Motorway 6 November 2019

Motorway 6 November 2019

Over the past few years I've done a lot of cycling along Motorway 6 which is still under construction. This highway will link the various highways in and around Bangkok with Korat. Most of my rides have been relatively short. Based on recent Google Maps satellite view images I decided it was time to do a longer ride. I entered Motorway 6 where it intersects with Highway 204 and rode to the turnoff for Mueang Sema (an ancient historical sight) and Sung Noen.

Route Map

The first section of the motorway has wide frontage roads on both sides so that local traffic doesn't have to enter the motorway.

The overpass in the distance is where Motorway 6 intersects with the Korat ring road.

I was surprised to see the motorway essentially complete all the way from Highway 2068 to the Mueang Sema turnoff. I was pretty much alone on the motorway. No constructions crews in sight and very few vehicles.

The road to Mueang Sema is below and to the left. No way to get down there. I rode back a kilometer or so, but still no way to ride down. I eventually climbed over a barrier, hauled my bike down the embankment and over another barrier and finally on to a road which led back here.

Ban Sema is a small village north of the Mueang Sema Historical Park.

This Dvaravati era monument is on the grounds of Wat Ban Kaen Thao. The original construction was about 1200 years ago.

The monument at Wat Ban Kaen Thao was once a chedi (stupa) and is made from fired clay brick that was probably coated with stucco. It continued to be in use through the Khmer Era.

There are many monuments like this in the Mueang Sema Historical Park. This is designated as Monument #7. It is the furthest north.

Yours truly at #7.

There are three moat systems at Mueang Sema. There is a small rectangular moat in the middle, a roundish moat in the south and an extension of the roundish moat that extends quite far north. This is the southern edge of of that moat.

This is the oldest reclining Buddha Image in Thailand. It is located on the grounds of Wat Dhammachraksemaram (also known as Wat Phra Non). It dates from the Dvaravati Era and is about 1300 years old.

After fifty kilometers of cycling it was time for a coffee break.

After coffee I had to stop to repair a flat.

I chose a strange place for the task.

 

After repairing the rear tire I discovered that the front tire was also leaking. I kept pumping until I found a repair shop. From there it was straight home.