Day 32 - Wednesday, March 16 - Travel to Ko Tarutao

6:30A came very quickly. I got up, showered, packed my last minute things and headed to the front "desk" to wait for my mini-bus. Paid my bill for my entire stay at Miami and said goodbye.

Dave and Carlolina were also on my mini-bus but it was only a matter of time before we stopped at mini-bus central and were hearded off the bus and onto our respective buses as they were heading north to Krabi for their transfer and subsequent trip to Sur Thani and then on to Ko Pha Ngan and I was going further south.

I was finally on my way to! We drove to the pier, then got on a flat bed car ferry to cross from Ko Lanta Yai to Ko Lanta Noi. After driving to the end of Ko Lanta Noi, we got on another ferry boat and crossed over to the mainland to begin our journey. We got to Trang at 10:30A and had a little layover. Walked around a pretty neat local food market and boarded a new mini-bus at 11:00A that arrived at Pak Bara pier at 1:00A. I had 90 minutes to walk around Pak Bara before I was to board the boat to Tarutao. There was nothing really to do so I found some slow-ass internet connection, bought some snacks, and sat on the pier enjoying watching various boats pull in and out.

I arrived at Ko Tarutao, the island, which is the headquarters for Ko Tarutao National Park. I found a perfect spot on the beach under some trees and called it home. I picked this lovely spot because it was the only site that had a tent already set up and that's where the nice Park Ranger put me. Inside the tent, nicely placed on the ground was a thin bamboo mat, a paper thin seeping bag, and a small pillow. Mr. Park Ranger was very hospitable and welcomed all his campers the same way. As I was throwing my pack into the tent, there was a little monkey sitting on the nearby picnic table staring at me. I went over to say hello, but he quickly climbed a tree and just stared at me from above. I walked around the park a little bit and found a great trail that led to the top of a great big cliff with a gazebo and a perfect spot to watch the sun-set. As I was walking around the top of this mountain waiting for the sun to set, I saw some monkeys and a huge lizard. Maybe it was a Monitor Lizard? Was it a Gilla Monster? I don't know what it was but it was over 4 feet from head to tail and it was pretty cool. I don't think they like big white farangs for dinner so it just sat there enjoying it as I pet it's head. It was pretty cool and as I type this, I have all 10 fingers and all toes.

I watched the sun set which wasn't nearly as pretty as the one a few days ago and headed down the mountain and back on the trail before it was too dark to navigate the rough walk back. If it was too dark, there would be no way I would have ever made it and would have had to have found a jungle monkey to cuddle up with for the night.

Went to the Cafe Tarutao which was decent but nothing great but the only option if you want to eat. It's run by the park and it's all they got. It was at this point that I realized, although the island is massive, and I wasn't sure what was happening on other parts, but most other parts are not accessable, that I was one of MAYBE 10 people in this national park and it was going to get very boring very fast.

I went back to my campsite on the beach, made a little lantern out of a coke can, a water bottle, and a candle I had leftover from happy hour and sat listening to the waves crashing on the beach just feet from my tent. Talk about peace and quiet. I felt as if I was the only person left on earth. I wasn't sure where my monkey and lizard were, but I was hoping they were off in the jungle enjoying their own peaceful evening.

I got in the tent at about 9:30 and it was sweltering. It was like a greenhouse effect in there and there were no window flaps to open to let the cool breeze that was coming off the ocean in. I slept in the heat, occasionally waking to the sound of either a wave or an animal sniffing around but all in all had a good, hot, sweaty, sleep.