Spring River Resort

 Spring River Resort 

We left Vientiane in the early morning for the more than 300 kilometre drive south east to King Sor. The roads were full of potholes so the journey took all day, made longer by coffee breaks and a lunch stop.

The road follows the Mekong as it heads south east. We passed a lot of rice paddies. The land was flat until lunchtime when we saw hills in the distance.

We turnd off the main road and the last 80 kilometres followed a valley up into the hills. The valley bottom was covered with rice paddies. Beyond them were towering cliffs covered in jungle except where the lopes were so steep that it was bare rock.

This is an area of limestone, laid down more than 270 million of years ago in the Tephus Ocean. 

Thw area was subsequently uplifted and rivers cut through the rock to create this amazing landscape.

Our stop for the night was the Spring River Resort, set in the jungle.

The restaurant...

...and the bar, both overlooking th river, bathed in the evening setting sun. 

The view of a limestone rock opposite the bar.,

Everything was built on stilts to be away fom the flooding. There were raised board walks connecting all the different parts of the resort and the buildings.

 A detail of one of the plants, knwon as  Poor Man's Tie.