Birding On A Bangkok Layover – Short & Long Options

Posted on July 6, 2015 by Tara

If you are collecting Star Alliance miles with United or someone else, odds are that you will find yourself flying Thai Airways quite a bit. I’ve transited Bangkok between Australia and Asia, Africa, Europe and the USA on sometimes very complicated routings. Depending on time of day and connections, you can often add a layover in Bangkok to your trip. Since there are so many blogs specializing in Thailand, I am only going to discuss birding options here.

Remember, a layover is less than 24 hours. If you plan well, you can slot one into an existing itinerary such as this one to Africa or this one to South-east Asia and take advantage of United’s generous routing rules. If you go over 24 hours, it is then a stop-over and will count as the one stop-over you get on a RT ticket.

SHORT DAYTIME LAYOVER – DUSIT AREA

This excursion is best done early in the morning or late afternoon and you need at least 6 hours layover. Take the airport train to the last station – Phaya Thai, then get a tuktuk or taxi to the Dusit Zoo. Yes, I know the birds and animals are in cages there but you want to focus on the wild birds in the lush, tropical grounds. I was targeting Red-breasted Parakeets which flock in the area. I will do a pictorial on a separate post but here’s a sample. I saw several flyover parakeets while we were walking around the park but the best sighting was a huge flock that flew right over our heads unexpectedly (before I could focus the camera) as we waited on the street outside for a passing tuktuk.

When you are ready to leave, the famous backpacker haunt – Khao San Road is about 15 minutes by tuktuk so we grabbed a quick snack, had a massage and got a tuktuk back to Phaya Thai station so we could make our flight at 23:59 to BNE.

LONG LAYOVER – 23 HOURS – KHAO YAI NATIONAL PARK

I managed to build a 23 hour layover between Chiang Mai and Koh Samui on our most recent trip and we planned a quickie visit to Khao Yai National Park. At first I was thinking we should use the public minibuses to Pak Chong, then a taxi to the hotel – the Balios Resort (formerly the Juldis Khao Yai) which is located near the park and where most of the big birding tour operators stay with their groups. After the successful self-drive birding adventure to Doi Inthanon and Mae Ping, I worked up my confidence to drive from BKK to Khao Yai and booked a Hertz car.

The line was longer than I expected so it took awhile to get our car and get out of the airport. The traffic was intimidating but luckily I managed to get on the right motorway heading north but it was very slow-going until we reached the outskirts. It was around 9pm before we reached the hotel and we were exhausted. The restaurant was closed so we cleaned out the mini-bar and the biscuits we had in the car.

The next morning, I was eager to find Red-breasted Parakeets and any other birds so we were up at the crack of dawn walking around the grounds. It didn’t take long to hear the parakeets but they led us on a merry chase forcing us to leave the hotel, scurry down the road and find them in a nearby vacant lot on the other side of the Palio Shopping Centre. This time we got better sightings and better photos than the Dusit one! We couldn’t linger a long time as we needed to drive back to BKK so we never got to enter the park proper – so there’s a good reason to come back!

Here’s a teaser, full pictorial coming!

Chiang Mai – Day Trip To Hmong Village & Doi Suthep

Posted on July 2, 2015 by Tara

After walking around the old city, it was just so hot we needed a break. We walked into the nearest tour agency and asked what they had possible for that afternoon as it was already 11am-ish. They did have a few tours scheduled as half-day afternoon trips so we decided on one which visited a Hmong Village and Doi Suthep (hoping to see birds there).

We grabbed some snacks and went back to the tour operator where the minibus picked us up and drover around town picking up other people. Then we made our way slowly up the mountain. The scenery was stunning!

The Hmong Village was very touristy but the handicrafts on offer were priced well and we bought a few embroidered bags, then relaxed in the garden. Not many birds around though.

Then we went back down the mountain a bit to Doi Suthep which is a large, ornate temple on a hill. Some people bravely walked up the stairs but most of us took the cable car up. Our guide showed us around, then gave us half an hour free time to take photos.

Still looking for birds, at least we found a nest!

This is why you don’t want to rent a car to drive around Chiang Mai city. The back alleys are so tight that large trucks can get stuck – in front of YOU! While dropping off one of the tourists after the excursion, we were trapped for about 15 minutes while this truck driver jiggled around parked cars. It was actually pretty entertaining as we weren’t in a hurry but would have been less so if we were trying to get to the airport!

Back To Chiang Mai

Posted on June 30, 2015 by Tara

Having finished our brief birding adventures in Doi Inthanon and Mae Ping, we now headed back to Chiang Mai for a couple days of R&R.

Here’s a few interesting shots as we drove back.

It’s a bit hazy but there’s a giant reclining Buddha on the hill! This marks the road where you turn left to go from Chiang Mai to Mae Ping.

Spirit Houses

Huge bird statue

Sad to see bird in cages, especially after seeing them flying free!

After returning the car, we decided to relax with a massage.

Anusarn Might Bazaar

Israeli food for dinner!

I’ve done a fish spa before, it’s a strange sensation!

Morning stroll to the old city.

We stayed in the same Lannathai Guesthouse as the first night we arrived, very conveniently located near the night bazaar.

Visiting Mae Ping National Park

Posted on June 26, 2015 by Tara

In direct contrast to the extremely popular Doi Inthanon NP, Mae Ping is well off the beaten track. I was drawn here to see Grey-headed Parakeets and there are a few other bird species that attract birders. After spending 2 mornings and one evening we saw very few people there and most were Thais in their own cars. There was one group there, hence the Forest Cabins were fully booked when I inquired a few months in advance. This is why we spent the first night in Baan Pailyn in Li. The second night we left open and found a room at the hostel/camp in Thung Kik which I will review separately.

Here’s the entrance where you drive in and pay the 100 Baht entry fee.

Visitor’s Centre (which was closed when we entered at 6am). You may be able to book a Forest Cabin if they are available here.

Snack bar ( I didn’t know this was here or I wouldn’t have bought so much food to bring in)

Turn off to Thung Kik, it was shortly after we turned down this road that I saw a small flock of Grey-headed Parakeets fly swiftly overhead and disappear into the bush. We couldn’t find them after that.

There is just this one road so you basically drive up and down this road looking for birds or pull into a designated parking bay if you want to walk.

White-bellied Woodpecker

Greater Racket-tailed Drongo

Here you can see how the tall trees close in above the road making visibility very difficult. You will hear a lot more birds than you can see, let alone photograph. I did the best I could with those that were perched near the road!

Black-headed Woodpecker – one of the most sought-after birds for this park.

Greater Racquet-tailed Drongo trying to hide.

Indian Roller (thanks for ID, Matt)

From Doi Inthanon To Li Village Near Mae Ping Via Backroads

Posted on June 23, 2015 by Tara

One of the best things about renting a car is that you can explore as you wish. Northern Thailand is so beautiful with interesting small villages that tourists don’t get to so we enjoyed a pleasant road trip as we left Doi Inthanon and headed towards Li Village for birding in Mae Ping.

This is what the route basically looks like with the offshoots to Doi Inthanon and Mae Ping in red.

Chom Thong is a fairly large town but once you are through it, you won’t see any more towns until Li.

Roads are well marked usually in both Thai and English so just be sure of what town you are headed for or which highway/road you are looking for. We were looking for 1103.

Now you are on a pleasant smaller road with only the occasional truck to spoil the view, just pass them.

Keep following signs to either Li or Mae Ping.

Once you are on 106 heading through Li, at the opposite end of the town is a very nice restaurant with nice views and various Thai dishes. They will with-hold chilis on request. The Baan Pailyn motel is next door. It was getting a bit late to approach Mae Ping with nothing booked so we decided to stay there one night and go to the park first thing in the morning.

There’s a small market in town good for fruit and snacks. They do have other food options but everything looked too spicy for us.

Li temple

We stopped at a small grocery store to stock up for the park. We took a pass on these fresh chicken feet!

More of the market.

Beautiful temple on the road towards Mae Ping.

Entrance to Mae Ping.

Birding The Chom Thong Countryside (Near Doi Inthanon)

Posted on June 21, 2015 by Tara

The last morning of our visit to Doi Inthanon we made one last visit to the Blossom-headed Parakeet Conservation Area to see the parakeets in hopefully better light. Then we just drove around looking for birds. A Lesser Racquet-tailed Drongo swooped low in front of our car too quickly for a photo. He disappeared into the trees and we hung around hoping he would come closer.

Here’s a few pics I snapped – nothing great but a good idea of what to expect from the countryside. This is all private property – farms and such.

A Day Trip To Doi Inthanon – The Summit

Posted on June 18, 2015 by Tara

After leaving Km 34.5 we kept driving up the mountain past the temple to the summit which has a nice visitor’s centre.

There’s a small museum with some educational displays of birds. If you come here on a tour from Chiang Mai, you will be taken here.

There’s a nice cafe with good coffee and a place to sit and watch birds visit the feeders. Finally some close-up shots!

There is a snack bar for cakes and drinks.

Here is a souvenir shop with the usual postcards and tourist stuff. Beware of the hilltribe hairbands. I bought a small pony-tail sized one and the colours ran on my shirt!

Blue Whistlingthrush

Elusive River Chat

Boardwalk behind the visitor centre

Dark-backed Sibia

Blue Whistlingthrush

Chestnut-tailed Minla

Across the road from the visitor centre is this nature trail, also on boardwalks.

Dark-backed Sibia

I have no idea what this means but it’s a cute little statue!

The highly sought-after and extremely fast Green-tailed Sunbird!

Local transport

A Day Trip To Doi Inthanon – Km 34.5

Posted on June 17, 2015 by Tara

Doi Inthanon is one of Thailand’s top national parks, has a good bird list and is easily reached from Chiang Mai so I highly recommend a visit here. You can combine this park with the Blossom-headed Parakeet Conservation Area just outside.

There are some excellent maps here.

Get there early to be in position when the birds wake up and start foraging. This makes the tourist day trips from Chiang Mai less attractive as you would get there too late. We had a rental car from Hertz and the independence was great!

A Red-whiskered Bulbul welcomed us in as I paid the fee – 400 Baht each in cash only.

We drove up the mountain admiring the interesting statues along the road.

We stopped at a picnic ground and ate the packed breakfast from the lodge. Not many birds were around.

We continued on and came to Mr Daeng’s Bird Centre which is well known amongst birders as a great place to learn about local birds. They have a nice restaurant but since we had breakfast we just had some tea and decided to come back for lunch. What I didn’t know before is that they also have lodging so you can start out earlier to the birding trails. You can buy a small guidebook here to help identify the birds. Bulbuls and Sparrows were everywhere.

Our next stop was the trail at KM 34.5 which is well marked. There is a place to park off road at the bottom, then you walk up the hill looking for birds. I didn’t too too well with photos so I recommend reading this page to see better photos as an idea of what birds are found here.

We saw several Grey-chinned Minivets as you can see in the photos below. The males are red and females are yellow.

Large Niltava

Ashy Drongo. We also saw a Lesser Racquet-tailed Drongo but he got away before I could get a photo.

Our car and parking area as seen walking back down the hill.

Blossom-Headed Parakeet Conservation Area Near Doi Inthanon

Posted on June 9, 2015 by Tara

The Blossom-Headed Parakeet Conservation Area is a few km before you reach the gate for Doi Inthanon. If you pick up a car at Chiang Mai airport it will be about a 2 hour drive or a bit less. You will see the turn-off on the right hand side of the road and it’s the same road that leads to TouchStar Resort and Inthanon Highland Resort. There is a map on the Thai Birding site.

Turn down this road.

We tried two different areas. The road on the left as indicated by the sign leads to a couple farms but no one around to explain anything about the parakeets. The Thai Birding map tells you to keep going down the road on the right as shown here.

Don’t turn left at the first shelter, it leads to a private home.

This is the correct “shelter with corrugated iron roof”. Drive past it a couple hundred metres and watch the trees on the left.

Find a place to park and keep your eyes out. The parakeets started arriving around 4:30pm. Unfortunately they perched fairly far from the road where you can park. The land between the road and the trees is private property and I didn’t want to trespass on it. So I used every bit of my 400mm lens for these shots!

A few other birds can be found there too – mostly bulbuls, sparrows, swallows and doves. There were a couple Bee-eaters just before entering the area.

Sunset at the end of the first evening visit.

After visiting Doi Inthanon NP, we went back the 2nd evening hoping for better views. The birds were still far away but the light was somewhat better.

We went back to the road that goes left to the “sanctuary” and still not a bird in sight. It looks like someone is leaving food for them or that could just be a Spirit House offering but still no humans around to ask.

And another beautiful sunset to end the 2nd day.

For some reason I can’t crop in the WordPress package so these are out of sequence but at least you can see the birds a bit better! The females have a lavender head and only a hint of a ring. The males have a brighter magenta “blossom” head and a clearly defined ring around their necks.

Chiang Mai As An Eco-tourism Gateway

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Tara

Chiang Mai is one of the most popular cities in one of the world’s most popular countries to travel in and there are 1000’s of blogs that specialize in travel to Thailand. I am only going to cover Chiang Mai as the gateway to several fantastic parks in which you can enjoy Thailand’s best birding. In the map below, you can see just how close you are to Doi Lang, Doi Ang Khang (name not on map, 2nd yellow line) north of Chiang Mai and Doi Inthanon and Mae Ping south of Chiang Mai.

TRANSPORTATION

Arriving at the airport, it is easiest to get one of the flat fare taxis to your hotel. If you fly straight through from Australia with the Bangok connection, you will arrive in Chiang Mai late at night. Whatever you do, don’t rent a car if you are spending any time in the city. It’s very difficult to negotiate the small back streets and you are likely to get lost. Use taxis and tuktuks while in Chiang Mai

Once you are ready to leave the city and get to the parks, you will need a rental car. Most car hire companies are located at the airport. Chiang Mai’s airport also has a variety of fast food places and coffee bars for a quick snack.

We rented from Hertz and were very happy with the service. As usual, I took photos of the car and had no problem when returning it.

ACCOMMODATION

Just about every hotel chain (except Club Carlson) is represented here. I chose to go indie because hotels are so cheap here I didn’t think it was a good use of hotel points and prefer to save them for expensive countries. I booked the Lannathai Guesthouse on Hotels.com because it was cheap, well located and counted as one of 10 bookings to get a free night in Welcome Rewards. This place cost around $12 and was fine for one night pre-birding and 2 nights post birding. It’s right in the middle of the night bazaar and there are lots of small spas to get a massage. In a later post, I will go into how we spent our 2 post-birding days.

Our first birds in Thailand, these little bulbuls on the Spirit House.

Having a suit tailor made is a good idea while in Chiang Mai. Order your suit before you go birding, then go back for fittings afterwards. This Armani shop was the cheapest in the night bazaar and did a good job on my suit.

After ordering my suit, we took a tuktuk to the airport to get the car and headed off to Doi Inthanon.

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