Andaman Discoveries Blog
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Holiday For The Kids!
A Little Jungle Hike, Camping, and Environmental Education
On a fresh Saturday morning, Andaman Discoveries, along with a team of very willing volunteers, decided to give the children from the Southern Thailand Orphanage project and the Youth Group from Ban Lion an amazing holiday. We arranged an adventure-packed weekend for the children to our nearby islands on the Andaman Sea.A few drops of rain in the morning did not keep us from jumping on the boat! Our poncho's all packed, we were off to Koh Ra for a hike in the pristine jungle. There were 50 children excited to run through the jungle and explore the area, and enough guides to help them through the days activities!
After a hike of about 1.5 hours we arrived at the beach with wild waves crashing onto the shore. Children were running around on the beach playing with the waves. Just as everyone arrived the heavens opened and we had an adventurous wet lunch - food was never eaten this fast!
After the lunch we came back to our starting point, and the children went for another swim at a waterfall.
The boats were then ready to pick us up and take us to the island Koh Phrathong, were the children of the Southern Thailand orphanage set up their tents ready to stay overnight! The next morning the children got up early to explore the nature of Koh Phrathong and learn about the ecosystem surrounding them - a beautiful savannah on a deserted island.
After an educational and fun day, the children packed up and headed back to the Orphanage. We hope to see them again soon!
Labels: jungle hike, Koh Phratong, orphanage, southern thailand orphanage
Monday, April 5, 2010
Nai Tui Hike for Community Project Site Visit
by Jenny Lovell
Bodhi, Laura, and I took a walk at Nai Tui, a small outdoor recreation area near Kuraburi. There is a small community group that works together to preserve the watershed and encourage conservation and appreciation of the area.
They took us on a hike up the streambed, where we saw freshwater crabs and shrimp. It was beautiful and cool in the shade of the trees. They told us that there is a natural water hole at the source of the spring water for the river, which is used by wildlife in the surrounding area.
Our guides showed us the freshwater shrimp and crabs, which the locals catch as a source of food and saleable goods. Searching through fallen leaves and under the edge of rocks, they could find a surprising number of these little guys.
We hope to coordinate overnight backpacking trips with this community group. In the next few weeks me and a couple of other interns will go on a pilot trip with the guides, staying overnight in the jungle near an ancient Buddhist temple on a nearby mountain.
There is also an improvement project that we hope to lend funding and volunteers to help complete. They have already built benches at the waterfall near the trail head, but now they want to complete a restroom and functional day trip area. One of the great things about working with community-based tourism is helping to support the locals in encouraging appreciation for these unknown nooks of ecological goodness.
Labels: community, jungle hike
Monday, August 31, 2009
In the Jungle, the Ban Na Jungle
N-ACT supports communities through survey tours
Two intrepid trekkers from Germany ventured deep into the Ban Na jungle with N-ACT program manager Nattaya “Nat” Sektheera and five local guides this July. Ani and Anne were excited by the unique opportunity to join a survey tour in a local community while volunteering at a tsunami-orphan aid project near Khao Lak. The jungle trek consisted of two days and one night of camping.
“We had a wonderful time on the trek, the guides were so knowledgeable and helpful. Nat, our translator, was fantastic. She helped us to understand by translating our questions to the guides. We did not expect the food to be so good and we will definitely come back for a longer trek the next time,” said the trekkers.
The trek provided important training for the guides, as they were the first foreigners to complete the trek, providing the guides with an authentic opportunity to practice their English and learn what is interesting to guests. The trek itself is an exhilarating walk that takes guests into the heart of the local jungle. The route has scenic sights, including a great banyan tree and many local herbs and flowers that the local guides will teach guests how to use in cooking and for medicine. The guides are knowledgeable about the land and enjoy showing guests the foot prints of wildlife that inhabit the forest.
To learn more about how to participate in survey treks organized by N-ACT, like the Ban Na tour, please contact us.
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| The trekkers were rewarded with views of Waterfall La-On Dao. |
“We had a wonderful time on the trek, the guides were so knowledgeable and helpful. Nat, our translator, was fantastic. She helped us to understand by translating our questions to the guides. We did not expect the food to be so good and we will definitely come back for a longer trek the next time,” said the trekkers.
The trek provided important training for the guides, as they were the first foreigners to complete the trek, providing the guides with an authentic opportunity to practice their English and learn what is interesting to guests. The trek itself is an exhilarating walk that takes guests into the heart of the local jungle. The route has scenic sights, including a great banyan tree and many local herbs and flowers that the local guides will teach guests how to use in cooking and for medicine. The guides are knowledgeable about the land and enjoy showing guests the foot prints of wildlife that inhabit the forest.
To learn more about how to participate in survey treks organized by N-ACT, like the Ban Na tour, please contact us.
Labels: Ban Na, jungle hike, N-ACT
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