Easy Rider 9 day motorbike trip

Next travel ingredient will be a road adventure. Since my one day trip to the Cu Chi tunnels, I’ve dropped the idea of riding a motorbike alone to find any good spots in this country. I will probably need 2 years time and a fast track Vietnamese language training to make it a success.

However, a guy I spoke to in Saigon mentioned a group called Easy Riders. They are Vietnamese guides who operate from Dalat, a town in the mountains 300km to the north, and guide you by motorbike to any desired location, also tell you background stories and introduce you to local minorities.

Sounded exactly like what the doctor ordered, so this has now been booked and arranged.

After a long ponder, I decided to choose the sit-at-the-back-and-look–around option rather than riding my own motorbike. This way I can focus more on my surroundings than on traffic, I’m on holiday after all. And it is most likely safer too.

I tailored one of the longer trails around distance wise, which will go from Dalat to Dong Hoi in North Vietnam. It will pass all the amazing nature Central Vietnam has to offer, including history lessons my Easy Rider will provide, and sleeping at great locations no tourist would find himself. Hopefully we can finish it in 9 days. On average we will ride 200km per day, and the road passes through the mountains and villages allowing an average speed of 50km per hour.

Dalat 22 October 7:30am I meet my Easy Rider Su. He speaks excellent English, sells his pitch good (wants quite some $$$) and we agree a potential route to follow.

Off we go.

Easy Rider tour Day 1: From Dalat to Lac lake

Mr Su ready for take off.















We leave Dalat, a city in the mountains, mainly known for all the local vegetables and fruit.
On the back of the motorcycle I’m part of my surroundings and inhale the fantastic mountain environment.

Our first stop after a few hours ride is at a minority family. We give the kids candy (candy is worth its weight in gold around here) and Su tells me about their ways of living. They seem surprisingly relaxed of this stranger invading their house.

A minority pig is also having a look.

During lunch, where we had the barbequed sister of the fatso in the picture above, Su tells me more about the Easy Rider background in Dalat. He explains that there are now also Free Riders, Local Riders, Lone Riders etc. They all stole the trick and the hotspots from them, the Easy Riders, and it’s all so unfair. And if I do this internet thing, tell everybody never to go on a trip with mr. Luu as he indecently tried to touch a female guest. So here you go: To hell with mr. Luu everybody!

To me it sounds a bit like the movie Life of Brian, where you had the People’s Front of Judea, Judea’s Peoplefront etc. and they all hated each others guts. But eh, we all have our own blues.

Pit stop along the way.

We use time efficiently. Su drops me off at an interesting spot and rides on to smoke a cigarette. I then stroll towards him, in this case via a market along the road.

Everywhere we stop Su tells a background story. I soon realize he is especially an expert on agriculture. He tells me later he used to work as a farmer.

Agriculture lesson 1: Su explains how brown rice is grown.

Agriculture lesson 2: how to make fish traps

We are near our end destination with a bizarre sky.

On my right side a threatening rain storm is rushing our way.

And on my left side an amazing sunset

We check in in a lovely lakeside hotel, where there is no electricity due to a power cut. I now understand mr. Su’s face when I said this morning I would prefer to stay only in hotels with WIFI internet.
Sitting in the dark trying to read my book with mozzies circling around me, realization kicks in what sort of trip this is going to be. And I can’t deny I feel a little alone right here and now.