We are doing something we’ve shunned in the past – going to an Elephant park. We’ve read so many different complaints about these parks – too touristy, not fun, the elephants are exploited – added to our less than happy ride on an Elephant years ago, and you can understand why we really had no desire to go. But we stumbled upon the Elephant Nature Park in, of all things, the Air Asia onboard magazine. It touted this park, and it’s founder, Lek Chailert, as a humane park where elephants are rescued and left to live their lives in a much more natural setting. After some research, this seemed like a responsible place to visit – thus – off we go at 8am in the Elephant Nature Park van.
We end up with12 in our group – a mother/daughter from the states, mother and 2 daughters from Santiago, husband/wife from the Netherlands and another 3 Spanish speaking girls (from parts unknown). Our guide, “Goy,” gives us a quick overview (she has a sore throat, so she’s not talking as much as she would normally, and apologizes profusely for it), and then plays a video about the treatment of the elephants, their rescue and the park (which has many, many other rescue animals as well – dogs – particularly from the Bangkok floods- cats, water buffalo and more). It makes the hour drive go by faster, but it is really hard to watch a lot of it. While it is excellent in teaching us a lot about the elephants and their behavior, plus do’s and don’ts while at the park (don’t stand directly in front of the elephant, don’t tease, don’t stand behind, etc.), it also has some pretty graphic depictions of the abuse they receive. In order to “train” these poor creatures, the mahouts basically torture them.
Elephants are very social in nature, devoted to one another and tend to stay together in “family” units forever. In order to break an elephant’s spirit, they are chained up and deprived of any contact, forced to walk in circles around a pole, beaten to make them listen and obey – and then once trained, mahouts have these batons with hooks on them that are used if the elephant doesn’t do what it is told. It’s ugly. You know those painting elephants? They are taught by sticking a pin or nail in their ear in order to get them to “paint.” You’ll see a mahout holding the elephant’s ear while painting, this is because he is sticking it with the pin. Argh. Riding elephants are trained no differently, it’s all about the pain and abuse. So……needless to say, I can’t watch the beatings, and I come out of the video wanting to save every elephant in sight!
So, the happy ending – at least for these 68 elephants – is the nature park, where they are rescued from performing, working in the logging industry, riding camps, or begging in the streets, and given a home in this huge preserve. Each Elephant has his or her own Mahout who takes care of them exclusively and forms a bond that helps the elephant move through its structure here in the park.
The park is north of Chiang Mai, in the mountains….
…. on a country road that unfortunately passes 2 different riding and performing elephant camps. Sigh….
Once into the park, Goy, gets us settled at “our table,” which is our meeting place, lunch location and bag storage for the day. We have a little restroom break before our fun begins – food time! The elephants here can roam free, but there is a schedule that they adhere to – which is all around food – and of course tourist visits! It’s all staged and coordinated, it’s not as pristine – so to speak – as an African safari, this place is run on a schedule with proscribed activities – but the animals are taken care of, eat well (almost 18 hours a day) and do normal activities (such as river bathing and mud baths) that they would in the wild. Only here they are guaranteed meals and no fear of being poached.
That being said – our tour begins with the feeding time at the visitors pavilion. The pavilion is the hub of all activity. It is a huge raised wooden structure where the kitchen (human and elephant food), canteen, souvenir shop, bathrooms and tables for each group are located. Each group (there are about 10 maybe? including overnight stay groups) has its own guide, and during each activity, their own “elephant.” The elephants come strolling up through the paddocks with their handlers, and knowing we have food, stroll right up to the platform for their breakfast.
We are all instructed on how to feed them, and how to stand behind the red line for safety, etc. We have a bucket of food to share…and so it begins…all of us taking turns feeding our hungry pachyderm.
They are so incredible – that trunk! Just watching them take the watermelon or pumpkin slices into their trunk and stuff it into their mouths is amazing. We end up with the Spanish girls and U.S. Mom/Daughter with just our elephant – and it is easy and fun to take turns feeding her. But, once the fruit is done, they have no interest in us anymore and they all trundle away. These guys know the score!
Goy rounds us all up and we proceed out into the fields to meet
the elephants up close and personally. We walk right out to where 3 elephants are feeding on corn stalks and get our introductory elephant petting! Goy gives us details of different things – like when an elephant flaps their ears they are happy – and the only place they sweat are around their toenails (how bizarre). Also, when an elephant is shaking its head, swaying its body and waving its trunk (you know, how you’ve almost always seen elephants behave at the circus or just standing around?), they are not happy. They are sad or angry and don’t like their situation. Fortunately, we have happy elephants here!
Happy, and quite unconcerned about us being around. Being this close and walking up and petting these guys is quite an experience, but you learn quickly to be on the look out for moving elephants! It is their home and you are just there to feed them after all, so they just trundle. And I mean trundle! All of a sudden a huge behemoth is coming at you and you need to move. It is cause for quite a few laughs, squeals and comic scenes throughout the day.
Next we wander over to see one of the older elephants at 71 years old (I think – I don’t know, I sort of lost track of which elephant we saw when – until the baby and then the original elephant Mae Perm – but more on these later). Here we get to feed once again, and she is sweeter and more relaxed than the other group we were just feeding (one of which who kept walking away from me – was it something I said?).
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