The Hike

This was our favorite event in Thailand. Daniel, the expert adventure planner:

used his 2nd best friend, google maps, to discover that there was just the right hike for us, right on the edge of Chiang Mai. It would be just a short drive (it may have turned out to be a long, rather nauteous drive up the mountain, but this trooper knew how to handle that):

and we were teleported to our beloved Superior Hiking Trail. It was a cool 75 degrees at the top of this mountain, after a rather steady 100 at the bottom, and the decidedly beautiful deciduousness delighted our hearts and lungs. Our guesthouse had this hiking backpack that was handy for biking as well, and loved by it's small passenger. 

After the peak, we had a lovely walk on this ridge before the challenging descent that found us on our bottoms more than once:

And this is why I continue to call Daniel the amazing adventure planner. Do you see who greeted us at the end? None less than a cheerful Thai woman with an espresso maker and delicious coffee from the plantation right there on the mountain.

I think it's safe to say this coffee shop has the best view I've ever had from a coffee shop

A coffee tree. After a year in PNG you'd think I'd recognize it but I did not.