Joe Louis hikes from Kalaw to Inle Lake
Inle Lake has quickly become a top tourist destination in Burma, a country that is itself quickly becoming a hotly popular target for travelers. But those riding directly to Inle via bus or train from other cities such as Mandalay, Yangon, or Bagan are missing out on much of the unhidden beauty of Myanmar’s countryside. The best way to Inle Lake is in fact by foot.
Kalaw is a very small, unassuming town. There is a main road with some stores, but mostly inns advertising a cheap night’s stay. The impression presented is that Kalaw is a stop on the way to somewhere else, but not much a destination in its own right. At least for me, that is exactly what it was. I was there for a total of only 7 hours.
Upon arriving by bus at 2AM, I was swarmed by men promoting various inns. I told the most dedicated hawker that I already had the name of a few places that I looked up on the internet. Fortunately he persevered and followed me in the cold as I visited two sold out motels. I acquiesced and went to his suggested spot, which turned out much cheaper than the others and only cost about $7 for the night. This was great because I only expected to take a nap. The included breakfast was a bonus.
The room resembled a storage shack with thin walls and a padlock on front. But the bed was decent and the blankets warm. The bathroom was very basic and only one of two actually worked, but that was better than none. I got a decent amount of sleep, freshened up with a makeshift shower, and headed down to the breakfast room.
The room was very lively as people drank coffee and multiple languages zipped across the room. Having not done any further research and not having a plan, I interrogated the two French girls sitting next to me. They told me about a travel agent they booked their hike with, but they were leaving in an hour and not sure if any open spots remained. If I wanted to join, I had better hurry and wish for some luck.
I ran down the main avenue looking for the travel agency, and finally found a closed shop with the correct sign indicating the business I wanted. I loitered for ten minutes until a tired woman came by and opened up. She checked the register and saw that most of the groups were already booked up. There was one though that had a free spot. Pricing was based on the number of people in a group ranging from three to six. The more people that joined, the cheaper the price. We ended up being four people, and I think it cost around $40 for the three days including luggage transport.
“Where are you staying at Inle Lake?” she asked. Having just booked the hike, I definitely hadn’t thought ahead to the end of the trip. This was a problem. The agency transports luggage, but it needs a destination to drop it off at. “Just send it to our room and we can figure it out later.” This was one of my groupmates. Problem solved. I was excited for the journey ahead. And 30 minutes later we were off.
See what other bloggers are saying about the hike to Inle Lake:
“Three days of walking through a landscape of picturesque Shan hills and tribal villages is a great way to reach Inle lake, and the nicely cool climate is also a bonus.”
–Tej Turner
