Riding In a War Zone.

In late December 2025, while Thailand and Cambodia were in the middle of an armed border conflict and active operations were underway on both sides, I had what can only be described as a questionable idea:

Let’s ride to Sa Kaeo. Let’s do some off-road riding. Let’s see what happens.

Was it the best idea I’ve ever had? Absolutely not.

Was it the worst? Also no.

There was only one person I could call for something like this. So I messaged Sidth.

Sidth is that rare friend, the kind you don’t explain yourself to. You float a bad idea into the world and instead of asking why, he asks when. I told him the plan. He said yes immediately. Then, naturally, he mentioned he knew a few good cafés along the way so we could stay properly caffeinated. Priorities matter.

Leaving Bangkok

Before the sun came up on Christmas Eve, we laced up our boots and rolled out of Bangkok, determined to be clear of the city before traffic swallowed the morning. Once you escape Bangkok’s gravity, Thailand opens up. Roads stretch. Traffic thins. The ride settles into a rhythm that feels earned.

A few hours in, we stopped in Chachoengsao province at a small roadside café tucked into the jungle. Morning air. Coffee. Maps on phones. Quiet conversation about Sa Kaeo. There’s a farming village right along the Cambodian border, dirt roads, open land, great riding. We’d been there before.

The problem?

The village sat inside the evacuation zone.

There was a very real chance the military would block the roads entirely, specifically to stop people like us from doing exactly what we were doing. We agreed we’d find out when we got there.

Before Sa Kaeo, though, we had to pass through Khao Ang Rue Nai Wildlife Sanctuary, one of the most beautiful and unsettling stretches of road in the country. The pavement is long, straight, and well maintained. That’s not what makes it intimidating.

It’s the wildlife.

Monkeys line the roadside in clusters, mostly calm, occasionally chaotic. I’ve seen them jump onto cars before, without warning. And then there are the elephants. You know they’re nearby because the road is dotted with massive, unmistakable reminders that something very large lives just beyond the treeline.

Elephants are usually calm, but motorbikes can set them off. Neither of us rides a particularly loud machine, but “quiet” is relative in the jungle. We stayed alert, rolled through steadily, and made it out without incident.

Next Stop Sa Kaeo

One more coffee stop before the final push. This time near the Than Som Bun waterfall area. It’s less a waterfall and more a series of gentle cascades running through the forest, with small huts along the riverbank. We had the place to ourselves. No tourists. No locals. No traffic. Conflict empties places in strange ways.

Fueled up, we headed toward the border.

We expected military blockades. Instead, we found a washed-out road. Standing there, debating whether to push through or reroute, we watched an old man on a Honda Wave ride straight across without hesitation.

Decision made.

The water was moving more than expected, but the gravel underneath gave decent traction. The real challenge was the clay on the far side, slick, greasy, and unforgiving. Both of us nearly went down more than once clawing our way up the slightest of inclines.

Not long after, we hit our first military checkpoint. The Khao Din Market on the boarder was completely evacuated and off limits. The soldiers were calm, professional, and direct. The market and boarder checkpoint were closed. Trails farther down the road were still accessible tho.

So we pushed on.

About a minute after clearing the checkpoint, we heard the first explosion overhead. Then another. Rockets. Distant, but unmistakable.

Turning back didn’t feel like an option anymore. We turned off onto dirt, and the ride changed character immediately.

The trails were exactly what they always are in that region, fast, flowing, just technical enough to demand attention. Enough loose surface to let the bike move under you. Enough challenge to stay sharp.

What made it different, what pushed the ride into overdrive, was what was happening above us.

Explosions echoed in the distance. Some landed far off, visible but not close. At one point we were within roughly a hundred meters of the border. We could see Cambodian troops on the other side. We could hear gunfire farther away.

That was the line.

We turned away from the border and followed dirt roads back toward the main highway.

By early afternoon the heat was heavy, and we decided to get food before heading home. Most of the nearby town was closed, but one small restaurant was open just off the road. Extra-spicy pad krapao. Fried eggs. Simple, perfect fuel.

Then we rode back to Bangkok.

A short trip. A dumb idea. A good ride.

The kind you don’t forget, not because it was smart, but because it demanded your full attention from start to finish.

And sometimes, that’s the point.