Joe Louis drives off road
When we got to Chiang Mai we were very excited to plan out all the activities to do during the week. Where should we go zip lining? What are some good places to eat? How long are eco-treks? What’s the name of that bar we heard about that stays open late?
After booking all the activities we realized that although we had blocked off a full day for “tigers”, it would only take a couple of hours to hang out with the ferocious beasts. The taxi we hired to get to Tiger Kingdom though charged by the day. Is there anything else to do in that area? The clerk at the hostel told us that many people in our situation take advantage of the pre-booked transportation to check out the Chiang Mai X-Center, not far from Tiger Kingdom. Sounds good!
The X-Center provides an array of “extreme” sports including bungy jumping, xorbing, and paintball. We decided on off-road driving to get a high octane view of the Thai countryside. After donning the provided orange overalls and picking out crash helmets, we hopped into the little two-seater and were ready for an adventure. Getting used to the buggy didn’t take long as we followed our guide’s vehicle along the side of the highway until we pulled off to track’s entrance.
We chose the simpler of the two paths and it wasn’t too demanding. We steered our vehicle behind our guide’s buggy over bumps, through puddles, and around bends along a cleared path. The area was wooded and looked like a good place for weekend hike. We drove at a steady pace for most of the ride, but sped up at certain points to have some additional fun. About halfway through the hour long drive we switched control of the driver seat to split of the duties/fun.
As I was driving through the muddy terrain, I must have taken a sharp turn too quickly. We were stuck. One wheel was spinning off the ground and the other three couldn’t get enough traction to move the buggy forward in the mud. Even though the trail wasn’t too complicated, we still managed to turn an off-road joy ride into a situation gone wrong. With the guide’s help, we tried rocking the car side to side to get the wheel back onto the dirt, but were unsuccessful. Then we tried using leaves and rocks to create a base for the wheel but it didn’t take. Finally our guide radioed for a truck to come and pull our buggy a few feet out back onto the trail.
It was only a twenty minute delay, but I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed for taking an off-road vehicle too far off road. There was no damage to the car, only my reputation. It also wasn’t until I was sitting in the buggy waiting for the backup truck to come rescue us that I felt some prickly sensations along my leg. Glancing down I realized I was being devoured by an army of red ants. I shooed them off but not before they feasted of my meaty calves. Talk about adding insult to injury!
See what other blogs are saying about off road driving in Chiang Mai:
“For 1,500 Baht you get an hour’s drive starting with a short trip to the track which takes you through the jungle on a dedicated path. It’s not too challenging if your confident driving and the staff never let the speed get too high, in fact it’s a bit too slow.”
–No Place to Be
“One such off-road activity perfectly suited for the adrenaline junkies is driving a buggy in the jungle-covered hills and mountains of Chiang Mai. X-Center is a company specialized in extreme entertainment activities that offers, among others, exactly that: off-road buggy treks.”
–Simandan
