Kui Buri National Park in Prachuap Khiri Khan

[PeteC]

Photo essay best read at link.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/life/social ... ith-nature

......When we were ready, the guide told our chauffeur to leave the station. The tour would lead me to a 15km route where wild elephants and gaurs can regularly be spotted.

The service is the cooperation between the national park and Ban Ruam Thai village, a nearby community. The aim is to promote eco-tourism and help generate income to the villagers.

Ban Ruam Thai is situated about 20km from Tanao Sri mountain range, the border between Thailand and Myanmar. It was founded in 1978 following the government's policy to allocate farmland to those who volunteered to settle down in the area, which was once known as a red zone, in the days when communism was seen as a security threat.

During the early years, about 150 families moved in. They came from different parts of the country, especially from the Northeast. Some of them were former soldiers. As a result, the village is named Ban Ruam Thai, meaning the gathering of Thai people.

Each family received a 20 rai plot of land for farming and another three rai for building a house. They have the right to live in the allocated land but can't sell it as the title deed belongs to the Forest Department.

At present, the community is home to 600 families with a populations of about 2,000. Most are farmers, with pineapples as the dominant crop. Each family also grows vegetables and herbs for their kitchens, following the sufficiency economy philosophy of King Bhumibol Adulyadej or King Rama IX. Some also raise chicken and tilapia.......