THAILAND SINGAPORE DAY 5: The Top Of Thailand

 

We literally wake up when the rooster crows.  It takes a second to come into focus.  We’re in a cabin in a farm field in Northern Thailand with the indigenous Karen tribe, and there’s a rooster crowing at 4am.  My first thought is that I’d like to invite him to dinner tonight.  My second thought is that we need to get up soon anyway.  We shower, dress and get into our remarkably capable Peugeot crossover and head out.  Our progress is halted by the closed front gate of the farm, but we overcome and get on our way.

(click on the picture to view the full size image)

This morning, we’re headed to watch the sunrise at Kew Mae Pan in Doi Inthanon National Park.  Getting there is no small feat.  The road from the farm to the park yesterday was the most challenging we have ever navigated.  Now we have to do that backwards, on the cliff side of the road, and in the dark.  Stressful is an understatement, but fun nonetheless.  We make it safely to the trailhead parking lot with time to spare.  We’re starving and desperately in need of caffeine but thankfully, the restaurant in the parking lot is open for business.  We wander over and try to figure things out.  There are three different places to order.  The one on the right is easy enough… a glass warming case full of dumplings.  The middle station displays a big bowl of brown eggs, plus smaller bowls of cilantro, sprouts and other veggies.  Working that station is a woman who ladles from a pot of hot liquid into quart size paper bowls, add the veggies and herbs, then finishes each dish by cracking a soft boiled egg into the mix.  The final station is a woman with a similar setup making noodle soup with minced pork.  We get one of each offering and find a table.  It’s bustling scene with dozens of patrons in various forms of jackets and blankets slurping piping hot breakfast bowls.  Except for the temperature – it gets quite chilly at these altitudes – this is a traditional Thai morning.

Across the street is the viewpoint where people gather to watch the sunrise.  We catch the first glimmers of the new day across the easternmost endpoint of the Himalayan Mountain Range.

The indigenous people at this part of the park are the Hmong Tribe, and at the Kew Mae Pan trailhead entrance, we are assigned a Hmong guide wearing a "Fucking Awesome" knit and sporting a "Hello Gorgeous" bag, who smiles, greets us and takes off.  She’s even faster than our guide yesterday and it’s everything we can do to keep up with her.  She's literally taking 4 steps to my one.  The hike is steep and I’m breathing heavy within minutes.  We (thankfully) stop for a few pictures by the Larn Sadet waterfall and I regain my composure.  It’s about 1km to the summit, the coveted “Sea of Mist”, a rare Thai cloud forest that permanently fills the valley below with a misty cotton candy of fog. 

The trail continues along the edge of the mountain with a steep dropoff to your right.  We stop to enjoy the red Rhododendron flowers, the wild white orchids and patches of wild blueberries which, of course, demanded to be sampled.  They were tiny and tart and only placed fourth after, in order, Hammonton Blues, Montana Huckleberries and Maine Wild Lowbush.

Rounding the final bend along the mountain edge, the famous King and Queen Chedis come into view. 

Dipping back into the mossy forest we start the 2km leg back to the start.  Somehow this trail is uphill both ways.  Many online sources complain about the crowds on this trail, one of the most popular in the country.  Most also estimate 2 to 3 hours for the loop.  We make it back to the parking lot in just over an hour, so this quiet week just after Chinese New Year worked in our favor.  Back in the parking lot we stop to use the facilities.  We were cautioned ahead of time to roll with our own roll, which we did.  We see the sign from the restaurant this morning and figure out why…

Next stop is just a few hundred meters away.  The King and Queen Chedis, officially called Phra Mahathat Naphamethanidon and Phra Mahathat Naphapholbhumisiri, are massive twin, ornate pagodas surrounded by beautiful, high-altitude gardens located near the summit of Doi Inthanon. It’s fun to learn that they were built to honor the 60th birthdays of King Bhumibol Adulyadej (1987) and Queen Sirikit (1992), because we’re here celebrating our turning 60 this year, too.  We take some photos from the entrance level then head up to the purple and gold Queen Chedi first.  Remarkably, we have the place completely to ourselves.  We take in the grandeur, the spirituality, the energy of this place.  The essence is uplifting light.  Before we leave, Mandy signs in to the Queen’s visitor log.

We explore the Queen’s gardens, past peak bloom, but still remarkable.  You have to force yourself to look up to see past the plantings to sweeping view.

Down the long stairs and backup the other side to the King’s Chedi.  Another beautiful space.  It’s slightly larger, darker, more seat-of-power energy.  If the Queen is the carrot, this is the stick.  It’s a very interesting contrast between the two.

Recharging with a nice cup of coffee from the outdoor café, we hit the short loop of the Ang Ka Luang Nature Trail next.  The constant humidity of the perma-mist causes moss to grow on every surface creating and moody forest vibe.  It’s like walking through a Windows background.  Down the short spur, there is a strange and colorful memorial to those who have served in the Thai Air Force, including this eternally smoking airman.  At least that’s what we think it honors… hard to tell.

The last planned stop of the day is walking the short loop to the Doi Inthanon summit, the highest point in the country.  There’s a sign, a small monument, no view, and 8414 feet high.  No wonder I’ve been huffing and puffing so much on the hikes.

Thanks to the complete and total lack of crowds, we have all the luxurious time in the world.  We’re at the very end of the park so the only way to go is back from where we came.  We’re kinda looking for another adventure and kinda looking for lunch.  We see the signs for Siriphum Waterfall, the last on Mandy's list, and veer off to the left to see what we find.  The little road puts us in the middle of a village, this one a bit more modern than we’ve seen around here.  Many of the properties have erected yurts or small guest cabins to supplement their farm incomes.  Near the end of the road is a trailhead and two very tired shed size “stores”, one selling yogurt bowls, the other selling local-ish crafts and staffed by a singing old woman, busily mending clothes with needle and thread.  We are the only ones at this attraction and start up the trail.  Unlike other trails in the park, this one is clearly in disrepair, maybe abandoned by the park service altogether.  That’s a shame, because it’s one of the most beautiful hikes in the park, lush and peaceful.  The big fern plants even roll out their fiddleheads to let us know visitors are still welcome here.

Back on the roller coaster we affectionally know as the road back home, we search for lunch, but find the Karen's equivalent to a Buckee's.  

It only takes bills, and only up to 100 Baht notes (about $3 USD), so the process is put in a bill, pump just shy of a quart, repeat.  Repeat.  Repeat.

Finding lunch is more of a challenge.  We know the little shacks in the villages will make delicious dishes, but they are not necessarily the most approachable of places for outsiders.  We have a few false starts at coffee-only joints, then finally find an adorable place on the left that looks very welcoming.  They speak a little English, which we thank them for, and order the pork with curry paste and omelet rice plus a “red soda”, a non-alcoholic drink that tasted like Campari and bitters with just a splash of club.  We sit and eat, overlooking the farms in the valley and the peaks around the edges.

We explore further into the villages of Mae Wang to check out the neighborhood.  It’s an interesting mix of Amish-like traditionalism, overlaid with buzzing scooters and a splash organic tourism development.  We stop on the side of the road to watch a pair of men with conical nets doing some aquatic foraging, but we cannot for the life of us figure out what catch of the day may be. 

We have some very serene downtime at the farm, including some more of Nikul’s fine coffee.  Dinner is served around 6 and includes potato soup with cilantro, stir fried snow peas, grilled chicken and some fresh veggies.  All ingredients are, of course, farm to table in the most literal use of the term, being grown within 100 yards of here.

After dinner, we walk down the main road, which may be the only road in town, with two of the farm’s three dogs in tow.  Their not on leashes, they just wanted to come with, so they did.  About a quarter of a mile when we find the local boutique.  It’s a canvas propped up big-top style that houses 4 rows of colorful ladies- and menswear.  While we peruse, one of the pups shows up with a fully cooked sausage on a stick.  Good dog, good, good doggie.  Not surprisingly, he does not share.  Surprisingly, Mandy finds a nice top that will be making appearances in Brigantine this coming spring.