Trekking to Caves

Day 43 (12/05/08): Hills North West of Pai, Thailand

Once again I awoke to the sounds of roosters, pigs, buffalo and the various other barnyard animals. Breakfast was rice soup with onions and lots of garlic. It takes a special kind of determination to eat such strong garlic that early in the morning, but I knew I would need my energy for the day. The trekking for the morning was pretty easy. We followed the river again, and then managed to convince Ray to take us up the hill path. Evidently, it hadn't been used in some time as the path was pretty overgrown and Ray had his machete out clearing the way. At one point we had to make a big detour; we were walking along a thin path around the side of a hill, and a large tree had fallen over, taking with it a very large clump of bamboo. The resulting blockade was very thick and high, and so we climbed down the hill into a dry rice paddy to get around. (Being the end of the dry season, the rice paddies are all dry and barren, although other crops have been planted in some).

Back to the river, sandals on, and we trudged through some brilliant boggy mud. The thicky oozy smelly mud that is very smooth. It didn't really matter, as we were walking through the river so much our feet were never muddy for long. I did spot a few leeches on the path, but none of them got us. At one point we came across a village, and right in the middle of it, by the river, was a huge concrete bridge being built. Apparently a few years ago a big flood came down the river and wiped out the bridge, so they were building the replacement. It was just very weird walking through the jungle, with no signs of habitation, and then turning a corner and finding a huge construction project with tonnes of concrete.

We only walked for about two and a half hours, with only one stop halfway. At about lunchtime we one again emerged from the wild straight into a reasonably large tourist area at the site of a large cave complex, Tham Lot. Here we had a simple lunch at one of the eateries, part of our trek package. Also included was a guided tour of the cave. We followed an old Thai lady, who carried a large gas lantern, and she led us into the cave itself. The place is huge beyond imagination. At the entrance to the cave are thousands upon thousands of swallows, who were flying about. Apparently if you go there in the evening, you can watch the 50 000 birds leave the cave. It would have been a great site, but alas, we would not be there for it. Our little Thai guide spoke very little english, but had memorised the english names for the various things within the cave. We walked around inside the cave for close to an hour. The main chamber was so big, that the light from the gas lantern didn't reach to the far walls. It was quite eery walking along in total dark with nothing to see except the ground and your feet.

Running through the main cavern is a river, and we walked across a rickety bamboo bridge in the darkness, and then climbed various wooden stairs that had been built into the cave. I have been in quite a few caves before, but these ones were by far the most amazing. Apart from the very large stalactites and stalagmites, which were impressive enough on their own, there was also an abundance of other rock formations, some of which I didn't understand the geology of. There was a large rock formation that glittered with what looked like diamonds, little 'cups' that looked like small rimmed craters, a giant rock formation that very literally looked like it was covered in popcorn, giant hanging sheets of rock that looked like folded curtains, small ridges that ran along the ground, giant pillars and large sinkholes. There is also a small caveman painting of a deer, which they think is a few thousand years old. Overall, the caves were very very impressive.

We got back to the small village of Sappong by motorbike taxi. The trip was quite scenic, winding through the jungle and farmland, although that wasn't the most memorial part of the motorbike ride. Climbing up a steep hill quite slowly, a large SUV came straight down the middle of the road, forcing my driver to swerve into the grassy verge, and ever so lightly touch into the bamboo fence. It wasn't really an accident, as we were going so slow, but it didn't make my driver very happy. Ray stopped behind us, and we pulled the scooter out to continue the journey, although my driver went a lot slower! From Sappong back to Pai on the local bus, and I checked back into my same guesthouse, and got the same bamboo hut I had before! Unfortunately this time the electricity didn't work for some reason, but no big deal. The small remainder of the afternoon was spent doing laundry, updating this blog, and investigating transport to Laos. I only have a few days left on my visa, so need to get out of Thailand quickly. I booked a 9 hour minibus ride that will take me to Chiang Khong on the border, leaving early in the morning. In the evening I met the other person from my trek for dinner and a few beers, although we both had a reasonably early night after the last three days of activity.

Trekking in the Rain

Day 42 (11/08/05): Hills North West of Pai, Thailand

If there was one theme to this trek, it was food. We awoke to a huge breakfast put out for us, once again it was enough to serve four or five people. We started walking, and trekked up quite a few large hills, giving us amazing views from the top. One of the things I most enjoy about the landscape here are the enormous cliffs. Jutting straight out of the landscape are giant sheer cliffs, with any surface that is perfectly vertical covered in dense vegetation. They look magnificent, although they were offset against the gray skies that silhouetted them...

Shortly after we started walking, the rain came down. We had just reached the top a large hill, and there was a small bamboo shelter in there, under which we took cover as the first drops started falling. We were shortly greeted by a couple of local woman with a bunch of young kids in tow. They were all splashing around in the rain and the puddles and having a great time. A huge beetle flew past (it was literally the size of a small bird), which they all chased after and one of them managed to catch. All the other kids then chased him, trying to get the beetle for themselves. He turned the tables by chasing and scaring the smaller kids with the big beetle. And all this was taking part in the heavy tropical rain.

As the rain started thinning out we headed off again, with raincoats and hats on. Although the insulation from wearing a raincoat meant I was soon dripping wet on the inside with sweat, as well as the outside with rain, which seemed rather pointless. The raincoat was soon taken off. We reached the river, which we would be following for the rest of the day, and so we changed into our sandals, and spent the next hour or so, criss-crossing our way over the river. The water was nice and cool, and I think it was the first time my feet were clean in a long time. Unfortunately, being this close to the river, and with the rain, meant that my special little friend the leech was out again. Luckily they weren't many of them, nowhere near as many as Malaysia. Although I was in sandals, with no shoes between me and the leeches! I only got three of them on me, and I got them off quickly enough before any blood was flowing.

We stopped for lunch at an old elephant camp. There were just a few burnt out bamboo huts left, but it was still a very picturesque place to eat. Once again there was no shortage of food, we had rice with chicken and vegetables. To keep with the jungle theme, we ate out of bamboo 'bowls', sections of bamboo that had been cut in half. It was very cool. Ray was looking for some dry bamboo to make a fire for tea, as everything was wet from the rain. But neither of us were too bothered, and so we didn't bother making another bamboo jungle teapot.

Another hour and a bit of walking, and we arrived at a Karen village, where we would be spending the night. This village was quite large, with over 300 families, and large fields of potato and corn (and rice in the wet season). Once again, we were staying with a family, although we stayed in a much more modern constructed wooden building. The family had solar panel, battery rack and inverter, so in the main part of their house, they even had a tv! I had a wonderfully refreshing bucket shower with some very cold water. Then while Clare had a nap, I helped Ray cook our food for the night. The Karen people use a small concrete brazier, in which they light a fire. A pot or wok can then sit on top of this brazier, and a gap in the concrete allows them to control the fire and hence the heat. In the kitchen hut were two of these braziers, and while I didn't prepare any of the food, I helped stir fry several of the dishes in the wok over the fire.

Dinner was quite early, and enough to feed an army. Once again we did our best, but there was plenty left afterwards. We then went on a tour of the village, visiting several different families. Ray's father was the schoolteacher here many years ago, and as such Ray knows a lot of the people in the village. The first person we visited was the oldest man in the village, at 100 years and 3 months! He was quite a little man, his legs about as thick as my arms. He had a huge smile, which showed that he was missing his front teeth. Most amazingly, his thighs and forearms were completely covered in traditional tattoos. He joked a lot, and using Ray as our interpreter, we found out about how he came to the village and about his family. It was very well done on Ray's part, considering that these people speak the Karen language, which is completely different to Thai. Ray told us that he can speak Thai, Lahu language, Karen Language, Burmese, Lisu Language and some English! Very impressive.

Later on in the village we met the old man's wife, who was 93, and just as friendly. We then visited a few of Ray's friends, each of whom was drinking the local whiskey. This 'whiskey' wasn't too bad, actually coming in labeled bottles and made by a local distillery. It tasted more of cheap vodka then anything else, but at 28% was rather smooth and easy to drink. I was passed many cups of it, and not wanting to be rude, finished them all. One large family we visited had just killed a wild pig, and had a large number of people over to celebrate. The meat was shared between everyone, and we arrived just as they started cooking it. We even tried a few pieces. One of the things they were making was a 'pork tartar' of sorts. The raw meat was chopped very finely and then a number of spices were added to it. It tasted pretty good. I also tried the pork soup, which was quite good and spicy as well. Some of the children had those giant bugs we had seen earlier, and Ray dropped one into the fire for a few seconds before eating it. He offered it to us, but we both kindly refused. One last stop at our neighbour's hut to drink some more whiskey, before we all collapsed into bed to sleep off the whiskey and the day's exertions.

Pai Trekking

Day 41 (10/05/08): Hills North West of Pai, Thailand

It was a very early start for a Saturday morning. There were only two of us going on the trek, myself and a lady named Clare from England, who had just spent the last few months doing community work in Borneo, Malaysia. Instead of taking the normal truck to the start of the trekking route, we took the local bus with our guide, Ray, to the small town of Sappong. Here Ray bought some food and supplies from the market. We then jumped onto three motorbike taxis to take us to the start of the walking trail.

The trekking itself was very nice. Unlike my trek from Chiang Mai, all three of us were very fit, and so managed to keep up a good pace, with only a few short water breaks. It was deathly hot though, and very shortly my whole shirt was dripping wet with sweat, and due to the humidity it never evaporates off you, leaving you constantly wet. It is in the middle of the hottest part of the year here, which is the reason it is low season, and no one else is out trekking. Although we did meet a small work group of men who were building a bamboo hut. It was pretty amazing to watch them work, they make everything out of bamboo, and about the only tool they use are machetes.

At lunchtime we stopped and Ray produced some bags of fried rice, biscuits and snacks which we tucked into with great gusto. There were even some orange type fruits, very similar to a mandarin, but with a green skin and pips. Ray then showed us how to make tea in the jungle. Using his machete he chopped down a section of bamboo, and then chipped a hole in the end, with a long pouring spout. The ridges along a piece of bamboo are actually internal walls, and so we had a waterproof cylinder with a hole in the top. This was filled with river water, and then placed on a small fire made of bamboo. Even though the outside of this bamboo kettle blackened, it never caught alight, and after half an hour or so, the water inside was boiling away. Using some leaves as oven gloves, it was removed from the fire, and some Jasmine tea added to it. Small tumblers were carved out of bamboo as well, and just like that we were drinking tea jungle style!

Another short walk after lunch, through more amazing countryside brought us to a small village of about 30 families. The people were of the Lahu Hill-tribe, with their own language (Lahu) and customs different from the Thai culture. We were staying with a family, and very similar to my Chiang Mai trek from a few days ago, we were staying in a large bamboo hut, with several beds arranged on the floor. Even though we had just finished lunch a few hours before, snacks and drinks were brought out, and I tried some of the local moonshine whiskey, which I was only able to finish after mixing it with some coke.

Shortly after arriving and sitting down in our bamboo house for the night, the skies opened up and a great torrential rain came down. The dirt walkways of the village quickly turned to mud and even all the pigs, chickens and dogs went looking for cover. We thought we had timed things pretty well! An hour or so later it stopped raining, and we went for a short explore of the village, a process which resulted in our sandals being completely covered in mud. The kind of thick sticky red mud that clings to everything and congeals in huge globs around your feet and shoes.

Dinner followed shortly, and once again there was no lack of food. Clare and I did our best to eat as much of it as possible, but there was easily enough food for five people. Like always, it was fantastic, and included a few dishes made in the Lahu style. After dinner a small group of local school girls put on a little show for us. They were dressed in traditional costume, and sang a few songs for us, accompanied by some dancing. Afterwards we had to teach them a few songs ourselves, and so stuck to the classic nursery rhymes, of which they already knew the chorus to 'Old Macdonald'. We spent the rest of the quiet evening relaxing in our hut and chatting to our guide, before collapsing into bed. I fell asleep listening to the pigs, chickens and dogs, with the occasional cow and water buffalo throwing their voice into the melody. I woke up to the sound of the roosters, then fell back asleep to them, to be woken by them again, to fall back asleep again. I guess that is the nature of roosters.

Trekking Photos

I have finally managed to find an internet cafe where the USB works, so here is a small collection of photos from my three day trek into the Thailand hills.

Trekking and Rafting

Day 37 (06/05/08): Hills North West of Chiang Mai, Thailand

I was woken up by Good and the rest of my group, with Good holding a large monitor lizard above me. I woke up, rolled over and said 'Oh, a monitor lizard'. The others were all a bit dis-appointed that I didn't have more of a reaction! A good filling breakfast to start the day, and we were off again on a short trek. The main activity for the day would be rafting; white water rafting in a modern raft, and then bamboo rafting.

After a short walk down a very steep hill, we arrived at the rafting base camp, were we all got kitted out with life-jackets and helmets. There were only two sizes of helmet, small, and very small. I managed to squeeze into one and after a few brief instructions, we were in the river and going for it! The river wasn't particularly wild, about a grade 3. Although there were a few quite fun bits, with the raft splashing down the white water between the rocks, getting us occupants very wet. Other parts were very relaxed, with us just floating down the quite river, admiring the mountains and jungle surrounding us. Several water fights broke out between the two rafts, which I must say our raft clearly dominated. At one point we all jumped out and floated down the river. Back into the rafts for the last small stretch of rapids, and after an hour and a half or so we were finished. The rafting was great fun, and the Europeans and Korean really enjoyed it, having never done anything similar at all.

The bamboo rafts were quite long, made by lashing a number of large bamboo pieces together with a few cross braces. Good called them 'bamboo submarines', and after all of us were sitting on it, it was several inches underwater. Our rafting guide jumped on, and used a bamboo pole to guide us down the very quiet and smooth river for about half an hour or so. It was very relaxed, and a nice way to finish the day. We arrived at a small camp, where we all got changed and had some lunch. An ice-cream vendor appeared (small scooter with side cart, playing the Thai version of the ice-cream jingle), which everyone indulged in. There was also someone selling photos of us rafting, and so for a reasonably cheap price, I got a great action shot of our raft going down some of the rapids.

The songthaew ride back to Chiang Mai was pretty quiet, as everyone was pretty tired after three days of activity. We all chipped in and organised a fairly decent tip for our guides, who we thought had done a fantastic job. We also made plans to meet at a guest house later that night for a few drinks. I checked back into my guest house, and even got the same room as before. I quick shower, and I found Helen again. We met up with her Irish friend, and went out for dinner. After dinner I left the two of them, and proceeded to walk around what seemed the greater part of Chiang Mai looking for the guest house we were meeting at. There are a number of small alleyways and small roads, which are often unmarked on maps, and the guest house I was looking for was down one of them. I asked some local tuk-tuk drivers for directions, and got quite different answers from two of them! Eventually I found my way there, and had a well deserved beer. Good and Pooza were there, along with the other Irish girls from the first day of our trek. Pooza thoroughly beat me in several games of pool, and we all enjoyed several good beers.

When the guest house shut, Good, Pooza and another guide friend of theirs took us to several local Thai pubs and clubs. It was a great evening, drinking and eating and dancing to Thai pop music. At the end of the night the Irish girls tried to teach us all how to do an Irish jig, although none of us managed to do it properly. Although it must have been quite a sight, the middle of a Thai dance club floor, a bunch of Irish girls doing a jig, with three Thai guys, a Korean girl and myself trying to follow along! It was one of those great crazy nights you only get when you are traveling on the other side of the world! I don't remember what time I got home, but I collapsed into bed and didn't stir until the next morning.

(Once again I apologise for the lack of photos with the recent posts. I will try to find another internet cafe from which I can upload a whole lot).

Trekking and Waterfalls

Day 36 (05/05/08): Hills North West of Chiang Mai, Thailand

An early start for some of our group members. Three of the Irish girls were only doing the two day trek, and so left early to go join another group. That left 6 in our group, and since we were doing the longer trip, we had a more relaxed itinerary. We had an option for the first part of days trek, an easy walk along the road, or a more difficult walk up the hill. I of course opted for the harder option, and so left with the Korean girl and the Canadian guy, and Pooza to go up the hill. It was actually fairly easy going, the climb not taking very long at all. At the top we were rewarded with a stunning view over the hills, jungle and farmland. The most interesting part to me was watching all the vegetation change. Up on the top of the hill, the jungle plants gave away to pine trees. It could have been a NZ forest, with the tall pine trees, and pine needles all over the ground. The weather was a lot cooler up here as well, and the humidity a lot lower. A huge difference to the heat and dampness of the jungle in the lower parts. At one point Pooza stopped, and made us all hats out of large leaves. We posed for a silly photo, and then promptly lost the hats.

The way down was actually a lot harder than the way up. It was a lot steeper and the ground was quite slippery. I fell over once and got mud all up my arm and hands. Going down slowly you could actually notice the heat and humidity building up again, as the pine trees thinned out and the jungle plants became thick again. We met the others at another small village, they had done a very relaxed walk along the 'road' (or what passes for a dirt road up in the hills of Thailand). Our route for the day would take us past three waterfalls, and so off we went.

The first waterfall was quite small, but with a deep pool, and a few of the others jumped in for a swim. The second waterfall was a lot larger, coming down off a steep rocky cliff. A few small huts were nearby, where we had a brilliant lunch of fried noodles. Then we all went off for a swim under the waterfall. I walked right underneath it and managed to stay for a few seconds before the pressure and weight of all the water drove me out. Much better than all the soft pressure showers in the guest houses! Off on another short walk to the third, and most impressive waterfall. This one was fairly large, about 10 or 15 meters high with the water splashing down over the rocks. At one point there was a natural spout, causing a deluge of water to fly out almost horizontal before falling down in an almost perfect natural shower. Soap and shampoo was pulled out, and everyone had a good wash under the water. Although the pressure was so strong that you had to make sure to hold onto your togs, else they be washed right off!

The whole area was really beautiful, and what I really liked about the days trek was the variety of different environments we were walking through. Everything from the thick jungle, to the pine forests to bamboo forests, to lightly wooded areas. It was fantastic, and incredibly beautiful as well. For the last part of the trek we followed a small stream downriver, walking through a stunning valley surrounded by all sorts of plants, bushes and trees. We came to a small 'jungle camp', a collection of a few bamboo huts next to the stream. Once again a large hut had a few beds lain out, and all of us lay down and drifted off for a short nap before dinner. Dinner was cooked by our guides, and was once again fantastic. Thai Yellow curry, bamboo shoot salad, and boiled 'jungle vegetable', which had been freshly collected. These were the young shoots of the ferns which grew along the river. Boiled up, it looked and tasted like spinach. We munched it all down, everyone going back for seconds until it was all finished.

It was a nice relaxed evening. We sat around the bamboo table, on the bamboo benches and played cards. One of the guides made a bonfire, and we sat around that for a short time before a brief rain shower sent us back to the covers and more cards. We developed a funny custom whereby the winner of each round of cards rubbed their finger on the bottom of the soot covered cooking pot, and then drew on the face of the loser. After a few laugh filled hours, everyone had black all over their face, including the two guides (who were very good at cards). The guides were drinking beer, and so of course I joined them. At midnight, feeling a bit peckish, they guides cooked us up a really delicious rice soup, complete with a large collection of vegetables. Everyone else went to bed, and I spent a little while drinking beer and talking to the guides. It was quite possibly their last trek together. Good had applied for a job with the American consulate as a translator. He really loved being a guide, but only got paid when they were groups, and in the low season it was particularly hard. The translator job would be a lot more serious and hard work, but at least he was guaranteed a regular income. Mostly he was worried for Pooza, his young assistant. They got on really well, and had a good time together, Good giving Pooza a lot of responsibility and freedom, and they weren't sure what kind of guide Pooza would end up with. He said that a lot of the older guides would just treat him as an assistant, and make him do all the bad jobs. Pooza told me that if he didn't get a good guide, he would go back to the city and try and find a job, most likely in one of the new opening fast food places (KFC, Pizza Hut or Burger King). It's quite sad really, Pooza was well educated, studying as a monk for 6 years, and having studied at university afterwards, but there just wasn't anything else available.

In the early hours of the morning I crept back into our bamboo hut, and collapsed asleep after a hard day of trekking.

Trekking into the Hills

Day 35 (04/05/08): Chiang Mai, Thailand

The day started early with me packing my bags ready for the trek. I could leave things at my guest house, so pared down my bag to just the few things I would need on the trek. After a quick breakfast, I was picked up in the class Thai Songthaew. A few more stops to pick up the other trekkers, and we were off. Through some statistical anomaly, the other people in my group were all Irish, well almost all. There were 5 Irish girls (2 pairs and a single), a French girl, South Korean girl and a Canadian guy. In another case of traveling being a small world, two of the Irish girls discovered that they actual knew of each other back home through several mutual friends, but had never met.

Our guides were two young guys, Good (his nickname) was the leader, with Pooza his assistant. They were a great laugh and proved to be excellent guides. We had a quick stop at a market to get water, while the guides grabbed some food for our trip. It was a typical Thai market, with all sorts of things being sold. There was even a table with a large number of fresh fish flapping on it, while the lady slowly took her time to finish them off and then gut and clean them.

Back in the songthaew for another hour or so, and we arrived at a very beautiful teak house in the jungle to have a lunch of fried rice. After lunch and the first activity for us was elephant trekking. Each elephant has a wooden platform with a bench seat strapped to its back. I shared with the Canadian guy (our platform even had an umbrella) and the mahout, sitting on the elephant's neck, led us off. While it was quite fun sitting on the back of an elephant, the 'trek' was quite pedestrian, just doing a small loop around the local area for just over an hour. Still it was fun, and the scenery was pretty good. Even though it was quite hard to take photos, as the ride wasn't very smooth, rolling forward and backward, and side to side with the movement of the elephant. There was a constant battle between the elephants who kept stopping to rip plants plants to eat, and the mahout to keep it walking. It is quite amazing just how strong an elephant is, reaching into a cluster of bamboo and just ripping it out.

Back in the songthaew for another half hour or so, and we were ready to begin our trek. We were staying with a hill tribe for the night, and so that means that we would be walking up hills! The trek was about two and a half hours, most of which was uphill, sometimes quite steep. It didn't look like anyone else in the group ever walked farther than from their front door to their car door, so the going was pretty slow. We stopped every twenty minutes or so, and most of the others would collapse and pant. I personally found the going pretty easy, with the slow pace and constant stops, even the steep hills were pretty good. The scenery and landscape were stunning though. At one stage we were following a stream up a canyon, and it really was very beautiful.

Shortly after 5 in the evening, we reached the hill tribe village. Not technically of Thai ethnicity, the hill tribe people have their own language and customs. There are actually quite a few different hill tribes, often originating from Burma, Laos or China, each with their own language and customs. We were staying in a large bamboo hut, were a number of simple mattresses and blankets had been lain out for us. A very good dinner of green curry and vegetables was cooked for us, and we sat around the common area of the hut eating dinner. The night was spent drinking a few beers, and sampling the local moonshine 'whiskey' that the locals brew. I ended up sitting next to the guides, who were drinking the moonshine, and they kept offering it, so I ended up drinking quite a bit of it! Although its actually quite a weak spirit, and I imagine you would have to drink a fair bit of it to feel anything. Good, our lead guide, knew quite a few songs on the guitar, and so in a short time we were all singing along to the Beatles and Oasis. This attracted the attention of one of the other tour groups in the village, and we were joined by two English girls and a very drunk Spanish guy, who joined in our festivities for the night.