Category Archives: Food

Unknown's avatar

More Challenges; More Food

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Each day we learn something more about this motor home. Yesterday morning when we were ready to leave Branson, I plugged the back-up camera back into the lower cigarette lighter, and the light didn’t come on. We checked different things, to no avail, but found that it would work when plugged into the dash portal. So we left it there and took off. The morning was foggy, visibility poor in some spots. We were barely onto the highway when a beeping started, coming from the back. After checking the CO2 detectors and pump and furnace switches, I finally determined that it was a fridge warning, but I couldn’t find the cause. Jim took the next exit off the highway in search of a place to stop. Five miles down the road we found a church with a large parking lot. By now all gauge lights and the fridge were no longer working. After fiddling with switches, Jim finally discovered that a button to disconnect the house battery had been switched off the night before, when he was trying to get the stabilizer jacks down. Turning that back on fixed the problem, but he still hasn’t been able to get the jacks to work.

We heard on the news the night before that a nasty winter storm was a couple of days behind us, so the only stop we made yesterday, other than for stretching our legs, was at the Lambert Cafe in Ozark, Missouri, advertised on billboards as the “Home of the Throwed  Roll.” We had to check that out!

It was only 11:30 and already the parking lot was half full.  We pulled into a bus parking spot – yes they come by the bus load. We were seated in a wooden booth in a room where the walls were covered with old tin advertising signs and licence plates. Helium Balloons floated from the backs of the seats. We ordered coffee to start and before we could look at the menu, we heard a cry, “Hot buns!  Hot buns!” We looked up to see a young man tossing dinner rolls to patrons who gave a nod or held up their hands. With a nod, we soon had one of those fresh-from-the-oven buns in our hands. We tore pieces of paper towel from the roll on the table to use for plates. Another fellow came by with a can of molasses and a spoon. When our coffee arrived and we gasped! The mug was the size of a coffee maker carafe.

LARGE coffee

Now that’s a LARGE coffee, the only size offered!

We ordered our lunch of pulled pork on a bun with candied yams and coleslaw, which would certainly satisfy us, but there was also a list of free sides that were delivered from pots to each table – deep fried okra, black-eyed peas, fried potatoes, tomato macaroni, and more. We tried some okra, and Jim tried some black-eyed peas. Everything was delicious, but far more than I could finish.

Lunch

Lunch?

The fellow across from us had a medium chief’s salad that was piled six inches high in a big bread bowl! A lunch menu it wasn’t! An interesting break in the day it was.

We continued on to Oklahoma City, where stopped for the night in Rockwell RV park.

Today we motored on, hoping to avoid the storm. Tonight we have stopped in Santa Rosa New Mexico, where the winds are already rocking us to sleep. The prediction for snow is light and low, but the temperatures are to drop before freezing, which worries us because we filled up our water tank and lines a few days back, when the weather was summer-like.  We’re also having trouble with the furnace, which suddenly refuses to shut off unless the power is turned off! We won’t be cold, unless we run out of propane.

Tune in tomorrow to learn how it all worked out. 🙂

Unknown's avatar

Spectacularly Fed and Entertained in Branson Missouri

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Monday, December 2

We left Sullivan without incident and arrived in Branson at around 1:30, after a brief stop at Springfield to get information about RV Resorts, and shows in Branson. After a quick lunch in the motor home while sitting in the Walmart parking lot, and picking up tickets for a show, we drove through the downtown strip and then to the recommended RV Park. It was closed for the season.  Fortunately, I had located another one in the Good Sam book, our second choice only because it was further out of town. By now it was going on three o’clock and it had been recommended that we arrive at the show by 4:00. We were going to the Dixie Stampede Dinner Theatre. We found the “America’s Best RV Park” high on a hill. It was large and welcoming, but they were too getting ready to close for the season in a couple of weeks. There were only about a dozen other RVs occupying spots. We registered, found our site and then had to head back into town. The bike was too oily to ride, and they gave us no place to leave the trailer, so we had to take the entire rig along and hope we could find parking. We did. It was a very large parking lot. We arrived at 4:00 pm exactly and had time to visit a bit with the horses in the stalls along the walkway to the main entrance. These were the last pictures that we were allowed to take until we exited the building again, two hours later.

IMG_2404

White Horse

As with all tourist entertainment shows these days, we had to pose for the staged photo before we were directed into the Carriage Room at 4:30. What a beautiful room with its dark wooden beams, stairs and balconies. In the centre of the room was a stage, and soon the pre-show entertainment arrived, a young man who told us he was going to juggle. Few were impressed; after all, jugglers seem to be a dime a dozen, right? But when this fellow concluded his act, there were many more fans of juggling than there had been. All of his tricks were very unique, skill testing and sometimes downright dangerous, like his finale – juggling flaming torches while standing on the rung of an inflamed ladder that was perched upon a burning rope! Wow! I wanted so badly to sneak my camera out of my purse for a quick photo.

From the Carriage Room we were directed to the big horseshoe-shaped arena, another impressive place with tiered rows and rows of shiny wooden “tables” extending around the perimeter, and comfortable chairs where we sat shoulder-to-shoulder with the other guests. The waiters all wore elf costumes, in keeping with the Christmas theme of this show. We were warned that our fingers would be our only utensils. A plate, a bowl with a handle, a sealer jar, and paper napkins made up the extent of our place settings.

Soon the show began with the beautiful horses we’d seen outside, now dressed in their finest and ridden by young cowboys and cowgirls in red and green satin shirts and jeans. We watched in awe as they performed some intricate routines, and some of the riders did tricks. We learned from the man sitting next to me that his brother was the Roman-style rider (two horses, one foot on each horse back). During all of this our dinner was being served. Warm cheesy biscuits were placed on our plates, a delicious cream of vegetable soup was ladled into our bowls, and we were offered a choice of iced tea or Pepsi in our sealer jars.

When the horses left and a Toy Shop was lowered from the ceiling, it was difficult to concentrate on eating. A brightly clad toy soldier rode in on a fluorescent lime green and white horse; Raggedy Ann and Andy danced with GI Joe; a fairy princess floated around above them. We thought how much our grandchildren would enjoy all of this.

Once the soup and biscuits were consumed, our plates were filled with small whole roasted chickens, thick slabs of seasoned, roasted potato, corn on the cob and a slice of pork tenderloin.

The Toy Shop disappeared.  We were entertained by a redneck clown, and were divided into teams delegated to cheer for either north or south for various “rodeo” competitions, all done with humour and no harm to any animals. Appropriately, we were on the “north” team, and reigned victorious when all was done.

A beautiful live nativity appeared, complete with a donkey, sheep and even the Three Wise Men riding live camels. Carols were sung and Christmas scripture read, before the Angel Gabriel appeared in the sky.

We cleaned up our greasy fingers with the warm wet towels provided; our plates were removed and replaced with new ones holding warm apple turnovers! I was glad that I’d opted to use the “doggie bag” for the rest of my chicken!

A videotaped Christmas greeting from Dolly Parton, a visit from Santa, and introductions of all the performers brought the production to an end. Outside, the darkness was lit up by the pretty Christmas lights. We made our way back to the campsite, full and happy.

Dixie Stampede Theatre

Dixie Stampede Theatre

Dixie Stampede Theatre

Unknown's avatar

Last Two Packed-with-Fun Days in Kaslo

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The wind was cold, the sky grey, the rain pelted down, as we stood in front of the too-wet-to-sit-upon bleachers that had been erected along the waterfront especially for the event. We were watching and waiting for sight of one or both of our grandchildren.  They, each accompanied by a parent, were participating in the annual Sufferfest being held in Kaslo. What is Sufferfest you might ask?

To quote the website intro: “Kaslo Sufferfest is a dynamic mountain biking and trail running event in the Kootenay Region’s mountain village of Kaslo in British Columbia.” This is a two-day event that draws many participants from the Kootenay area. There are races of varying lengths and degrees of difficulty for anyone age thirteen years and up. There is also, on Saturday only, an option for kid’s ages thirteen and under to bike or run a 2.5km course departing from Vimy Park.

Our five-year-old grandson is a fast and enthusiastic runner, too fast for Sarah to keep up to, so he was accompanied by his father in the eight and under running class. Sarah and her four-year-old daughter chose mountain biking in the six and under class.

Children began to trickle in, and after about fifteen minutes we saw a little pink bike, carrying a very determined, blond-haired girl round the corner, mother closely in tow. She saw us standing there, I’m sure, but her eyes were on the finish line. The fact that she’d come in last did not faze her. She was proud to have just completed the task.  And well she should be, considering she was the only four-year-old in the race, and she had just learned to ride a two-wheeler a month ago!

Before long the runners started to appear and we soon saw the boy we were looking for come running and smiling around the corner. Our presence distracted him and we had to remind him to continue onto the finish line. He was awarded a second place “medal” (huge chocolate chip cookie on a lanyard). I think he might just make a name for himself as a runner one day.

On Sunday morning we were honoured to be invited to join Sarah and Kendrick and the kids at a Drumming Circle and drum-making workshop, being held by the local Aboriginal Community at the Kaslo Youth Centre. We were warmly welcomed into the Circle, invited to share lunch, and encouraged to ask questions, take pictures and lend a hand in the making of drums and sticks.

The first step to making a drum is to choose a wooden frame.

wooden drum frames

wooden drum frames

Next, a skin is chosen and circles cut from the appropriate sized patterns to  fit the frames.

Tracing Patterns

Tracing Patterns

Long strips of hide are also cut for tying the drum heads onto the frames, and then they are put into warm water, along with the circles, to soak for a couple of hours until well softened and pliable.

Soaking the drum skins

Soaking the drum skins

While we waited we were entertained with songs and stories in the Drumming Circle, lunch was shared and pieces of leather were cut, stuffed and sewn onto wooden dowels to make drum sticks.

When the soaking was done, the hides were punched with holes for tying, and then stretched and tied over the frame, using the long strips of hide. There is a particular pattern to follow.

Punching holes for tying

Punching holes for tying

Drum tying

Drum tying

Drum tying

Drum tying

Drum tying

Once the series of tying is complete, a final piece of hide strip is wrapped around the outside to hold the edges down until the hide has completely dried.

drying

Ready for drying

Completed drums

Completed drums

Sometimes the tying pattern is different, as in the one above, and often times the owner will take their new drum home to personalize it. They all sound wonderful in the drumming circle.

What an interesting way to spend our last day in Kaslo. It reinforced my feelings that Kaslo is like one big, loving, sharing family.

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Continuing the BC Visit

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I have to admit that I’m often a very distracted writer, and often drift off to do other things rather than getting on with the writing that I really do want to do. But when it comes to family, I cannot feel guilty about being distracted; time with them is just too precious. So my plan to blog daily about our wonderful trip to BC was soon, necessarily, cast aside. Now that I’m home, I will make a determined effort to post daily until we’ve completed the journey together.

Day Two

After spending the morning planning a patio project for a friend, we joined my daughter, Sarah, and her two children on a hike part way up Buchanan Mountain to “the bench”, overlooking Kaslo. I was reminded along the way that, although I may look fit, I don’t get enough regular cardio exercise. That wooden bench was beautiful! The view from it made the trek worthwhile.

On the Bench

Made It!

View from Bench

View from Bench

Along the way my five year old grandson discovered these huge lobster mushrooms, which we cooked up for dinner.

Lobster Mushrooms

Lobster Mushrooms

lobster mushrooms

cooked for dinner

Day Three

My other daughter, Ann, arrived from Vancouver last night and she joined us and Sarah’s family on a trip to the Meadow Creek Spawning Channel, one of many channels created to compensate for the loss of natural spawning habitat due to the building of dams, in this case, The Duncan Dam, about ten kilometers above Kootenay Lake.

The Meadow Creek Spawning Channel is located at the north end of Kootenay Lake, north of Highway 31 on the Meadow Creek Road.  It was constructed in 1967 with B.C. Hydro funds and was the world’s largest at the time, supporting a total of 250,000 spawning Kokanee. It produces between 10 – 15 million fry annually with mean egg-to-fry survival rate of 45%. There is fisheries staff on site during the spawning season, which is August through October.

Meadow Creek Spawning Channel

Meadow Creek Spawning Channel

spawning channel

watching the fish

The water was red with fish.  There were signs warning of Grizzly Bears being seen in the area. We kept a close eye out, and didn’t stray from the paths, but there were several people sitting with cameras poised, hoping to get a shot of one.

From there we continued on to Duncan Lake for a picnic and kids’ fishing lessons on the beach.

Duncan Lake

Sisters sharing a moment

Drift Wood

Lots of Drift Wood on the beach

The sky was clear and the sun warm. The “resident” members of the family took the opportunity for a swim, while the rest of us watched and relaxed.

On the way back to Kaslo, we stopped to let Ann explore the Marble Cave that we’d discovered a few years ago.

Marble Mine

Graffiti cover walls of an old marble mine

A family dinner back at Sarah’s was a perfect ending to a perfect day.

Unknown's avatar

A Quick Visit to Quebec

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Finding the time or inspiration to write has been difficult this summer. Most of our travel has been to funerals or memorials it seems. But I think we made our last such trip, for a while I hope, this past weekend when we traveled to the Montreal, Quebec area.

We had to stay over one night so I looked for an inexpensive hotel near to our venues. Through Hotels.com I found a room at the Travelodge in the Dorval area. The reviews were mixed; some were awful, so we didn’t know what to expect. It was a pleasant surprise. The building is an older one, but seems to have been refurbished fairly recently. The reception area was large and had double winding staircases up to the second floor. I could imagine a photo of a bride with a long train descending them.

Travelodge Room

The halls were bright and clean; the room was more than adequate with a queen size bed, two night tables, a corner armoire with a large TV (not flat screen though), a sofa and a desk. A coffee maker, hair dryer and ironing board and iron were also supplied.

Travelodge Room

Jim found the bed comfy

I noticed no unpleasant smells that a few reviewers had mentioned. Other than a few paint nicks and some wrinkles in the drapes and bed skirt, I could see nothing to complain about. The dining room wasn’t open for dinner, but we enjoyed a good breakfast the next morning.

After getting lost in the construction on the way to our hotel, and driving through the Dorval Airport, we settled into the Travelodge Hotel on Chemin de la Cote-De-Liesse, before venturing across the highway in search of dinner. Getting there was a challenge. Montreal is known for its one-way streets and strange angled intersections. When we arrived at Le Bifthèque and entered the grand reception area where we were asked if we had reservations, we expected to see an expensive menu.

Le Biftheque Restaurant

Le Biftheque Restaurant

We were directed up carpeted steps and into one of several dining rooms. The decor was elegant – dark stained woods, polished wooden table tops on black tables with black chairs or benches, dimmed lights and a glass-enclosed fireplace. But when we scanned the menu, we were pleasantly surprised to see that the prices were only the normal for most family restaurants. We chose the baby back ribs, which came with a choice of soup or salad, and potatoes or rice. Before our order was even taken, a bowl of tasty seasoned, crunchy croutons and a basket of freshly baked dinner rolls were placed on our table.

Seasoned Croutons

Yummy Croutons

Our Caesar Salads were ample, so when the plates of half racks of ribs and huge baked potatoes (sprinkled with salt and Parmesan cheese) were presented, we knew we were getting more than we could chew!

Ribs and potato

Where did they find those potatoes!?

And it was all very succulent. We enjoyed some of the leftovers for our bedtime snacks later that night.

Next week we are flying to BC for a real vacation spent with family. I hope to have many pictures and stories to share.

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Fish, Water, Wine and Museums

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How many fish hatch at a Fish Hatchery in a year? Well, the one at Bath, N.Y. produced about a million and a half last year. That’s one interesting fact we learned when we stopped in yesterday on our way to The Curtiss Museum. We were camped at The Hickory Hill Campground near Bath, a lovely big park with a mixture of cabins, mobiles and many large RV sites and lots of shade trees.

Hickory Hill Campsite

Hickory Hill Campsite

We arrived there at 10:30 yesterday morning (it’s only 22 miles from Corning) and immediately got on the bike. The warm, sunny day was perfect for riding. At the hatchery we also learned that all the water used for the fish tanks comes from a natural underground spring – no electric pumps required.  Near the entrance a family was filling up several plastic jugs with water that was pouring from the spring through a pipe.  Although a disclaimer is posted it seems to be permitted “at your own risk”, and the matriarch of this family told us that she’d been getting this water for her cottage for 35 years. She offered us paper cups to try the pure liquid. Awe, it carried me back to the farm where city friends often came out to fill their jugs from our well.

That same lovely lady told us about the many vineyards in the area, and suggested a great place for lunch overlooking Keuka Lake. We took off, following her directions.  We passed many vineyards, but didn’t stop until we’d found Bully Hill Vineyard, way up at the top of a high hill, overlooking the lake and the Village of Hammondsport. The hills and twists reminded us of driving in the Kootenay area of BC. The view and the food were both worth the climb. After lunch we went into the store for a little wine-tasting (not much mind you – we were on the bike after all) and decided to purchase a bottle of their Sweet Walter’s White Chardonnay, before finally making our way to the Curtiss Museum.

Bully Hill Winery

Beautiful gardens surround the place

Yummy Salmon Salad

Yummy Salmon Salad

lunch

Scallops and Crab Cake on Mushroom Cap with salads and fries

As a teenager in Hammondsport, Glenn Curtiss was the ultimate entrepreneur and inventor. His main interest was bicycles and he invented several new models. By the time he was twenty he had three bicycle shops throughout the area, and eventually progressed from motorized bicycles to the Curtiss Motorcycle Company and later branched out into airplanes and boats. The museum is an interesting stop for anyone with any of these interests.

Curtiss Museum

Curtiss Museum

Any early plane

Any early plane

Curtiss motorcycle

Curtiss motorcycle

Travel Trailer

He also invented the first Travel Trailer!

It was another great day. We left Bath this morning and set up camp at Caledonia, before heading into Rochester, about 30 miles away. We wanted to see the George Eastman House. That’s a beautiful mansion and photography art gallery. It took us over two hours to tour it.

Eastman House

Eastman House, Summer Room

Stair Case

Stair Case

Living Room

Living Room

We made a wrong turn on the way to the Museum and found ourselves in the heart of downtown where they were setting up for something. We asked at the museum and learned that the Annual Rochester Jazz Festival was starting tonight, so that’s where we headed for some dinner and a little music before returning to camp. Who knew that there was so much to see and do in Central New York!

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Bikes, Bikes… and Cars and Lunch!

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Last Saturday we rode out to Classy Chassis & Cycle for the 7th Anniversary Bash. It was a sunny and hot day and that brought out loads of people and a parking lot full of bikes to admire and discuss.

Bikes at Classy Chassis

Bikes at Classy Chassis

Motorcycle 1

Nice paint job

Backside

Backside

Motorcycle 2

Another interesting paint job

Orange bike

This one will be seen on the road!

A few daring young stunt riders put on quite a show before lunch.

Motor Bike stunt rider

Motor Bike stunt rider

Look out for that roof!

Look out for that roof!

Motorcycle Stunt Rider

Nose dive

We stood in line at the food trailer for an hour before we were able to enjoy our meal and listen to the band playing on the stage. We strolled through the shop and drooled over some of the used bikes for sale. A couple of smaller ones that were parked near the exit door had me momentarily imagining owning my own again! But the moment passed.

Yesterday there was a British Car Show downtown in the morning and an Antique Car Show in the afternoon.  We had to be other places in the afternoon, but we took in the British cars in the morning. Unfortunately the weather started out rather cloudy and wet so the cars were still slowly arriving when we had to leave, but we saw some beauties and enjoyed the British style band that entertained us with old tunes from the British Invasion. A jolly good time!

MG

MG

Unique bonnet on this MG

TR6

Nice TR6

Triumph

An orange Triumph too

Austin

Note the “car hop tray” mounted on the side window

Before leaving the downtown, we picked up two Shawarma sandwiches from Altona Kebab to take home for lunch. They were delicious and so big that we had one left over for today’s lunch.

Shawarma

Shawarma sandwich from Altona Kebab

Unknown's avatar

Day-tripping on the Boulevard

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The pool is ready for summer, but the water wasn’t quite warm enough for us to stick our toes in, so what better way to spend the first Canadian long-weekend of summer (Victoria Day weekend) than doing some day-tripping on the motorcycle?

The weather was perfect for riding when we started out on Saturday morning to attend a local Pow Wow; but a misunderstanding between Jim and me took us to the Curve Lake First Nations instead of Hiawatha! Nothing special was happening there, but we weren’t far from our other planned destination – the annual Buckhorn Spring Craft Show. We shared a hoagie, fries and Greek salad at the Olde Ice House in “downtown” Buckhorn before heading out to the Community Centre to admire the colourful creations and sample the jams, jellies and fudge on display, in the Community Centre and in and around the several wooden out-buildings.

Buckhorn is a small community along the Trent Severn Waterway at Lock 31, and a bustling tourist destination during the summer months.

We left Buckhorn with no other destination in mind, but while we sat enjoying a Dairy Queen treat back in Peterborough we decided it was too nice a day to go home, so off we went again, this time to Fenelon Falls, another summer attraction along the Trent Severn (Lock 34) and a great place for snapping pictures.

Fenlon Falls

Fenelon Falls

Fenelon Falls

Fenelon Falls

We enjoyed dinner on the balcony over the falls, in …The Fallsview Restaurant, of course!

Fallsview Restaurant balcony

Fallsview Restaurant balcony

Before falling onto our couch at home, full, sleepy and content, we drove down to the Peterborough waterfront at Del Crary Park for the Victoria Day celebrations there. The place was packed with parents and kids, lined up to enjoy the dozen or so Bouncy Castles that had been set up for their free entertainment. Some of them were pretty darned elaborate! We watched the sun begin to set, but were just too tired to wait around for the fireworks.

One Huge Bouncy Castle

One Huge Bouncy Castle

The line up for this one ran half way across the park!

The line up for this one ran half way across the park!

Peterborough Tour Boat

Peterborough Tour Boat

Sunset Over PeterboroughSunset Over Peterborough

Sunday morning we were out the door before noon once more, this time to catch the Pow Wow at the Hiawatha First Nations Reserve, just a twenty-minute drive east of Peterborough. The breeze from the bike was refreshing, but the sun was hot as we sat on the bleachers watching the ceremonial parade of people dressed in colourful traditional costumes and performing native dance steps. It was beautiful. We ate buffalo burgers for lunch and checked out the many vendor booths around the perimeter of the ceremonial area. We also had a good chat with a fellow biker who we always see at the Bikers Reunion in New Liskeard. That day he was celebrating his native heritage along with the others.

Dancers

Dancers

Hiawatha

Hiawatha

Our friend "Bear" on the right,with Standing Buffalo Warrior (a.k.a.Cliff Standingready)

Our friend “Bear” on the right,with Standing Buffalo Warrior (a.k.a.Cliff Standingready)

What a glorious two days to kick off summer and the biking season!

Unknown's avatar

Trekking in the Shan Hills, Day 2

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The sound of a crowing rooster and a crying baby pulled me out of my deep sleep. For a minute I thought I was living in a previous life when the baby was mine and the rooster was part of our farm. Once I’d rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and emerged from the hut, the bleakness of the night before soon faded. The gorgeous vistas and the chatter of our host families helped me to appreciate their simple way of life.

Lisu Village3

Kendrick tries to answer the curious questions from the Lisu children as Sarah looks on

Beautiful Lisu children

Beautiful Lisu children. Credit goes to Kendrick, I think, for this shot

Lisu Dog and Child

Lisu Dog and Child. There are dogs everywhere in Thailand. Notice our clothes and shoes set out to dry.

The one electrical piece of machinery that I saw was a rice cleaner, which was powered by water. Each Lisu family had their own.

After a breakfast of fruit and rice, we started out on our downhill trek. For a while my heart was pumping too rapidly, a little panic attack. It was probably caused by the lack of enough sleep, and the memory of my potentially life-threatening fall the day before. But we did not take the same route back as we’d taken up, and the going was much easier. I soon relaxed and began to enjoy the scenery.  I wore my sandals this time, because they had better treads and my runners were still soaked. The path was wider and switch backed making the descent much more gradual. The warm sun on our shoulders brightened the day and lifted the spirits.

Once again a delicious lunch of noodles packaged in banana leaves, followed by some passion fruit and banana bread, was provided by Chakaphan. The two young fellows employed by him to carry supplies, used their pocket knives to whittle  out some bamboo chop sticks for us, and we savoured the food, the scents and sounds while resting upon some downed logs near a stream.

Whittling chop sticks

Our supply carriers whittled us some chop sticks

We spent the afternoon crisscrossing the shallow river, the cool water soothing our hot feet.

Ready to Cross the river

Come on guys, we’re on the other side!

As we crossed through a farmer’s field, where women were out raking and burning old straw, the sky opened and the rain muddied up the trail again, but this time it felt warm and it lasted only about half an hour. Before we knew it, we were back at the road and the van was waiting to pick us up. “The Elder” had made it, and was very glad to have had the experience!

During the trek I did see some interesting things, despite having to spend so much time watching my feet! We saw many tree vines, which are amazing! They are vines the thickness of young trees but grow and climb around the larger trees, and stretch between them for great distances. Chakaphan told us that they grow up to 350 metres long.

jungle vines

Chakaphan tells us about the jungle vines

There were also different types of ginger growing everywhere, displaying beautiful flowers of varying shades of red.  And orchids grow in abundance too, but the most common type seems to be the ones that grow on the branches and trunks of trees. I wish I’d capture a picture or two of them. The various types of trees we saw included teak, bamboo, banana, and young rattan that were being planted by the government. There were also two varieties of pine trees.

Very large, beautiful spiders scurried from our path, and we saw many termite colonies working away, building high mounds that looked like rocks.  In fact, there were a couple of them in the common area at Sang Tong Huts. Obviously they were eating away at the wooden structure, but no one worried about it.  Everything appeared to be pretty solid. All creatures seemed to be respected and left alone.

I was in bed and asleep by 8:30 that night, after treating the three blisters that I found on my feet.

Unknown's avatar

Trekking into the Shan Hills, Day 1

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Because it had continued to rain all night, Chakaphan knew that there would be too much water in the river to take the three-day trek that he’d plan, so a shorter two-day trek in another area was agreed upon.

We didn’t get started until nearly noon and a hazy mist still hung above the trees.  A minivan picked us up to take us to our beginning – a rough road uphill toward a Karen Village. It was a fairly easy walk, although some of the long hills upped my heart rate a bit. I was the “elder” on this trip and I probably should have done a little more cardio workout in preparation. Before we’d gone too far we stopped in a glade of lush vegetation, near a stream to enjoy the delicious lunch of chicken and rice that Chakaphan had packed for us. Dessert was sticky rice with fresh bananas and passion fruit.

No wading through the streams here

No wading through the streams here

Once more nourished, we resumed our uphill trek. Several motorcycles sped past us up the muddy trail. The scenery was breathtaking.

Waterfalls

Waterfalls

Rice paddies far below us

Rice paddies far below us

We reached the Karen Village at about three in the afternoon. Chakaphan and his entourage were welcomed into the store for a rest. It seemed to be a fairly prosperous village with many newer wooden houses, and a power generator.

We left that village and walked on up the road for a while longer before the real challenge began. Chakaphan led us up a very narrow path through thick foliage. It was muddy and slippery and it seemed we’d never reach the top. When we finally did, I took a few moments to appreciate the beautiful jungle plants while we all took a rest.

Bamboo

Bamboo

ginger plant

Ginger plant

Then we had to head down the other side of the hill. Again the path was narrow and hung precariously close to the edge, with a drop off of hundreds of feet. It had rained off and on most of the day and by now the treads of my running shoes were filled with the thick, red mud and my backpack tended to sometimes throw me a little off balance. One particular little downward slope nearly got the best of me. My feet started to slide and I could find nothing to grab onto. The weight of the bag pulled me backwards over the edge as Sarah and Kendrick behind me gasped and poor Chakaphan turned around in anguish. Fortunately there were many trees on the hill and I didn’t go far before I was turned around and had my feet planted against a couple of them. I was pulled back up and from then on Chakaphan stayed close to me, offering his hand many times. At the first opportunity he found me a sturdy walking stick.

We finally arrived at our destination, a Lisu Village, at about 6:00 pm, wet, muddy and exhausted. A warm shower and soft bed would have been greatly appreciated, but that turned out to be a pipe dream. This village was far more primitive than the Karen Village. The only “shower” was a pipe protruding from the side of the hill, hurling fresh, clean and very cold water down from above, and the children of the village perched on the hill watching, fascinated with their “white” visitors. How was I going to get out of my mud-soaked clothes and wash in that glorious water?

Lisu Village Children

Captivated Lisu Village Children

Sarah changed into a Sarong that she’d taken with her. I finally decided that I needed to get the mud off my clothes anyway so just dove under the waterfall and scrubbed the best I could. I ducked into the outhouse and stripped off my wet clothes and wrapped myself up in my towel, having to be careful not to drop anything on the mud-covered floor. Day light was rapidly fading and I knew that I would soon be unable to find my way around (I suffer from night blindness). Sarah led me to our “room”, where the women and children were all lined up on a bench, still watching! Chakaphan had to send them on their way so we could get dressed.

Once cleaned, we were invited to the Cookhouse, where Chakaphan was busy preparing an evening meal over an open fire pit.

Lisu Village Cook House

The Village dog waits expectantly outside the Cook House

Meal Prep, Lisu Village

Meal Prep, Lisu Village

We could hear the chatter of the women outside. Chakaphan explained, “They want to come in to show you the things that they make. They sell them very cheap and it helps them out.” Of course we agreed, and we were soon surrounded by smiling women spreading their wares out on the tables before us. Pretty hand-woven fabric had been crafted into little purses, eye glass cases and water-bottle holders, obviously made with tourists in mind. Sarah and I picked out a couple of items each and handed them the few baht that they were asking. They left happy. We were then served a wonderful meal of stir-fried fish and vegetables and fruit.

Using our flash lights, we once more made our way to the toilets and then off to “bed.” We all were bunked together in a large bamboo hut similar to the ones in Mae Hong Son, but this time the mattresses were only the thin foam mats that Chakaphan had supplied and the pillows were small, filled with grain, and very hard. Despite how tired I was, it was difficult to get to sleep, but I eventually dozed off, wondering what the next day would bring.