Elephant Trek in Chiang Mai, Thailand

After a week of diving off a live aboard in the Similan Islands we had planned to do an overnight elephant trek in the Northern jungles of Chiang Mai. Since it was still the holiday season, we couldn't get a flight out of Phuket to Chiang Mai so instead we got a flight from Trang to Bangkok and then onto Chiang Mai. Unfortunately that meant getting up at 4am for a 4 hour bus ride south to get to Trang airport. It was a long day but eventually we arrived in Chiang Mai and checked into the Chiang Mai Plaza and met up with our guide for the elephant trek, "Sammy".

Sammy explained that we should only pack what we needed overnight since we'd be carrying our own gear, water, and life preserver (for the bamboo raft ride). The plan was to meet at 8am for a 2 hour drive into the jungle, then a "walk" to the elephant camp, overnight in the camp, ride elephants out of camp for 1/2 the day and ride a bamboo raft the rest of the way back out of the jungle. Sounded easy enough, so we spent the rest of the evening exploring downtown Chiang Mai and stayed out way too late considering our early morning start.

I tossed the bare essentials into one back-pack (including a roll of TP stolen from the hotel - which turned out to be worth it's weight in gold ;-). I also decided to take my camera backpack which at 20lbs would be a decision I would soon regret. For the rest of our gear we arranged for the hotel to store it until we came back after the trek. Morning came way to soon, but by 8am we boarded the open air safari-like trucks and headed into the jungle. About half way the truck stopped at a local market for us to stock up on snacks & water since the "walk" to the elephants would take at least 2 hours. Below are a couple shots from that local market (click to enlarge).

Most of us just grabbed some bottled water and got back on the truck, but then we saw the food our tour guides were buying for us. After envisioning 2 days of eating grubs and other miscellaneous "Fear Factor" foods, we all ran back to find something we could eat in case it got ugly. I was happy to find some Pringles, a candy bar and some nuts, but these were eaten long before we arrived at the elephant camp. This was also the last half way decent bathroom we would see for the next two days.

Once we arrived at the trail head we were given a lunch of Thai noodles which actually wasn't too bad. They also offered some of their more local food, but most of us passed after memories of the market. Shortly after be began the "walk" we came upon a geyser and locals boiling eggs in it.

Soon after this point the "walk" became rigorously steep and my 21lb camera bag felt like I was dragging a VW up the mountain. My heart was pounding like it was about to explode out of my chest and I can't ever remember sweating so profusely. Around this time one guys in our group called "uncle" and gave up on the trek. At the time I felt kind of superior in that I was making it WITH a big camera bag, but in the end we wondered if the guy who turned around was the smartest one of us since he had 2 extra days in that luxurious hotel.

As we started up the 2nd "hill" one of the porters insisted that he should carry my camera bag so that I could save my energy. At first I resisted, but then gave it over once I saw how steep the hill was. Just past the 2 hour point we were at the top of a ridge with an amazing view and I was wondering where the elephants were. We asked the guide and he said we were now at the half way point. I can't express how much discouraging it was when you think you're done only to find out you're at the half way point. I asked what happened to the 2hr walk and he proudly proclaimed that HE could do it in 2hrs. Since we were at the half-way point it made no sense to turn back, so we trudged on. Two grueling hours later we arrived at small village that offered cold water and snacks to us. We were told that we were now 2/3 of the way to the elephant camp, but a few people in our group were spent and asked if there was any other options to get to the elephant camp. The guide said that for 800 Baht (about $20) they could have the elephants come to give them a ride for the last 2 miles (which included a very steep up and down hill). About half our group opted for the elephant option, but they would have to wait about 2 hours for the guides to round up the elephants and bring them to the village. The rest of us trudged onward since we needed to get to the camp before it got dark. As we were leaving we could see that those staying behind were starting to celebrate the end of their hike by getting drunk on Thai whiskey.

The rest of the hike was uneventful up until at one point we turned a corner on the trail and right in the middle of the trail was a huge elephant. The elephant didn't seem to react to us, but it was blocking our path on the trail. We waited for the rest of the group to catch up with us and then the guide shouted some odd commands that caused the elephant to move off the trail and into the jungle. Eventually we made it to the elephant camp right before sunset and we were relieved to be there. We were a little shocked at the "accommodations", but too dirty and exhausted to care too much. Amazing how a "walk to the camp" can turn into a grueling 6 hour hike.

Meanwhile back at the 2nd village the rest of our group was having a great time drinking the villager's beer while waiting for their elephants to arrive. After a couple hours they were quite drunk and still no since of elephants. The trek guide arrived and sheepishly said that they couldn't find the elephants and so they were going to have to make the hike anyway. One of the guys was having trouble with his knees on the steep hills and didn't think he could make it (especially not with the help of the Thai whiskey). The guide offered to borrow a motor scooter to give him a ride up the hill. Two scooter wipe-outs later his knees were the least of his concern, so he decided to finish the walk on his own. Eventually they made it to camp as we were about to sit down for a dinner that the villagers prepared for us.

The camp had no running water or electricity, so you can imagine how bad we all stunk when we sat down for dinner. However dinner was quite tasty, but that could be due to our exhaustion and hunger. After dinner we sat around the fire with the villagers and other European and Australian trekkers. The villagers offered their local moonshine, but most of us passed when one auzzie described it as tasting a cross between lighter-fluid and formaldehyde. Sleeping on the bamboo mat was no problem when you're that tired. Chiang Mai is much further north than Phuket and the evenings can get quite chilly. Some were so cold that they just sleep huddled around the camp fire.

Around 5am we got our wake-up call courtesy of the non-stop crowing of the roosters. We made instant coffee over the fire and asked the guide where the elephants were. He explained that they roam freely in the jungle and the guides go find them a couple hours before the trek. One of our guys, Scott, begged to go with to see them find elephants. They refused and said he'd never be able to keep up, but when he offered to buy them a bottle of moonshine (30 Baht = $.90/bottle) they quickly changed their mind. While we sat down to enjoy breakfast, Scott headed off with the guides (chugging their moonshine) to search for the elephants.

When the elephants are set free they put a sort of bamboo bell around their neck so that they make a slight noise as they move. The search begins by using a sling-shot to randomly shoot rocks into the dense jungle. When it finally hits an elephant, they run toward the noise. Apparently the elephant skin is so think that it really doesn't hurt them, but does make them move. For the next 2 hours Scott frantically tried to keep up with the short guides as they ran through the jungle on their elephant quest. The eventually found a couple elephants and made it back to camp, but Scott looked even more beat than he did after the long hike the day before.

As the elephant's entered the camp area the guides led them toward the river where the elephants used their trunks to spray water to clean themselves. After that they moved toward a rickety wooden platform where a rug and 2 seater chair were placed on their backs and securely strapped down.

The elephant trek was awesome, but it's surprising how high up you are and riding requires active participation as there are no seat belts and it moves in odd jerky movements. It really is amazing that none of us fell off.

About half way out of the jungle we dismounted the elephants and watched as locals quickly built us our bamboo rafts. These rafts are only used once since they can't get them back up river.

Each raft had a driver, 3-4 passengers, and a tripod which holds the bags. Notice how the raft sinks if you're not completely balanced. I couldn't help but think that it looked like a 2 hour raft trying to make a 4 hour trip. It's amazing the level of rapids that we were able to go through on these flimsy things. At one rapid the guide said we were too heavy to make it through and that one of us who have to walk. None of us would volunteered to walk, so the guide shook his head as he got off. Looking back that was a very bad choice. We smashed into a huge rock, and spent 20 minutes in the icy water trying to get the raft off the rock. The crash damaged the raft to the point where our driver had to cut some bamboo straps to re-enforce the raft. We crashed a couple more times, but managed to keep it from flipping so the tripod stayed dry while we got soaked. I had several thousand dollars worth of camera gear hanging on that tripod, so I was quite happy that we didn't flip.

At the end of the raft ride we were greeted we a great late lunch before our 2 hour drive back to the Chiang Mai Plaza.

All in all it was quite an adventure and I'm glad I had a chance to do it. The hike-from-hell made us feel like we earned it and I'm glad that we got to do something that not every tourist to Thailand can experience. If we had be told how tough the hike really was, many of us won't have gone through it - so maybe it's good that it was misrepresented. Total cost for the 2 day trek, 4 hour truck ride, beds, 4 meals, elephant, rafts, etc. was 2000 Baht or $50 USD