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HILL TRIBE TREK PHOTOS
One of the most popular activities in and around Chiang Mai is to go on a trek into the mountains above and around Chiang Mai and other cities in the area. We did the same, having a great time during our 3 day trek in the mountains above Pai Thailand, which sits to the northwest of Chiang Mai, not far from the border with Burma (now known as Myanmar). We had a great group of 6 others to enjoy the trek with, together with our guides, Sith and Toon. Our trek was a great combination of hiking, magnificent scenery, river rafting upon bamboo rafts, treking through forest and rivers atop elephants, exploring hill tribe villages, and general good times. The hill tribes are groups of ethnic minorities that live in the mountains of northern and western Thailand, many of whom originally fled from China, Tibet, Laos and/or Burma. There seem to be 6 principle hill tribes (and up to 14 lesser tribes), each of which has its own dialect, customs, beliefs, manner of dress, and means of agriculture.
On our first day we visited two Lisu villages, characterized by the bright colors worn by the women and the elaborate headdresses worn by the young ladies that are not yet married.
Lisu women watch as some of the younger village women dance. As we were in their village during the Lunar New Year, we arrived in the midst of 3 straight days of dance and celebration.
The scenery and vegetation we encountered was varied as well as beautiful. Stands of banana trees and bamboo were abundant, as were streams, rivers and the occasional waterfall.
Our first night was spent in another Lisu village shown here. We finally reached the village as night fell, after a surprisingly strenuous day of hiking.
The sleeping quarters for the group was a simple hut constructed of wood and bamboo, with an elevated area for us all to unfurl our sleeping bags and/or blankets. Here Glenn, Natan and Kelly pack up on the morning of Day 2.
A colorful poppy bloom. The poppy is the plant from which opium is derived (though it is drawn from the plant before it blooms), and the cultivation of poppies and the production of opium in this part of Thailand (together in the surrounding areas of Laos and Burma) is a big part of the history of this region.
The elephant trek was a blast, as we rambled atop this giant creatures through dense forest and deep rivers. Bridget and Natan share an elephant in the foreground, while Glenn and Debbie enjoy the view from behind. Leading all of them is the precocious baby elephant, who seemed to want to do nothing but play and cause trouble.
Self portrait of an obviously calm pair of elephant riders.
Rich sits atop the pachyderm's head, legs hanging around her big floppy ears. Sitting up there, essentially driving the beast, was fun but certainly not relaxing, as the constant fear of being hurled to the ground and trampled underfoot were never very far from the fore of his mind.
Libby and Andy make their way through one of the many river crossings.
FOR MORE HILL TRIBE PHOTOS, SEE: More HillTribe Trek
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