CHI PHAT (CAMBODIA)

What is there to do in Chi Pat? People in Krong Koh Kong heard about it but don’t really know anything about the place. All we read was Wildlife Alliance started to set up ecotourism in the community to prevent further hunting and logging.

Rather taken the advertised boat we took on the journey on motorbike to give s the chance to turn back if we had too. We found the right turn into the gravel road leading to the village but it didn’t end there. There were many different ways to go and we had to wait a few times before anyone came along to ask for directions. It was also slippery and raining but Phils motorbike skills were amazing and we didn’t fall of once. The last stretch was nearly unbearable with big mud pools and the afternoon heat. Our last obstacle was the ferry ride over the river where Phil had to balance the bike over a small piece of wood. It took us nearly 2 ½ hours for 20km of dirt road.

We weren’t disappointment by the Chi Phat establishment, staying in a homestay at our first night on an orange farm with battery operated electricity and a really friendly family.
We decided to hike for 2 days/1 night including camping in the jungle with sounded promising. We hired a guide “Le Heng” and a cook “Mr Hung” who knew the bush well. They made fires from scratch and put up our camp quickly as it started pouring down with rain. We slept in hammocks under a tarpaulin in the bush which we always wanted to do but never had the opportunity. We saw 3 snakes and gibbons; unluckily it wasn’t quite the season to see any animals as they don’t need to come to the lagoons in the wet. The 21km hike on the 2nd day was tiring at the end but our cook treated us with a fresh coconut from his garden when we returned.

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