Still living in ‘Natural Phuket’

So many people, when deciding on where to go for their holidays, look at the photos in a brochure or on the internet. What do they have to go on? Well, they have the reviews written by others who have been there. They have the photos from the tourism department of that country or destination, the word of mouth from others who have been there, or stories from people who know someone who has been there.

Phuket is no different. But just like when buying anything, what they use most are their eyes. They see photos of empty white sandy beaches, calm flat blue seas, nice green trees, traditional villages, low rolling hills, streams and beautifully selected photos. They see tours going to various places all depicting beautiful coral reefs, stunning fish, idyllic national parks stuffed with exotic birds and animals. They pick a hotel using the same methods, take out a credit card and book the “perfect holiday”.

But on arrival, they do the same as everyone else: check in, go to the beach, go to the bars and restaurants, go to the markets, shopping centres, book a few of the main ‘cattle car’ tours that everyone else is doing. They all visit the same beaches, gather around the same pools, visit the same restaurants and bars at night. They generally have a great time and get back on the plane home.

But did they see the perfect unspoilt coral reefs? The stunning birds, butterflies, fish, flowers, rolling hills of the national parks? No, of course not. They jumped in minibuses and crowded speedboats for the tours, taxis for the rest and walked a few streets to the markets, shopping, restaurants and bars.

I can say exactly the same thing about those who have chosen to live in a great place like Phuket. They come because of the warm weather and the neon lights that attract so many to holiday destinations around the world. All the new ‘resident’ foreigners in Phuket know all the bars, restaurants, coffee shops and have been on the same three or four cattle car tours a few times, and think they know everything and have seen everything.

I was the same. Then, after the COVID-19 pandemic, I said “NO!” when it came to getting a new motorbike. I said I will stop being lazy. I will walk to 7-Eleven. Walk along the beach to work in the mornings. I will not ride along the narrow streets filled with the crazy tuk-tuks and minivans that think they are in the Dakar Rally.

I keep well away from the tourists who hire scooters on holiday but don’t ride bikes in their own country and I’ve started to walk. I moved out of the town and into the hills above Patong Bay. Best move I ever did. Clean air, cool breeze and great views. Got me fitter as well into the bargain. But best of all it opened my eyes. I’m one of the few people that can honestly say that having a longer travel time to work is a good thing. That’s after 12 years of living here and many four- and five-month stays; before that I had seen so little.

Now I recommend a walk along the south end of Patong Beach at 7am or first light till around 9am. Check the tides first and as long as it’s not high tide, you will see so many sea birds. There are so many different types, all feeding on the shellfish, hermit crabs and small fish on the shoreline.

Once it gets to 8:30 or 9am, once all the beachgoers, jet-skis and parasailing boats arrive, the birds all vanish. But that’s fine as it starts to get warm by then anyway and the birds have already had their fill. From Great Egrets, Pacific Reef Herons, Little Egrets, Cormorants, Sand Plovers and different types of Kingfisher, to name but a few.

Nice deep blue skies with the low early morning sun and the perfect white egrets gliding effortlessly just a few metres above the water or outlined against the blue sky makes for stunning photos. For photographers, the mornings on Patong beach are perfect as the sun is behind you as you look out to sea so blue from the reflection of the sky. All the seabirds are well lit and you are not looking into the sun.

The best place to be is south of the jetty that the cruise ships use. Go all the way to the south end where the small canal empties into the sea. There is a nice little bay where the trees reach the shore. The brightly painted longtail fishing boats go in and out from the fishing village just a couple of hundred metres upstream. Yes there is a fishing village in Patong that even many Thais do not know is there.

If you are lucky, as I have been a few times, you can have a large section of beach to yourself with only the odd person walking past. And in low season I have been there for hours and not seen a soul.

I’d like to think that I genuinely wish more people would walk around just outside the edges to the main town – or maybe I don’t as I don’t want lots of people to turn up! Joking aside, I do wish more people would have a look at just how much nature is still left in Phuket despite the huge development projects tearing up the jungle areas. If people can start to see the natural Phuket rather than the concrete jungle then people will realise that they don’t need to travel from Phuket to see the beautiful wildlife as it’s all here. You just need to go and see it.

Then just maybe, rather than building multi-story complexes, people will build small bungalows, and leave the trees and plants. People will come to relax, to be woken up by bird song, have butterflies flutter past during breakfast. When there are plenty of trees about, it’s cooler too, rather than concrete reverberating with heat everywhere. Since moving out of Patong I have not had to use the aircon once.

I think there is still enough natural beauty and wildlife left even on the outskirts of places like Patong and Karon to attract photographers, bird watchers and other nature lovers to this beautiful island. Yes, the towns have the shopping and the nightlife, but the rest of the island has so much potential too. People around the world have busy stressful lives and are desperate for quiet, peaceful, beautiful places to come on holidays to relax.

I hope in the coming weeks to be able to highlight all the great wildlife we have here on Phuket. What you can see, where you can see it, what you should be wary of and what you should stay well away from. When and where to go for great photos without having to travel from one end of the island to the other.

But most of all I aim to introduce the awesome variety of wildlife to the millions who visit Phuket and live on Phuket. Who to be fair mostly walk (or ride) without seeing anything. This is a fantastic island with so much to offer and see. We all need to take care of it and just let people know its there on the doorstep if we just look.

- Simon Lomas