We recently added this new
and original tour program to our selection and the feedback from the
first customers was really good, so as we always do I had to try it
first hand in order to fully understand how it works so I can give
better explanations to those interested in it, especially for this
tour which is very different from the usual ones available from
Phuket.
Pick up at Easy Day's
office in Kathu was on time at 7:45 as planned, then in the van I
greeted the few other guests met the guide Som. We already knew each
other since she was also guiding
the Kapong RiverTubing Safari Tour
when
I did it last year,
so
I already knew that me and my fellow travellers were in very good
hands for the day. Regardless of the beauty of
the sites you visit, a great tour guide's skills, knowledge and
attention can really make the difference.
The drive to Wat Bang
Rieng which is located north of Phang Nga Town on the mainland takes
about 2 hours, so instead of going straight there we had a first stop
about half way at a kind of zoo/sanctuary located not far past the
Sarasin Bridge. The guide explained that this is a place where they
keep and give care to the animals that are seized from the illegal
poachers that abused them for profit purposes, as well as other
animals that got injured and need to be treated before being released
in the wild. There were large cages hosting different primates like
slow lorises, gibbons and macaques as well as birds, felines and
others. The place looked very clean and the animals looked healthy
and well looked after. This has been a good place to spend half an
hour stretching our legs before proceeding with the trip towards
Phang Nga.
Back in the minivan for
another hour or so, we finally arrived at one of the highlights of
the day, Wat Bang Rieng. This is probably my favorite temple in
Thailand, at least among the ones I've seen so far. There's something
magical about the place, the complex is made of a main pagoda and two
huge statues, one is of a golden seated Buddha while the other is a
less common statue of Kwan Yin, (Chinese Goddess of Mercy
and Compassion). The parts are stretched across different
hills/mountains, the views from the top are simply breathtaking and
there's a unique mix of culture and nature. The interior of the main
pagoda is also very particular featuring warrior-shaped pillars,
frescoes and a relic of the Buddha. This is also one of the few
places where with a bit of luck can spot the Giant Black Squirrel, we
actually managed to find one but it was sleeping on a shaded and high
branch so I couldn't take a decent picture. On the other hand, while
walking back to the parking lot we stumbled on a “normal” brown
squirrel that was happily eating a papaya which was bigger than the
squirrel itself, quite a funny sight I must say.
The next stop was at at
the area called Bor Thor, characterised by the tidal channels
surrounded by mangrove forest and karsts, part of the Tan Bok Korani
National Park, which is where the kayaking part of this day trip
takes place. The area is at the northern edge of Phang Nga Bay, on
previous tours I explored and kayaked around the huge bay a lot but
always on the western and southern part, so this was a completely new
experience for me. Now I can say that this less known area is every
bit as good as the more popular parts of Phang Nga Bay, it even has
some unique peculiarities. The starting point of the kayaking tour is
the floating restaurant where the lunch was served later on, before
departing for the adventure we were given the opportunity to choose
between self-paddling or having a professional paddler, I'm a bit out
of shape so I thought that I needed a bit of exercise, therefore I
opted for the first option. The canoe tour lasted about 90 minutes
altogether, back and forth through a first larger and then a narrower
mangrove channel, and a middle part where we parked the kayaks for a
while to explore a huge cave. The mangrove part of the tour was very
nice, completely immersed in the natural environment of a thick
mangrove forest with the impressive karst cliffs all around, we even
paddled through some narrow openings in the rock all the way inside a
“hong”, and later through a larger and longer cave (Tham Lod)
full of stalactites. Then the cave exploration by walk was really
amazing, not only because the cave is huge and full of stalactites
and stalagmites, but mainly because this cave called Tham Pee Hua To
(“cave of the big head ghost”) hosts some very interesting
prehistoric paintings probably made by people who found shelter there
from the heavy rains in ancient times. There's even a large boulder
that resembles a skull, probably that's where the cave's nae comes
from.
The set lunch was ready
shortly after we returned to the restaurant, as usual there was a
selection of 4-5 Thai dishes with plenty to eat for everyone. On the
day's set menu was the popular Tom Yum Seafood, a vegetarian dish,
Chicken with Cashew Nuts and fried fish, everything was tasty and
still warm. The restaurant is pretty big and floating on the mangrove
channel so the scenery is quite nice, while there we crossed paths
with a large group of Chinese tourists but only for a moment, while
for the rest of the time both during lunch and kayaking we were
almost alone. Looks like the tour schedule is well planned to run a
bit off time and avoid the larger crowds.
Back on the van, we
stopped at an Elephant Camp just about 10 minutes away from the
restaurant I already did this activity several times in different
parts of Thailand and must say that this wasn't the most impressive
one. The trek mainly takes place through a palm oil plantation (it's
the main industry in the area) and just a little bit through the
jungle. On the other hand the elephants seemed healthy and well
treated by the staff, which is an important point. This is an
optional activity in this Day Trip and in the overall it can still a
good experience for someone who's never tried Elephant Trekking,
while those who already experienced it in the jungle or in more
natural an genuine environment could probably skip it without
regrets.
Some 5 minutes away from
the Elephant Camp we had our last stop of the day, last but not least
since it was no less amazing than what we had done so far. Than Bok
Korani Waterfall is part of the same national park that covers some
of the islands in Krabi as well as the mangroves and caves that we
visited earlier in the day. I had been to this place by myself last
year during the rainy season and it was totally flooded by brown
water due to the heavy rains, now that I returned at the right time
of the year can say that the place is really beautiful.
The waterfall is not a vertical one so do not expect something impressive in that sense, but more because it's a river coming from inside a cave that splits into an endless number of waterfalls and streams creating an environment that looks as it came out of a fairy tale. The stepping grounds create a lot of little falls and pools where is possible to swim, the water has a nice turquoise color due to the deposit of diluted calcite from the surrounding mountains and it was surprisingly warm. I couldn't think of anything better than a bath in this waterfall to relax at the end of a exciting day like this, it was really pleasant to relax there for nearly an hour. Aside from the waterfall itself, the area is very interesting also because of the large variety of plants and the story behind them, since many of them were planted personally by the Royal Family.
The waterfall is not a vertical one so do not expect something impressive in that sense, but more because it's a river coming from inside a cave that splits into an endless number of waterfalls and streams creating an environment that looks as it came out of a fairy tale. The stepping grounds create a lot of little falls and pools where is possible to swim, the water has a nice turquoise color due to the deposit of diluted calcite from the surrounding mountains and it was surprisingly warm. I couldn't think of anything better than a bath in this waterfall to relax at the end of a exciting day like this, it was really pleasant to relax there for nearly an hour. Aside from the waterfall itself, the area is very interesting also because of the large variety of plants and the story behind them, since many of them were planted personally by the Royal Family.
After about one hour
chilling out at the waterfall it was time to go back to Phuket. We
left Krabi around 17:30 and I was back at our office in Kathu by
19:30 or so, a bit tired but definitely happy at the end of a
wonderful day surrounded by the nature.
I can't find much negative
points about this tour aside from the length, which means I would
highly recommend it to anyone except for those who prefer to avoid
long full day trips. Most definitely a must do tour during the dry
season (December to April), while I wouldn't recommend it much during
the rainy season or at least in the days after heavy rains as in that
case the waterfall would have a completely different “face” being
flooded by brown water.
This tour can also be a
good solution to “hit two birds with one stone” for those who
must move from a hotel in Phuket to a new one in Krabi area, since a
drop off at Krabi hotels can be arranged with a fair surcharge.
