Conserve Natural Forests

(Picture by Richard Huckvale)

27th June 2016 will be a day I will remember and talk about for the rest of my life. As it was on this day for the first time in my life I felt 100% humbled; it was the day I met Maemoon, Kamjan & baby boon.

Shortly after arriving in Pai (North Thailand) we had heard through word of mouth about an amazing group of people who were trying to make a difference, not a bonafide tourist operation purely out to make as much money from the tourism sector as possible but truly wanting to change the world we live in.

The group of people call themselves Conserve Natural Forests founded by Miguel Tenor Tag they have a simple but effective mission. "To build a sustainable future, one tree at a time" What Miguel and his team are looking to do is replant the forests of Thailand, and teach the local farmers that deforestation is not helping anyone in the world.

They have also rescued three elephants from the horrific tourist industry. Mother and daughter Maemoon & Kamjan who are both pregnant at the moment and the cutest little fellow in the world four-year-old Baby Boon. I don't need to tell you just how horrific the animals are treated in the tourist industry but if you are interested and also interested in seeing people make a difference, please watch this short documentary The Last Elephants In Thailand

Now this is a non-profit organisation and survives solely off their money from their bank accounts and voluntary work from anyone and everyone as well as donations from the public. Like I said earlier we had heard about this place through word of mouth; you will not see endless advertisements in and around Pai, and none of the tourist operators will advise you of this location either.

The elephants are left to roam free, when we arrived we were lucky that the elephants were only a short walk away from the outdoor seating area and kitchen, we have read other people Facebook posts who had to trek through the forest to find them. The are no chains no fences no restrictions apart from staying in the boundaries of the land, they have an endless supply of running water from the river and more food than they could ever wish to have. We got the chance to feed them some mangos, swim with them in the river and hug them till our heart's content.

I am a huge animal lover I firmly believe all animals should be in the wild unless endangered. I was slightly sceptical at first, but as soon as you get there, you can see these animals are happy, know they are loved, you can see the passion Miguel and his team have for what they are doing.

We also gave back to the land while we were on site, we planted several trees into the forest, as the mission statement says this company is all about replanting the forests of Thailand and making a huge difference to our future generations. As well as the rescued elephants they have a few tortoises five women and one man I believe; he is one happy turtle as you can imagine.

Miguel and his team provide food and drink while you are with them and they honestly treat you like family; it is truly liberating and humbling to witness and be part of what's happening at Conserve Natural Forests, and it is something I will tell my children and grandchildren about. And although like I mentioned they are a non-profit organisation they only ask for donations of what you can afford, there is no pressure from them to hand over money either.

They pick you up free of charge from the town centre, drive you to the site, and that's it. You talk, laugh, spend time with the elephants there is no mention of this is how much you need to pay this is how much we expect nothing like that at all.

The whole day is fantastic, and that word is not sufficient to describe Conserve Natural Forests in my opinion. I urge anyone in Thailand to visit you will not be disappointed and after a hard graft of planting trees, washing and feeding elephants you get to sit down and relax with arguably the best gin and tonic you will ever drink.

Thank you Miguel and Conserve not just for letting me be involved in your project not just for the gin and tonics but for what you are doing, it is truly liberating I can not speak highly enough about everything you do. I wish you all the very best with the rest of the project, and I promise you I will spread the word as much as I possibly can about Conserve Natural Forests. Upon my return to North Thailand, I will be sure to pop back and see you all for more gin and tonics I mean to plant more trees :)

At the time of writing this blog the Conserve Natural Forests website is under construction, you can find information about Miguel and his team on Facebook and Instagram.

Thanks for reading

Richard :)