Chiang Mai Day Trek

Today we took a day trek outside of Chiang Mai. The tour bus (small Toyota truck with us sitting in the bed on a bench) picked us up around 9 am and we headed out of the city for about an hour. We made a stop at a butterfly farm, where they also grew orchid flowers. They showed us that it is a 3 year process to grow the orchid. They first plant it in a glass flask. After about 3 months they break open the glass and plant the small plant. From there its a very slow process and probably why orchids cost so much. After the butterfly farm, we headed to an elephant camp. We were greeted by some villagers and 5 giant Asian elephants. Phil, another friend from Cal Poly who met up with us in Vietnam, and I climbed aboard the elephants back and made our way into the jungle. Our small group trekked aboard elephants for about an hour, hesitating only to satisfy their hunger for more bananas. After our ride, we climbed into a metal cage and ran along a zip line over the river to the other side where lunch awaited. After dining on Pad Thai (fried Thai noodles) we began our long hike to see a beautiful waterfall. This hike was much more challenging than we expected. While the rain created a nice ambiance to the jungle scenery, it made the terrain much more difficult to hike through. Mud and slippery rocks were only the beginning. This hike included balancing on logs, pipes, and makeshift steps in order to accomplish our goal. Again, the rain only added to the challenge. Mark, who has hiked many different places in the U.S. said this was his most challenging yet, so that made me feel good when we finished. Everyone made it there and back safely (2 hours total) expect for a few bumps from the occasional slip. The waterfall was really pretty and the hike was well worth it. If that wasn't enough for one day though, the day ended with whitewater rafting. A quick briefing on commands and we were off. This rafting excursion was not the most challenging I've been on, but it still included a few good rapids. At this point in the day it was actually just what we needed; not too challenging but still exciting. For the final stretch of the river we embarked on a bamboo rafter. This raft was literally 15 pieces of bamboo tied together with what looked like rope made from shredded tires. Our guide designated me captain, and like a Venetian gondolier I guided our group down the final stretch. A cold, muddy, 1.5 hour ride back to Chiang Mai in the back of that same Toyota concluded our trip. We finished off the night ordering pizza delivery and stuffing our faces as a way of recovering.