It’s 5.30am and we’re making our way along a narrow wooden jetty. The owner of a longtail boat shines a flashlight to help us clamber on board his transport. The silence in this pre-dawn moment is broken only by the putt-putt of our modest engine as it starts to weave through the narrow waterway.
Before long, the waterway has widened out into Talay Noi (ทะเลน้อย), which is in the southern Thai province of Phattalung. Not often seen by tourists – its neighbours Krabi and Trang tend to grab the headlines – this area has a rich array of wildlife and natural beauty.
Our driver, a member of the national park team that cares for this wetland, adroitly manouvers the boat past fishing nets and long grass until we reach a herd of 200 buffalo. The waters here are shallow when we visit, so we can get off and walk carefully towards the herd (the animals are privately owned and kept for their meat). These buffalo are used to visitors, but as one decide to get into the waters to be on the safe side.
We leave them to graze and head off to a nearby patch of water covered with
thousands of pink lotus. Usually the buffalo would eat these but the rains have not yet come so the flowers are attached to mud from the lake’s bed, which the buffaloes aren’t so keen on.
By now, the sky has turned a silvery blue and apricot orange as the sun starts to appear. Our driver turns off the engine and we drift on the smooth waters for a while; the only other company is the occasional brahminy kite swooping and soaring in search of a meal.
Close by are the area’s most-famous attraction – its fishing nets. These spider-like structures, which stand permenantly in the water, hold giant nets that are lowered down and then hauled in each morning. A passing fisherman stops in his boat to proudly display a giant prawn – a kilogram of these will net him 400THB, he tells us.
After two hours, it’s time to return. The journey back is just as fascinating as we glide past herons, egrets, and purple swamphens (the area’s also home to 180 species). For those looking an alternative to the islands and beaches of nearby Krabi and Phuket, this is unmissable.
How much: Our boat cost 1,200THB and could take up to six people.
How long: This was for a two-hour trip, starting at 5.30pm. One-hour trips are also available.
Where: Talay Noi (sometimes spelled Thale) is a freshwater lagoon that’s part of the bigger Songkhla Lake area. If you’re in Phuket, it’s a five-hour drive (or one hour from central Trang).
The wetlands cover 460 km2, making Talay Noi one of the largest natural fresh
water lakes in South East Asia. It’s part of a chain of lagoons that make up Songkhla Lake.
