T_Dog Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Channel 3 News is showing video of a sizable amount of dirt on the road to Pai. Might be closed for 2 or 3 days as they wait for the dirt to stabilize and then clear it off the road. Lot's of landslides up toward Chiang Rai as well but no major roads closed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iainiain101 Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 I was just going to leave for Pai, can anyone give more detail / confirmation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T_Dog Posted August 29, 2011 Author Share Posted August 29, 2011 I was just going to leave for Pai, can anyone give more detail / confirmation? You might want to give the Highway Police a call as they should have the latest information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pgthompson Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 (edited) Just been in touch with Aya Travel as I'm wanting to go to Pai tomorrow and they said there's no problem with the road. They use that route on a hourly basis. Edited August 29, 2011 by pgthompson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ginkas Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Friend from Mae Hong Son, who works for the Ministry of Justice, was in Chiangmai over the weekend with a group of government employees on a seminar. Should have gone back yesterday afternoon via Pai but told the road was blocked and there was already a three kilometer long traffic jam. Given permission to stay over for another night and to leave this morning; via Pai, if possible, or via Mae Sariang if not. Group due to leave this morning. As I haven't heard anything I presume they got away, but by which route I don't know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrippRitter Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Just been in touch with Aya Travel as I'm wanting to go to Pai tomorrow and they said there's no problem with the road. They use that route on a hourly basis. I got to the landslide about 2 minutes before it started. That was at 1:30, here is a photo I took at 3:30pm on the 28th. At this point it was still active and moving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrippRitter Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 (edited) Just been in touch with Aya Travel as I'm wanting to go to Pai tomorrow and they said there's no problem with the road. They use that route on a hourly basis. I got to the landslide about 2 minutes before it started. That was at 1:30, here is a photo I took at 3:30pm on the 28th. At this point it was still active and moving. Notice the downed tree where I was standing. I felt like a fool getting that close. I wouldn't be surprised if it grew much larger since the time I took that photo. Edited August 29, 2011 by TrippRitter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrippRitter Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Just been in touch with Aya Travel as I'm wanting to go to Pai tomorrow and they said there's no problem with the road. They use that route on a hourly basis. I got to the landslide about 2 minutes before it started. That was at 1:30, here is a photo I took at 3:30pm on the 28th. At this point it was still active and moving. Notice the downed tree where I was standing. I felt like a fool getting that close. I wouldn't be surprised if it grew much larger since the time I took that photo. Actually, now that I think about it I bet someone cut that tree down to block the road from cars getting to close. Much more likely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LivinLOS Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Just been in touch with Aya Travel as I'm wanting to go to Pai tomorrow and they said there's no problem with the road. They use that route on a hourly basis. And I thought the 'magic bus' was just the one that got me home after a night of boozing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaoyang Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 (edited) Just been in touch with Aya Travel as I'm wanting to go to Pai tomorrow and they said there's no problem with the road. They use that route on a hourly basis. I don't know how long you've been in Thailand, but you must be aware that what Thais tell you does not necessarily have a relationship to the truth as Westerners perceive it. One indication that the information might not be factual is if their lips are moving. Edited August 29, 2011 by chaoyang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrippRitter Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Just been in touch with Aya Travel as I'm wanting to go to Pai tomorrow and they said there's no problem with the road. They use that route on a hourly basis. I don't know how long you've been in Thailand, but you must be aware that what Thais tell you does not necessarily have a relationship to the truth as Westerners perceive it. One indication that the information might not be factual is if their lips are moving. This. An hour and a half after the landslide I stopped about 10km from the slide at a road side stall and all the tourists were pissed off and had no idea why they had been waiting for over an hour. I assumed they knew what was going on and asked them if they had any info on the landslide. They had no idea what was going on, they were pissed off and rightfully so. I think the minivan drivers hated me for informing them of what was really going on. An hour later they turned around and headed back for CM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johpa Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 I don't know how long you've been in Thailand, but you must be aware that what Thais tell you does not necessarily have a relationship to the truth as Westerners perceive it. One indication that the information might not be factual is if their lips are moving. If that is how you feel, the truth being centered around yourself and people just like you, then perhaps you have been in Thailand a tad too long and perhaps it is time to go back to where you came from. But beware your home country politicians. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
licentiapoetica Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 I don't know how long you've been in Thailand, but you must be aware that what Thais tell you does not necessarily have a relationship to the truth as Westerners perceive it. One indication that the information might not be factual is if their lips are moving. If that is how you feel, the truth being centered around yourself and people just like you, then perhaps you have been in Thailand a tad too long and perhaps it is time to go back to where you came from. But beware your home country politicians. Every time someone on TV dares to criticize Thais, Thai culture or anything else Thai - or even make a joke about it - someone else always comes along and tells them to GO BACK TO YOUR OWN COUNTRY. This happens even if the "offending" comment was accurate or not. I think this is sad - this attempt at censorship from non-moderators. It is also an attack on a person and not on what was said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaoyang Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 If that is how you feel, the truth being centered around yourself and people just like you, then perhaps you have been in Thailand a tad too long and perhaps it is time to go back to where you came from. But beware your home country politicians. The issue is not about me and the politicians in my home country, it's about whether the road to Pai is blocked or not blocked. However you want to spin it culturally, people cannot pass that very real barrier if it is there. All the cultural mumbo-jumbo won't change that. The travel company wants to sell a ticket NOW regardless of whether the road is closed or not, so its people will say the road is not closed. After that it's "up to you". They'll most likely laugh among themselves about the hapless tourist. This is S.O.P. in Thailand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T_Dog Posted August 29, 2011 Author Share Posted August 29, 2011 Just been in touch with Aya Travel as I'm wanting to go to Pai tomorrow and they said there's no problem with the road. They use that route on a hourly basis. I got to the landslide about 2 minutes before it started. That was at 1:30, here is a photo I took at 3:30pm on the 28th. At this point it was still active and moving. TrippRitter: Great photo! The TV footage showed it coming a long way down the mountain. Wet landslides like that are really dangerous and they do keep moving for quite a long time. Anyone have any information on when the road might be open so we can get this thread back on topic? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackr Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 One could always take the back route via Samoeng as a last resort... not a great idea in the wet though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gonsalviz Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I don't know how long you've been in Thailand, but you must be aware that what Thais tell you does not necessarily have a relationship to the truth as Westerners perceive it. One indication that the information might not be factual is if their lips are moving. If that is how you feel, the truth being centered around yourself and people just like you, then perhaps you have been in Thailand a tad too long and perhaps it is time to go back to where you came from. But beware your home country politicians. Chaoyang may or may not have made a mistake is his words. His words are most certainly wrong unless put into context. A young girl at a company that sells bus trips to foreigners, will tell you the roads are clear without checking because they are always willing to please. Now was she lying? I doubt it. But was it the truth? Apparently not. In that instance he is not wrong but the truth has not been revealed. Thais do not listen to the news. Soaps are infinitely more entertaining. I have even seen adult men in restaurant watching Soaps with their mouth open and no food going in or being chewed. Now as to your average Thai, I doubt the words out of their mouth are any less doubtful than what comes out of the mouths of some Farang. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T_Dog Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 One could always take the back route via Samoeng as a last resort... not a great idea in the wet though. I bet it is a mess this year with all the rain. We took it back from Pai in the dry season last year and choked on dust. Surprising amount of traffic on that track. Still had to go around many ruts left over from the rainy season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudhopper Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Hi we're flying back to CM from Phuket this am then driving back to Pai - any news on the road? TIA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LivinLOS Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I don't know how long you've been in Thailand, but you must be aware that what Thais tell you does not necessarily have a relationship to the truth as Westerners perceive it. One indication that the information might not be factual is if their lips are moving. If that is how you feel, the truth being centered around yourself and people just like you, then perhaps you have been in Thailand a tad too long and perhaps it is time to go back to where you came from. But beware your home country politicians. Ohh come on.. Even with the best will in the world, you have to accept that culturally, absolute factual truth, is not given the same kind of relative merit here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WinnieTheKhwai Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 I don't know how long you've been in Thailand, but you must be aware that what Thais tell you does not necessarily have a relationship to the truth as Westerners perceive it. One indication that the information might not be factual is if their lips are moving. If that is how you feel, the truth being centered around yourself and people just like you, then perhaps you have been in Thailand a tad too long and perhaps it is time to go back to where you came from. But beware your home country politicians. Every time someone on TV dares to criticize Thais, Thai culture or anything else Thai - or even make a joke about it - someone else always comes along and tells them to GO BACK TO YOUR OWN COUNTRY. This happens even if the "offending" comment was accurate or not. I think this is sad - Normally I would agree with you, especially when it is in response to a legitimate concern. But in this case: please. Read his negative, racist tripe again and see if an exception can be made in this case, and point him in the direction of CNX International. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudhopper Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 If anyone is interested in the OP the road to Pai is now open with one lane at the slide area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaoyang Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Normally I would agree with you, especially when it is in response to a legitimate concern. But in this case: please. Read his negative, racist tripe again and see if an exception can be made in this case, and point him in the direction of CNX International. You buyin'? Might be worth it to get the unsavory tripe (or truth?) outta here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iainiain101 Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Decided to give it a go, and drove up yesterday and back today with no problem. Here are a few photos, the last being today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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