Thailand Part II: Patara Elephant Farm, Chiang Mai

Elephants!! Elephants!! I almost can’t even contain my excitement for this post, as it truly was the biggest highlight of our time in Chiang Mai and probably our entire trip to Thailand! Like I mentioned earlier, riding an elephant bareback has been something I’ve wanted to do since I was a little kid. When I initially started planning this vacation, I knew we would be able to accomplish the act of riding the elephant easily, but what I didn’t know was that we’d find a place where not only we’d get to ride the elephants, but we would get to act as an elephant owner for the ENTIRE day. Patara Elephant Farm, a thai-owned farm in Chiang Mai, was the place that made it all possible. Since 2001, Patara has focused on the healthcare and breeding programs for Asian elephants, and so far have been very successful. While we were there, at least 3 or 4 elephants were pregnant among us, and a handful of babies were new to the world…one as young as 4 weeks old!

This baby was a few months old, Matthew said he was much heavier than he looks!

The other cool thing about Patara is that they partner with a local Thai tribe (Karen Tribe) of Mahouts (elephant owners) that help monitor the daily lives of the elephants. These were the native people in the pictures that taught us about our individual elephant (In my case two elephants because I was assigned the mama with a baby!). Also Patara is probably the most humane elephant organization around as they combine conservation with education to visiting tourists, and do NOT in any way shape or form abuse or mistreat the elephants. These elephants live the life! They basically have a daily routine that we,the tourists, help the mahouts accomplish.

So after we played with the babies for a bit, we were introduced to our individual elephant(s) as well as the Karen tribe member that would be teaching us throughout the day. I was paired with Choe-poo and baby Yaya. Yaya was about 9 months old and what a hoot she was! Matthew was assigned his elephant, Chapang. Chapang was 15 years old!

After we were assigned our elephants it was time for feeding. We fed them bananas and large tree plants. We were taught the appropriate calls that would signal for them to raise their trunks to eat, of course in no time Choe-poo was already stepping all over me and took bananas straight from my basket! Next it was on to checking out the health and overall well being of our elephants. There are four general things to look for when making sure than an elephant is in good health and a happy mood.

1. Similar to a dog, the ears should be flapping and tails wagging. If they aren’t, the elephants are not happy campers!

2. Check to be sure that the toenails are wet, as elephants only sweat around the nails and this is where the cuticles live. Also, they should have wetness around the eyes, as elephants do not have tear ducts. Dry eyes=unhealthy elephant!

3. Poop! It should be round, smell grassy, and should contain a lot of water. You can tell this by ringing it out, which luckily they just demonstrated for us! Also, they should always poop at least 4-5 chunks in one sitting. Less than that is not good!

4. Elephants should always sleep lying down, unlike horses. An elephant that is asleep up against a tree or standing is probably sick.

Chapang is straight chilling’ laying down!

Learning to ride was up next, but before we could do that, we had to make sure the elephants skin was clear of insects and dirt. Since they sleep lying down, bugs and other insects love to make a home on their backs, so elephants will usually throw dirt on themselves as a way of protecting themselves. We were given large leaves that we used to sweep off the dirt, and man did we have to smack them pretty hard to get it off. No worries though, elephants have extremely thick skin!We then hosed them down a bit, it was so hot outside!

Now it’s time to ride. Bareback is really the only humane way to ride an elephant. When you see any form of seat, carrier, etc. roped to an elephant, chances are they are in some type of pain. There are three ways to get on your elephant: by the trunk, climbing up the leg, or by them laying down. I opted for the easiest looking option, also the most similar option to riding a horse! Matthew went up the trunk, which looked a bit more complicated!

So now that we are on our elephants, it’s off we go! And this wasn’t just some rinky dink slow trek for a few minutes, we rode these bad boys through the jungle. Steep cliffs and hills, for about two hours until we reached the water where we would bathe and play with them. My poor husband looked like he was going to fall to his death the entire time, it turns out if you are 6’0 ft or taller and plan on doing this exact same adventure it’s quite an awkward feeling! For me, it felt completely natural. I was taking videos, texting, and barely holding on during our ride. It was unbelievable!

Once we got to the water, they knew what was in store, it was time for play! We had to bathe them and brush the skin, extremely hard I might add!

Some other highlights from this unforgettable day was our mid-day lunch provided by Patara. We ate amongst the beautiful scenery, and I must say the lunch they prepared was wonderful! They even had “thai” fried chicken legs, which were much better than American chicken legs by far!