Khao Sok 24th to the 27th June

After a quick night in Bangkok I had to figure out where I was going in S Thailand. I opted to start by heading way South to Khao Sok national park. This was a bit controversial as it bypassed a couple of places I wanted to see. I definitely had a reason for doing this but I can’t remember what it was. And it worked out well in the end.

The journey there was another long one. I hopped on a night train to Surat Thani, a town with nothing going, but very important for connections to the gulf of Thailand and its rail link. From there I had a hefty wait before a bus took me to the National park. The saving grace of this wait was I found a lovely little cafe with outstanding scrams – served on garlic bread as well! Not something I would have ever done, but it worked.

Oh and a quick review of Thai night trains: 8.5/10. These trains weren’t as big as the Indian trains, much more akin to British trains, so they took a different layout. Here you slept parallel to the tracks with two-high bunks separated by the aisle (sleeper bus style). The train was very clean and the beds were made (that’s the extra .5 they got). They would get a 9.5 or even a 10, but the onboard food was extortionate*. You know what I’m giving it a 9. Final score 9/10. I slept well and nobody wanted a handjob.

*by Thai standards

The bus eventually dropped me out at the bottom of the town outside Khao Sok park. At this point in the trip I don’t really book things ahead of time, I just rock up and wing it. Typically I’ll have an idea of what I’m doing but I just won’t book – it keeps thing flexible and sometimes you get a better price in person. On this occasion I’d been told the hostel to stay in was Coco. I was just getting my maps up to find Coco, when a bloke in a pick-up shouted at me “Coco??” Happy days – free taxi to the hostel – things were looking good for this stay. And the hostel was lovely, clean, airconned – and had a super cafe/restaurant. Through the hostel I booked a 2d1n tour of the national park. I had a bit of the day to kill, which I successfully did through some yoga and a drawn out dinner.

Seemingly the whole hostel had also booked onto the tour and we all gathered the next morning for the bus. As usual with these things people started off frosty. Not much talking to each other. But once we got to the edge of the park, where our journey needed to be continued by boat, I got chatting to this Scottish girl called Laura. It took all of 5 minutes for her to accuse me of being posh before moments later revealing she’s living in Islington!! Outrageous. We then made a third friend a Kiwi called Liam. Once at our accommodation we shared a three man floating bungalow. We had our own balcony/terrace, and our own kayak! The whole national park is centred around the lake we were staying on which was nice.

This two day retreat was likely two of the best days of the trip (so far), well maybe two of the most enjoyable. For one, as a tour package you get looked after. There’s no stress about where am I eating, or sleeping, how do I get there. You just do what you’re told.

After a spot of lunch we had a bit of spare time before our excursion – most opted to have a splash. The tour was very clear; you had to wear a life jacket at all times in the water or be fined. However we had a prophet amongst our ranks, who converted us all one by one to the correct way to wear a life jacket. Now you see the amateurs on TV rowing or whatever wearing them over their shoulders, like a jacket, that’s their mistake. As it turns out life jackets should be worn like a nappy. It sounds crazy but it’s nothing short of genius. While there were plenty of doubters, me included, the whole tour adopted this pretty quickly. You’re not gonna win any fashion prizes but the buoyancy it offers you is beautiful. You float effortlessly and upright. As if you were treading water but without treading water. So we all just floated in a big circle having a bit of a chat. Laura and I even brought a cuppa in with us – that’s how much freedom it offered.

Our excursion took us on a short boat trip, followed by a hike through a cave (where we did see some cool spiders), and finally a boat trip back taking in the stunning landscapes of Khao Sok. 

The whole group was pretty friendly at this point. Before dinner we had a bit more spare time so we all took to the lake once again to watch sunset. Liam had the great idea to get a tinnie each – typical kiwi… This time we opted for the Kayak. I was the last to board, so took an awkward middle seat in a two man kayak. While not paddling was great, having to dodge the paddles flying passed my face was less good – and to be honest I wasn’t great at the dodging. 

We sailed (or paddled?)l out to get a good view and pass a mostly dead tree, but it had one fairly strong looking low hanging branch so I knew what had to be done. We paddled under and I grabbed it, swung my legs up and rather ungracefully pulled myself up. They pulled up under the tree and we sat and watched the sunset. I loved my little perch in the dead tree, I would happily go back. Anyway, the sun set, it was time to return. I had half a tin left, Laura assured me she could catch it… I decided to trust her, and then watched my tin bounce off her torso following her not catching it and plummeting into the water. To be fair, and credit where credit is due, she pounced without hesitation. Diving into the water and mostly keeping the lake water out of my beer – which was appreciated.

That evening we all have dinner together a few more beers. Lovely evening.

The second day there was an optional dawn water safari, Laura and I make it up, but Liam sleeps through. We didn’t see much in the way of wildlife, and my quest to see an elephant in the wild continues. However the monkeys swinging through the trees were very cool. I think Liam likely had the right idea.

We returned for some brekkie and then finally, boarded the boat again for one final tour of the lake, seeing the famous rocks (which were also cool) before returning to the bus.

The tour was over. But some of us opted to continue on together. Phuket was the next stop of Liam, and we (Laura, I and Celine). But just being able to follow where the good eggs go is the beauty of travelling without an agenda (or plan).

While on Celine, she had brought with her a DGI mini-pro (a fancy drone) and took a stunning shot of us in the lake which I’ll include. I’m the one closest to the camera in the shot. It’s an unreal shot.