There are experiences that don’t fit into photos or words. Moments you don’t “record” – you live them. One of those was the canoe route through Phang Nga Bay, in the Krasom area of Takua Thung (somewhere around Phuket), in Thailand. A place where the sky touches the sea and the rocks rise like stone prayers.
We boarded an inflatable canoe – I sat in front, and behind me was the guide: a lively Thai man with a white beard, a faded hat and an orange shirt that looked more like a second skin than clothing. He didn’t talk to me, didn’t explain the route or give instructions. Instead, he started humming in Thai – a low, whisper-like melody that blended with the sound of the paddle slicing through the water. I couldn’t understand the words, but I felt he wasn’t singing for people, but for the place itself.
The water had that unreal turquoise-green color you’re not sure comes from the light or your imagination. The limestone cliffs rose vertically, with such force that they seemed to grow from the seabed straight into the sky. Plants clung to cracks and crevices in the rock, hanging as if the wind had woven them there. And below, a forest of mangrove trees stretched out into the water. Their roots didn’t look like roots – they looked like skeletal limbs holding the land upright. Some twisted, others intertwined like fingers, and some hung from the cliffs, forming natural arches and tunnels.
Without me asking, the guide stretched out his hand and took my phone. I didn’t take the photos – he did. He knew where to balance the paddle, how to angle the canoe, which rock face to place behind me. At some point he pulled heart-shaped mangrove leaves from his bag and held them in front of the lens like a natural filter. He wasn’t joking. It was part of the ritual.
Just before we entered the first cave, he turned and quietly said:
“In some places you have to lie down. If you’re not careful, you’ll hit.”
He said it the way someone mentions the weather. When the canoe started sliding into the narrow passage, I understood. The ceiling of the cave dropped so low I could almost feel the rock on my forehead. I lay back, stretched my arms by my sides and kept only my eyes open. He pulled in the paddle and placed his palms against the rock, pushing us through with his hands. He kept singing, almost without breath. The water changed temperature, the sound faded, the air cooled. For a few seconds, it felt like entering the mouth of the earth.
And then—light. We emerged into a hidden lagoon, surrounded by rocks and roots. No one spoke. Only the guide, still whispering his song as if keeping time with the sea. In other parts, the caves narrowed even more. You’d see canoes ahead, people lying flat, legs crossed, arms tucked in. No one complained, no one laughed. Everyone knew that if you don’t lower yourself, you don’t fit.
The landscape kept changing. One moment sunlight, the next shadow. One moment deep green, then glass, then mirror. I kept thinking how many years it took for every curve, every hollow, every opening to form—openings you wouldn’t even notice unless you searched for them.
When we returned to the starting point, I didn’t want to speak. It wasn’t that “I went canoeing in Thailand.” It was that for a while, I became part of a landscape that does not accept you unless you surrender to it. At the end, the guide discreetly waited for the tip. He didn’t ask, but he didn’t need to. I gave it with a smile. Not because “that’s what you do,” but because what I lived through can’t be measured in price.
Practical Tips Before You Go
Canoe trips in Phang Nga Bay start from the Krasom area, about an hour from Phuket. You don’t need to paddle – each canoe has its own guide who knows every passage and takes better photos of you than you would yourself. It’s good to bring sunscreen, a hat, water and a waterproof phone case. Be prepared to lie completely flat in the canoe in some caves. At the end, tipping the guide isn’t a formality – it’s a thank you.
Πρακτικά tips για πριν πας
Οι εκδρομές με κανό στον κόλπο Phang Nga ξεκινούν από την περιοχή Krasom, περίπου μία ώρα από το Πουκέτ. Δεν χρειάζεται να κάνεις εσύ κουπί – κάθε κανό έχει τον δικό του οδηγό, που γνωρίζει τα περάσματα και σε φωτογραφίζει καλύτερα απ’ όσο θα το έκανες εσύ. Καλό είναι να έχεις μαζί σου αντηλιακό, καπέλο, νερό και το κινητό σε αδιάβροχη θήκη. Να είσαι προετοιμασμένος ότι σε κάποιες σπηλιές θα χρειαστεί να ξαπλώσεις τελείως μέσα στο κανό. Στο τέλος, το tip στον οδηγό δεν είναι αγγαρεία· είναι ευχαριστώ.
