Rising in the village
I woke up at about 8am. In the night there had been some very strange noises that actually scared me at first. It turns out they were just large pigs underneath my hut. We were going to be on the road again soon, and continuing on the Pakse loop. I had a shower, which was very cold, then got dressed and went to breakfast. Breakfast consisted of fried eggs, with some toast and jam, very nice to be honest. After we finished our breakfast, some of the others went on the tour whilst we waited for Mischa to get ready.
It was just me and Mat at the table, and a lot of the kids crowded round us. We got talking to them, asking names, how they were, and talking about football. Several of them had football shirts on including Man Utd, Man City, and Liverpool. On YouTube, I played the Liverpool v Barcelona Champion’s League game, which saw Liverpool win 4-0 to proceed to the final. The kids seemed engrossed, and absolutely loved watching the game. When Mischa was ready, we paid for the hostel, and said our goodbyes to the family. With that, we were back on the Pakse loop and heading for the waterfalls.
Going too far
The ride was pretty plain sailing the whole way, except when Mat drove over a snake slithered across the road. That wasn’t a pretty sight. We stopped once to refuel, and another time to take a quick break and take some photos. During the ride, we went past more beautiful scenery, as well as some towns and villages. It’s all very interesting to see, compared to English towns. We finally came to a halt once I recognised the crossroads that we used yesterday. I whipped the map out we were given at the bike shop, and we had indeed gone too far.
The 3 of us circled back around, and headed back. This time, we managed to find the correct turn in for the waterfall we were seeking. There were quite a few waterfalls to see, but we could only see a couple as the day was drawing in. Getting from the main road to the waterfall car park was a pain in the ass…literally. The ‘road’ was so bumpy and non-existent, I genuinely thought the bike would break. I actually got neck ache for a while afterwards.
Tad Champee Waterfall
As per the norm, we had to pay to park up at the waterfall. It’s only 5,000 kip, so it won’t break the bank, but remember to always bring money. It started raining when we arrived (the first time in weeks I’d seen rain!), so we had some food at the restaurant here. After our delicious meal, we made our way to the waterfall. It was a short descent down some steps, and then a small walk through the woods. We had some good views before we reached the waterfall itself. There was a lake that the waterfall was flowing into, and the scene was very beautiful. The atmosphere was so calm and peaceful, you could stay for hours.
However, it started raining again, so Mischa went back to the restaurant whilst Mat and I went under the waterfall ledge. The waterfall overhung the lake, so there was a bit of rocky cover, and then waterfall flowed in front of our eyes. It was very cool to see the view from here, behind the waterfall. Once the rain had subsided, we made our way back, and met Mischa at the restaurant. The 3 of us set off once again to go to the next waterfall. After another bumpy ass ride, we were on the main road, and searching for the next turn in.
Tad Fane Waterfall
As we scouted along the Pakse loop, we managed to find this waterfall easier, and it had a less bumpy road. It turned out there was a hotel resort here, and the view of the waterfall was part of the grounds. Again, we had to pay for entry, 5,000 kip again, but we parked up and walked to the view. This was a much higher waterfall, but you had to view it from a great distance. It was on the other side of a valley/canyon, so no way to get close. There was the opportunity to zip line across the canyon to the other side, but this was quite expensive, so I gave it a miss.
The 3 of us sat at a table on the decking which overlooked the waterfall. We decided to play cards for a bit, very scenic back drop! Mischa had a fresh coconut to drink, Mat shared it with her. I’ve never been keen on coconut to be fair. Mat and I also marvelled at 2 red ants that dropped onto our table and were fighting, it was very cool to watch. I put the survivor back on a tree as we left, even though it bit me!
Finishing the loop
We left the Tad Fane waterfall, and made our way back onto the Pakse loop. The 3 of us rode back into Pakse to turn our bikes in at the bike shop, and reclaim our bags. Once we had done so, we found ourselves a hostel to stay in for the night. Thankfully there were a few lined up on the opposite side of the street, so we just picked one and it ended up being decent. It was called the Lankham Hotel, can be found here. We also booked a bus for tomorrow that would take us to the 4000 Islands down south. This would be our last destination before Cambodia.
We went out for food, to the place we had breakfast yesterday, next to the bike shop. Check out yesterday’s post for all the info! The food there is lush, and the menu is huge, definitely worth a visit. Once we’d had food, including pudding, and played some cards, we headed back to the hotel and turned in for the night.
