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Published: February 5th 2009
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Ziplining through the forest canopy, sleeping in jungle treehouses, hiking through bamboo forests....you had us at ziplining through the forest! These are all things that we did while on the Gibbon Experience!
It was something that was on our "to do" list from the onset of our trip planning thanks to our good friend Heather who gave rave reviews, so we booked ourselves into the Gibbon Experience and we were off to spend 3 days and 2 nights in the jungle of Northern Laos.
The bus rides from Luang Prabang and north have been some of the craziest roads we have experienced Northern Laos is very mountainous and so to get anywhere you have to make your way over and around. It makes for a very beautiful drive, but impossible to do anything other than stare out the window as the bus whips and turns every few seconds. Also, some parts of the roads are paved, some gravel, and some a combination which are actually the worst as the most bumps are created. We had a small incidence where our mini van was going over some very bumpy road and when we stopped for a bathroom break on the
side of the road (yes, they only pee in bushes here) we discovered that Matt's bag had fallen off the roof of the van at some point. A minor panic attack and a pick up truck pulled up beside the bus and one guy was holding Matt's bag, completed covered in dust! Thankfully nothing broke or went missing and we learned a good lesson.
We caught a bus from Luang Namtha to take us west to a small village where we were to be picked up en route to the Gibbon Experience. The rest of the group was leaving from a town further west, and since we were already east it was easiest to get picked up along the way and avoid 2 extra hours on a bus snaking through the hills. We were dropped off at the only guest house in town and were instantly amused by three little girls who kept peeking into our room. We had some Canadian tatoos (thanks Kim!) with us so we invited them in and branded their hands with Canadian insignia. We spent the better part of the afternoon hanging out with the girls cutting and pasting images from magazines, playing cards,
and learning some simple Lao words. We can now count to 10, and know that the Lao word for 'cat' is 'meow'! We were the only ones staying at this guesthouse and with literally nothing else in the village, the family invited us in for dinner. They cooked us a great meal - an entire chicken roasted on 2 skewers, rice and vegetables - but instead of eating with us, they scattered and took turns walking through to make sure that we were still ok. Unfortunately Matt hadn't been feeling great all day and his appetite wasn't his usual so that left an entire chicken for me. I felt terrible leaving as much as I did, especially since we've seen the sticky rice diet of Laos people, so I'm hoping that at least the dogs got a good meal!
We were picked up by our group the next morning and after an hours journey in the back of a pick up truck back into the forest, through a river, and over the bumpiest roads we arrived at the a village where we would start our trek. Unfortunately Matt still wasn't feeling very good and the bumpy ride did nothing
Old time photo
A tractor and a horse right outside our window - I felt like I had stepped back in time to settle his stomach. There were 9 people total in our group heading into the jungle, 8 of them being women. At least we knew that Matt would be well taken care of! The Gibbon Experience offers two different tours, and we chose the Waterfall Experience as you hike further into the jungle. At the time it sounded like a great idea, but given Matt's current state, perhaps not the right choice! We hiked for a couple of hours into the forest up and down hills (it felt mostly uphill!) and finally got to the ziplines. We put on harnesses which are similar to rock climing harnesses with the addition of a roller on the top and part of a bicycle tire which acted as your breaking system....safety standards seen only in Asia! We were given a quick introduction on how to hook yourself onto the line and we were off. Luckily both Matt and I had been on ziplines before so our nerves weren't too bad. I volunteered to head off first and before I knew it I was flying over the trees with beautiful views everywhere I looked. I landed on the platform, unhooked from the line and
waited for the excitement of the others after their first zip.
We had a few more zips to do that day, including the one that went directly into our treehouse. The treehouse was an adventure in itself! Stairs lead up from the zip line to the main room complete with a kitchen area and mattresses for sleeping. The toilet and shower was on the level below and offered great views, an open air concept if you will! The treehouse also came equipped with a goodie box filled with fruit and snacks to tide us over between meals. Our guides left us with the message that dinner would be delivered at 5 which left us a couple hours to relax or explore some more of the zip lines through the forest. Matt chose to relax (and sleep) but the rest of us went off in search of a mentioned waterfall and more excitement on the ziplines. It was great to be on our own to zip through the forest and the adrenaline rush it brought each time. We arrived back at our treehouse just as dinner was being zipped in.
We lost light pretty early as the mountains and
the trees block out the sun pretty early but we resisted the urge to head to bed at 7 so we played cards for a couple of hours. We packed away all of the food and it was lucky that we did as we heard rats scampering around us all night!
We woke up the next morning to a beautiful mist over the entire forest canopy. The mist lasts until the sun can warm up the area enough to burn it all off, which usually is around 9:30am. We packed up, ate breakfast, and then hiked another 2 hours to our next treehouse. The hiking through the forest was amazing as it is composed mostly of bamboo trees, and it was very dense. We learned that the Gibbon Experience works with the local environment and with the help of our money it has actually been able to turn that part of the forest into a Nationally Protected Area which is very positive for the survival of the wildlife as well as the communities. The Gibbon Experience also works with the local communities to teach them alternative and more sustainable ways to live as currently the majority of Laos relies
on the slash and burn method to farming, and practices a considerable amount of logging and poaching. It is very unfortunate as you can see the destruction of huge plots of forest along the road, as well as seeing (and smelling) blackened ground on the rice fields. The Lao people rely on this slash and burn method as it is the quickest way to turn over a field and since this is a very poor country the money and food generated from this type of farming is almost necessary. However, we have seen a lot of businesses that are promoting green tourism, supporting local products, and sustainable ways of living, so hopefully this is a trend that will continue and spread throughout the country.
We zipped into our treehouse just before lunch time so we had the entire afternoon to relax and explore some more of the lines in this area. We had a great afternoon flying over the jungle canopy and enjoying the views. We headed back for dinner and entertained ourselves that night with some more cards, and a very competitive game of 'spoons'! We also figured out a great dessert with one of the goodies from
our box - tapioca pudding. Well, it's actually just sticky rice with sweetened condensed milk....but it was fantastic!
Breakfast was zipped in to us the next morning and after eating and packing up again we did our final ziplines and the final hour trek back into the village where our tour ended. We hoped in the back of the pick-up truck again and after the same bumpy, dusty ride and across a river we were dropped off at the guesthouse where we started. Definitely a great few days and a highlight of our time in Laos!
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