Ban Rom Fa Thai

Early one October morning, we found ourselves standing in the muddy lot that passed for Chiang Rai's temporary Bus Terminal 1, feeling confused and a little lost. A minibus would be departing for Thoeng at sometime, a worker told us, but when it would arrive or where it would be parked, nobody knew. We sat down and waited for about an hour. I'll admit, I was getting annoyed with the uncertainty, and I was about ready to give up and just stay in Chiang Rai city, when we were suddenly ushered onto a small white minibus. Before I even knew what was going on, we had paid our 40 baht each, and were on the way out of the city, through the countryside, to a small rural region of the province called Thoeng District. We were on our way to Pu Chi Fah!

Chiang Rai Bus Terminal 1 (temporary)

For being so small, the bus station was surprisingly nice compared to the temporary field in Chiang Rai, but it was also almost deserted. We were standing almost alone in a quiet terminal, and were finally able to find a songtaew driver to take us up the mountain, Pu Chi Fah, a special place that we really wanted to see!

heading up the mountain

A few years ago, some of my American coworkers took a trip to the Pu Chi Fah Mountain, and after seeing their pictures, I knew I had to go someday too, and see the famous Sea of Fog over the valley. The mountain is famous in Thailand, but not so popular or well-known with foreigner. It's not so easy to get to, however, and after over an hour of zipping up the mountain along winding, nausea-inducing roads, I was so happy to arrive at the little village of Ban Rom Fa Thai, way up in the sky.

the valley

It was quiet. I mean, really quiet. The "village" was just a road of a few restaurant/guesthouses. No real hotels, no minimart (not even a ubiquitous Family Mart or 7-11), no coffee shops. It was peaceful and quiet, and we checked into a little hostel/guesthouse with two rooms, two platforms for tents, and an incredible view overlooking a valley. After asking the songtaew driver to pick us up the following day, we sat looking out over the mountains with a cup of hot tea. This place felt so unlike Bangkok, and really, so unlike anywhere else in Thailand, that it was almost difficult to believe I was still in the same country.

view from the guesthouse

The guesthouse had a little restaurant, a single table on a platform overlooking the steep valley, waited on by the owner's kids and served with food cooked just out back by the mom. The food was good, but the five-star view was what made this tiny little restaurant so special.

little restaurant

Up high in the mountain, the air was a little cooler, and infinitely fresher. There was no pollution whatsoever. The guesthouse seemed to be powered by small solar panels, and although there was wifi, we felt like we really were far away from all civilization. It was incredibly peaceful!

lunchtime!

What we really wanted to do was to go to the Pu Chi Fah Forest Park, operated by the National Park Service, where the famous peak of the "Mountain that Points to the Sky" looks out over the Sea of Fog. The owners of the guesthouse promised to take us up to the park (5km up a steep road) at 5:00 am the next morning to see the sunrise.

the guesthouse

There was nothing to do in the village except relax with a cup of tea and a book looking out over the valley, and it was great!

the view

It was dark by 7:00, and we turned in early, ready for our morning adventure the next day. Before bed, though, I got the chance to see something incredible. Up high in the mountain, once it was dark, it was DARK. There were no lights at all, except for the light of the stars and moon. The view of the stars was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen, and I could even see the bright band of the Milky Way cutting across the deep black of the night sky.