Day 41: Hua Hin to Baan Krood (or Ban Krut) beach, Southern Thailand
Our first full day biking is fortunately flat and along a mellow coast line. Well, there was no traffic, but the waves were smashing against the seawall, spraying water close to our route. We leave the high rise resorts and high priced condos for pineapple farms, fishing villages and shrimp farms.
We will average 35 to 45 miles a day during this week of biking, which allows us time to stop along the way for coffee and snacks, stop at the local temple, and even hang out with some fishermen – well mostly women – taking the small fish, crayfish, and crabs from their tightly wound nets to the be dried and ready for market.
Since we finish biking by lunch today, we have more time to explore, so we take the afternoon to hike to the popular Phraya Nakon Cave – so popular that not one, but three (!) former kings left their autograph (or graffiti?) on its walls and the first one built (or really had his people build) a small temple that is lit by the skylight opening in this over football field long cave complex.
Less than a two mile hike into the entrance, but it is up and down with uneven steps all the way. For those in the NW, it is like climbing little Mt. Si, but with partly cut concrete steps all the way up.
The cave is worth the hike. Two main chambers, both with skylights to let the light shine in on the plants, trees, ferns, and the small temple. I have fun exploring the whole place, climbing over boulders, scampering up slippery dirt trails, and then finally start the journey back. One of our guides, friendly Hueng, from Cambodia, has stayed with me and that is when I notice he is carrying a first aid kit. Guess they have had problems with some guests in the past. Fortunately, he doesn’t have to use it this time.
We head back to the vans and transfer a few hours to another, less touristy beach, and have a lovely dinner on the sand as a fiery red almost full moon rises over the crashing waves.
A nice end to our first day.
Siri and David Adventures 