Thailand Day 5, 6 February 2013, Kau Ei & Nam Kok River

Today was the 4th and last day of our tribal village trek and it began in very strange style - trying dog meat as we left the village for our final mornings walking! I wouldn't recommend it, even to Tesco!
The plan for the day was to walk several miles to pick up a longtail boat on the Nam Kok River which would whisk us in to the city of Chiang Rai where we'd take a bus back to Chiang Mai.

The highlights of a the walk were a confiding pair of Grey Bushchats that allowed me pretty close, several Pacific Swifts, Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker, Long-tailed Shrike and Black Drongos. Passing through an area of small paddies and scrub in a narrow valley a Dusky Warbler chacked and flew across the path, both Pied and Siberian Stonechats were present and with some pishing I managed to encourage a calling but skulking bird out of some wet scrub which turned out to be a rather unexpected Manchurian Bush Warbler. 8 Cattle Egrets and a handful of Chinese Pond Herons completed the picture as we got to the boat and a welcome break for the poor old legs!

Grey Bushchat

Grey Bushchat

The longtail boat ride was fast but relaxing after all our exursions with White-breasted Kingfisher, 3 Common Sandpipers, 2 Blue-tailed Bee-eaters, loads of Pacific Swifts and a Little Egret being seen. A brief stop at some less than impressive hot springs added a pair of Grey-eyed Bulbuls, Taiga Flycatcher and Common Iora.