Upon arrival at the National Park, we paid our entrance fee and, when asked, told the park official that we did not need a guide. Our driver stopped at the parking lot, and we all hopped out to look around. We were first going to look at the Gibbon Rehabilitation Center, so asked our driver to wait at this spot for the time being. I asked a woman to direct us to the Center, and then asked her about the hike from where we were near Bang Pae Waterfall to Ton Sai Falls. She said she had done it and it took her four hours and that we could not do it without a guide. She added that tourists get lost in the jungle every year. I thanked her and gathered the others to lead the way to the Center.
The Rehabilitation Center wasn't much to see. It is certainly a worthy endeavor to provide a haven for gibbons who have been illegally taken from their jungle homes. The Center is home to several gibbons that are unable to successfully return to the wild for various reasons. The cages of these gibbons have paths that are open to the public. While we were visiting them, they treated us to a resounding chorus of whoops. Other cages receding into the jungle contain animal for whom there is still home for reintroducing into the wild. Not much to see, so I was glad we had not made the trip for that single purpose.
Grandpa asked the volunteer at the Center about the hike. He said he had never done it, and looking at our motley crew, suggested against it. He advised a guide if we were set on trying. While the girls took a restroom break, Philip and Grandpa went off to see about a guide. They were still haggling when we went to look for them. They came up to us and explained that the men had wanted way too much to guide us along the trail. Basically, a group of men with nothing to do but lie around in hammocks, would rather just wait in case somebody else came along who would pay their exorbitant fee than work for less. This attitude frustrated our men, so they went with the van driver back to the entrance to see if a guide could be found there for a fair price. Unfortunately, the situation was the same. We knew that we had a fair amount of experience hiking, carrying young children, plenty of water and snacks. We decided to just try the hike and see if it was really as treacherous as people led us to believe. After gathering out bags, settling Simeon in the carrier on my back, and instructing our van driver to meet us at the other side, we set off.
The 300 meter hike to Bang Pae falls was paved and quite simple. At this time of year, during the dry season, the fall was certainly not spectacular and the pool below small and muddy. We took a brief look and then continued on our way. We hoped to be able to swim at the Ton Sai Falls at the other end of our hike. The first part of the trail was easy to follow, no signs but neither did we see any forks or questionable side paths. It climbed fairly steeply but steps had been craved and we could readily grasp many roots and branches. We did learned fairly quickly about the many thorned plant species. Eris was our spotter and would call back to us to beware of various branches hanging out over the path. The girls were all clamoring for lunch, so once we reached a clear spot at the top of the ridge, we perched a flat rock and a log to eat.
This was the first point in the trail we noticed a fork, and there was no marker to direct us how to proceed. Philip and Grandpa explored both paths while we ate. Independently, they came to the same conclusion to take the path that led up and west. It seemed more used, led the correct direction, and had some plant fronds tied in knots as some sort of marker. Fed and watered, we continued on this trail, noting some markers on tree for the Gibbon Rehabilitation Project. We took these as signs that we were on the right path. We came to gibbon training cage, which we assumed was a chance to gibbons to live away from human assistance but still in the protection of a fenced area to see how they would fare. From here, the path was more difficult to ascertain. We glibly started toward the creek but that trail petered out. Philip gingerly removed a spider's web, careful to not enrage the huge spider in the center, which he thought might have been blocking the path. He went on up the creek bed for awhile but did not recover a path. Grandpa took another direction and Philip yet a third while the rest of us waited by the gibbon cage.
When no clear track could be discovered by our trailblazers, we agreed that we should head back the way we had come. We thought we must have followed the trail that merely led to this practice cage and not to the Ton Sai Falls. We couldn't imagine where the start of the correct trail could have been, however. We were disappointed but did not want to wander aimlessly and foolishly in the jungle. As we were carefully picking our way back, Grandpa noticed a sign on a tree down a small scree. He called for us to wait while he explored the trail he found at the bottom. He soon shouted back to us that this was the path; it was clear and easy to follow. With various degrees of sliding on our feet and bottoms, we all made it to the bottom of the slope and noted the sign on the tree depicting genus and species. Surely such a sign was meant to be seen by tourist and, thus, we must have recovered the trail.
Grandpa admitted that he had considered not telling us about the sign and merely continuing on back to our starting point. He felt that he could not be dishonest with us, though, and we were all in high spirits to think that we could persist on our adventure. It wasn't long after this that we saw an educational sign on second growth forest, another confirmation that we were on the correct path.
To be continued...
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