User: Shirley.Sinclair Time: 04-20-2011 17:29 Product: SCN PubDate: 23-04-2011 Zone: All Edition: Main Page: DETOURS_TRAV_01 Color: CMYK

PAGE 78 |Saturday, April 23, 2011 Daily sunshinecoastdaily.com.au

ISTANBUL DEALS AND SPECIALS Take a step Don’t miss this back in time week’s bargains Page 80-81 Detours Page 85 WITH SHIRLEY SINCLAIR Jungle bath no mean feat HE indignity of having to bathe naked in public Tmust only have been exacerbated by the fact her “atten- PHOTOS: SHIRLEY SINCLAIR dants” were such ama- teurs. The first-timers looked more akin to teenagers doing their bit for a charity car- wash, albeit a jumbo- Intimate size one. Still, Nab Aok is every bit a lady, and Shirley Sinclair visits Thailand’s she acted like one. Though she wore no jewels or lace and fin- first luxury-tented jungle camp ery, she reigned su- IKE a MasterChef contes- icine” package on the ground to preme over us, com- tant, I nervously chop up eat the good stuff first. manding our undivided trays of fruit and vegetables, At times, I find myself acting as attention as we fussed Lhoping the quantity and I did with my own children’s first over her like ladies in serving sizes will meet with appro- meals; softly scolding her for waiting to a princess. val. I’m not quite sure how fussy eating too quickly and hiding The “bath” is one of the my special guest will be, or, worse pieces of bamboo behind my back highlights of the Elephant still, if she will roar her displea- until I am sure she has finished Hills elephant experience at sure and scare the life out of me. chewing everything in her mouth. Khao Sok in southern Thai- So I dutifully fill my basket to Just like everyone else around land. The mammoth task overflowing with watermelon, me, I am amused, entertained and requires all hands on deck and pineapple, pumpkin, cucumber, mesmerised by this species-to- is greeted with almost a stam- bamboo and bananas. The smor- species encounter. We can’t help pede of willing helpers. gasbord of fresh food will also help but feel we have developed a bond So, just how many journalists the medicine go down. of sorts, if only for a short time. does it take to wash an elephant? But I needn’t have worried. We are here in Khao Sok (“river Let’s see ... one on hose duty Moddaeng turns out to be a very in the mountain”), staying in Thai- and at least one on each side to well-behaved guest who forgives land’s first luxury-tented jungle wash off the mud from the swim my inability to serve up each tasty camp, to have a close encounter in the dam using shampoo and a morsel in the correct fashion. with Asia’s largest land animal. rag made from coconut husk. Instead, she patiently rearrang- The 739sq km Khao Sok Nation- Another brave soul is stationed es each piece of pumpkin in her al Park, once part of a prehistoric down the “business end” at the trunk as a human would reposi- inland sea, is characterised by back, where there is a real possi- tion something to be carried in the thick vegetation and huge lim- bility of being kicked, swatted, fold of their arm. estone mountains. In combination She “sweeps” the dropped wa- with three other national parks urinated on – or worse. ALL HANDS ON DECK: Tom Neal Tacker gives Nab Aok a gentle scrub. termelon quarter off the concrete sitting side-by-side, this is the And one has to film the frivol- PHOTO:SHIRLEY SINCLAIR ity and offer moral support with floor on to the dirt ground where largest area of rainforest in south- plenty of patting and playful placid throughout, taking our polish or we’d have been there she can pick it up better for transf- ern Thailand, covering 4400sq km. scratching of the cheek and clumsiness in her stride. until midnight. er from trunk to mouth. As well as wild elephants, the forehead. She even indicated when to fill So how many journalists does it The “finger” at the end of her deep jungle is still home to small Mother-of-two Nab Aok was her trunk with water so she take to wash an elephant? trunk expertly grasps the banana I numbers of tigers and bears, as believed to be pregnant but could quirt her undercarriage to Too many, clearly! And while we hand her, throwing it on to the well as wild Asian ox, clouded showed no sign of mood swings remove stubborn mud or simply all know elephants have long massive pink tongue to be de- leopards and monkeys. or grumpiness. Apart from the quench her thirst. Thank good- memories, let’s hope they don’t voured in the blink of an eye. Elephant Hills takes up about occasional flap of an ear, she was ness we didn’t need to buff and hold grudges. – SHIRLEY SINCLAIR I laugh heartily when she 100ha and includes the main camp throws her fibre-enriched “med- with 30 well-appointed safari tents

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sunshinecoastdaily.com.au Daily Saturday, April 23, 2011 | PAGE 79 Weekend / Detours

■ Birth weight: 80-100kg. ■ Walking speed: 6kmh. mouth”) is the elephant’s subtle enough to pick up in- ■ Life expectancy: 65-70 ■ Running speed: 40kmh ALL ABOUT ELEPHANTS most important feature. Its dividual blades of grass. years. They live until their (short distances) and are fully grown at 20. ery four to five years and 100,000 muscles help it to ■ One of the world’s most teeth wear out and they can’t ■ An elephant’s life cycle is Their working prime is be- have up to five babies in a li- twist and turn in any direc- majestic and intelligent ani- eat anymore. very similar to a human. tween 20 and 40 years. fetime. Twins are rare. tion along its length and can mals is on the verge of extinc- ■ Food: grass, leaves, bam- The baby suckles milk us- The female elephant (cow) ■ An elephant’s tail ends hold 8.5 litres at a time. tion, with only about 3000 ele- boo, sugar cane, pineapple ing its mouth and is weaned begins her reproductive cy- with a brush of stiff bristle ■ The trunk has evolved by phants left in Thailand today, plants, fruit. between two and four years. cle about age 15 and remains that is used to swat insects. joining the nose and upper and 35,000 to 45,000 in South ■ Daily intake: 250kg of food Yo ung elephants can start fertile until about 50. ■ The trunk or proboscis lip, and also acts as an arm. East Asia. They are classed and 200 litres of water. working about the age of 16 She can produce a calf ev- (Greek for “before the ■ The “finger” at the end is as “endangered”.

ELEPHANT HILLS Elephant Hills Main Camp is like a hotel room in the heart of the jungle. Each tent has beautifully crafted and handmade furniture made from natural materials including the solid timber queen-size bed. The mosquito-proof tents also have their own ensuite bathroom with western toilet and hot/cold shower, electricity, fan, tea and coffee-making facilities. Two to four-day packages include all activities, accommodation, set meals and transfer from Phuket, Khao Lak, elephant encounters Krabi, Surat Thani and Samui. and an open-air communal dining, Khao Sok is 87km (one-hour’s entertainment and lounge area drive) from Khao Lak and plus swimming pool. The large, 160km from Phuket (2.5hours). airy, mosquito-proof tents are very Visit www.elephant-hills.com or comfortable, boasting a Bedrock- email [email protected] style ensuite of stone and concrete and hand-crafted solid timber destination to be greeted by the furniture, with a queen-size bed sight of two-storey bamboo ma- and plenty of lighting. hout huts and several elephants A total of 17 elephants (13 fe- going about their daily work. male and four male) call Elephant This is how Elephant Hills is Hills home. Most of them are aged tackling the jumbo problem of 40-45 years, except for the latest elephant welfare in Thailand. addition, a 13-year-old female, Of the 3000 or so elephants left which came down from northern in the country, about 1500-2000 are Thailand about five months ago. in captivity in zoos, camps and Elephant Hills’ international treks, and 1000 in the wild. But marketing manager Jonathan Thailand is running out of jungle. Chell took his own “scenic route” In 1960, 85% of Thailand was here, arriving six years ago after rainforest. Now less than 15% is studying biodiversity and conser- available. Jonathan believes that is vation management, working in not enough to increase elephant Australia for a while, and studying numbers in the wild without them parrots in South America. ASIAN V AFRICAN ELEPHANTS starving. He believes the answer is The camp at that stage had only to create more “jobs” for dom- opened a year earlier with three ASIAN ELEPHANTS: females have smaller tusks. ■ Highest point = top of shoulder. esticated elephants. tents. The elephant experience ■ 3-5000kg. ■ The trunk has fewer rings, is ■ Head has no bulges and no dish. Jonathan said Elephant Hills began in 2009. Tourists from all ■ 2-3.5m height. more rigid and has one “finger”. ■ Large ears and tops are higher aimed to raise awareness of the over the world, but especially the ■ Highest point = top of its head. ■ Toes = four or five. than neck. animal and to show that if well United Kingdom, Germany, Scan- ■ The head bulges on top with a ■ More wrinkled. cared for and not abused or ex- dinavia and northern Europe, have dished forehead. ■ Both sexes have tusks. ploited, elephants could thrive in now enjoyed a stay here. ■ Small ears, tops not higher. AFRICAN ELEPHANTS: ■ More rings, less rigid and trunk captivity. Many have been to Thailand ■ Smoother skin. ■ 4-7000kg. has two “fingers”. Camps such as Elephant Hills before and had an elephant ride or ■ Only males have proper tusks; ■ 3-4m. ■ Toes = three, four or five. helped get elephants off the trek, but this experience aims to streets, where they had been go one step further in interaction. exploited in the past, and into “There’s nothing bad with ele- also includes rafting down the Sok smallest at 300m to the highest at As moody, grey clouds engulf meaningful employment, while phant trekking if the elephants River. The river was part of an 970m. And with our personal river the mountains, the area takes on a also ensuring a future for the are cared for, but we wanted to ancient trade route between India man doing all the work in each Jurassic Park-like spookiness and mahouts who had spent almost offer something different,” Jo- and China, and is “guarded” all vessel, we glided down the shallow we pile into troop carriers just as their entire lives with the animals. nathan, a former Londoner, said. around by limestone mountains waters and tiny rapids, and soaked the torrential rain hits. When the “In future, there’s going to be The Elephant Hills’ experience that reach for the sky – from the up the serene, green spectacle. rain lifts, we finally arrive at our nowhere else to go,” he said.

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