January 18- 20 On the morning of january 18, Caroline and I took the ferry back to Krabi and a bus to Kao Sok National Park, four hours north of Krabi. Upon arrival, we were floored by the beauty of this place. Our hotel was set in the middle of the jungle, surrounded by dense tropical trees and overlooking an emerald river. Monkeys crowded the branches of most trees, eagerly waiting for the opportunity to snatch food from wherever possible. One morning, I walked to breakfast with a dozen fresh mangoes and got attacked by a heard of monkeys. Three of them charged towards me, ripped my plastic bag so all the mangoes spilled out, and chased me away. I felt like a kid that had her lunch money stolen by a bunch of bullies. Thankfully, I managed to save a few mangoes in the battle... The sensory experience of staying in this hotel was blissful. The air was dense with oxygen and moisture, and the sounds of the river, the birds, and the insects were so loud it kept your mind from ever wandering too far from the present moment. It felt as though the jungle was swallowing you up. Our bungalow too was perfectly integrated into the natural surroundings. The wooden cabin was perched on stilts overlooking the river, with only thin wooden planks to keep the monkeys from climbing in bed with us. Falling asleep and waking up to the sounds of the rainforest left us feeling rejuvenated and peaceful. On our second day at the park, we took a long tail boat across an expansive lake in the middle of the park. It was so big it felt like a freshwater sea, framed by staggering cliffs of sandstone and mudstone that jutted out of the water. After an hour on the boat we arrived at a small ranger station built out on the water that was fitted with 10 small bungalows for overnight guests, shaded picnic tables, and a dock that led out to a swimming area. The water was warm, clear, and inviting. The colors of the green lake and the vibrant jungle made us feel like we were inside nature's jewel box. After a long swim, we had a good, simple lunch of rice and vegetables and set off on a trek to a giant cave further inland. On our walk through the jungle, our guide pointed out many of the amazing plants and insects on the trail. There were red and yellow bromeliad flowers that smelled like jasmine, honeysuckle and cinnamon. We walked through thickets of bamboo that grow as tall as 30m and as quickly as one meter a day! We also saw so many bright variations of grasshoppers, spiders, and butterflies. When we reached the mouth of the cave, we could see that it had been carved out of the mountainside over millions of years by the river that flowed through the park. We put on headlamps, stripped down to bathing suits, and followed our group into the cavernous mountain. Inside, the sunlight quickly disappeared and by the light of our headlamps we could see striated rock formations of mudstone and marble. The cave ceilings went as high as 200 feet in some places, and was home to hundreds of bats! We also saw spiders as big as our fists, giant crickets, and little green frogs. We followed the river (which was at its lowest as this is the dry season in Thailand) all the way through for about an hour. In some parts, we waded in up to our necks. We drove back in the late afternoon just in time to enjoy dinner in front of the setting sun. Love, Marine & Caro
