Franz van der Brink

We wanted to ride Vietnam from Hanoi to the Chinese border but not on Minsks. We all ride bikes and the thought of riding a Minsk (my parents used them in Indonesia) did not really appeal to us however, a friend of ours, an expat in Hanoi, said he knew of an outfit that deals in Urals. A Ural is a 670cc Russian version of a 1958 BMW (post-war, nothing is different about these, and nothing has changed since then).

So we contacted Digby at Explore Indochina, who provided some ideas and routes. We did not want to go where the tourists gathered, so we agreed to go north to the Chinese border, see the top end and train it back to Hanoi.

On the first day we rode to Ba Be, a beautiful ride with a large natural lake. Day 2 we rode to Ha Giang, then onto Dong Van. We stayed a day touring around Dong Van, going to a Hmong hill-tribe market, and to the most northern tip of Vietnam, Lung Co.

The next day, we rode to the Pan Hou Eco Resort, in Hoang Su Phi—a really top spot in Vietnam. We rested and took it easy with another visit to a local market. A short ride that afternoon to Xin Man. The last day was a ride to Lao Cai to catch a 9.30 pm train back to Hanoi.

Digby had the timing right, and we made every stop without fuss or panic.

The scenery was out of this world, hilly, some places rough, green.

Our bikes broke sometimes, and I must admit that was part of the experience. Repairing flat tyres, replacing clutch cables, and electrical problems were just par for the course.

I must admit when something went wrong, the mechanic seemed to appear from nowhere to help. When we fell over in the mud at landslides, he was there to pick up the bikes with us, when a motor would not start, he was there to start it for us. He was everywhere, and he was always there with a smile. I now find out/understand that the Vietnamese people don’t really get angry.

In conclusion, I recommend Explore Indochina.

We had the greatest time with these people, and I would recommend this trip to anyone who can ride a bike. (The Urals are very easy to ride.)

Being under constant pressure as a professional, this trip was such a release for us, it was unbelievable, a real highlight. I am sure you would also enjoy it.