Chiang Mai trekking

With detailed travel maps spread out, out-of-date guidebooks opened, and the computer’s open-website tray loaded to capacity, it’s easy to quickly, but dangerously, feel full of traveler’s overconfidence.  “This looks cool! We can go there!”  “How hard can it be?  We’ll arrange everything before we go!”  I know this feeling well as it extends to other parts of my life too, like the time one December when I hatched a now obvious, disastrous plan.  I was sitting in our warm, cozy house with 2 content, warm, quiet, well-fed toddlers when it occurred to me to drive to Idaho City the next day to cut down a Christmas tree, with them, alone (who knows where my then husband was, probably at a yurt skiing for the weekend).  That Christmas tree adventure ended with us all 3 in tears, but we had the damn tree and no one had frostbite, so I counted it a success.

That’s the way I feel about a trip to Thailand with my sister, Judy, who’s mantra for the trip was: “I’m healthy, I’m happy,” repeated so often that I had to summons a well-worn, sisterly threat of death, “If you say that one more time….”

Even with a huge amount of careful, thoughtful planning, things rarely go as expected.  This is one of the laws of travel.  I mean, even taking a cruse, the ultimate I don’t have to think about or plan anything vacation, can have surprises, like when some highly contagious virus takes over the ship.  Fortunately, our trip did not involve any injury or illness, only readjusting expectations and plans.

The readjustment started day one when in Chiang Mai at the highly recommended, but actually fleabag Eagle House hostel where we were promised a jungle trek in a northern national park for 2 people with a guide: “No, not that, you’ll go with 2 other people to a park to the south.”  Then, the 2 people turned out to be 4, our trekking group now at 6.  Then, we were met by another group of 8 who were going on after the first night, our trekking group now at a very international14.  This disappointing, touristy package involved 2 interesting days hiking through hill villages, a depressing 45 minute elephant ride, and then a terrible 1 hour bamboo raft ride on a sewage river with hundreds of other boats.  

With more time and finding a better outfitter, I can see lots of potential for jungle trekking in northern Thailand out of Chiang Mai.  Chiang Mai is like lots of other asian cities: crowded, polluted, and very, very inexpensive.  It's a city full of western tourists and expats.

a few logs for stream crossings

Judy considers the possibility of parasites

we were the oldest in the group,
so overly determined to keep up

because there are no more animals, no birds, nothing,
it's shocking and very sad

end of hike beer

coming into a village

water buffalos on break time

hill village compound where we stayed

no sleep hut hotel

everyone, all 14 of us, piled into one hut

bamboo deck where we hung out and ate.
the drunk guide and locals accidentally set this on fire late in the night,
creating a loud commotion to put it out

is that a wild bug?

villagers are about slash and burn agriculture

Judy took the moral high road and refused to participated
in this animal exploitation