Thailand
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עברית
February 24 to 25, 2007
An organized tour of two days goes to the lake directly from Jungle Huts. Cost is 2500 baht and includes a ride to the lake, sailing in a long tail boat to the floating huts, a night-over, trekking in the park, canoing and more.
On a long tail boat in the lake
After half an hour drive we arrived at the lake. We continued sailing in a long tail boat for forty minutes. Krastic mountains are seen everywhere.Jungles and forests of huge trees on the mountains.
Floating Huts
The view of the floating huts is amazing. The place looks as if it was ripped off a fairy tale. The huts are made of bamboo and float on the water. In order to get there you have to walk on a floating trail made of bamboo. Toilets are up the hill so you to climb to get there. There’s no electricity in the place. At night they start a generator which enables lighting one lamp for each hut. There are no electric sockets. No cellphone reception as well. There’s only a radio for communication.
Trekking to the water cave
The first day we went sailing with a long tail boat to a water cave. It’s obligatory to bring sandals or appropriate shoes. It’s recommended they have good traction. A flashlight is a must as well. Walking in the jungle lasts one hour, after which we entered the cave. On the way to the cave we arrived at a big swarm of butterflies which floated over a mysterious point on the ground.
Walking in the cave is a real experience. In some parts the water get to your shoulders which allows you to swim. Unlike other water caves I visited, this cave didn’t have cold water. The water was warm and nice. After walking three hours back in the jungles we came back to the floating huts. I got a canoe which was free of charge and went to check the area along with Chris from the UK who was on another canoe. Huge trees surround the lake but there was no sign of monkeys or any other animals apart from some noises that came from the tangled branches. After an hour it was already getting dark so we went back.
When I arrived in my hut at night I got a surprise in the form of ants. Hundreds of ants walked on the bamboo floor. Since the mattress was right on the ground, many of them found their way to the mattress. I fought with them for a long time to get them out.
The day after - Trekking to the top of the mountain
Waking up the day after, open the door to the balcony of a floating hut, looking at the beautiful landscape and jumping to the warm water. This is one the amazing things you can do there. After breakfast we sailed on a long tail boat until we got to the beginning of the trek. We climbed to one of the peaks to see the surrounding view. The walk on the mountain isn’t difficult. On the way we went through the tangled jungle. Just a moment before we reached the peak, Poo, our guide, warned us not to fall on the spiky rocks.
The view from the peak of the mountain was charming. Small bays of the lake show right from the jungle. Just in front of us there was a tree on which small colorful birds were eating their breakfast.
On the way back we found a yellow fruit which looked like a hedgehog. We also found a shell of a beetle. At some point I lost the group while I was looking for more animals. I found a yellow spider with horns. I later found out it’s called Buffalo Spider. I also saw an unrecognized hand picked leaved in the jungle, perhaps a monkey or something else. I saw a large bird on one of the branches and many other noises I couldn’t recognize. When I got back to the group, people were already eating lunch in the field. Poo prepared a surprise for me in the shape of a chameleon he caught earlier. Chameleons are quite common in Khao Sok, but it’s always nice to see another one.
On the way back
We got back to the floating huts. After a short time we went on a long tail boat back to the place we came from. On the way we stopped for a swim in front of the krastic mountains landscape. We were already at 6:00 PM back in Jungle Huts.
This article was originally written in Hebrew. It was translated to English at a later time.
English
