
Samoeng, a small town about 2 hours from Chiang Mai by motorbike |
Roadside restaurant, Samoeng |
White elephant statue, Samoeng, Chiang Mai Province |
A temple in Samoeng, Chiang Mai Province |
Lion statue, Samoeng |
...looks a bit Burmese |
From Samoeng, you can return to Chiang Mai by a different route, completing a loop around Doi Suthep |
Waterbuffalo statue made of fabric over a metal frame, Ban Mae Khanin Nua, Chiang Mai Province |
Rural temple, Chiang Mai Province, hot season |
The beginning of the hot season, Chiang Mai Province |
Elephant riding, Chiang Mai Province |
Ban Kao Dua, village south of Doi Suthep on the Samoeng to Chiang Mai loop |
Use Low Gear roadsign, Thailand |
Ban Klang Doi Hotel & Resort, Chiang Mai Province |
Ban Klang Doi Hotel & Resort, Chiang Mai Province |
Ban Klang Doi Hotel & Resort, Chiang Mai Province |
Detour off the main road to a Mhong Thai hilltribe village |
Dirt road to the Mhong Thai hilltribe village |
Vegetable field, Chiang Mai hill country |
Mhong Thai hilltribe village, Chiang Mai Province |
Mission church under construction in the village |
Mhong Thai hilltribe village, Chiang Mai Province |
ThailandMar07 677.jpg |
Back on the main road to Chiang Mai |
Thai highway 121 roadsign |
Thai billboard, Chiang Mai Province |