Phang Nga is so vast, it would take weeks to paddle across; to be sure we saw the highlights, a long-tail boat whisked us around the next day. At “Tarzan beach” we swung on vines from rocks into the sea, saw huge shoals of anchovies and several cigar fish, drifted silently listening to monkey calls, and explored Hlam Tang, the largest hong yet, negotiating a thick maze of mangroves to a huge, other-worldly cavern full of dripping stalactites. Later, squatting among life jackets and paddles below deck, Toy cooked green curry — the best I had in Thailand — which we ate on the swaying roof of the boat, learning some Thai: “Pet pet pet!” (“Very spicy!”). Snorkeling later to a long sandy spit that protruded from the beach on Koh Pak Beer, I floated above massive sea urchins, brain coral, giant clams and parrot fish, and almost stepped on a stingray in the shallows.
Koh Yao Noi, the bay’s second largest island next to its neighbor, Koh Yao Yoi, was my drop-off point. With its tiny villages, beach huts, massage stalls and rubber farms, it looked charmingly traditional and unspoilt, despite the smattering of top-range hotels. But as the longtail pulled up at the immaculate lawns of the Koyao Island Resort, I knew the luxurious sea-view accommodation would never match the magic of a plastic tent on a deserted strip of sand.
On the Net: johngray-seacanoe.com
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