Hong Week and a Sad Good-Bye to Thailand
01 April 2016 | Krabi Thailand
Kim
It's a sad good-bye because we are leaving friends we have cruised with for the better part of a year and some we have cruised with since Fiji almost two years ago. We have also had an amazing time in Thailand, a country that has so much to offer a cruising sailor. Thailand has been one of the highlights of our trip, as have many other countries. I am still amazed at the discoveries we make and the adventure we are blessed to be having.
We left left Nai Harn and headed south to do the "Hongs." These are a group of islands with a unique geological feature. Over the millennia parts of the island have collapsed into themselves and left caves and holes in the center that are open to the sky. It is a lot of fun exploring these natural wonders. Our first Hong, and the best, was at Ko Phanak. From the outside Ko Phanak looks like any other small island, with a number of tourist boats anchored off. Unfortunately, the hongs are inundated with day trippers. We jumped in the kayak and headed towards the cave. We were following Chantey in their dinghy but we were a bit slow and with our small flashlight it was a trick to navigate through the pitch black cave. Zack sat on the front shining the light around and I paddled slowly trying not to hit anything. The cave went on for about 200 meters and had a few offshoots but we managed to make it to the end. Will, Karen, and Max were there and we could see a bit of light coming under the rocks but we were a bit early on the falling tide. We sat there for about 20 minutes waiting for the water level to drop so we could get into the hong. It finally came down enough and everyone swam under and into the hong. I wanted to take the kayak in so I waited. Well, I knew we had timed it right because just as everyone swam under and the tide was falling enough to get the kayak in a line of day trippers in inflatable kayaks showed up. Zack's kayak is hard plastic and a bit tall so I had to wait for a train of at least 20 kayaks to go through while I floated and hung on to ours. I thought I might never get in. Finally the line ended and the last guide helped me get through the small passage. WOW! The cave opened up into a bay inside of the island that could have been a scene from the dinosaur era. The hong is quite large and there is a second bay that you can paddle into. It feels like a lost jungle paradise complete with bird calls and wild monkeys, except that there are at least 50 other people there. No matter, it is still magic.
It's difficult to keep all the names straight but we spent a week traveling around to lots of the hongs. We did Ko Yai, Ko Roi, Ko Hong and Ko Muk. They were all beautiful. One was called the bat cave and was a lot less crowded. The tour boats do the best ones but leave some others. We went for a hike in the hong, that's how big some are. It was like hiking through a jungle swamp but it was salt water and no snakes. The fruit bats were everywhere. They were hanging from the trees all around us, Transylvania style. It was a bit creepy as these were some very big bats, the biggest I have ever seen and there were thousands of them. They were all sleeping so we were able to make it out alive! We tried to wait for sunset to see the bats fly out which would have been an amazing sight but the anchorage had turned ugly with the changing tide and we had to move to find a better nights rest. Maybe next time.
The other Hong that deserves a mention is Ko Muk. This is another cave paddle with the kayak, although not quite as long as Ko Phanak, most people swam this one. When you get to the end of the cave you find yourself in a cavern complete with a small beach. We were there very early so we had it almost to ourselves. We were told that during the day vendors set up and you can buy food and drinks inside the hong. It would have been a fun place to hang out but we were on our way to Krabi and time is getting short on our visas.
We had decided to check out in Krabi province so that we could spend more time exploring on our way out of Thailand. It was not so easy as Au Chalong where everything is in one building at the end of the pier. In Krabi you need an entire day and a taxi. But it was worth it for the extra time. In Krabi province we visited Ao Nang which is also known as the "penis island" It is very much a tourist island with a bunch of hotels and a party vibe. The main attraction is a cave with a shrine dedicated to the god of fertility and good fortune. There is a small shrine in the middle and the cave is filled with carved penises. Lots of them! The fishermen carve them and then offer them to the god for good luck. There were lots of very big offerings! We went for a walk into the island and the big entertainment was the wild monkeys, which are on most of the islands of Thailand. They are pretty cheeky and one had stolen a pair of sunglasses from a young guy who was desperately trying to get them back. They were prescription and there was no way he would be able to get them replaced here. The monkey seemed to know it and was toying with him horribly. There was a fair crowd and the monkey was loving the attention. He even put the glasses on properly to lots of laughs. The guy was offering the monkey anything he could find in hopes of an exchange but the monkey was having none of it. It ended when the monkey snapped one of the sides off the glasses and the guy finally had to admit defeat and walk away.
Our final stop in Thailand was Tauratao. There was a great beach and we spent an entire day just playing and swimming. Zack and Max decided to build boats with junk found on the beach. It soon turned into a contest. Zack and I built a mono hull with a bulb keel made of rocks and a pretty generous sail plan thanks to a giant leaf that Zack found. The hull was an oblong piece of Styrofoam from the beach. Max and Will went all out and designed a catamaran with sticks and Styrofoam, there sails were even woven on. Will is a boat builder so we were at a bit of a disadvantage. Neither boat did all that well in the light winds and they were soon crashed on the beach. David came into play, he had been cleaning the hull, and another contest was soon underway. The second round was fierce and the boats were a higher level of construction. It was now two catamarans . The competition was fierce, but still no wind. As we left the bay we could see Zack and David's headed for a crash against the rocks on one side of the bay. Max and Will's boat was still sailing strong so I guess they won.
We sailed into Talaga Harbor Malaysia the next day and it is good-bye to Thailand. We will miss the lovely people, beautiful scenery and great food, and the surfing!