Day 8 - Railay Kayaking

Today we had no planned activities so we decided to head back to Railay beach and do a bit of Kayaking. The distance to Railay is shorter than from Krabbi town. It only takes 15 minutes and costs 80 Baht. You buy a ticket from the office at the end of the beach road. The ever-helpful Pok advised us to only purchase a ticket one way. Those that buy a return ticket have to wait for the same boatman to bring them back which could mean waiting for well over an hour.

We arrived at Railay and decided on having a drink before hiring the kayak. Our favourite bar, The Flame Tree, was showing live pictures of a state funeral taking place. We soon found out that this was for the Kings Sister, who had died at the beginning of the year. Everything that we had seen earlier in Bangkok suddenly became clear. The crowds at the Grand Palace. The avenues gearing up for a fiesta were probably gearing up for a wake.


View of Hat Phra Nang


Rocking.

We hired the Kayaks for 2-hours including snorkelling gear with the possibility of taking an extra hour if we wanted. It was a red-hot day and we didn’t know how long we would last in the afternoon heat. We took the double kayak to the sea and launched before the beach became crowed with Long-tail boats from Ao Nang. We headed towards Hat Phra Nang, first exploring the cliffs that separate it from Rai ley West. This is a great place for rocking, which is made easier by the tranquil waters.


The engine room!


Navigating an over-hang.

After exploring the islands off Hat Phra Nang we headed over towards the Princess cave to see if we could find a place to moor the kayak and go for a snorkel. We found the perfect place in a secret cove. The waters in here looked crystal clear and seemed promising for our snorkelling. Alas, outside the cove the waters were a bit murkier and not as good as around the Phi Phi Islands.


Happy and Bird Nest Islands.


Good parking spot.


Monica snorkelling.

We soon gave up the snorkelling and headed off towards Ao Nang. On the way we spotted a secluded beach where the only other occupants were fellow Kayakers. We stopped off to see if the snorkelling here was any better. A slight improvement but still not close to Phi Phi. Back on the beach and we thought it would be a good idea to explore the forest just off the beach. Within the space of 5 minutes you had left an idyllic beach scene and entered a tropical forest that made you feel a million miles away from the coast. Surreal. It was a bit spooky and we weren’t sure what kind of creatures were lurking around so we didn’t explore too deep.


On the secluded beach.

Our two hours easily became three and we were in danger of needing a fourth hour. We paddled back to Rai Ley West and bit quicker. The promise of a cool beer at the Flame Tree was enough to motivate us to get back on time.


Flame Tree in sight paddle faster!