We signed up for a 3 day/2 night trek through the mountains of Northern Thailand. The trek included an hour elephant ride, visiting two villages, and bamboo rafting. We left early in the morning and drove to the the elephant camp. We saw an hour elephant show before our ride. The show was beyond explanation. Our favorite part was the dancing. We'll show you videos when we return.
Our guide, Pan, filled us up with Pad Se Yew before the journey. We started with what we thought was an one hour uphill hike followed by an hour hike. It turned out to be a two and a half hour strenuous hike, up. Eighty people lived in the first village we arrived at. They had a nice room set up for us with mosquito nets and sleeping bags ready. If you discount our bathroom troubles, the evening was quiet and peaceful. That is, until the roosters had a sound-off around 3am. Every half hour following, the roosters were kind enough to let us know they were still there. Too bad we don't have audio for you.
The next day was full of trekking past the Chang Dao mountain to what is known as Lightning Peak. The top of the peak was 1800 meters high with a stunning view, minus the haze. The terrain was hilly, to say the least. We trekked through tea trees, evergreens, and a bamboo forest. After 7.5 hours and over 13 miles later, we arrived in our second village. The town was around 3 times the size as the first one, but no electricity. It made for some cool candlelit pictures after dinner.
The last day we hiked downhill out of the mountains to level land. We took an hour bamboo ride down the river before saying goodbye to trekking. By the end, we were all overly exhausted. Luckily, it was a rewarding experience!
Our guide, Pan, filled us up with Pad Se Yew before the journey. We started with what we thought was an one hour uphill hike followed by an hour hike. It turned out to be a two and a half hour strenuous hike, up. Eighty people lived in the first village we arrived at. They had a nice room set up for us with mosquito nets and sleeping bags ready. If you discount our bathroom troubles, the evening was quiet and peaceful. That is, until the roosters had a sound-off around 3am. Every half hour following, the roosters were kind enough to let us know they were still there. Too bad we don't have audio for you.
The next day was full of trekking past the Chang Dao mountain to what is known as Lightning Peak. The top of the peak was 1800 meters high with a stunning view, minus the haze. The terrain was hilly, to say the least. We trekked through tea trees, evergreens, and a bamboo forest. After 7.5 hours and over 13 miles later, we arrived in our second village. The town was around 3 times the size as the first one, but no electricity. It made for some cool candlelit pictures after dinner.The last day we hiked downhill out of the mountains to level land. We took an hour bamboo ride down the river before saying goodbye to trekking. By the end, we were all overly exhausted. Luckily, it was a rewarding experience!
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