One of then most fascinating places in Thailand has to be the Khao Sok national park.

Khao Sok is the largest area of virgin forest in Southern Thailand and is the remains of a rainforest which people claim to be older and more diverse than even the Amazon Basin rainforest.

With Surat Thani situated to the east, Phuket to the south and Ranong to the north, Khao Sok can be easily accessed. And there lies the beauty of Khao Sok, tourists head for Koh Samui, Koh Tao, and Koh Phuket in the south and Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai in the north, and very rarely have the time to explore Khao Sok. It is therefore unspoiled and still offers outstanding natural beauty.

Personally, I would get in the car, travel from Bangkok via Ranong, possibly staying there for the night, and then head down Khao Sok. Going by this route you can see the beauty of both western seaboard of the Gulf of Thailand and also the spectacular scenery alongside the Andaman Sea.

On settling into my riverside bungalow for the evening, I would then look forward to the two or three days of visiting the forests, rivers, streams, waterfalls, and magnificent limestone cliffs.

Many of the resort and lodge owners can provide you with complete package tours, including your room, all meals, River Sok adventure trips, guided hiking tours, elephant trekking and even a night safari. And along the way you will see real species diversity as Khao Sok has a vast range of mammals, tropical birds, reptiles and plants.

If you are really lucky you may see the Bua Phut, or Rafflesia Kerrii, flower which grows within the park. The Bua Phut red flowers smell awful, similar to meat that has gone bad, and can grow up to eighty centimeters in diameter, making it one of the largest known flowers in the world. The flower only blooms for about one week, and you can normally see it January to March, and, very occasionally, around July.

Over the last few years there has been a genuine commitment to conserving Khao Sok. For example, the Bua Phut is actually endangered, so nowadays you cannot walk right up to the plants. On the other hand, elevated walkways have been built near to them so you can still view this truly remarkable plant.

And the commitment to conservation does not stop there. You will find many resorts offering educational programs relating to the national park.

A visit to Khao Sok would not be complete without visiting the Chieow Laan Lake which was created in 1982 when the Chieow Laan dam was completed. It is here that that you will find some of the best places to see animals such as gibbons, barking deer and wild boar.

If you have time, you should also plan to stay at one of the floating raft houses on the lake. Just the perfect place to relax and take in the truly magnificent natural surroundings. It is here that you will find the limestone cliffs that are typical of the entire region. The cliffs very much resemble the ones along the Krabi coast and in Phang Nga Bay. At Chieow Laan they really are stunning as they spectacularly rise up out of the lake.

All too soon it is time to head back to Bangkok, this time taking the road east to Surat Thani and then up the western seaboard of the Gulf.

And finally, and as usual, a big hello to all my friends at the Thailand Web Zone, www.thailandwebzone.com, which is a new Thai social networking and Thailand community site. Share information in Thai forums and Thailand articles, meet people, share photos, music and video, find & submit information on Thailand travel. Make new friends from all over the world! For those readers who have not visited TWZ, go have a look now!

asean_al