We decided to go over the jungle trail to the opposite shore and Paradise beach. As if this side wasn't paradise enough. We were told the snorkelling was better on the reef at that side of the island. Crispy was enthusiastic to perfect her new water skills.
The trail isn't hard but it's steep through thick jungle. It's the only trail on the island. The rest is virgin untouched wilderness. We set off this morning and found the trail head without much difficulty. The trail is not well marked in the early stages and as such there were a couple of wrong turns before finding the right route. It was dry which is a massive bonus in jungle. Wet muddy paths are a nightmare especially if the jungle is steep and undulating. We knew that there are giant monitor lizards here and really hoped to come across one. They can grow to 5 feet in length and would be amazing to see close up. Unfortunately it was not be although we did hear something moving about in the bush. They are not dangerous but will attack if they feel threatened and can give a very nasty bite. We did however see nephila spiders. Yellow stripped giant spiders over 6 inches in spread that build there web over jungle trails. These nasty blighters are all over Asia and we have come across them many times before. There bite is not dangerous but it is extremely painful. A Sherpa taught me in Nepal to wave a stick in front of you as you walk to destroy any web before you walk I to it. It's a habit I have adopted ever since.
Other than the mosquito it was an uneventful trek. Me leading with the stick and Crispy following behind doing her impression of an Austrian lederhosen dance to stop the mossies biting. If we are ever back in the German Alps I'm going to enter her in a competition. She's sure to win.
At the end of the trail was Paradise beach. It was beautiful and we were the only ones there. We settled under a tree at the edge of the jungle and relaxed for the day. I had my uke and Crispy her book. We were content. We waited for the incoming tide to cover the reef so we could snorkel safely.
Crispy was straight in as soon as I said we were good to go. We snorkeled over the coral and it was amazing if just a little murky under the water with the incoming tide. Crispy is proficient now so we separated a little and I swam over some of the more rugged reef. As we were swimming I thought I spotted a moray eel so went closer for a better look. As I looked I thought it looked more snake like than eel. On closer examination it became clear that it was a sea snake about 3 feet long. These things are nasty and I have never come across them in the wild before. I surfaced and called Crispy to get out of the water. "What?" She replied. "Get out!" I shouted. This was sufficient and she took off like a speed boat. I swear if I could have timed her she would have beat some world swimming record. I followed her to shore and explained what I had seen. To say it knocked her confidence in the water is an understatement. We gave time for the snake to move on before once more going back into the blue. We had not been more than 20 meters off the beach when Crispy suddenly once more made a record attempt for the beach. This time it was her that had swam directly over our amphibious reptile friend and was not hanging about.
( Not my picture but exactly as it looked underwater)
It turns out it is a banded Kraik. A very venomous sea snake that's bite can be fatal very quickly. There is no doctor or anti venom on the island so I guess we were lucky. The Kraik is not aggressive but if you are directly over it when it decides to rise to the surface for air then it will bite. Not because it doesn't like you but just because you are in it's way....
I swam back out several times to try and find it again but to no avail. After the initial shock of our first meeting I was a little more confident and as long as you don't swim directly above It you should be ok. It is a little unnerving that there are so many things that want to eat, bite or poison you on such a beautiful island. I guess paradise has it's price. We walked back as the day grew old and once again missed out on seeing a monitor lizard. Never mind we may get another chance in the future.
Tomorrow we move off again to Kho Mook. Deeper south into the Trang islands before eventually swinging north and returning to our start and finish point in Phuket.
Bare and Crispy signing off, paradise, Kho Ngai, Thailand
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