Hello friends, today I, Mr. Tummeng Travel, come to meet everyone with a trip to end the year 2014. This trip is a trip that I will take everyone to visit 3 tourist attractions that are beautiful and unique in all 3 places. That is
Enjoy the sea of fog and the morning sun at Doi Mae Taman, Chiang Dao District.
Admire the popular reservoir, Pang Ung and Ban Rak Thai, Mae Hong Son
And admire the blooming sunflowers at Doi Mae U Kho
On this trip, I traveled with fellow travelers whom I had never met or known before, even until the day before the trip. This was because I had posted on Facebook looking for travel companions. The first two people started the journey from the beginning, while the other one joined us along the way.
How will the fun of this trip be? Let's follow in
[Tummeng Travel #44] Mae Ta Man (Chiang Dao) - Pang Ung - Mae U Kho with the friendship of photography of 4 people who didn't know each other much before
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SR by
TruemoveH covers travel expenses throughout the trip.
Avis Thailand supports car rentals for the duration of your trip.
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Thank you all for visiting this review post.
Feel free to leave a comment to encourage the reviewer.
This trip came about when I was contacted by TrueMove H, as a blogger in the northern region, asking if I was interested in going on a trip somewhere in the north to try out and check the signal of their SIM card (like Nadech). They offered to cover the cost of the trip and the SIM card, and I agreed to go on a trip to Mae Hong Son. However, I didn't want a monthly SIM card because I already use TrueMove H, so I asked them to support other travel expenses instead. TrueMove agreed, so I posted about the trip on the Chiang Rai Photo Club group, inviting anyone who was interested to join me on the trip at no cost, except for personal expenses such as food and drinks. Many people were interested in joining the trip, but they couldn't because I was traveling on weekdays.
In the end, I found two people interested in joining the trip. I had never met either of them before, and we weren't even friends on Facebook.
The first two trip companions who signed up after I announced it on Facebook are
Cast a spell
A young nerd, a former law student who graduated from university, then turned himself into a professional photographer, taking all kinds of photos in Bangkok before moving back to his hometown in Chiang Rai. He loves photography and traveling, which are his lifeblood.
Nino
A young man who recently graduated with a bachelor's degree from the university has been unemployed for a few months. He enjoys photography and dreams of working independently. He is currently exploring different photography styles to discover his passion.
Older brother
A middle-aged man with a passion for photography and travel, and a member of the Chiang Rai Photo Club, who secretly escaped from his wife to go on a quick trip.
Both Sek and Nino asked to join my trip because they were free and wanted to go on a photo trip, even though neither of them really knew what a blogger was. They just knew that this trip was free... One day before the trip, we met up to discuss the details and met for the first time at Central Chiang Rai.
The next day, we met at Chiang Rai Airport to pick up the car we would be using for the trip from Avis.
Initially, Avis assigned me a Vios. Fortunately, I checked my email two days before my trip and requested a change to a Fortuner, as the route for this trip was quite challenging. Upon arriving at the airport, I completed the paperwork and picked up the car. It was this eye-catching red car.
We traveled using the following route:
Chiang Rai - Mae Chan - Fang - Chiang Dao - Mae Malai - Pai - Pang Ung - Mae Hong Son - Mae U Kho - Mae Chaem - Chom Thong - Chiang Mai - Chiang Dao - Mae Ai - Chiang Rai
which is a large circle. The three northernmost provinces have a total distance of 1040 km from Google.
Our first stop was the Thanathorn Orange Garden in Fang District, which is on the way to our main destination.
But when we went, the oranges weren't very ripe yet, they were still green.
I've actually been here before and reviewed a similar trip four years ago. However, from what I can see now, the orange orchard has added more flowers to its landscape, making it even more worth a visit.
Review I did earlier http://2g.pantip.com/cafe/blueplanet/topic/E9993655/E9993655.html
We drove along and I posted pictures of the journey while checking the signal to see where there was 3G and where there was 4G.
Our first destination was Chiang Dao district, a small district that has become increasingly popular with tourists. This is evident from the growing number of foreign and Thai tourists visiting the area, as well as the proliferation of hotels and resorts along the roadside.
We arrived at noon and decided to have lunch. Khao Kha Moo Chiang Dao is a well-known dish that everyone knows about. It is very delicious.
Along the two sides of the road in Chiang Dao district, many farmers can be seen harvesting rice at this time.
The first main goal of this trip was to see the peak of Doi Luang Chiang Dao from the Doi Mae Taman viewpoint, or the San Pa Kia Highland Agricultural Center, which is about 21 km from Chiang Dao district. But it's a very rough 21 km. It took two hours to get up there.
The first stop in the photo is a scenic viewpoint in Chiang Dao.
I've been driving for almost an hour and saw this sign. It made me sweat.
If you want to visit Doi Mae Taman, you can only go up by pickup truck or a 4WD vehicle. Other vehicles are definitely not allowed. And if it's the rainy season, it's highly not recommended. Finally, we arrived at our first destination, which is the Mae Taman Watershed Management Unit and the San Pa Kia Highland Agricultural Center. I had called ahead before traveling to ask for permission to pitch a tent here because currently, tourists are not allowed to stay overnight on this mountain anymore. However, you can still visit during the day.
Upon arrival, we contacted the staff and requested a tent space on the lawn. However, due to the impending rain, the caretaker advised us to set up our tent on the balcony of the guesthouse instead.
After setting up the tent, we went to the sunset viewpoint at Mae Ta Man Watershed Management Unit. However, there were many clouds, so we couldn't see it.
As it was, we returned to the Doi Luang Chiang Dao viewpoint at San Pa Kia, hoping that the sky would clear and allow us to see the peak of Doi Luang.
It seems that the sky is not cooperating, with clouds covering the entire Doi Luang. This is probably because that night was the first real night of winter in the north. Before that, it wasn't very cold, and there were occasional showers before the trip. It seems that the high pressure from China is strong and has just met the low pressure covering Thailand, causing rain and fog to cover the entire region.
After our disappointment, we had dinner that we had prepared ourselves from buying at the Chiang Dao market. It was sticky rice with grilled pork and minced pork salad. Everyone was eating and asking questions about what to do if it rained. The sky was overcast, so we might not be able to take pictures. While I was uploading photos and chatting, I received a call from another friend who was interested in joining the trip. He was in Chiang Mai city at that time and asked if he could join us. We arranged to meet at the Mae Malai intersection the next day at 11 am.
Before we all went our separate ways to shower and take care of personal business, we sat around updating our Facebook pages and chatting with our partners. Initially, we thought there wouldn't be any mobile phone signal up here, as there wasn't any during the drive up. However, we were pleasantly surprised to find signal at San Pa Kia. After showering, I had nothing to do, so I sat down to charge my phone and update my Facebook page while checking the signal. It was around 7 pm at that time.
It turned out that young Nino was walking around with a camera, setting it up to take pictures of the stars. He was just playing around, trying to take a timelapse, and then he shouted to me, "Hey, can you also take a picture of the Milky Way?" Actually, it wasn't the right time to take a picture of the Milky Way anymore, but because Mae Ta Man is very dark and the sky was very clear that night (the station turns off the lights at 8pm), he was able to capture it.
After that, I ran to get my camera and tripod and came down to take pictures, choosing the house as the foreground. I didn't forget to call Sek, who had taken sleeping pills and was about to fall asleep. We had fun taking pictures, exchanging lenses, and sharing knowledge until almost 10 pm. On the mountain, there were only the three of us and the uncle and aunt who were taking care of the station, who had already fallen asleep. So we went to bed, hoping to wake up to a bright day the next morning.
Before going to bed, I couldn't help but update and show off to my friends a little.
As a seasoned blogger, I'm accustomed to waking up early in the morning, especially when I'm traveling. This morning, I was the first one awake and was greeted by this sight: thick fog and a very cold atmosphere. The previous night had been quite chilly as well.
The TruemoveH3G signal is very strong. I can upload videos in just a few minutes.
As the light began to appear, we went to find a spot to capture the first light of the day.
As I mentioned earlier, the high humidity, the sea, and the abundance of clouds obscured the peak of Doi Luang Chiang Dao.
Instead, we took photos at the spot where the sun was about to rise, and we were not disappointed.
The sun rose as promised, along with a thin mist that floated up for us to admire. At that moment, I almost forgot to look at the peak of Doi Luang Chiang Dao, as I was busy pressing the shutter to capture the beautiful scene in front of me. The sound of the shutter coming from my fellow travelers next to me further encouraged me to feel that I should not let this time pass in vain. We changed lenses and angles with great enthusiasm.
As the sunlight grew brighter, revealing more angles for photography, I couldn't resist using my fellow travelers as subjects for some photos.
As I turned to look at the peak of Doi Luang Chiang Dao, it remained shy, hiding its beauty behind the same group of clouds. It was necessary to capture it in this way because we only had one night here on this trip.
And this angle is the angle that made me choose to visit here, the agricultural center at Sung San Pa Kia. I saw this angle from the book Dream destination 1, which is a picture of three Dok Ngang Phaya Sua Krong trees with Doi Luang Chiang Dao as the backdrop. Since then, I have always thought that one day I must go and see this angle with my own eyes. Even though the Dok Ngang Phaya Sua Krong flowers were not yet in bloom when I visited, I asked the caretaker of the station, who said that this year they might bloom later than usual, probably around January. If anyone wants to come and see them,
After capturing the perfect shots, it was time to pack up and head to our next destination.
Waking up to the stunning view of the Mae Taman and San Pa Kia terraces, captured in this photo of a beautiful balcony, is a dream come true.
We descended from Mae Tamarn, taking slightly less time than the ascent.
Before stopping to capture the small terraced rice fields along the way, we stopped for breakfast in Chiang Dao district, which we forgot to prepare for the trip.
On our way, we picked up another member at the Mae Malai intersection before driving straight to Pai for lunch. I had already told everyone on the trip that I wouldn't be stopping in Pai because I don't really like it that much. Everyone was okay with it. Besides, if we stopped in Pai and Huai Nam Dang, we might miss the last light at Pang Ung. I drove straight to Pang Ung, stopping only briefly at Pang Ma Pha to buy supplies. We arrived at Pang Ung at a time when everyone had to get out of the car without setting up their tents, otherwise we wouldn't have time to capture the last light. Eating and sleeping had to come later, taking pictures had to come first, which everyone agreed on. So we parked the car at the toll booth and hurried to take pictures first.
I stand on the ridge of the reservoir to capture the image of Pang Ung in the evening sun. And I'm secretly happy that the sky is not very cloudy today.
And don't forget to snap some cute shots too.
At that moment, I was secretly happy that today was my lucky day. The heavens had opened up.
After the sun went down, we rushed to set up our tents inside the reservoir before it got too dark.
After being impressed by the Milky Way photography last night, we decided to go out and shoot again tonight after setting up the tent. Actually, this is the first time Sek and I have been able to capture the Milky Way. Personally, I've tried shooting it near my house before, but only managed to get faint shadows, not clear shots like this. So, this has been a fun experience, exchanging equipment, lenses, and knowledge with each other. The last member of our group who arrived came empty-handed, with only his camera, as he had just finished a graduation photoshoot and hadn't prepared anything. He didn't even bring a tripod, a shutter release, or a thick jacket. So, we had to lend him some things in the spirit of friendship.
After taking photos until almost nine o'clock in the evening, we went to find dinner, which we hadn't prepared anything for. We had instant noodles and fried chicken with sticky rice, which were sold inside. We were also able to charge our phones and camera batteries for 40 baht.
After finishing our meal, we went to sleep. Around 3 AM, it started to rain, but not heavily. It seemed like it would stop around 5 AM. This made the morning at Pang Ung less charming than it should have been. There was no mist from the water, and no sunlight filtering through the pine trees. It was another day where we thought we were unlucky. However, the one good thing was that the mobile phone signal was excellent, allowing us to upload videos with ease.
Even though it wasn't the picture I had in mind, it was still quite beautiful.
If you keep thinking that you're unlucky and the atmosphere isn't beautiful, you probably won't get any pictures. But we can always capture the atmosphere and the people around us. And the people around us often have beautiful little corners as well.
After spending the morning at Pang Ung, we said goodbye with this picture. This was my second time at Pang Ung, but it definitely won't be my last.
We traveled to have breakfast at Ban Rak Thai, which is 7 kilometers from Pang Ung. It is a village of Chinese people who have migrated here for a long time and live here in large groups. Currently, they grow tea, cold-weather fruits, and build resorts to welcome tourists who visit here every time the winter season arrives.
Leaving Ban Rak Thai, we drove to Mae Hong Son town. Before arriving, we stopped by a famous local cafe to enjoy a cup of coffee while taking in the beautiful scenery.
Located near Doi Kong Mu Temple, the name of the shop is Before Sunset Coffee.
The atmosphere is as good as its reputation. Sipping coffee while enjoying the view of the distant mountains. If you come before the sunset as the name of the shop suggests, it would be much more beautiful.
Leaving the city center of Mae Hong Son, we headed straight to Khun Yuam District. We stopped for lunch there and then turned to Doi Mae U Kho to see the blooming sunflowers.
The drive was so full of sharp turns that we almost threw up.
Upon arrival, we saw the blooming sunflowers and decided to stop and take some pictures. We had plenty of time today, arriving at our destination as early as two in the afternoon.
As we drove to the Doi Mae U Kho viewpoint, heavy rain began to fall, forcing us to take shelter in our car for nearly 20 minutes. As the rain finally stopped, the old adage "after the rain comes sunshine" proved true, and the sky cleared to reveal a stunning view.
With plenty of time to spare, everyone dispersed to capture photos of the blooming sunflowers from different angles.
If you want to buy a certificate to prove that you have been here, you can contact the staff during business hours.
You can buy it right at the viewpoint.
At Doi Mae U Kho, there are food and beverage stalls only during the day. If you want to stay overnight, you need to bring your own food.
And now, on the way up to the Doi Mae U Kho viewpoint, there are many small resorts and private camping sites for those who don't want to camp in the national park.
After choosing a camping spot at the Doi Mae U Kho viewpoint, we all went up to the Doi Mae U Kho sunrise viewpoint.
We now have one more new member, a young woman we met at Pang Ung. Today, she also came to Mae U Kho. This young woman is a nurse from a province in the eastern region. She drove up north by herself for a 7-day vacation with her trusty camera. But when we asked her, she added our friends on Facebook and turned out to be a friend of a friend we know well, so we became closer. She said she would go down to sleep in Khun Yuam district tonight and come back up tomorrow morning. So we invited her to sleep here tonight and offered to teach her how to take pictures of stars and the Milky Way. She agreed and will sleep in her own car.
Since we're here, let's check the signal strength of TruemoveH3G.
Let's test the speed.
The last light at Doi Mae U Kho is truly breathtakingly beautiful.
After taking pictures of the sunset, we prepared to take pictures of the stars.
Before taking a picture of the stars, let's capture some twilight light.
And then this trip became a trip to take pictures of the stars, the Milky Way, perfectly.
As always, we share our knowledge of astrophotography and the Milky Way with new members, just like every time.
The children were so overjoyed that they forgot we barely had anything to eat for dinner that night, except for a few cups of instant noodles and some bread.
Fortunately, the tent next to us was a big family who were having a barbecue and grilling fish. When we asked for hot water, they invited us to join them for dinner. We are truly grateful for their hospitality. It seems that kindness is still alive and well in Thai society.
And as usual, we woke up early to fight the cold weather. Which made all of us unable to sleep in the tent. Because of the strong wind and the extreme cold. So we all evacuated to sleep in the car. And woke up to fight the cold to capture beautiful pictures again.
And of course, today is the last day of this trip. We left Mae U Kho in the late morning, driving a long way through Mae Chaem, Chom Thong, Chiang Mai, Chiang Dao, before heading straight to Fang and Mae Ai.
Our last stop on this trip was Wat Tha Ton A-ram Luang in Mae Ai District, Chiang Mai Province, where we captured some final photos.
And this is the last picture of this trip, where all four of us had the opportunity to take a picture together.
And borrowing the words of Brother Mod, Photofile, who said, "Taking pictures is not just about getting pictures, we also get friendship."
Thank you to all my fellow travelers for making the trip so much fun. No one complained or caused any trouble at all.
Thank you to our generous sponsors, TrueMove H and Avis, for supporting this trip.
Thank you all for watching this review.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to ask or greet me on my page.
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Thank you for today.
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Friday, September 27, 2024 9:52 AM