Hike to Bottle Beach

The hike to Bottle Beach was my first hike on the island of Ko Phangan in the forest jungle. Located on the north end of the island, it began near the beach of Haad Khom and ended at Haad Khuad , also known as Bottle Beach. I was able to find the beginning of the trail easy enough from following the island map, as vague as it can be at times. It was around noon and very hot and sticky out. It didn't take long before I was drenched in sweat. However, soon enough I was under the canopy of the trees and it cooled down a little bit for me. The trail was not excessively well tread like those in Colorado, or perhaps other trails on the island. Fortunately there were empty water bottles hanging off trees and bushes indicating the way. There were times however when I would reach a large clearing with rocks and boulders and it would take me some exploring and testing of locations where it appeared the trail was resuming. Some of the spots would dead end into nothing but thickets and I would have to turn around and make my way out to retry another spot. While the forest was dense with trees and vegetation, it was not so incredibly dense to be considered jungle, at least in my opinion. I have since been in the interior and eastern side of the island where I would definitely consider jungle. I was quite close to the coastline so I would imagine that played a difference in it not being quite as dense as the interior of the island.


Towards the beginning of the hike I saw several small monitor lizards scurry off into the bush. However, with the exception of these, I didn't see any quality wildlife, reptiles, or insects the duration of the hike. The hike was demanding in spots as it was on the side of a steep hill. Sometimes it involved climbing nearly vertical up portions of the trail. Compared to some of the climbing and hiking in Colorado it was a day in the park. About 2/3s the way to my destination I lost the trail and wound up along the rocky coastline. This was fun to climb and navigate through. I heard later from a thai boatman that in the mornings he often sees monkeys coming down to the rocks to scavenge for crabs. I didn't have the privilege to spot one however. The coastline had a nice seabreeze with beautiful views of the bluish green ocean. Eventually, nearly 2 hours after I had started I made it around a bend and had arrived at the far edge of the remote and isolated beach, primarily accessible by boat on the ocean. I walked by a bunch of abandoned huts with incredible views of the beach and ocean. With a little bit of work one could have themselves an amazing place to live. Finally I made it too the beach. Not very crowded as there are only 4-5 small resorts and sets of bungalows to stay at. A perfect place for one seeking peace and tranquility away from the masses.

I decided to take a swim in the ocean and cool down a bit. I wasn't aware of it at the time but I heard the bay there has very good coral reefs. I will have to get back again and go snorkeling. I stuck around the beach for a couple of hrs lounging, swimming, and getting something to eat. Since it was a small and isolated beach there wasn't that many people present at the beach, as compared to some of the other beaches on the island. Very laidback and relaxing vibe on the island.

Since it was getting later in the afternoon I decided to take a ocean boat back to where I started instead of hiking my way back through the forest. I met a Canadien couple who were on their way back to the other side of the island and was shared the boat with them. No sense getting caught in the woods in the dark and getting lost like the British couple.