Adventure in Laos: 25 Kilometer Hike to Utopia! Part Three

It's been an incredible adventure in Vang Vieng Laos which started just before the sunrise. We've seen and done so much and it's not even noon! You don't want miss part one or part two.

I wet my towel using a little of the water I have and I put it over my head. Having already walked for about 20 kilometers and the sun still rising, it's important to do all I can to keep myself from overheating. I want to get to the main road and get to my hotel, but sitting under the trees with the cows during the mid-day sun did cross my mind. It's now past 11am and hot with the sun blaring down!

As a cloud briefly blocks out the sun, I come around a corner and see an old man living here. I believe this is his store on the right.

Here's another house in the neighborhood.

And the Buddhist Temple just down the road.

I drink some water and continue on.

You can see a factory way off in the distance with smoke coming out of it. That must be where the main road is, the exit.

I believe this small factory is part of the rock mining industry. The blocks to the right of the building seem to be the final product. These trucks are suddenly starting to be seen all over the place as well as driving past me full of stone.

I soon pass through another village area and temple, I'm sweating heavily and people are starting to look at me funny as I walk in the mid-day sun. I just want to get to the main road at this point.

We make it to the bridge! While crossing the Nam Song river I look to my right and recognize the area. I stopped at that river-side bar while tubing down the river a few days earlier.

At this point I've reached a different kind of Utopia, I think I'm starting to hallucinate from heat exhaustion! I see a group of strange looking pig cows and continue on.

Even these huge intimidating buffalo know to go for a swim in this heat.

I made it to the main road. I rest in the shade and flag down a taxi to take me about 7 kilometers to my hotel. I'm relieved. The air conditioning in his truck was delightful.

This was no joke of an adventure. It turns out I walked about 25 kilometers leaving just before 6am, I hiked for more than 6 hours. Heat stroke was avoided by a wet towel draped over my head for the last third of the trip. Overall it was an exciting time and we saw so many interesting things! The carriage ride, the rock quarry, banana fields, rice fields, pig-cows, water buffalo, villages, temples, Koreans in buggies, even children spear fishing and much more. It was a great time and we did find Utopia! If you like this post please view some of my others and consider following. Thank you! -Dan "World Travel Pro!