Thailand forum

Although July is mid-rainy season you won't know what the weather will be until the time comes, impossible to predict so far in advance. You should count on at least some quickie thundershowers and have some appropriate gear. Definitely rent a small bike/scooter and get some practice riding and understanding the chaos of Thai driving practices and wear a good helmet. Drive very conservatively and wear a decent helmet. There are numerous bike crashes every day in Chiang Mai usually caused by young Thai guys driving way too fast.

The shorter Mae Hong Son loop via Khun Yuam and Mae Chaem is 550km. The slightly longer loop via Mae Sariang is about 620km.
If you take it easy and ride a small 125cc bike expect to average around 30-40kph due to all the twisty turns and hills. So do the math, you're looking at about 15-22 hours of riding, divided over 7 days you're riding just 2-3 hours per day with plenty of time for stops along the way. Most riders do the loop quicker as in 3-5 days but taking it slow is a good idea when you have little experience.

Learning to ride on the highways of Thailand is probably not a good idea.

I haven't done the loop, but I do understand the desire to jump on a motorbike to do it. I was a non-rider until a trip to SEA a couple of years ago. Back then I hired a scooter for a couple of random days (in quiet remote areas), and rode on the back of one for more than a week in Vietnam. On another trip, I hired a motorcycle and rode around the Bolaven Plateau for a week and loved it.

If you are seriously contemplating this, my suggestion would be to get as much practice in before you leave home. Do a motorbike handling skills, and maybe even get a licence (to ensure you have adequate insurance coverage if the worst happens). I got a few invaluable bike handling tips by doing a 2-hour course - things that I wouldn't have picked up if I just jumped on a bike without knowing what I was doing.

Not sure about other countries, but in here in NZ you can legally drive a scooter that is less than 100cc without a licence. So I hired one once on one of our small off-shore islands and spent the day blatting around just to get the confidence up without having to worry to much about heavy traffic.

I always take a cautious approach on the bike. I go at a speed that I feel comfortable with, always wear a helmet and closed shoes. But once in Asia, other protective measures go out the window - ie protective clothing. But that risk is partially mitigated by the fact that I stick to slower speeds.

Scooters are fine for 30km trips but if you want to do a 400-500km trip you need a bigger bike and good experience.

I rode my 115cc Yamaha Mio from the Malaysian border to Chiang Mai, 4000km with TGF and baggage, but I guess I'm mental.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/captain-bob/sets/72157621919706647/

I did a loop from Chiang Mai to Sukothai with a girl a few years back on a 125 Honda and my butt wouldn't talk to me for 2 weeks.
To the original poster, if you're in the US all the big bike shops give rider safety courses now. Usually just a day and some furnish the bikes. Well worth it. I had a Harley in the US up until last year and it took me a year in Thailand before I ventured into this traffic on my own.
Madmac....don't brake , hit the dog? You're going down. We avoided squirrels back home. LOL

Madmac....glad you had a good experience with it. I guess everyone has their opinion on how to handle a given situation but I don't know any biker that would recommend the procedure that you described. I can see where if you see an obstacle in the road and don't take any premptive measures before and have to brake at the last minute, then an inexperienced rider could have a balance problem. Luckly I have never hit a dog yet, so I don't know what it would feel like to go over one. I hope I never do and that's not because I a member of PETA or anything.

It is definitely a bad situation. There aren't really good options. If I have lead time, I'll definitely take evasive action. But sometimes you just don't, and trying to makes it worse. I hate seeing animals suffer though. Bad Karma.

When riding the highways of Thailand, it's important to keep in mind that things can an do cross it often. Kids and dogs are the worst offenders. Motorcycle riders who see a highway as just another road to cross. Cows wandering on to it... you just have to keep your wits about you. Another friend of mine (though he's not a serius rider) drives in the motorcycle lane and drives very slowly. But first of all, I want to reach my destination this lifetime. And secondly I hate the motorcyle lane because now you really have little warning of moving obstacles. I prefer to move with the flow of traffic, which out here is generally around 100 kmh.

"What really gets me here is the way they just blast out into traffic from a sidestreet or road without seeming to look to see what's coming. Bike or car, I really watch for that."

Neosho
It's not "seeming". They ARE blasting into traffic without looking. My wife, who is Thai, says "Thai people are stupid". I think that's a harsh judgement, but let's just say that their driving culture has some significant flaws in it.