Chang mak mak
“Oh Bill” Julie cried out, “look out!” But I didn’t need this loud advice to realise our awkward situation. I quickly hit the pedal and swerved over onto the dirt shoulder of the road to just barely maneuver the car around the fully outstretched trunk of a huge bull elephant. I nervously glanced back at him in the mirror as we drove off, a look of curiosity and maybe disappointment on his face, possibly regretting that we got away.
We stopped, took photos of course, amazed at this rare up-close encounter. But he was interested in us and we had to quickly drive away. He continued his ambling journey but we turned around and went back for another slow passing look. Then we turned around again and passed him again. And every time we passed him we stopped to gawk and snap, and every time he stopped and approached us with his long trunk reaching out, almost to shake our hand. Until finally he seemed a bit too aggressive and we made our narrow escape, hearts beating and cameras clicking. Another close call in the wild jungles of Thailand.
Kaeng Krachen National Park is a remote part of central-eastern Thailand which covers the dense forests and remote mountain area between the resort town of Hua Hin on the Gulf of Thailand and the Myanmar boarder. We had enjoyed a great morning at the Pa La-u waterfall in the national park, scrambling over rocks to reach the upper series of falls and enjoying lunch from a local stall on the banks of the river. It was on our drive back down the winding mountain road that we met our Jumbo and only after the encounter did we link the left-over bananas to his amorous attentions.
Having survived our first-hand experience with a giant chang (Thai for elephant, as all beer drinkers know because a popular local beer is named Chang after their national symbol) we drove safely down to Hua Hin and checked into our favourite little hotel near the waterfront with all the restaurants and bars nearby. Hua Hin is a popular weekend escape for Bangkokians, a well-used destination for visitors and longtime guests who enjoy the beach, nightlife and the slightly milder ocean weather. It’s also the official home of the King, complete with private palace, even though these days he lives in private quarters of Bangkok’s best hospital.
And we enjoyed our stay in the Penthouse, mainly because Julie checked us in while I parked the car. But when you can get the Penthouse for $45 a night, why not?
That night we enjoyed a stunning meal in a restaurant on a pier overhanging the water, of course eating way too much food, including the best ever whole deep fried sea bass with tamarind sauce. The next morning we headed further south to Kui Buri National Park, a rarely visited area up against the Myanmar border. Like Kaeng Krachen National Park from the day before, Kui Buri is known for its remote beauty and wild elephants, the former much more easily visible than the latter.
This was a beautiful drive from the coast, through rolling hills and small villages, everything green and healthy, the obvious fertile land providing ample success for local farmers. We passed through fields of oil palm, rubber trees, bananas, mangoes, sugar cane and pineapples. But it was the pineapples that dominated this area, endless fields of pineapples, up and down the hills, around the corners, right up next to the road and spreading out way over there.
We stopped to take photos and admire the fields, seeing crews hand cut them and load them into baskets and onto trucks, people working hard in the hot sun. The villages were modest but most homes had the important satellite dish and ‘pick up’ parked out front. It was evidence yet again of why Thailand is the wealthiest country of all its neighbours, blessed with good soil, favourable weather and industrious people.
Getting to the gate and office of this national park was not easy and we had to ask directions of the local goat farmer and eventually follow a long dirt road. From there we hired a driver, a pick-up with wooden slats for seats that stretched across the back and a young guide to take us into the park on safari for elephants. We were told it was 50/50 whether we would see elephants on this three hour dusk tour but after the previous day we were feeling lucky.
And lucky we were. After only a few kilometres of sitting on these wooden planks in the back of the truck we came across a mother and baby crossing the track in front of us. They were not afraid of us but they didn’t pose for photos either, moving into the dense forest for more privacy.
After waiting near a large watering hole with hopes of a visit from thirsty elephants there was clatter on the radios between rangers as elephants had been sighted elsewhere in the park. So we loaded up again, this time with a couple of other trucks filled with Thais from a local camera club, and bounced over the roads to a couple of places, eventually coming across a pair of female elephants with their babies in the short grass near the road.
As we watched in amazement from probably 70 metres other elephants joined them and then there was the unmistakable trumpeting sound of another elephant behind us on the other side of the road. And so the two groups communicated to each other back and forth over our heads, an absolutely stunning experience but also a bit scary since we were in between these two groups.
Eventually they all got together to form a group of 18 elephants, munching on the grass and just playing around. Our ranger guide decided we weren’t close enough so we all jumped down from the trucks and started walking across the open bush and grass to get a closer look at this large group. No one seemed to be concerned for our safety down at their level (except Julie), only the risk of maybe scaring them away. Which is exactly what we eventually did.
As we drove out of the park with darkness setting in we came across the same group after they left the water hole, eating grass with their talented multi-purpose trunks while they mellowed out in the coolness of the evening. What a rare and special privilege to see so many elephants in their natural setting only four hours’ drive from where we live. As they say in Thailand, chang mak mak.
We’ve seen wild elephants before, mainly in east Africa, and we’ve ridden more elephants than we can count (all of them great fun) but this was a special weekend, having our seriously up-close encounter on Saturday and then all the different groups and families in another national park on Sunday. It’s been a special experience, perhaps never repeated but certainly worth savouring.