Elephant Nature Park: An Ethical Elephant Sanctuary in Thailand

The Elephant Nature Park, positioned within the Mae Taeng Valley 60kms north of Chiang Mai, is an excellent place to go to.

The Park operates as each a sanctuary & a rescue centre for distressed & sick Asian Elephants from throughout Thailand. In case you are interested by working with elephants, in a really relaxed, pure & moral atmosphere it is a nice tour for you.

A information to visiting Elephant Nature Park

The Elephant Nature Park is only one hour’s drive north of the Thai metropolis of Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand, and is positioned within the lovely pure settings of the Mae Taeng Valley, which enjoys a scenic river working via it and is surrounded by the densely forested mountains of the world. The park operates as each a sanctuary & a rescue centre for distressed & sick Asian Elephants from throughout Thailand.

The park, which covers a complete land space of 800 hectares (2,000 acres), was based in 1996 and was the brainchild of Sangduen “Lek” Chailert & her husband Adam. Lek (which means “small” in Thai) grew up in a neighborhood village not too distant from the park, and it has been via the countless laborious work of Adam & Lek plus the continued assist of her household that the park has been capable of proceed to develop and change into profitable.

An moral elephant sanctuary in Thailand

The “objectives” of the Elephant Nature Park are quite simple but thought upsetting: 

• To supply a sanctuary to an endangered species – Asian Elephant numbers in Thailand have decreased dramatically during the last century from over 100,000 all the way down to lower than 2,000 animals left as we speak. 
• To assist restore the ecological steadiness by rain forest restoration – the park is finishing up an aggressive programme of tree planting, with the purpose to replant 25 acres of bushes a yr for five years to assist re-introduce the rain forest & with it promote the vegetation & animals that rely on it. 
• To protect the cultural integrity of the area people – by creating employment and buying agricultural merchandise domestically the park helps the villagers to maintain their distinct tradition. 
• To advertise the park as a way of training – for guests, people, research teams, faculties and events, with the important thing focus being on the plight of the endangered native species introduced in an entertaining but significant method.

The elephants at The Elephant Nature Park

The elephants that dwell within the sanctuary of the Elephant Nature Park are primarily from non-public house owners having been acquired by negotiated charges. A few of the majestic beasts merely “outlived” their usefulness to the Hill Tribe Individuals who used them for logging functions, as using the animals has diminished resulting from each mechanisation & a lot stricter controls on the administration of Thailand’s forests, others have been so badly handled that they grew to become weak & sick, due to this fact ineffective to their trekking camp house owners.

The park is now house to over 30 elephants of all ages from only one yr outdated proper as much as “grand-daddy” at over 70 years outdated! The Elephant has an identical lifespan to people, and type households of comparable composition and length. A few of the “kids” have moms however all have “aunties”. There are elephants that assist out, or have adopted them, even when not genetically associated. There are a few older male elephants together with the king of the clan.

There’s NO elephant driving right here

Thailand as a rustic is FULL of elephant “experiences” out there to vacationers, you may journey them, watch them paint photos, play drums, play soccer, do a trick or two for meals, or lug provides on trekking adventures, however this park is completely different as a result of it doesn’t enable ANY of those merciless exploitations.

It’s house to elephants which were abused on this method or orphaned or rescued over the previous ten years.

Actions at Elephant Nature Park

Most vacationers go to the Elephant Nature Park as “day-trippers’, the park does additionally supply 2-7 day stays, & even “volunteer” stays of 14-30 days, there’s something appropriate for everybody.

After being collected from their Resorts or Lodgings in Chiang Mai, the primary port of name for the guests is to purchase fruit on the Native Every day Market, an elephant can eat as much as 200kg of meals a day, so “wholesale shopping for” is the order of the day.

Arriving on the Elephant Nature Park you meet the opposite vacationers, numbering on common between twenty & forty per day, depending on the Time of the Yr of your go to. Your information for the day begins by introducing you to the varied elephants and their relationships with one another and earlier than lengthy a dozen or so of them are sniffing across the guests with their trunks, anticipating lunch shortly.

Every elephant has its personal laundry basket filled with fruit made to order. One desires its watermelons peeled, one other gained’t eat bananas, and one other gained’t contact the cucumbers till the remaining has all gone. Feeding doesn’t take lengthy & there are sufficient elephants for each vacationer to have their very own to feed and also you quickly uncover their particular person personalities. There are cheeky elephants, nosy elephants, lonely elephants, grasping elephants, quick eaters and gradual eaters.

However be warned – you gained’t get out of this train with out lots of elephant drool and “snot” in your fingers!

After the elephants have had their lunch the tour teams could have theirs, the meals is definitely excellent, it’s a buffet so there’s something for everybody, even together with vegetarians which for Thailand is kind of uncommon. As soon as lunch is over it’s time for the following spotlight of the day.

The elephants are bathed twice a day at round 1pm and 4pm, and it’s no doubt their favorite instances of day, and positively by the point its bathtub time they’re normally fully coated in a combination of mud, dust and flies. Everybody heads all the way down to the river for the washing ritual and it is without doubt one of the funniest issues you can ever see. These giants of the jungle like nothing higher than splashing round & enjoying within the water, rolling time and again. At instances they completely disappear below the water solely to re-appear and trumpet water over anybody & everybody inside vary.

With buckets and scrubbing brushes the visiting group units to work cleansing, a lot to the appreciation of the elephants. After the elephants have been bathed, if Lek (the founder) is obtainable, she at all times seems to greet each the vacationers & to say whats up to “her household”, as she approaches, all the elephants come over to greet her and it is extremely clear she has a particular affinity with them.

Study the place the elephants got here from

The teams are additionally knowledgeable in regards to the particular person elephants & the sorry tales behind every of them, one in all them walks like an invalid it is because her legs received damaged in numerous logging accidents. One other one is completely blind as a result of the mahout (handler) stabbed her eyes out with arrows with the intention to get “obedience” from her.

One more was shot as a result of he threw some vacationers off his again while endeavor a harmful ascent up a slender jungle path, even “The King” of the elephants had been a sufferer of ivory poachers. Each elephant has a special story, however the widespread bond shared between all of them is that they’ve suffered abuse by the hands of us people! Because the solar begins to set, the day trippers go away & the “boarders” watch among the very mild coaching that’s used to maintain the elephants blissful & contented.

Dinner is equally as scrumptious as lunch, and we have now probability to fulfill & chat with the volunteers, a few of whom have been on the Elephant Nature Park for weeks some even months!

The lodging is considerably on the “primary” facet, however the beds are snug, and it’s shocking simply how drained you get throughout your day with the elephants. The nights although are removed from silent, as aside from the 31 elephants there are effectively over 50 different “pets” starting from canine, cats, water buffalo & cows, to not point out the frogs, and thousands and thousands of bugs all through the park.

All spherical it’s nice enjoyable & the expertise of residing & working with the elephants is one thing that gives fabulous residing recollections for a few years to come back! For extra data please go to the Elephant Nature Park Website.