On our third day in Phuket Rich and I decided to tear ourselves away from the luscious beach and we had big plans.
Our first stop was the Kokchang Elephant Trekking Centre. We spent a lot of time researching elephant trekking in Phuket and came across a lot of reviews which almost put us off doing it completely.
With tour companies trying to pack as many activities as possible into one day and as cheaply as possible they literally have elephant treks starting at the roadside and walking up and down dirt tracks for half an hour.
There was nothing about that which appealed to Rich or I. Although we hadn’t seen them for ourselves, we were sure these kind of places could not have looked after their elephants with great care when all it came down to was getting as many people through the doors as possible.
It was only when I came across reviews for the Kokchang Elephant Trekking Centre that we were happy to go. They didn’t bundled five other activities together with the trek to make up a full day out, this centre didn’t even sell tickets through information centres, they only sold them at the park gates.
“There was certainly no competition from me to take the lead seat!”
Once we had climbed up onto an eight foot high wooden platform and removed our flip flops, we stepped across onto our elephant for the trek. Our guide sat up front by the elephants head and we enjoyed a comfy seat for two on its back.
I was thrilled at having a seat to sit on as the thought of sitting on the elephant and feeling all it’s muscles and bones beneath me would have been too much for me to bare. It was difficult enough for me putting the sole of one foot on the elephants back whilst getting into the seat!
We enjoyed a fifty minute trek up through a lush green forest, the trail was well trodden but certainly not smooth underfoot. With the slow meander of the elephant we settled into a relaxing trek, stopping when our elephant wanted to eat the leaves around us, which happened a couple of times.
When we reached the top of the hill we had a glorious view out over the green hill below and across the ocean. We started our trek at ten o’clock in the morning so that we could avoid the heat of the midday sun and we were glad we did. It was hot enough then!
As our guide jumped off the elephant to take some photo’s of us at the scenic point, Rich took his place up front by the elephants head. There was certainly no competition from me to take the lead seat!
“It was perfect for us with Rich able to ride on the elephant and me happily sat on a seat on its back.”
After taking a couple of photos for us the guide got our elephant to walk on down the trail, as he walked on beside us. Rich managed the balancing act of sitting on the elephant well on the flat part of the trek but when the downhill part came we were both gripping onto the bars of the seat.
Rich ended up riding the elephant all the way back round to the starting point of the trek! When we arrived there we used the platform to get off the elephant and went to buy some tasty bananas for him whilst he went and had a hose down.
The bananas went down very well with our elephant and with the baby one which Rich fed too. We had a really relaxing morning on our elephant trek and it was perfect for us with Rich able to ride on the elephant and me happily sat on a seat on its back!
Although we saw that the elephants were well cared for, as we left Rich and I both felt like we wouldn’t necessarily do elephant trekking again. We both had the feeling that they should be allowed to live their lives without the need to carry tourists around on their back.
Even if it doesn’t hurt them and they are well cared for, does it make it right to do? It’s an individual decision for each of us and was something that we were both happy to take part in. Would we do it again? Probably not.
During our transfer back to Kata after elephant trekking, we had the chance to go to the viewing point that boasts fantastic views up the coastline.
Karon point is high enough to see the three beaches of Karon, Kata and Kata Noi, with the strips of golden sand shining brightly between the blue sea and green tree filled land.
After stopping for some lunch back in Kata our sightseeing continued with a trip to the Big Buddha. Built on the highest point on Khao Nakkerd hill between Chalong and Kata, the Big Buddha towers forty five metres high and can be seen from all around the south of the island.
Funded entirely by donations the Big Buddha construction started in two thousand and four. By two thousand and twelve the Big Buddha was completed, however there is still a lot of work going on at the site, with the base still a work in progress as well as the grounds around it.
From the top of Khao Nakkerd hill we were able to see down to Chalong Bay on one side of the island and across to Kata on the other side. The huge scale of the Big Buddha was certainly impressive and well worth a visit.
Back in Kata we enjoyed a nice meal for dinner and explored the local night market. Filled with knick knack stalls, food stalls, clothing stalls and more knick knack stalls there was certainly a lot to look at.
Travelling with hand luggage only means that we don’t have much space to buy souvenirs on our travels, so we were able to browse from a distance and left the haggling to those with a much healthier baggage allowance than ours.
Lambs on the loose 