The Beach Life of Khao Lak

Disclaimer: this particular post is alarmingly photo heavy - be forewarned!

I've abandoned the blog the last little while as our days have fallen into a blissfully lazy pattern in a sunny, beachside town. After returning from Similan, we were given a ride to nearby Khao Lak, a beach town about 10km from the pier in Tablamu. 

Khao Lak is small, but bustling with life. There are several resorts here, and like us, many others have found a haven in this vibrant little beach town. The locals are so incredibly welcoming and the overall laid back vibe makes the hoards of tourists feel far less suffocating. 

When we first got to Khao Lak - dropped off at the centre of town on the side of the road - we spent a good 30 minutes walking up and down the street looking for a room to stay. The only hostel in town was fully booked...as was the inn...and the hotel. Little did we know at the time- sweaty, weary, and weighed down by our packs - that this would be to our absolute advantage; a few steps up the road we found an absolutely lovely, family run inn (To Zleep) that quickly became home to us.

We booked one night, unsure where next in Thailand our adventures would take us, and three days later, we have yet to leave after having been made to feel a part of the family, with a Mom who speaks some Mandarin and a Nanna who sneaks us Thai treats during breakfast (my kind of people!). If our future adventures should find us back in Khao Lak one day, we'll most definitely stay with our Zleep family again.

Anyways, having found a place to stay, we spent the subsequent days exploring the area by motorbike (well, scooter bike, but motorbike sounds so much cooler), arriving home each evening encrusted with sea salt, sweat, and sand, and sticky from gorging ourselves on fresh fruit, but thoroughly content.

On our first morning in Khao Lak, we rented our little scooter bike from the rental shop next door, which proved an invaluable investment. At 300 Baht ($12) a day, our bike was easily affordable and a great way to get around without relying on taxis. 

Each morning, we would fill our small colourful, woven Thai backpack (yes, we became "those" tourists) with water, sunblock, and cameras, and set off in a cloud of dust and an ever-so-slight speed wobble (which the locals would undoubtedly make sure to point out, good naturedly, the following morning), all the while trying to remember to stay on the left-hand side of the road, as huge trucks and buses whizzed by mere inches from our bike.

We'd begin each day in search of some locally recommended landmark or beach and inevitably wind up somewhere completely different, but equally beautiful and interesting. We explored beaches and waterfalls, hiked in National Parks, discovered small back roads, and made friends with the locals and other tourists. Absolute perfection.

In the evenings, hungry from a day of adventuring, we'd make our way back to the hotel to shower off the salt, sand, and remaining remnants of our explorations, eager to fill our bellies with delicious Thai food. We quickly found a favourite local spot with plastic tables and chairs and a few fairy lights surrounding an outdoor kitchen (home cooked food made to order by a Thai mama and her son) and the best lemon juice you could ever want. The perfect ending to each day, stomachs full and thoroughly exhausted, but ready to do it all over again the next day. 

Day 1: Tonprai Waterfall 

Tonprai: a waterfall we found by accident while trying to make our way to a much larger, more well-known fall. Tonprai is 30km from Khao Lak, and suffice it to say one long, sweaty, albeit super fun ride later, a dip in the bottom of the falls was certainly welcome.

Huge butterflies danced by our feet

It was here that we met Kuhn, a local who brought us back to his beach home/restaurant in nearby Thaemueang, where his sister cooked for us, and where we got swept up by a street festival celebrating the release of the sea turtles (the eggs having been hatched by conservationists and released back into the sea on this day).

Squeezing the most out of the day, we stopped at one more beach on our way home, and had the place to ourselves, save for the little guy below:

Day 2: Khao Lak National Park

We followed the trail along the ocean to a hidden beach...

Delighting in the schools of fish that we spotted 

And stopping to explore the tide pools along the way

  

We made it! The 'little beach' or secret beach; we spent two days sprawled out at this beach, chasing fish and exploring the rocks. The mini trek to get here made it all the more worthwhile.

 The photos do no justice

After hours of swimming and snorkelling, all shrivelled up, we continued along the path back to the trail head and back to our trusty bike

We decided to do a little more exploring before meandering home (but not before stopping to fill our backpack with fruit from a nearby fruit stall). We drove down an unassuming side road and came across this expanse of beach, where we decided on an impromptu fruit picnic and one last dip in the ocean, before the tiny jellyfish and their sharp little stings chased us out of the water. We watched the heavy afternoon sun sink deeper into the sky, before heading home for the day. I should note that this little excursion began with us trying to find a local waterfall, which we had been told was just down the road. Needless to say, we a) seemingly don't pay close (any?) attention to directions, and b) seem to get terribly distracted with all the side roads and exploring to be done!

Day 3: Are We Locals Yet?

Our last full day in Khao Lak, we made a beeline back to the beach of yesterday (it was just as beautiful the second time around), before making our way a little further down the road, where we spotted these ellies on the side of the road. I forced politely asked J to pull over, so I could grab a few snaps; elephants are my absolute favourite.

These photos are so beautiful and yet so heartbreaking to me. I love these kind, gentle giants, but it breaks my heart to see them chained to trees (although, admittedly, I don't know the back story here).

After a while of making googly eyes at the ellies, we finally found that waterfall we had been searching for the previous day...

 ...and got to explore some beautiful roads along the way (where we promptly stopped to take silly driving videos. Naturally).

Having captured more than enough foolishness on video for one day, we decided on an early supper at our favourite spot, before heading to a local beach (in the very centre of town, about two blocks from the inn) to watch the sunset.

Our time in Thailand, and Khao Lak more specifically, has been lazy, but full, time moving both slowly and all too quickly. We've collected a photo or two on our SD cards, and tried to commit as many smells, sounds, people, and sights to memory, as possible. I know these will be some happy memories - drenched in sunshine and recalled with a certain fondness - of a time spent adventuring with my best bucko.