Mae Hong Son city to Pai done the cool way :) - Day 2 - Ban Huay Hee to Ban Heng Hom

If Day 1 was challenging enough, Day 2 pushed me to levels I had not experienced before, steepness-wise. Do note that I have done considerable touring in the mountains of Chiang Mai & Mae Hong Son provinces before, and that my bike has a very low 'lowest' gear (15'' development), but I found myself not only zig zagging up the road, but also shocked at how steep these climbs were. Unless u r very well prepared physically and mentally, and ur bike has a VERY low gear, best to avoid this road altogether and stick to the much easier (and transited) MHS city to Pai #1095 rd. The tarmac ends pretty quickly, giving way to cement, rocks, sand, gravel, etc. Note that any tires smaller than 2 inches would struggle, and that if you attempt this during the monsoons, the fine sand will turn to sticky mud. Those with front suspension would enjoy the extra comfort, but it is not a must. Again, very low traffic, apart from a few people on off road motorbikes passing by noisily (loooosers!). As was the case with Day 1, the few villagers you come across are Kareni. I don't know much about this ethnic group, other than (at least the ones I have met) they are so welcoming and friendly to bike people cycling through their villages that it made the physical effort all the while. Slept the night at a small village called Ban Heng Hom, in my good ole hammock, very happy to have accepted the offer of some extra blankets, as it got cold at night (village, as is the case with the majority of the road for the first 2 days) is 1,000 meters asl. Again, do bring plenty of water and food, and a water filter just in case, tough villages do have water they will happily spare with you. I have ranked this very difficult not because of the terrain or the distance, but again because of the steepness of the roads.