Tropical Paradise

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I could wax lyrical for hours about the tropical idyll that is the island of Koh Tarutao. Former prison and setting of TV's 'Survivor' (2002), this island is a place where we homo sapiens are in the minority. As we pitched our tent on the white sandy beach of Ao Pante, mike and I felt like tiny solitary specks amongst the craggy hillsides, dense jungle, miles of empty beach and tranquil turquoise seas. We had found all we had been looking for...nature, solitude, beauty and not a bar, Tuk-tuk, hawker or neon light in sight. Bliss.
Because tarutao is a protected National Marine Park, mankind has not been able to spread his grubby paws too wide, which means flora and fauna are abundant and diverse on this unspoilt island. We stayed a week in all so we could really explore this place and get our fill of all its isolated, natural beauty.
As soon as we stepped off the boat we spotted brightly cloured fish swimming in the shallows and crab eating macaques playfully chasing one another across the sand and up the trees. If I've ever seen a cliché brought to life, it was here … those macaques really were 'cheeky monkeys', raiding bins, bungalows and tents for food, jumping onto tents from the trees (one managed to snap one of our poles this way!), breaking into tents in search of food (we returned one day to find a hole torn into our fly-sheet) and even taking our toothpaste! You couldn't move 100 metres without seeing the little buggers!
During the days the skies and trees were filled with all manner of exotic birds, from mynas, drongos and swiftlets, to sunbirds, hornbills and sea eagles. Insects and butterflies of all shapes, sizes and colours flitted freely about and, as the deep red sun set shimmering over the sea, the birds and bugs were replaced by bats, flying foxes (huge, chihuahua sized bat things), flying lemurs and glo-bugs.
The jungle was home to several species of snake (though we never spotted any), lots of lizards, big monitors (we saw a few of these, awesome looking, almost prehistoric creatures slow and cumbersome on land but quick and supplke in the water), geckos, spiders of all sizes, monkeys, wild boar and pig, Indian civets (really unusual looking cat sized tree mammals, reminiscent of a squirrel on steroids) and myriad other examples of nature's brilliance. Orchids, hibiscus, palms, vines, creepers, rubber trees and ferns were just a few of the thousands of plant species flourishing around us as we trekked through the moist and humid jungle, strolled the deserted beaches and paddled the knotted mangroves. In the sand lightning fast burrowing fiddler crabs skittered across the surface and made elaborate patterns of balled up sand as they burrowed under the surface, fleeing the hungry macaques keen to make a meal of them. I have to give the macaques credit, they do well to feed on these crabs – we tried several times to catch one but they move with the speed and skittishness of tumbleweed in a gale...that may explain why we saw so many burrows dug out by a 3 fingered hand and why the macaques fed on bins, raided tents and went into the workers homes through open windows!!
For me the highlight of our Attenborough adventures in the jungle was sighting a troupe of the elusive and fairly rare dusky langurs in the trees where mangrove met jungle. These shy and timid members of the monkey family are striking in appearance with dark fluffy fur surrounding a round face with wide brown eyes and smiling mouth encircled by rings of white, giving the appearance of a clown. Unlike the macaques, who'll break in anywhere, eat anything, shriek at passers-by and generally behave like a bunch of Asbo youths, the dusky langurs dine only on leaves and plants, stay in the trees, don't make much noise and retreat if a human is too noisy or comes too close. However, you shouldn't let that fool you as these guys are clearly the superior simeons...as soon as they made an appearance in the fringes of the jungle where the macaques were noisily feasting on the rubbish dump, fighting and flinging faeces, the rowdy little monkeys cleared off, leaving all the territory to their bigger, less boisterous cousins.
We explored the island in all available ways … on foot, by kayak and by bike and were constantly awe-struck by the diverse beauty of Koh tarutao. On foot, we trekked 19km to a waterfall, starting out along an empty white beach, still littered with debris from the tsunami several years ago, from which someone had built a little fort. The trail took us along a tiny seaside stream, up a dirt road and into the jungle, becoming more challenging as it went until we were climbing rocks and boulders alongside a river and skirting the edges of overhangs...I really shouldn't have worn my £1 foam flip flops from Railay- the 4 blisters I ended up with on the soles of my feet could have been removed whole and used for golf balls and admitted defeat about 13kn into the return walk, hopping on a songthaew (pick up truck with benches), Thailand's answer to the bus) for the remainder of the journey! Still, it was a small price to pay for it was on this blister inducing walk that we spotted the civet, monitors, huge butterflies, exotic lizards and had 'Dr Fish' nibble the dead skin from our toes in the pool by the waterfall without having to pay a hawker for the privilege!
By kayak, we paddled through the mangroves and upriver to 'crocodile caves', an ancient grotto hewn in the rock where saltwater crocs once made their home until they were hunted to extinction some 50 years ago. Inside tha cave was darkand cool with water so still that the walls were mirrored unwaveringly benaeth. Napping colonies of bats hung from the ceilings, shrieking their protestations when hit by our torhc and stalactites glistened and oozed dripping drops into the pools below. The swoosh of water as our kayak paddled on echoed eerily about the cavern as our eyes adjusted to the darkenss ahead, sometimes unable to tell if we were moving toward an obstacle or an optical illusion. We loved every second!
By bike the story was not so happy to begin with...The rental bikes were old and not in the greatest condition. I sat atop my rickety 3 speed and bounced off on the squeaky sprung saddle, soon stopped by a steep, sinuous hill which the lowly bike just could not cope with! Mike and I valiantly peddled standing up until my legs refused to co=operate (which, it turned out, was only a quarter of the distance up the hill!) then walked our bikes the remaining few km to the summit before zoomikng down the other side in a matter of seconds. This was the blueprint for the rest of the day really … cycle steadily along flats and slopes, peddle really hard and get the most of the gears on the hills before admitting defeat and pushing the rest of the way then fly down the other side with the wind whipping by and cooling us down in the 35 degree heat!
After a few hours of this we reached the other side of the island and the interesting Ao Taloh Wow, a former prison camp spread over 5 km of jungle. From 1937 – 1946, the whole island was a prison. The beach we were camping on was where the officers lived, another beach was where they placed the political prisoners and here, at Ao Taloh Wow was the bog-standard prison camp. It's hard to imagine how such a beautiful place could really be seen as a punishment, but when you consider that the waters were still shark and crocodile infested back then, that there were no anti malarial medications, and that the prisoners were put to work cutting the roads we were cycling on into the unforgiving rock in the blazing sun, you can see how it may have been efficient! As we arrived at the area, we were greeted by the sight of the long pier where prisoners were once un;loaded, jutting out from the white sand, across the turquoise waters and flanked by a stunning tall rock, bristling with bushes, trees and flowers and surrounded by birds. The azure waters teemed with tropical fish. We instantly regretted leaving our snorkelling gear at the tent.
A 3km trail lead us around the surviving parts of the prison camp, the trail itself was very pretty, edged by jungle and a babbling brook that had once flowed freely and been an alternative docking site. Multi-lingual signs detailed what we were looking at and told us a little history of the prison and what life was like for prisoners. Harsh, was the conclusion we drew. Hundreds died from malnutrition and malaria, disobedience was punsihed with a spell in a tiny underground shelter, with no light, matress or latrine or with the back breaking task of carrying rocks strapped to your back whilst you executed your daily duties. However, it seems the scarce supplies and threat of death from malnourishment pushed even the officers to their wits end. During WW2 when supplies rarely reached the island. Faced with this, the officers and prisoners formed a pirate alliance, teaming up as one to head out to terrorise the navigators of Andaman sea, boarding boats and hijacking whatever they could from passing private and cargo ships until the prison was finally closed down in 1946.
On our final night on Koh tarutao Mike and I sat watching the sun sink from a pink and purple sky to a still golden sea. We truly had found our little slice of heaven. This was enforced by another wildlife discovery when I went to brush my teeth and use the loo … as I flushed and put the toilet lid back down, I was surprised to find I was not alone … sitting on the cool cistern behiond the seat was a big, orange frog...nature really was everywhere!!
If you plan on going to Thailand, I urge you, take a trip to Koh tarutao! It's one of the few islands that has been left pretty much as nature intended and, for those who don't want to camp on the beach, little wooden bungalows complete with electricity until 8pm are available. The island is a wonder and will leave you with a deep sense of just how beautiful and diverse nature is and what a small part of our world we humans are. I guarantee you''ll leave there relaxed, content, and awe-struck … unless of course you don't like wildlife!

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