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| Mrs Hume's Pheasant |
Following our three-week trip to Sumatra, we flew north from Pedang to the Thai capital of Bangkok. Here we had five days of relaxation and sight-seeing. We've been to Bangkok previously and are fond of the city. A couple of images follow.
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| Bangkok - Grand Palce |
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| Bangkok river ferry |
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| Bangkok downtown at night |
We then flew north to Chiang Mai and had four days at the delightful Bodhi Serene Hotel. More relaxation and sight-seeing in another city I've visited previously.
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| Chiang Mai view from hotel room |
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| Chiang Mai Buddhist ceremony |
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| Chiang Mai - old temple |
We hired a vehicle in Chiang Mai and drove north to the small town of Fang, the base to explore the mountains on the nearby Thai-Myanmar border. We stayed for 3 nights at Tangerine Villa, a basic hotel where no English is spoken, but there aren't too many other options in the region.
I hired a guide for two mornings up in the mountains. I won't name him because he wasn't very good – he'd never heard of one of my targets – and I would have found the birds without him. I've birded Thailand and surrounding countries before so there are just a handful of targets remaining in this part of the world. The road follows the border and mountains on both sides - in both countries - were something to behold.
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| View across Myanmar from Doi Lang |
The first morning we headed up to Doi Lang West through Doi Pha Ha Bok National Park, the main route for regional specialties. We struck gold early as a male Hume's Pheasant appeared roadside in fir tree woodland, close to a spot where birds are fed in the dry season, attracting hordes of photographers. This was the wet season and we didn't see any other birders during our two mornings. The pheasant can easily be missed or consume days to find so it was a relief to see it early. This was the only one we saw.
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| Mrs Hume's Pheasant |
Soon after we had a couple of Giant Nuthatches in the fir trees. This smart nuthatch is another key target for the region.
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| Giant Nuthatch |
He had
good views of Himalaya Cutia in the fir woodland. Other birds included Black-backed Sibia, Black-breasted Thrush and Blyth's Shrike-Babbler.
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| Himalayan Cutia |
The second morning had us back up the mountain, this time focusing on broadleaf wet forest, mostly at and below the Army-run checkpoint on the Thai-Myanmar border.
A narrow trail into the forest a little below the base was productive. Brief but good glimpses of Scarlet-faced Liocichla were managed after some effort; the birds are fed at the Army checkpoint in the dry season. Also present was a flock of calling White-necked Laughingthrush. A little further down the road, 6 Moluntain Bamboo-Partridges finally showed after some coaxing. Two more were seen later on the liocichla trail and more were heard elsewhere.
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| Thai-Myanmar border post |
Other birds encountered included another key target for me – Stripe-breasted Woodpecker. Hill Prinia, Long-tailed Broadbill, Spot-breasted Parrotbill and Crested Finchbill were among other birds seen.
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| Crested Finchbill |
We visited Fang Hot Springs near the town on our third and final morning. This was a delightful area of parkland and forest, renowned for its bathing springs and geothermal geysers.
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| Fang Hot Springs geyser |
In the afternoon I drove north to Thatorn, locating an old water tower that marks the spot for what was once a reliable site for Jerdon's Bushchat along the river nearby. The birds' reed habitat has largely gone and I could not reach a patch I could see downstream because of a wall of mimosa, a prickly exotic weed. We drove back to Chiang Mai the next day.
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| River near Thatorn |
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