Doi Inthanon

Doi Inthanon

We were taken to Doi Inthanon, 6000 feet above Chiang Mai, by our intrepid driver and our 78 year-old guide, Adrian. We were lucky to be in Thailand for the annual three day celebration of the King’s Birthday.

This is a long weekend where Thai’s visit holy sites (photo 262). We were in the mountains, and as we approached the top where there is a famous Chedi we found ourselves involved in a traffic mêlée. Quite unexpected, but it gave us a chance to see a site we would have otherwise missed. (photo 263).

262

263

After making it through the traffic jam, we continued our assent to hike through the cloud forest. This was my first time in a cloud forest, and it was fascinating to see almost every tree covered in a curly moss. This ecosystem is a tropical forest, but lacks high temperatures due to the elevation. (photo 264).

264

Our guide was a member of the Aka tribe, and led us through a fairly dense forest which opened up into a mountain prairie. As we walked out onto open expanse, we could see Adrian descending the opposite slope with amazing agility. (photo 282 - photo missing).

As we crossed the prairie we were awed to be standing in a scene that rivaled the Alps of Europe. There is nothing like the feeling of learning about plants on the edge of a mountain, a mile above the lands below.