Thailand Guide
The north
The Mae Hong Son Loop
Two main roads from Chiang Mai head over the western mountains into Mae Hong Son, Thailand's most remote province, offering the irresistible prospect of tying the highways together into a six-hundred-kilometre round-trip, dubbed the Mae Hong Song Loop. The towns en route give a taste of Burma to the west, but the journey itself, winding over implausibly steep forested mountains and through tightly hemmed farming valleys, is what will stick in the mind.
The southern leg of the route, Highway 108, first passes Doi Inthanon National Park, then Mae Sariang, a low-key base for trekking and trips on the Salween River. The provincial capital, Mae Hong Son, roughly at the midpoint of the loop, is a more developed hub for exploring the area's mountains, rivers and waterfalls. The northern leg, Route 1095, heads northeast out of Mae Hong Son into an area of beautiful caves, notably Tham Lot. Halfway back towards Chiang Mai from Mae Hong Son is Pai, a hugely popular hangout with plenty of activities and some gentle walking trails.
Either way, Mae Hong Son is about eight hours' from Chiang Mai by bus, or about six by air-con minibuses, via Pai. Above all, though, the loop is made for motorbikes and jeeps: the roads are generally quiet (but watch out for huge, speeding trucks) and you can satisfy the inevitable craving to stop every five minutes and admire the mountain scenery. A useful piece of equipment for this journey is the 1:375,000 map of the Mae Hong Son Loop, published by Golden Triangle Rider (www.gt-rider.com).