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Located 8 km off the
coast of Trat, Ko Chang, which measures 30 km
long by 8 km wide, making its Thailand's second
largest island after Phuket, is the main isle in
a 52-island archipelago that forms Mu Ko Chang
National Park, established as a nature preserve
in 1982.
Mainly because of
its isolation, only now is the island being
discovered by international travelers, and
although accommodation options and other tourism
facilities are increasing, a sense of discovery
is still possible. If not precisely terra
incognita, Ko Chang is sparsely populated and
roughly 70 percent of the land is virgin
rainforest. Rugged in its hills and cliffs, but
strikingly beautiful in its long pristine
stretches of white sandy beaches and profusion
of lush greenery, the island beckons as a
tropical paradise.
Ko Chang itself has
a mountainous interior, which accounts for the
name 'Elephant Island', as from a distance the
mountain ridges are said to look like the backs
of several elephants. Contrasting with a rugged
forested interior is a coastline characterized
by small bays and exceptionally fine beaches,
the best spots being on the western side of the
island, notably, from north to south, at Ko
Khlong Son beach, Hat Sai Khao beach, Hat Khlong Phrao
beach and
Hat Kai Bae beach. Close by each of these beaches are
small villages where the inhabitants support
themselves mainly by fishing, harvesting
coconuts and cultivating fruit orchards.
Of the main islands,
Ko Kut island is the second largest in the group and,
like Ko Chang, is mountainous and still half
covered with forest. On its coast are some of
the loveliest beaches in the archipelago. Ko Mak
island,
lying between Ko Chang and Ko Kut, is covered
mostly with coconut groves and exudes a rather
more inhabited air than its neighboring islands.
Located off the northwest tip of Ko Mak, Ko
Kradat island is completely flat and lacks
topographical interests, though its beaches and
surrounding coral reefs are superb.
The waters around
the islands have an abundance of colorful coral,
and generally the conditions are good for scuba
diving, perhaps best off Ko Kradat. Otherwise,
snorkeling or hiring a boat to go fishing are
the sporting alternatives.
Away from the
beaches, hiking in the hinterland offers
marvelous views and a rare appreciation of
tropical island scenery. Ko Chang's natural
sights include several picturesque waterfalls,
notably Tan Mayom waterfall, a multi-tiered cascade
tumbling in stages through a rocky gorge into a
series of deep pools.
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