Kuang Si Waterfall<br>Jewel of Laos

Kuang Si easily makes any "best of" list of waterfalls, or travertine terraces.

There is a moon bear rescue on the walk from the parking lot to the falls. Most of them looked as chill as this guy. The bears were contained by a five foot tall chainlink fence. To our American sensibilities, that height seemed incredibly insufficient.
But what do we know about moon bears?

The falls are fed entirely from a cool water mineral spring, containing calcium carbonate, the same mineral that can form stalactites and stalagmites.

Sections of the water are closed off but poor signage does mark where swimming is allowed. This pool is open, and most likely crowded by mid-afternoon.

The sun is hot, and the water is chilly.
But not chilly enough to resist the intense blue water.

Challenge accepted

The spring feeding the falls is a fifteen minute walk from the top. It looks like a dead end in a river, seen at the top of the photo. Totally unassuming. twenty meters downstream from the source is the beer challenge.
The reason we are here. We met a Portugese sailor two weeks earlier, that told us where to find it.

The challenge: Walk the log across the water and back.
Four attempts
Winners receive one free large beerlao.
Losers buy proprietor one large beerlao.

Failed.
It took Nick seven attempts.
He would like to mention, that he then walked it backwards.
Our new Portuguese friend told us he saw the proprietor succeed with three large beerlao on his head.

We got slightly lost on the way back from the springs.
We were able to hitch a ride back up the hill on the a back of a tractor with these kids. The little guy on the right shared his packet of uncooked ramen noodles.

The only thing that anyone could possibly complain about is the crowds.
The vast majority are from day trip groups in minivans. Almost all of these groups arrive after noon.
Anyone wanting to enjoy this marvel in peace should arrive early via taxi or rented motorbike, which is well worth the ride.