on leaving Tarutao National Park

On the way to Ko Tarutao National Park, I met a German who said he went to Ko Lipe, one of the islands, five years ago. He planned to stay five days, but stayed five weeks. He has visited every year since, but now stays two months. We stayed in a duplex bungalow on Ko Tarutao and met a young Swedish woman. She said she had been "here" for five weeks. I asked if she meant in Thailand; she responded "here" as in that bungalow. It was her second year spending five weeks. I met a senior Belgian man with an inflatable kayak; he said he has been visiting these islands for twenty years.

By the end of six nights, I understood

Tarutao National Park

A marine park with multiple islands, the largest being Ko Tarutao, this is a great place to relax and kick back. We first stayed at Au Phante Malaca, where the ferry stops at the pier. Then we moved four kilometers to Ao Moelae. Both bungalows were spacious and comfortable. The one at Moelae was right on the beach. One day we took a longtail taxi boat to a coral site on the northestern side of the island; it was top-notch. Another day, we took kayaks along the sea cliffs and snorkeled among the rocks. Another day we hiked through the jungle to a beach and snorkeled there. The food isn't fancy, but the overall experience is wonderful. A tropical paradise with few people and lots of fish, crabs, monkeys, birds and a few wild pigs.

to Ko Tarutao

 Getting there. Left Ko Samui using the tourist highway, which is well-organized and convenient in Thailand. Destination: Tarutao National Park on the Andaman Sea, southwest Thailand. We bought tickets to Trang and assumed we could get from there to Pak Bara Pier where we could catch a ferry to the park.

A mini-van picked us up at out hotel at 6 a.m. and drove us to the other side of Ko Samui where we transferred to a large bus. The bus drove to the ferry pier and into the ferry. We disembarked at Don Sak, took the same bus to Surat Thani, took a tuk-tuk to the bus station and traveled by air-conditioned mini-van, arriving at Trang at 2:30 p.m., right on time.

Resting after kayak, snorkel, sun

Resting after kayak, snorkel, sun. No Internet access here on Ko Tarutao.