Monday, September 9, 2013

Ratchaburi - Khao Krajom (2)

In an earlier blog, I vowed to return to Ratchaburi and drive to the top of Khao Krajom during the rainy season.

http://tinamue.blogspot.com/2013/04/rachaburi-khao-krajom.html

As expected, what had been a walk in the park when the track was bone dry, had now become more challenging. Whereas use of 4WD was merely a recommendation during the dry season, it is a must during the rainy season. And yet, there were only two spots where one had to use the low range and had to be stubborn.

One was a stretch with deep ruts cut by rain water. The computerized traction control (limited slip differential) failed. Limited slip does obviously not mean no slip. Without manual differential locks, the wheel not touching the road spun and no power was transferred to the wheels touching the ground. It took several attempts to find a route up the ascent where the worst ruts were avoided and forward (upward) motion maintained.

The second problem was the very steep final stretch before the peak is reached. It took 3-4 attempts before I found a route where I could gain sufficient speed and traction to power my way up the hill. Again, without manual differential locks, I had to do the climb without finesse.

But I made it to the top.
Khao Krajom - View towards Burma

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