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Holiday recreation: Sea Kayaking in Thailandt
ARTICLES, SPEECHES AND OTHER READING
WHAT OTHER'S SAY
HOLIDAY RECREATION: SEA KAYAKING IN THAILAND
By Elaine Jane Sirivong na Ayuthaya
Posted 3/23/04,
http://www.gonomad.com/transports/0403/seakayakingthailand.html
 A
Little History of the Kayak
The Eskimos were the
first to invent kayaks primarily for hunting and transport. Eventually they
were to carry them as far south as Panama.
These kayaks made out of seal bones and skins had nothing to prevent them
from slowly rotting away over the years; hence the reason why there aren't
many remains of traditional kayaks to be seen these days.
Modern-day kayaking
became popular in the '60s mainly as a white water sport. Sea kayaking
picked up in the '70s as a recreational activity and was soon embraced by
the environmental movement. Today, many people are into it for the physical
challenge and to bring them closer to the environment.
A Modern Day Kayaker's Paradise
Southern Thailand is a sea kayaker's paradise and the Andaman Sea offers
tremendous opportunities for both first-time paddlers and the serious marine
explorer. Here, unique and remote limestone islands sprout from the sea,
several reaching heights over a thousand feet with some shaped like
eerie-looking animals. Many of these isolated islands feature dramatic sea
caves and sheltered, pristine beaches.
The islands are host
to many species of exotic
wildlife including monkeys, sea eagles, egrets and monitor lizards. In
addition, some of the island caves are used as nesting sites by flocks of
thousands of swallows. The nests command a very high price in the market as
they make up the ingredients for bird's nest soup and have become a valuable
source of income for the local fishermen.
Phang Nga Bay, which separates Phuket from the mainland,
is the site of a rare geological process that eroded the centers out of the
soft skeletons of ancient volcanoes, creating vertical chimneys that
collected fresh rainwater and protected the fragile ecosystem from the wind,
sea and blistering tropical sun. Today, as you enter these natural rooms,
called hongs in Thai, you will discover a world of serenity and
tranquility- a truly unforgettable experience.
Entering a Hidden World
For any given day,
even at the beginning of the monsoon season, the atmosphere is a blend of
beautiful sunny weather and breathtaking panoramic vistas. Going with a
reputable kayaking company like
sea canoe will sail you up from Phuket to Phang Nga Bay on a chartered boat. John "Caveman" Gray who introduced the sport to
Thailand in 1989 founded Sea Canoe, the venture that popularized canoeing with a
kayak paddle in 1983.
 Once
in Phang Nga Bay, either you paddle alone or paddle with a guide in a yellow inflated
kayak called Sea Explorer. Your recreational director will always know when
the tide is at the right level to enter the hongs for the awaited
discovery. The experience of entering through a narrow passage lined with
coral and seashells is sometimes scary. You lie down flat on your back
wondering if you would fit through the small opening without rubbing your
nose on the rough stone roof of the dark corridors.
In an instant, you
are inside a new world where the sound of silence abound interrupted only by
the chirping of cicadas. Rare and very tall trees towering up to the sky
along with lush tropical vegetation come alive inside the hongs, a paradise
beyond your wildest dreams.
The journey from one
room to the next must be carefully timed, since the 'window' into the rooms
is only passable at certain times of the tide table. Come too soon and
you'll find your window under water, come too late and you'll be trapped
inside by the receding waters. The floor of the caverns is too irregular to
permit walking out.
Waves, Rocks, and a Couple Armed With an AK47
It isn't always
smooth paddling on a kayaking trip. You may encounter strong currents and
unexpected shallow rocky outcrops; luckily if you are sitting on a Sea
Explorer, these are extra tough and stable. Their shallow inflatable skin
sits atop a roto-moulded plastic kayak body
giving the adventurous explorer equal doses of safety and comfort.
Kayaking is the name
of the game so as you paddle for sometime, you get accustomed to the waves
and your arms become fully in tune with the motion of the paddle and you
want to explore farther. One of the special attractions, which are not
included in a Sea Canoe expedition, is visiting one of the biggest limestone
caves that could have housed a cathedral. Indeed it is a cathedral-of
swallows guarded by a man and his wife. Their only weapon is a Chinese AK47
for scaring un-welcomed visitors, they said.
Once inside the dark,
musty cathedral, the floor is a soft mattress of bird's dung underneath your
feet and as the flashlight is shone on the walls, the treasure of the place
is revealed. The cathedral of swallows produces millions of baht from the
sale of swallow's nest, a typical Chinese delicacy. As the birds move in and
out in swarms, each year their numbers keep multiplying; so does the money.
That's a very good reason why the place is closely guarded.
Serenity in Krabi
Paddling further down on Krabi Bay is a wonderful treat.
The warm blue waters and white sandy beaches tucked against steep slopes of
Limestone Mountains is a therapy for weary city-dwellers. Here in Krabi, you
paddle alongside stalactites hanging from the rock islands and simply float
your kayak through narrow rock openings.
You wouldn't know what the next wonder would open up before you. Maybe a
giant lagoon with crystal clear water in its total serenity enveloped by
towering limestone cliffs with the blue sky above as the roof; mangrove
trees with roots stretching out into the sea; schools of multicolored fish
and small crabs crawling everywhere; egrets flying past hunting for food.
The trip is only for a while but the memory of being with one with nature
remains forever.
A Nature Trip
American naturalist John Gray founded Sea Canoe in Thailand in
1989. While exploring the dramatic limestone outcrops of Phang Nga Bay,
surveying them as a possible site for Sea Canoe tours like the ones he had
already established in Hawaii, Vietnam, Fiji, Australia and the Philippines,
Gray found a small cave where daylight appeared to be shining a few hundred
meters further inside.
Inside was a lagoon occupying the heart of the mountain. Limestone walls
rose straight up to a height of several hundred feet. The still waters of
the lagoon rippled with the passage of fish, snakes and crabs. Gray's Thai
guide says he had never been inside one of the islands before; as it turned
out, nobody had- ever.
Today, 13 years after Gray's chance find, sea kayaking continues to thrive
as a sport and is a booming industry in Thailand. The unfortunate part is,
it has attracted many copycats who sell nature tours that offer little in
the way of real education on the environment and even, as in the case of the
various Sea Canoe competitors, damage the same environment that they are
selling.
In the boom-town atmosphere that currently exists in the tourism industry in
South East Asia, and in the region that faces more immediate problems in the
human population, control over these operators is difficult to exercise. For
further details, check out this website.
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