Kaeng Krachan National Park – Enchanted Forest in Thailand

A forest becomes vibrant and lively only with the wildlife in it. Kaeng Krachan National Park is one of the liveliest forests we have ever been. The old tall trees, the orchids hanging on the trees, the monkeys frolicking on the trees, music from the frogs, symphony from the cicadas, songs from birds all made us connect to this forest on a deeper level. Kaeng Krachan National Park is located at just 3 hrs drive from Bangkok. So we expected loads of tourists, but luckily when we went it was not crowded at all. Infact there were only a couple of people apart from us. We reached the place only in the afternoon, but we were already spotting osprey,monitor lizard,sunbird,butterflies all along the way. Also we spotted Staghorn ferns,Orchids and Hornbills. So our expectations were already through the roof for the morning walk in Kaeng Krachan National Park.

Temminck’s sunbird was lazily hopping around the bushes in Kaeng Kranchan National Park.

In a pristine forest there will always be something to make a constant humming sound to keep the forest alive. In some forests it’s the cicadas, in some it’s the insects, in some it’s the frogs, in some it’s the birds – but in our case it was a combination of everything. There was a continuous humming sound of some wildlife in Kaeng Krachan National Park. We decided to setup camp near a stream with the constant sound of wildlife. We then spent the evening engulfed in activities around a fig tree. The fruiting fig was acting like a magnet to all the hornbills in the area and we had the Great and Oriental Pied Hornbills sharing the branches at the same time. It’s not everyday that you find two species of hornbills on the same branch. After the evening show and a bit of star gazing, we ended the day hearing the distant sounds of trumpeting elephants.

Camping in Kaeng Krachan National Park

Our small tent under the star filled sky.

As the sun started coming out, we immediately stuck out to the dense forest. The light had not yet passed through the dense trees onto the forest floor, so inside the forest it was very silent, a big contrast to the day before. We just walked along seeing the tall trees and the trickling streams. Since we went in peak summer we were hoping to find more activity along stream edges. As we were looking out near the streams , we saw a pair of Orange-headed Thrush near the stream. The light was still low inside the forest, so we could not take any pictures but it was a good start to the day.

The forest floor was covered with dried leaves because of the dry season.

We were keeping a keen eye out on the forest floor as its good time to spot pheasants and other ground birds like Blue pitta. If we kept eyes on the floor, we would miss the birds roosting on the trees. So we were searching up and down and as we were doing this, we spotted the Asian Barred Owlet. He was staring at us keenly. I always love owl’s eyes. So stared him back till he got bored with us and turned away his head. Vinod went a bit ahead of me and was lucky to see a Blood pheasant rummaging the forest floor. The Blood pheasant moved away quickly inside the thickets. By this time the golden sunlight passed through the dense trees into the forest floor. Different birds started singing along with the cicadas sound. The forest became more lively.

Again, another rummaging sound and this time the bird didn’t mind us at all. It was the White-rumped shama, usually a very shy bird but in here the bird was very casual. This bird is known for its beautiful melodious voice.

White-rumped shama searching for its food on the forest floor.

Till now we didn’t see any other person in the jungle. It’s usually a very special privilege for an Indian to be away from crowds. So we enjoyed the alone time inside the jungle. The little streams inside the forest looked enchanting in the morning light. We drank that pollution free fresh water and continued our walk among the lianas. When we were so engrossed with the lianas around us, we heard a unique sound. It came from a distance but that far away call was so clear inside the forest. It was like a long siren sound, but the sound became a melody once we got familiar with it. Vinod was sure it was the Gibbons call, but I couldn’t believe that a monkey could make that sound. How can a monkey make such a melodious sound! Vinod had never met a Gibbon, so how could he identify this sound as a Gibbon? As Vinod believed it was a Gibbon, he started walking towards the sound direction. But as we started rushing towards the Gibbon, a flying lizard flew and landed on a nearby tree. So Vinod stopped to look at the lizard while I relaxed on a liana, which all looked like nature’s swing !

I loved those lianas. It looked like we were inside a unique world designed by nature.

We then decided not to stop for anything except for the sound and started walking quickly through the rainforest.

The trees grew taller as we approached closer to the sound. Vinod told Gibbons sit on the top of the tall trees and sing to proclaim their territory. We were both searching the canopies to the extend that our necks started to ache but then suddenly the call stopped. Now we couldn’t even search in any particular direction. But then we heard the tree rustling and Vinod saw a baby Gibbon. I was still searching and finally I spotted the Gibbon jumping down with his long hands. The White Handed Gibbon was hanging on the branch with his two hands and looked at me directly. I was too stunned to see him glowing with the sunlight and showed him to Vinod. We both were awestruck as the Gibbon gracefully jumped down. We got lost in the moment and just clicked a single picture. The picture turned out to be horrible but we know our memories will be fresh because it was a special moment.

The White-handed Gibbon. Though the photo was dark, our memory of the Gibbon is bright and vivid.

Later I asked Vinod how he was so confident about the Gibbons Sound. He told me that it was all from David Attenborough shows during his childhood days. I really couldn’t believe how his childhood Tv knowledge struck him at the right moment when he heard Gibbons. When we see endangered animals, we always feel happy and sad. Thus with mixed emotions we stood looking up at the tall trees. In the following days we stayed in the jungle, we often heard a low call very far away. So we knew how lucky we were to atleast get a glimpse of the White Handed Gibbon and enjoy his morning music.

While we were just lost in mixed emotions and staring at the canopy, we had an interesting visitor to bring us back to the senses. He was our long-searched Silver breasted broadbill and rather than we searching for him he just flew and sat infront of us. While we were admiring him, he was eagerly looking at us. He really looked like a fairy bird with all those colors !

Such a sweet,cute bird – Silver breasted broadbill.

By this time it was already bright morning. There was a stream nearby and with the daylight on it, it seemed to be a perfect spot for butterflies and we were not disappointed. We sat on a rock and saw the butterflies flying around. By this time the only other elderly couple inside the forest had arrived and were resting near the stream. The Great Nawab butterfly sat on the elderly lady’s hat and she was freaking out. Her husband told her to sit quietly and took photo of her with the butterfly on her head. The Zigzag flat came then and made the floor colorful.

The colorful zigzag flat (Odina decoratus). Luckily this colorful one didn’t fly away immediately.

With all the butterflies flying around, Vinod was running behind each one while I sat and just admired the beauty of the forest. I loved this forest for its immense life supporting capacity. I didn’t even see a single plastic garbage on my entire walk.

After relentlessly running behind butterflies we decided to continue our walk along the streams. Near the stream the trees were huge. In one tall tree I saw a big bird and at first sight thought it was a raptor. Then saw its big beak and knew it was a hornbill. We had already seen the Oriental Pied Hornbill and the Great Hornbill that live in this Kaeng Krachan Forest. But this one was a Rusty Cheeked Hornbill. There were 3 birds and were moving silently on the top branches. While the other hornbills made a ruckus the day before on the fig tree, this Rusty Cheeked was quiet. They are quite hard to find even in dense forests. When they flew away, even their wings didn’t make a flapping noise like that of the Great Hornbill.

All the hornbills look awesome in flight. This Rusty cheeked hornbill was not an exception

We were happy at our sightings and started walking casually enjoying the serene morning. I have never seen these many lianas in a forest. Each curve looked so unique and I started clicking all lianas. This Kaeng Krachan is so famous for its snakes too. So I was careful while touching the lianas. But a unique shape on a liana attracted me. When I went closer, found its a lantern bug (Pyrops karenia). It was very colorful and we had seen a similar one in Parambikulam Tiger Reserve, Kerala in our earlier trips.

The lantern bug (Pyrops karenia) was easy to identify because of the unique shape but was not easy to spot.

Now it was very bright and with the sun reaching the forest floor, there were lots of activities at every turn. We even saw a Pied hornbill on the forest floor rummaging for food and the White-rumped Shama jumping on the ground. We saw a Rusty Broadbill silently sitting on a creeper along with his mate. White-bellied Erpornis were jumping around the bushes. We were overloaded with the activities around us, but this was the reason we came to this forest.

While all the bulbuls were chatting and jumping around the bushes, suddenly a bright yellow flash came out amidst that crowd. It was the Sultan Tit. I wasn’t aware that the Sultan tit could be found here. When we went to Latpanchar,West Bengal we were searching for this bird Sultan Tit and we didn’t spot it there. Now in Kaeng Krachan, Thailand found the Sultan Tit. The bird had a cute yellow crest and though it looked like a bulbul it belongs to Tit family.

The bright boy Sultan Tit!

Now the forest was filled with birds and butterflies activities, Vinod was confused whether to run behind those colorful butterflies or those cute rainforest birds.

Though the forest was alive with all the birds and butterflies, what made it really alive was the monkeys. We saw Stump-tailed Macaques and Gibbons inside the forest. So when we heard big movements near a tree,we knew what to look for. As expected a monkey family was watching us. But this time round it was a group of Dusky Leaf monkeys. The baby leaf monkeys were curiously looking at us. The eyes of the leaf monkeys looked so beautiful. How cute they were! Usually when the monkeys jump around, there won’t be any bird activities nearby. But here the birds didn’t mind these monkeys at all. The monkeys were casually eating the leaves while the birds were casually moving around them.

Such a curious monkey.. The Dusky leaf monkey is my new favorite!!

On this day I met eye to eye with the Asian Barred Owlet, the White Handed Gibbon,the Silver Breasted Broadbill,the Leaf Monkey and for Vinod the Blood Pheasant too. How different their eyes were and how different their expressions and emotions were. Each one was unique in its own way.

What a lovely morning it was with so many sightings of birds, mammals and butterflies. I was happy with everything around me, but I didn’t see any flowers yet in this trail as it was the driest month. This forest is famous for its Rafflesia and unique orchids. But as an icing on the cake just near the campsite, I found a beautiful Cymbidium bicolor orchid hanging on the tree.

Cymbidium bicolor – though it was brightly colored, the orchid was easy to miss as it was hidden among dense foliage.

I missed seeing it even when we were making our camp. I call these type of days, the perfect magical days. Everything happened at the right place and at the right moment.

Only when we sat after reaching the campground did I notice that it was already 12.30 pm. We did not even feel hungry for breakfast ! But as is the human mind, the moment we knew the time , the stomach started growling. When we had just started to eat the Pineapple pie, the Golden-fronted Leafbird teasingly came into view. So, dropping everything we started running behind it to continue our magical day in this enchanted Kaeng Krachan National Park.