A Shan Guide and a Secret Cave - a real adventure!
Trip Start
Oct 09, 2007
1
68
98
Trip End
Ongoing
Sappong,
Thailand
Friday, February 15, 2008
driving north of Sappong
So, we packed a daybag for the swimming hole and started to drive north out of town. We totally missed it. Passed it by a long shot. So, since the scenery was nice, we decided to just keep going north, because it was such a nice drive. There were also a lot of signs for Caves in the area. As it turns out, there are over 200 caves in the area, some "major" tourist attractions; so we figured it wouldnt be so bad to stumble upon one. We followed some signs.
Shan Village
Well... we drove about 30 kilometers when we came to a military checkpoint. Crap. Mathew's passport was being held ransom until we returned the motorbike (common practice) and mine was at the house. There was a bunch of guys in military fatigues and guns.
driving north of Sappong
They looked at us confused, stared at us for a while and then we gave them a nice smile and they waved us through, smiling. Driving off, we were thinking, "Hmm... what was with the checkpoint? I know we are close to Burma...really close to Burma.... but that wasnt the border, right?" "Nah...."
driving north of Sappong - through villages
We turned left onto a road and after going up 2 major hills on a dirt road, pressing our motorbike to the very limit, we came to another military checkpoint. This time it was 2 kids sitting at a post with big guns.
driving north of Sappong
We stopped and smiled. They stared at us with their mouths open and smiled. We asked about caves. They repeated the word "cave" and stared blankely:.. no english. They just stared....and stared. So, we used hand motions, asking if we could proceed, they nodded yes, smiling all the way and let us through. Hmmm..... ok, well, ok.
trekking to unknown cave
So, we proceeded down about two valleys where the road ended at an old village. The sign said "Shan Village". Well, we started thinking about it, and all we knew was that the Shan people were a minority hilltribe and made up 3% of the Burmese population. How about that.
trekking to unknown cave
Looking for any evidence of a cave, we decided to turn back, for the only road left, was a steep hill that went very high. Mathew explained to me, that he thought caves were usually at the base of mountains, not at the top, so in other words: "oh well, lets go back..its been fun".
trekking to unknown cave
Coral Cave!
I aggreed, and just as we were getting back on our bike, a man came out of his house with 2 huge headlamps with attached battery packs.
He came up to us saying, "You go cave?" "You dont know cave." "I know cave". Mathew and I looked at each other and was like, "Well ok, will you show us the cave?" Well, thats when we understood that those three sentances that he just spoke to us were the only english words he knew. So, in other words, he didnt get that we wanted him to show us the cave. It took about a good 10 minutes of us trying to ask him how much he wanted for showing us the cave. This just confused matters worse and he even bowed his head down, shuffled his feet and proceeded to walk away! FINALLY, we got it all cleared up, and he was excited to show us his cave, and we were excited to explore it.
the entrance to Coral Cave
going deep into Coral Cave
We didnt know what we were in for.
Mastering hand gestures, he wanted Mathew to drive me up the top of the hill and he would follow: about 500 meters up a steep hill! When we got to the top of the hill, we were surrounded by little children laughing and giggling by our presence.
Coral Cave
Once our guide reached the top, he then got on the back of the bike and drove off with mathew about 1/2 kilometer for Mathew to come back and get me. Once we were all at the end of the dirt road, we parked the motorbike and thats when the trekking began. My goodness, we had no idea. It would have been a good idea to have some water.....
Coral Cave
We were literatly off any real path and walking straight through woods. At the beginning of our walk down steep into the valley, a strange looking dog came up to us. We think he must have been half wolf or somthing, because he looked so different.
Coral Cave
But this dog gave us a real peace of mind. He would walk about 10 yards ahead of us, sniff things out, stop and wait for us to reach him. He would repeat this the entire journey through the woods, to the cave. Quite sureal. Once we got to the cave (which it was about a 45 minute walk downhill), we were shocked to see the entrance: literatly, a small whole between boulders in the side of the mountain. But it had a sign! It was called: Coral Cave. Cool.
12-Coral Cave
Well, Mathew and I looked at the hole, looked at each other, then looked down the hole again. "Are we doing this for real?" "Well, yeah, I guess we're committed now!" "Sure, yeah..."
Coral Cave - long stalagtite
We strapped on our headlamps and followed are guide deep down the hole: THERE WAS A STURDY LADDER! (thank god)
our Shan guide
The cave was beautiful and long. We walked about 40 minutes deep into the cave, before turning back. Beautiful crystals and formations: the pictures dont do it justice. We crawled up and down and around, while our guide was like the "village geologist": shining his light at all points of interest and telling us where to step and not to step. The stalagtite formations look like coral: where it gets its name.
Crystals in Coral Cave
Upon leaving the cave, we were suprised to see that the dog was waiting for us! Which was a great thing, because we all felt very safe with him there...
exit of Coral Cave
All I had was a couple of homemade ricecakes in my bag, and so I shared them among the 3 of us and the dog. We needed water and it was a LONG way back. So, after a short rest, the trekking uphill began. There were cool crystals all over the forest, rocks that just broke off the mountain. Whats more, the dog went back with us, sniffing things out before we would get anywhere; and then once we returned to the bike: he vanished.
trekking back to Shan Village
Another weird thing, is that I took pictures of this dog: and i cant find any pics of him! I swear I took pics of him when we got our of the cave. ??????? Spirit dog of the forest, perhaps? :D
top of Shan village
After paying our guide and thanking him for a great adventure, we proceeded home, passing both military checkpoints with nothing but a smile.
trekking back to Shan Village
That night, we had another great dinner with Albert and Susannon and greeted a new guest to the house. We shared our story with them around a fire and went to bed early again.
big crystals
the base of hill on the left is Coral Cave
