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Published: January 24th 2008
Signs
No mucking around with these onesWe checked out of Sunshine Dive Resort later than planned because their receptionist slept in. Not only did we owe them money for our room and diving, but our passports and money were locked in their safe. Once she turned up we were able to catch a songtheaw to the pier, just in time for our catamaran, which was also arrive late. At the pier we noticed a few strange signs (photo) which amused us while waiting to board.
The catamaran (photo) back to Chumpon on the mainland (north of Surat Thani) was quite bumpy due to wind and choppy seas. We chose it in preference to the regular ferry to Surat Thani (which was more in the direction we wanted to go) because we had checked the weather and preferred 2 ½ hours of bumpy seas to 6 hours of bumpy seas - and so we opted for longer land travel. The catamaran was a good choice, it was quite new and very comfortable - and had ample safety equipment.
We had purchased a joint ticket from Koh Tao to Krabi which we were told would involve a boat and a bus. Of
course, it didn’t quite work out that way...
Our catamaran arrived at Chumpon pier where we were met by a bus to take us to town, where we were told we would catch our bus to Krabi. The bus to Chumpon town took a long time to get going and stopped many times to let locals off at their front door along the way. We arrived in town only five minutes before the scheduled departure of our bus to Krabi and were then told that we had to catch a songteau to a tourist office where we would be picked up by our bus to Krabi. Concerned about the time, we asked if they could call ahead to advise we would be late. The reply was ‘bus will wait’. When we finally got to our bus pickup point, we found out that the bus would wait because it was a minibus and we were to be the only passengers on it. Accordingly, it was a very comfortable 6 hour ride to Krabi (photo) enjoying the amazing landscapes in Krabi province.
Even though our driver usually only drops passengers in Krabi Village, for a little extra he was willing
to take us to the pier so we could catch the boat to our resort. With our driver not being accustomed to the district, we soon got miserably lost. We wandered around in the minivan asking for directions and eventually called the resort to have them guide our driver. Despite getting lost, he was a very safe driver and genuinely tried very hard to help us. Finally at the pier at Naparat Thara National Park in Ao Nang, the resort’s long-tail boat collected us and motored around to the resort. Despite being a small boat, the water was very flat and our luggage enjoyed a dry journey (photo) while admiring the sunset.
‘Private Beach Resort’ really lives up to its name. It is situated on a nice beach only accessible by boat between 6am and 6pm (or a really long walk at low tide). There are only a couple of other small resorts on the beach and it is so quiet and surrounded in bushland that you would hardly notice them. Our room was very clean and comfortable (photo) - and quite affordable thanks to the discount through www.wotif.com. Upon arrival we were greeted by a family of friendly
Labradors (photo) belonging to the managers which made us feel very welcome and gave us a ‘dog-fix’ - don’t worry Champers, no one can ever replace you!
Wednesday 19 December 2007 After a late breakfast, we caught a ride over to Ao Nang town with our friendly long-tail driver (photo). We continued the theme of the day by lazyily strolling around Ao Nang for the rest of the morning before a delicious lunch of roast duck and roast port at a hawker stall and a swim at Ao Nang beach. While wandering around the town we noticed that the town appears to have been pretty hard hit when the Tsunami struck in December 2001 as the town is very flat, is still being reconstructed and had lots of new Tsunami evacuation signs and sirens installed (photo).
We intended to go climbing that afternoon (an activity that Krabi province is renowned for) but were advised we had to wait to the next day due to possibility of rain. Accordingly we avoided the rain by settling down in an internet cafe to upload some blogs and try to arrange our next accommodation as we only had 2 cheap nights
at Private Beach Resort. It being peak season (the week before Christmas), it took hours just to find an available room in Railay (a beach a few km south of Ao Nang, aka Rai Leh) which was unfortunately very overpriced - a necessary evil when booking with one day notice.
Our missions accomplished, including booking a climbing session for the following day, we headed back to Private Beach Resort for a delicious dinner of fresh fish and vegetables.
Thursday 20 December 2007 After checking out of Private Beach Resort our morning long-tail took us to the pier where we were met by our climbing school Mr Climber (photo). Mr Climber drove us to the office in Krabi Town where we were fitted out with climbing gear. We were pleasantly surprised that the equipment was relatively new and in quite good condition. Barbara had a painful introduction to climbing shoes. When properly fitted, your toes curl under to give you stability and strength - but they hurt so much! Our instructor said that if they don’t hurt, they’re too big!
After driving us back to Ao Nang, we were sent on a long-tail to Railay where we
Labrador
Curious as they all are would be climbing. Coincidently this was where we were to be staying also so the class started about half an hour late so we could take our luggage to our resort.
The long tail from Ao Nang drops you on the western side of the Railay peninsular at a lovely beach (photo). We were staying on the eastern beach (because it’s cheaper there - for a good reason, it’s not a ‘beach’ as such, more a mangrove) so it was a 10 minute walk along a bush path to Viewpoint Resort.
Our instructor thought it was a good idea t take us to a quieter climbing area as we would have a long wait at the popular ones. Unfortunately this meant a long scramble up a muddy jungle-covered mountain from the south end of the west beach. Exhausted, muddy and sweaty, we arrived at our climbing ledge. We had a couple of climbs up the ledge (photo) -The view from the top (as seen by Michael - Barbara didn’t make it that far up!) was absolutely stunning (photo).
We grabbed our cossies from the Hotel and then went for a refreshing swim at West Railay beach. The water
Driver and longtail
The decoration at the front represents the Buddha was gorgeous. Cool, clear and lots of fish life - just need to watch out for the 20 million long-boats that buzz past bringing tourists from Ao Nang (like us).
After our swim we sat on the beach and watched the beautiful sunset (photo) while Michael chatted on the phone to his parents (photo).
Dinner at Mom’s Kitchen at East Railay was excellent. The squid pad thai was fresh and tasty and the chicken coconut curry was also delicious. The atmosphere is very fun with a not-so-subtle reggae theme, which was in keeping with the climbing instructors’ dreads.
Friday 21 December 2007 Impressed with the beauty of West Railay beach, we set out early for a dawn swim before Michael headed off for another go at climbing the famous cliffs of Krabi. Joining the instructor and one other climber, Michael went to the southern end of West Railay, one of the popular spots, especially at low tide when your feet stay dry (photo). The climbs were harder, higher, but again with brilliant views (photos). Limestone - great for caves and stalactites. It’s no wonder that Krabi rates in the world’s top 5 climbing locations (smiling climbers
photo). We were told that Sydney’s Blue Mountains are also in the top 5 - what have we been missing all these years???
Barbara then joined Michael for yet another wonderful sunset swim at West Railay (how could we possibly resist? - photos).
Saturday 22 December 2007 Just for something different, we decided to go for a morning swim. This time we ventured to Phra-Nang Beach at the end of the Railay peninsular. We arrived there very early so we decided to swim to a nearby island (photo) before the water became busy with long-tails full of tourists. There was only an occasional boat passing during our swim and we made it back just in time to beat the first “flood” of traffic. The water here was also very clear but with less life due to the boat traffic - also a few small stingers in the water.
Drying off before walking back to east Railay, we wandered over to the Phra-Nang Cave (photo) on Phra-Nang beach. It was quite a sight. Crowds of tourists flock around to take photos with the large fertility sculptures (photo).
Michael then set off for another exciting day of
climbing the nearby cliffs, this time the cliff a few hundred metres inland from West Railay with a different outlook (photo). The climbing muscles ached more each day, but the accomplishment and view (photos) are worth it. This time Michael was the only climber with the instructor, which meant more attention (learnt more) and shorter breaks between climbs (hurt more). The bonus was that one of the instructors went up ahead of Michael to take some photos of him on one of the climbs (photo).
Back to Phra Nang beach for an evening swim (photo). We explored some of the caves next to the beach in an effort to get a different view of the sunset. The colour and formations of the caves at dusk are quite spectacular (photos). Dinner was at Lucky Restaurant (across from Mom’s Restaurant). The fresh grilled barracuda was divine - and cheap.
Sunday 23 December 2007 We packed up early to check-out of Viewpoint resort and travel north-west to Khao Lak for Christmas. Once again, things didn’t go quite as expected...
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