Chasing Amy-Lou

Scootering round a mountain, somewhere between Da Nang and Hué, Vietnam:

I woke this morning to find I’d been ANNIHILATED BY MOSQUITOES! I thought I’d escaped the brutal blood-sucking monsters when I left Broome, alas, my legs now resemble some kind of pasty pink and white dot-to-dot puzzle. Soon I’ll be able to choose a different colour and paint by numbers. Probably. But I digress..

Today was MY day. Today, I channeled my inner Captain Slow. Today I revelled in the happiness I imagine was experienced by Hammond. And today, I got the better of Clarkson. For today, I conquered the Hai Van pass – the most beautiful in Vietnam. And I not only replicated this part of the Top Gear Challenge taken on by Clarkson and co. a few years earlier – I smashed it. Today, I made some everlasting memories. And I did it all on a hired scooter. With one full tank of petrol. All on my own.

The Hai Van pass sits between Da Nang and Hue in central Vietnam, and is a large winding road that leads you through miles of vibrant green mountain with views that take your breath away – views to die for – on either side. And ever since hearing about the Top Gear Vietnam Special I’d wanted to do it.

I’d spoken to many people on my travels so far who had used the pass as part of their journey travelling from South to North (or vice versa) on motorbikes they’d bought in either Saigon or Hanoi. I’d also spoken to people who’d chosen the safer option, by going with companies such as Easy Riders, who would carry your bags for you on a separate bike and follow you through the pass while you sat on the back of another and were led by a competent driver. I didn’t want to do the pass like this – I wanted to do it my own way; by scootering the 100km from Hue and back again, in six small hours. And this is precisely what I did.

Taking the long, busy, dusty, dirty, truck-laden road from Hue just after 9am (I later found out I could’ve gone down the beach road and avoided all the trucks and traffic and dirt, but hey, hindsight is a wonderful thing), I reached the start of the pass around 10:45 and eagerly began my journey.

The Hai Van Pass has lanes wide enough to fit two large coaches and enough room for turning too. The gradient stuck at 8% for most of the way. And as I ascended at a moderate speed, the air getting cooler and thinner, my ears popping a little from the altitude, and being spoilt for choice at all the lookout points I could stop off at, the absolute beauty of this pass became overwhelmingly apparent – luscious green trees and forests flourished to my right, and the most turquoise of oceans sat in idyllic serenity to my left. The road twisted and turned and meandered through the mountain and I couldn’t quite believe the spectacle that lay before me. I might not have been on a Vespa, I might not have had two compadres and a camera crew following me, and I might not have had appropriate clothing on, but I didn’t care; I was a solo traveller, a nomadic lost soul; and I’d just found a little piece of heaven.

And that wasn’t even the half of it. I’d chosen to start the Hai Van pass from Hue and drive south, exiting at Da Nang and then turning back on myself and returning. Perhaps an unconventional way to do it some would say, as many tend to travel from South to North, but doing it this way meant I got to witness the incredible views twice – once on the way over and again on the return ride to Hue. And what views they were.

In contrast to the peace and solitude I’d experienced on Son Tra a few days earlier, The Hai Van Pass, because of its use as a way of connecting the North to the South, was busier and bigger, teaming with other avid scooterers, cars, trucks, and goats (!), yet, in a special way, it was even more beautiful than Son Tra. And definitely more beautiful than I could ever describe.

I spent a good hour or so traversing the pass, soaking up the vastness; marvelling at the formation; inhaling the air; internalising the views; memorising the moments. And when I eventually made it back to Hue that afternoon, I was filthy, tired, sunburnt, and sore of bottom. And so I asked myself the question: was it worth the 200km round trip, on a scooter, in the middle of the day, getting blasted by truck fumes, and having my shoulders and thighs subjected to the sweltering sun? Of course it bloody was!