My Gibbon Safari Experience (traveling from Bangkok)

My Thai girlfriend and I set off from Ariyasom Villa Hotel at the end of Sukhumvit Soi One taking advantage of the later departure option at 8:30am. We could have left at 6:30am but given that we were booked in for the two-day Gibbon Safari we felt that we could afford a few hours extra sleep. We stepped up into the minivan and exchanged greetings with the others already there; three workmates from Melbourne and two unrelated couples from Israel, all on short vacations in Thailand. Nine of us in total. The minivan was new, clean, spacious and air-conditioned. As we headed down Sukhumvit Road towards our destination, a television screen folded down from the ceiling and we got a preview of the tour in a video presentation first in English and then in Thai. I could sense both the trepidation and excitement of the others as we all got a first glimpse of what we had signed up for.

Flight of the Gibbon places a great deal of emphasis on safety and they definitely kicked things off properly with a smooth [van] ride.

I’ll put my cards on the table now and say that I am not a huge fan of going of pre-scheduled tours where you are herded around in mobs at the discretion of whoever is making things up as they go along. I’ve been on a number of these in South East Asia where there are unnecessary thirty-minute toilet/restaurant/souvenir-buying stops every forty miles. And then when you arrive you wonder why you are doing random things that aren’t in the brochure and question whether you have in fact gotten on the correct bus and are on the tour you thought you had signed up for. Questioning the guides simply gets you a patronizing look. I was hoping that the Flight of the Gibbon tour would not be the good old “Same, Same, but Different.”

Well, they passed the first of my rigorous requirements and about an hour and a half after departing Bangkok we arrived at the Khao Kheow Open Safari Park without any stops. The driver was sensible and safe and this put my mind at ease. If we were being thrown around the minivan as the driver lunged around traffic, diving across the center-line to overtake like many tour drivers do, then I would have been feeling rather uncomfortable about putting my life in this company’s hands one hundred feet off the ground in the rainforest. Flight of the Gibbon places a great deal of emphasis on safety and they definitely kicked things off properly with a smooth ride.

Whoever chose the site for the Flight of the Gibbon adventure in Chonburi made an inspired choice. The Khao Kheow Open Safari Park is situated in the 30,000 hectare Chompoo Wildlife Sanctuary and Flight of the Gibbon operates within a few minutes drive of the safari park. The means that when you book a tour with Flight of the Gibbon they also include many of the attractions of the safari park within their tours. So when we arrived we were taken straight to “Gibbon Island” where we were able to witness this wonderful ape species swinging gracefully from tree to tree. Now it was obvious why this particular company had taken on the name Flight of the Gibbon because this was almost exactly what we would soon be doing. Well, maybe not as gracefully, but the sense of swinging through a rainforest canopy was the common denominator. This also gave us the chance to stretch our legs and take a quick look at and feed a few other animals in the vicinity before we were driven just a couple of minutes to the Flight of the Gibbon office and outdoor restaurant. A drink and light snack was provided while we completed a registration form and we were told that we would be served lunch on our return from the zip-line tour which would take just over three hours. We excitedly re-boarded the minivan and were on our way to the main event, just a ten-minute drive further into the Chompoo Wildlife Sanctuary.

When we arrived we were enthusiastically greeted by the pair of “Sky Rangers,” Wit and Korn, who were to be our guides during the zip-line adventure. They introduced themselves and began the friendly banter and easy conversation that would continue to put us at ease. They fitted us with safety harnesses and protective helmets ensuring that everything was safe, secure, tight-fitting and comfortable. Then we were taken through a very clear and precise safety briefing where we were shown how they would keep us clipped and secured to the zip-lines and safety-lines at all times. We were also shown how to take off, how to land and how to control our direction in flight by holding the pulley above our heads. The briefing was very thorough but used simple language and actual demonstration and while there were five non-native English speakers in our group (eight if you count Australians – just kidding! I’m a Kiwi!), all walked away from the safety briefing with a clear understanding of what was going on.

After a ten-minute trek through the rainforest we arrived at the first platform. I have to admit I was a bit nervous. I wouldn’t say that I am afraid of heights but I am certainly very wary of them. It just doesn’t seem natural to me to be either under water or too high off the ground. My body was built for the earth and I always appreciate the feel of terra firma beneath my feet. With eleven of us on the first platform, one of the Sky Rangers clipped himself onto the zip-line and zoomed off the to next platform, setting the trend where there was always one of them at each platform; one to help you take off and one to help you land. They also take full control of your safety and clip and un-clip you from the zip-line to the safety-line at each platform. Safety was never an issue. The Sky Rangers were obviously very well trained and extremely meticulous and at no moment were any of the nine of us unconnected. They operated with practiced ease but controlled concentration, all the while keeping the group relaxed with easy banter and excellent humor. I could see them reading each of us between the first few platforms to get a sense of who needed more ‘handling’ and encouragement and who needed to have their bravado encouraged.

When it came for me to go I was definitely feeling anxious, but having seen three people ahead of me ‘survive,’ including my girlfriend, there was no way my pride would allow any outward sign of trepidation. If someone were to look really closely they would have noticed my knees shaking a little on the first few platforms but after that my confidence grew and I quit worrying and relaxed to enjoy the joyous feelings of flying through the rainforest canopy at ridiculous heights. There are sixteen different zip-lines with the last one the longest at three hundred meters. The views from the platforms are breath-taking and at one point the clouds rolled in and we had a ten-minute tropical downpour. Rather than dampen our spirits it heightened them and only added to the authenticity of the experience as we flew through the rain.

I really enjoyed seeing how the others in our group dealt with the experience and I especially loved seeing my girlfriend experience something she had never done before and not surprisingly, she took to it without fear, insisting on going ahead of me on every platform. She couldn’t wait to fling herself off into mid-air again and again, smiling and laughing all the way. Mikey took it all in his stride in a classically laconic Aussie way, more concerned with the comfort of his reproductive organs in relation to the safety harness. Tanya terrified by heights but trying her best not to let it affect her too much, continued to experience a bizarre mixture of knee trembling trepidation and extreme exhilaration, never quite knowing which to feel as she tore through the canopy in excess of a hundred feet in the air. She loved it and hated it all at the same time. Emma in true blue ‘aussie, aussie, aussie, oy, oy, oy,” style whooped and hollered her excitement on each of the zip-lines showing no fear and never a slackening in enthusiasm to the end. A honeymooning Israeli couple and an older Israeli couple made up the group and all took it in their stride relishing every moment and breaking through the barrier of their limited English skills to communicate their excitement and engage in enthusiastic conversation.

By the end of the day plans were being made for us to all join up for dinner and a few drinks in Bangkok but sadly we could not join them as we were booked onto the two-day “Gibbon Safari” rather than the one-day “Flight of the Gibbon Tour”. The fact that this happened is testament to the team-building and bonding that this experience creates and the supportive but jocular atmosphere was not unrelated to the care, expertise and personality shown by our Sky Rangers. When we had finished and had a chance to enjoy a cold drink and reflect on what was an amazing experience, we were driven back to the restaurant for lunch. The food was good; a salad, fresh cut fruit, soup, and a chicken and vegetable dish cooked with a coconut sauce with steamed rice. Two of our group were vegetarians and within ten minutes of advising the staff, they were served with a wonderful looking vegetable stir-fry with rice. I would imagine that some tourists prefer Western fare and apparently there are plans for a new restaurant to be built soon offering a large range of food options to suit all palates.

After we had eaten we reluctantly said good-bye to our new friends who were looking forward to a fun evening in Bangkok. They were ending their day with a tour around the safari park and so too were we. The difference was that they were taken around in the minivan with the opportunity to stop at a number of points to enjoy the vast range of animal species on view, while my girlfriend and I were given a golf-cart to ride around in at our leisure for an hour or so. I enjoyed the autonomy of being able to go where we pleased and take as long as we wanted to focus on the species that interested us more. When we returned to the Flight of the Gibbon office in the late afternoon to be taken to our accommodation I was more than ready to take a rest and relax after and action-packed day.

I had no idea what our accommodation would be like and when we arrived at reception I was unimpressed to discover that we would be sleeping in tents. My girlfriend jumped up and down with as much excitement as she had exhibited all day while my heart sank as I remembered long uncomfortable nights in New Zealand on bumpy ground, with mosquitoes feasting on me, sand all over the tent floor and the sense of griminess that comes along with the camping experience. At this point I was hot and tired and wishing we were in the air-conditioned and spacious minivan with the others, looking forward to a nice shower in my clean condo before meeting up for dinner and drinks. I didn’t want to burst my girlfriend’s bubble so I went along with it all with a polite smile. We were driven down to the camping ground where a few dozen large white square canvas tents sat nestled in a valley that it shared with a number of species from the safari park. I’ve arrived at a point where nothing much surprised me any more on tours but when we pulled down the zip to our tent and stepped inside I was truly shocked. Cold air was blasting out from an air conditioner and there was a small fridge in the corner with a mini-bar any hotel in Bangkok would be proud of. A large mattress lay on the floor with pristine white sheets and the classic Thai silk bed runner adding a splash of color against the snowy canvas walls. The bed was laid upon clean cane mats and a large wicker trunk lay at the foot of the bed. To top it off there was an electric lantern at the head of the bed beside a fully functioning telephone. Ann was squealing with delight and my apprehension vanished in an instant. If there is such a thing as a five-star camping experience in Thailand then “Es-Ta-Te” is it.

Okay, so there wasn’t an en-suite and we had to wander fifty feet down a lantern-lined path to a communal bathroom. But what a bathroom! There was even a service attendant and facilities you might expect in a country club but all still in a massive tent. The showers were circular outdoor affairs with the same white canvas tenting but with big, round shower-heads and hot water. As the day cooled down I had a fantastic shower and came out feeling clean, refreshed and not at all inconvenienced and made my way back to enjoy the twilight in the comfy chair outside my tent with a cold beer in hand while I listened to the sounds of wildlife surrounding me. As a monkey squealed and an elephant hollered in the distance I imagined I was Hemingway in 1954 in Uganda, Africa (minus the guns and writing talent, but plus the laptop). It really felt like I was on safari and soon my lovely, native Thai girlfriend beckoned me inside and the fantasy was complete. I was now very pleased that I wasn’t in that minivan heading back to Bangkok.

We went to the restaurant for dinner and when I saw a couple of guys manning a Barbeque just outside the large restaurant tent I couldn’t help but think about the char-grilled on the outside, pink on the inside BBQ menu of my previous camping experiences. Again my preconceptions were emphatically dismissed. The meal on offer was a limited buffet but of top quality. Given that they were catering for just thirty or so people they got the balancing act just right. I have to admit that I am a sucker for perfectly barbequed King Prawns and I couldn’t help but regret that our Aussie and Israeli friends, all confirmed admired of Thai seafood were missing out on this one. Along with these were some beautiful chicken kebabs with tomato and pineapple, some calamari and chicken wings, all cooked exactly right, and any chef of squid will tell you that ain’t a walk in the park. Aside from the barbeque offering there was an exquisite chili fish, cashew and vegetable stir-fry dish that definitely catered to the Thai pallet and mine also, a wonderful seafood omelet, some cleansing vegetable soup and the staples of steamed rice and fresh fruit for desert. The ice cold Heineken’s also went down a treat. Best camp food I ever had.

The “Night Safari” was initially a bit of a let down but by the end of it I was definitely pleased that I had experienced it. Instead of the golf cart we were driven around on a long, seated trailer and a Thai-speaking tour guide pointed out various interesting things with a spotlight, but you had to be quick to see whatever was being targeted. My girlfriend did a pretty decent job of translating and I would have been lost without her. The idea of the Night Safari is to be able to witness the nocturnal behavior of various animal species but to be honest I didn’t see a great deal of anything that I hadn’t seen during the day until we entered the “Cat Complex.” We were let off the transport and encouraged to wander around looking at various small and big cat species through thick perspex windows. It was this that made the Night Safari special. I was the last one back onto the trailer, my girlfriend dragging me along apologizing for my tardiness. I love the big cats, especially the Tigers. All of them were wide awake, prowling and growling, and providing a close-up live view of what to me is the most magnificent creature on earth. Aside from this tour as a whole, my two most memorable tours in Asia are the Tiger Temple Tour in Katchanaburi, Thailand, and a Siberian Tiger safari park in Harbin, the northern most city in China. I was born in the year of the Tiger and for some reason I’ve have always felt a deep affinity with this animal. This aspect of the Night Safari finished the tour and I disembarked back at Es-Ta-Te with a smile a mile wide.

It was 9:15pm when we got back and I felt a tug of regret knowing that the football was starting at 10:00pm and I would miss it. I had accepted that I was going to miss that Saturday night’s English Premier League football. I hadn’t spotted a satellite dish and wireless internet was off the menu. No problem. What’s one game compared to the experience of camping in the company of dozens of wild species for the night? I ducked into the restaurant anyway to see if, on the off-chance, they had satellite. Yes! A faint sense of hope crept in. Did they have the football? You bet they did! Would they show the game I wanted and stay open until it finished and serve me cold beers? You bet they would! I settled in to wait and watch. My team won 2-0 and I wandered back up the lantern-lit path to our tent a very happy man. What a day! I drifted off to sleep to the backdrop of the chirping, chattering, and whooping of a variety of wildlife. I slept like a baby.

After a very refreshing night’s sleep we enjoyed a good solid breakfast before embarking on the activities scheduled for us. Tea, coffee, orange juice, yoghurt, toast and jam, bacon, sausages, fried eggs, rice and pork congee, and fresh fruit were on offer. Between us we had the lot and headed off to check out with all the energy on-board that we would need. We were driven back to the zip-line site and were again fitted with safety harnesses. This time though, we were about to do the “Go Gibbon” jungle gym obstacle course made up of eighteen different challenges ranging from suspended bridges to Tarzan leaps, to flying swings, to spider nets and all manner of things between. Set well off the ground, safety was still a major focus but this time we were trained to use the clips to under close supervision. It was as if we had gradated from the zip-lines and now had a greater understanding of the safety equipment and it was really fun to be able to use it ourselves. Our guide, Watt, was superb and we felt 100% safe throughout.

I found this much more challenging that the zip-line tour of the day before. The various obstacles demanded a lot more dexterity and physicality that only added to the fun. Again my girlfriend took to it like a duck to water while I was left lumbering behind at times, tangled up in nets, swaying precariously from ropes, and lurching from dangling wooden steps as my lack of confidence hindered me a little. While much lower to the ground this obstacle course was just as heart-thumping and I felt a great sense of achievement when I completed the course. By then, we were both dripping with sweat and our arms were aching a little from the exertion. It was fantastic fun. Another cold drink later we were transported back to the safari park where we went on a twenty-minute elephant trek just to make sure we were well and truly comfortable perched meters off the ground! If that wasn’t enough of heights, next we did the Tarzan Swing situated next to the Flight of the Gibbon office. This activity has four one hundred and fifty meter long zip-lines running side-by-side over a lake with a spider-net to crash into at the end. This one is great for doing with a group of friends and is open to the safari park customers who are probably not doing the zip-line tour with Flight of the Gibbon. Although we had done it all before earlier that morning and on the previous day it was still great fun and well worth doing for a thirty-second thrill.

Our final activity was taking in a live animal show put on by the Khao Kheow Open Safari Park in a purpose built outdoor theatre. It was quite an ingenious show where various species entered the arena (not together to the probable disappointment of the Big Cats) to find pre-positioned morsels of food before returning to the housing the surrounded the animal section. Needless to say the audience is cut off by a combination of perspex and steel bars. Again the highlight was the Tigers who bounded up trees and swam in the pool (we could see through the Perspex) to retrieve meat. Simply awesome. The show lasted about twenty minutes and we had time to go back to the “Cat Complex” again to look at the Tigers sleeping in the daytime heat. Another hearty lunch finished things off and we headed back to Bangkok in the early afternoon feeling very content and tired also.

As a self-proclaimed cynic of trips and tours in Asia I have to admit that Flight of the Gibbon provided an excellent experience. From start to finish I felt safe, comfortable and fully informed. A special thanks must go to Youk, the lovely lady working out of the Flight of the Gibbon office who ensured that we knew what was planned for us and made our transitions between different activities very smooth. I was also pleased to have completed the two-day “Gibbon Safari” and definitely recommend taking the extra time to experience everything on offer. Neither my girlfriend or I will ever forget this wonderful adventure tour in Thailand.

By John Daysh, a published novelist living in Thailand and Flight of the Gibbon Guest Writer