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Day 02 - Ep 04 - It's BBQ time now! no further wait, we hit the sunset time and that means our wait for Big Game is over... yes!!!. For today's BBQ we are going to inaugurate our brand new BBQ Grill. During the BBQ preparation we discovered a new tool, a small hand-held fan.
My wife actually, bought that for her, to use during hot sweating days of Bangkok, but I thought to utilize that during BBQ preparation and it worked like charm... so highly recommended if you guys want to save your shoulders from that kind of a labour.
From the time I started setting up the BBQ Grill to the time I tasted from the first batch, it took around 2 hours. The second and final batch of BBQ sticks were done in additional 30 minutes. So all in all, it took around 2.5 hours, but o'boy that was worth it!
Once we tucked in ALL THAT BBQ and our tummies are all-overloaded, we set out for a nice 'n chill stroll around the camping site. What a wonderful day was today!
Day 02 - Ep 03 - We finally selected a nice spot to setup our camp and while setting up our camp, we made sure our camp's window and door are properly aligned with direction of the wind, so we won't have any ventilation issues inside the camp.
We bought this camp from BigC in Bangkok a day before our trip and is a double insulated camp, good enough for two person. BTW I am thinking about creating a separate post for the kind of camping equipment and gear we purchase and carried along with us and how it helped improved our experience and stay during toor. Do let me know in the comments if its a good idea to have a dedicated episode for that and things like how much certain things cost and from where to buy them in and around Thailand. Some of the equipment/gear we ordered from online stores. So, yeah, if you think it is a good idea then please do let me know in comments and I'll reply back with the answers and if I receive enough questions that could make up a dedicate episode then I'll do one as well.
One thing that we were quite sure and very excited about was doing BBQ at night while camping our :D and we finally got that chance. So, as soon as we finished setting up our camp, the next thing we did is to prepare the BBQ meat for marination, so that we can do the BBQ at night. Do checkout the video as this is a very special, spicy Pakistani style BBQ that is famous in the sub continent. We let it marinate for 4 to 5 hours and will do the live BBQ grill at night.
Then we visit different types of colorful stalls that are setup around the border of camp site, offering various snacks, soups, coffee, juices, etc.
Day 02 - Ep 02 - We woke up at a hotel in Chiang Mai city center and without wasting any time further on breakfast, we went straight to Makro Chiang Mai to do some groceries for our camping trip and then head towards the Doi Inthanon National Park.
1 hour and 15 minutes from Makro Chiang Mai to Doi Inthanon National Park Checkpoint #1 or main entry gate
45 minutes from checkpoint #1 to head quarters of Doi Inthanon National Park
So, if you are traveling directly from Chiang Mai city center all the way to head quarters of Doi Inthanon National Park, it would take around 2 hours to reach your destination.
The entrance to Doi Inthanon National Park is free and you don't have to pay anything for the entry. The road that leads you from the checkpoint #1 or entry gate towards the head quarter is all marked properly with signs guiding you along your way, and you can reach the head quarter easily by following them.
The first public campsite and the biggest and the one with most facilities is the one that's right adjacent to the head quarters of the park. You will find all necessary amenities including:
Public and free parking
Public and free restrooms - separate toilets and shower rooms
Plenty of tap water (not recommended for drinking or cooking)
Electricity charging points
Proper street lights and flood lights - well lit area in the night as well
Restaurants
Small to medium sized grocery shops having almost everything you need for your camping trip including Ice, beverages, drinking water bottles, etc.
Food stalls (meals, soups, snacks, etc.)
Various stalls for winter wearables like gloves, woolen caps, socks, shawls, etc.
Small gadgets and camping gears etc
Do checkout this video comprising of a quick tour of the facilities around this main camping site and other information like, registering for camping pitch, fees, renting camping equipment on site etc.
Day 01 - Ep 01 - We left from Bangkok around 7am and travelled for almost 12 hours, with few quick stops in the middle, and reach Chiang Mai city center around 7pm. Now, we already knew that the Doi Inthanon National Park closes at 6:30pm, so we do not have a chance to checkin today, so we head straight to city center to do an overnight stay at Chiang Mai city.
So guys if you are planning to checkin the same day and you are traveling from Bangkok, then you should leave early like 5am and we did planned to leave that early, but unfortunately our last minute errands took too much of our time (we should have completed the packing at night instead of leaving some stuff to pack in the morning). Lesson learned, the hard way :(
So we reached Chiang Mai city center, quite exhausted and very hungry. So, we went straight to the city center food street and found this fabulous Turkish cuisine restaurant called Little Istanbul. The food was superb. Check out the video to see what we ordered and how it was? :)
Camping trips are best of the breed, and I'm just crazy about every aspect of camping trips... starting right from the planning phase, I love contemplating different available options about where to go for camping, which locations have what benefits, their unique offerings etc., and then within a location, what campsites are available, which offers what views and so on. What kind of temperature we can expect, other weather conditions, distance, scenery, flora and fauna. What's activities are available in the surroundings, experiences that are unique and different, people, cultural sights and sounds. I mean, honestly, I can spend a weekend or two, enjoying just the planning phase :D
So this time, we planned to visit the very north of Thailand and you know what? for people like us, who love cool weather and avoid hot sunny days for outdoor activities, north of Thailand is just the right place for us. Unfortunately, for people like us, the climate of Thailand is not very appealing, its hot.. hot.. and hot, throughout the year :( and therefore, what a better treat for us to have a pleasant cool weather specially when you are outdoors for several days :)
Chiang Mai, is kind of a dream place for us, living in Thailand. It is so lush green, hilly and is much cooler in comparison to rest of the Thailand. Thailand doesn't have winters... yes :(... no winters... but if you really wanna enjoy something close to winter, you can head towards the northern Thailand to places like Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and few others.
Now Chiang Mai, is a whole province, and it has a lot to offer. It is lush green and has mountains and hilly areas and one of the best offerings of Chiang Mai is it extremely popular destination attracting both locals and tourists a like... the one and only... Doi Inthanon National Park.
And yes! we are going to an exclusive 4 days camping trip to Doi Inthanon National Park, so pack your virtual bags with us and hop on!
