R1155 A meander to the big trees & mozzies.

[DavidFL]

San Chao Pho Suea Forest Shrine - Chiang Kham.

A FB post that I’d stumbled across, about some ancient trees just 100 kms down the road, caught my attention and sparked the urge for a meander south.

I wasn’t sure about the weather or whether to go at all, but by 2pm the arvo light and sun were superb. I figured it’s never too late for a ride — let’s go.

R1155 it is for the arvo.

R1155 was damaged by flooding in 2025, some of which is still being repaired.

The Right Tunnelling Company is undertaking the repairs.

A repaired section of R1155.

I sheltered 15 minutes from a short shower of rain.

The broken bridge at Pang Kha is still being reconstructed.

Arrival time in Chiang Kham city was 5.30PM.
The Chiang Kham Tai Lue Resort is my fave place of stay in Chiang Kham city.

(Chiang Kham Accommodation)

An excellent gas-powered hot shower was followed by a power nap, and, after that, a Chiang Ban dinner plus a mosey around town looking for some music & entertainment.

Chiang Ban is a fave GTR dinner destination from Chiang Khong & always worth a stop if you're passing through.
(Chiang Kham Restaurants)

The quiet cruise around town turned up the Bum Bud Bar.

A sweet little local pub & night spot.

(Chiang Kham Restaurants)


More to come....

 

[DavidFL]

Day 2: the trees & homeward bound.

Looking for a new breakfast spot in Chiang Kham, the all new Lieben cafe pops up.
5 months in biz & open at 8am (?), whereas my other favourite GTR, the Carrot, opens at 10am.
Located in the centre of town by the main marketplace, it should be a winner.

Finding the place is a challenge & signage is a serious issue.
I went round the block 4 times in all those little market sois, finally gave up, parked the bike, slowly walked 150 metres looking at every building, & there it was. Winner.
Except today the chef was off doing some business at the bank, so I made do with a cute cuppa.

Next time round, but the place does look promising going by the Google Maps reviews.

(Chiang Kham Restaurants

I decamped quickly & moved along to the cool aircon of the Carrot for a "real brekky", but sadly budgetary constraints have reduced the serving size.

Time to move along.,,,,

Up the road 2 kms from the Carrot & into the clump of giant trees.

Unbelievable! I thought to have this group of massive trees right in Chiang Kham city!

What is this all about?? Nestled among the grove of giant trees is a small sala with a shrine.

A Chao Pho Suea Shrine.

There are numerous prominent "Chao Pho Suea" shrines around Thailand, some of which are large and extremely wealthy.

Chao Pho Suea properly translates to "Tiger Lord" or "Tiger God." The shrines honour a powerful Taoist deity brought to Thailand by Chinese immigrants, primarily from southern China.

However, this one in Chiang Kham appears to have been neglected and may have been in honour of a local hero?
I don't know the answer, but there has to be an interesting story there.

On a lighter note, perhaps the mosquito-infested site keeps devotees away, and I was relieved to be wearing my protective bike gear with long sleeves as I stumbled through the site, checking out the trees.

Enjoy. I did despite the mosquito attacks.

Worth a look if you love nature & big trees.

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