We left Chiang Mai and are now in Maehongson in the northern part of Thailand. It took us 2 days to drive here because we took small roads here. We also stopped at a national park to go on 2 hikes. They were both hikes to waterfalls. The 2nd hike was 500 meters each way to the tallest drop waterfall in the province. The hike was amazing and I rate it one of the best ever hikes that we ever made in our lives. The trail was narrow and there was enough brush and trees to give us loads of shade but at the same time lots of sweeping vistas of the mountain ranges. The trail was up and down and the weather was very cool. Everyone found walking sticks to use to navigate the drop offs, wooden stairs, and muddy areas. The best part of hiking this trail was the sense of being in the midst of a thick jungle and later catching sight of the waterfall after a sharp bend in the trail. It felt that the waterfall appeared out of nowhere.
To my surprise, the kids all made it to the waterfall but we had to carry Panmai back
because he fell asleep. He is getting heavy! I was amazed that they completed a previous 500 meter hike just a few hours earlier. Anyway, the waterfall was incredible and we had the trails all to ourselves. Once we were at the waterfalls, about 10 minutes later a group of hikers landed at our door step. But we had the trail to ourselves to and fro otherwise which really added to the experience.
What a shock! We drove to the tallest mountain in Thailand and guess what we experienced? Fog and cold weather! We thought we were back home in San Francisco. We became homesick! The views were magnificent…. rolling hills with blankets of fogs hugging the mountains. Everything is so green and the terraced rice paddy fields only added to the stunning beauty of the area. You have to visit Doi Inthanon at least once. And make sure you visit a waterfall. If you stay in a Karen village, you can also pick up some fresh coffee beans that are grown there. I bought 2 bags.
We are going to stay in Maehongson for a couple of days before we depart for another waterfall hike and a cave raft trip (1 kilometer long). We will also visit a few hill tribes as well. The hill tribes are mainly Lasu, Karen, and Hmong. We did stay 1
night in a Karen village already. The scenery is nothing short of spectacular. The jungle forests are everywhere and we are truly in a remote and mountainous part of the world. It is so far from the rest of Thailand. Life is truly simple, laid- back, and easy going. It’s very stress- free here.
I am going to take Faa to the public library tomorrow to work for a few hours on her home school work. Later, we will use the community pool. We really love it up here. We have been talking about staying a month or so before returning to Bangkok. It is so peaceful and beautiful. The town closes down at 9 p.m. and there are no McDonalds or other chains here. The people up here are so incredibly polite as well. I discovered some words in Thai are different in the north.
The girls are excited about taking the raft through the cave. The area is very interesting as there are a number of caves throughout. I was reading a book today that some bones were found in teak coffins and a number of pre-historic artifacts were discovered in the caves.. They were dated thousands of years ago. I understand that the caves are also home to bats and thousands of birds that flock back to the caves at dusk. I am looking forward to seeing this.
Frankly, the rainy season is the best time of year to visit the area. There are no tourists and the weather is very nice. We are staying in a very nice guesthouse for only $10 USD a night! It’s a huge room. We have a fan which is perfect because it is too cold to use an a/c.
Before I forget, we visited an insect museum in the Mae Rim area of Chiang Mai. I thought it was very good. They have lots of collections of various insects that can be found in Thailand. They even have a specimen of an extinct beetle on display. There is also a large butterfly enclosure that you can walk through. My daughters found frogs and dead giant moths. One daughter is so fascinated with frogs and tends to find them everywhere. They also had live scorpions and a few spiders. I really enjoyed it very much.
Like this:
Be the first to like this post.
Tags: Uncategorized
We left Chiang Mai and are now in Maehongson in the northern part of Thailand. It took us 2 days to drive here because we took small roads here. We also stopped at a national park to go on 2 hikes. They were both hikes to waterfalls. The 2nd hike was 500 meters each way to the tallest drop waterfall in the province. The hike was amazing and I rate it one of the best ever hikes that we ever made in our lives. The trail was narrow and there was enough brush and trees to give us loads of shade but at the same time lots of sweeping vistas of the mountain ranges. The trail was up and down and the weather was very cool. Everyone found walking sticks to use to navigate the drop offs, wooden stairs, and muddy areas. The best part of hiking this trail was the sense of being in the midst of a thick jungle and later catching sight of the waterfall after a sharp bend in the trail. It felt that the waterfall appeared out of nowhere.
night in a Karen village already. The scenery is nothing short of spectacular. The jungle forests are everywhere and we are truly in a remote and mountainous part of the world. It is so far from the rest of Thailand. Life is truly simple, laid- back, and easy going. It’s very stress- free here.
