As each year passes it becomes increasingly more difficult to find
new and interesting tourist attractions not far from Bangkok. I have
been on some really good day trips for thai-blogs.com that included
renting a boat to go dolphin watching, riding a train that literally
passes through a market, and the Reclining Buddha image where you can
go inside to see the heart. I didn't think that there would be much
more of interest which hadn't been discovered already. Then I saw a
television programme about Wat Khun Samut on the Gulf of Thailand. I
first heard about this Thai temple surrounded by the sea in a newspaper
article in the Bangkok Post about four years ago. I wanted to go there
back then, but there are no roads in that area and the only mode of
transport is by boat. It seemed incredibly difficult. So, I just put
the name of this temple up on my whiteboard with the other destinations
I wanted to visit. Seeing the temple on television last month and then
also newspaper reports about land erosion statistics released by the
World Bank, prompted me into renewed efforts in finding out how to
reach this small community on the coast.
Through some research, I discovered that there was a public boat to
Ban Khun Samut Chin leaving the pier at the Paknam Market at about 9.15
a.m. every day. Apparently there is only one boat going and one
returning at 3 p.m. I had been warned to take my own food and drinks
and to be careful not to miss the only boat to return. There are no
hotels or restaurants there so I would have to be self-sufficient. My
first two attempts of catching this boat failed miserably. On each
occasion the boat left earlier then the scheduled time. On the second
time I was there extra early at 8.40 a.m. but had just missed it.
Talking to some of the locals there, they suggested that I should catch
the passenger ferry to the other side and try and rent a boat from
there. They said it would be a lot cheaper than renting one from Paknam
Pier. So, that is what I decided to do the following weekend. Though,
instead of catching the ferry across the river, I decided it would be
easier if we drove over as then we could drive around looking for a
place to rent a boat.
Looking on the Google Earth satellite pictures of this area, I could
see that Wat Khun Samut was directly south of Ban Sakhla which I had
visited the other year. The road to this town, in the middle of
no-where, had only been paved a couple of years ago. We decided we
would take the car there in order to find a boat. But, we only got
half-way down this road when we suddenly spotted a sign advertising
boats for rent. As there are no roads south of here, local people can
only get around by renting a boat. Unless of course, they have their
own boat. We were informed that the cost would be 110 baht one way for
the boat. This wasn't bad considering that there were four of us and
that the public boat from Paknam Pier would have cost us 40 baht each.
We were soon off heading south down a canal lined with short stumpy
nipa palms. Here and there we passed isolated houses with their own
private jettys. There were also a number of long-tailed boats ferrying
people back and forth to various destinations. But overall, not much
sign of any kind of activity.
During our journey they were several sharp turns both left and
right. After about ten minutes we reached a small jetty where our
boatman told us that we would have to disembark. He said that we would
have to continue the remainder of the way on foot. He gave us his
mobile phone number and said that we should ring him when we were ready
to return. We then scrambled up onto the bank to see our first view of
the surrounding countryside. What I had seen earlier on Google Earth
made me think that this whole area was covered by neatly laid out rice
fields. But, in fact, they were all shrimp "fields"! Basically, long
narrow manmade ponds with embankments in-between each of them. There
must have been at least a thousand shrimp farms as far as they eye
could see in all directions. Greenpeace had conveniently blamed Global
Warming for the land erosion along this coastline. I am not an expert
in these matters, but I would say that the erosion is probably more to
do with the local farmers cutting down the mangrove forests and then
inviting the sea to come and fill up their fields!
After walking for about ten minutes we reached the first house of
Ban Khun Samut Chin. This belonged to Khun Samron Kengsamut, who is the
head of this community. She wasn't in at the time but her son kindly
opened up the museum for us so that we could see some of the broken
crockery and other artifacts that had been discovered in this area. He
also showed us some pictures and maps and told us that over the last 20
years or so the sea had encroached on the land by about one kilometer.
As we were about to leave, he asked whether he could take our picture.
As this was a little strange, because we weren't celebrities, I asked
him exactly how many tourists came this way. He replied that they get
at least two or three a week! I guess taking pictures of every visitor
will only discontinue once the idea of tourists coming here is no
longer a novelty.
Walking down the track, we next passed a building painted in a
bright red colour. This houses a Chinese Shrine called Noom Noi Loi
Chai which the local fishermen worship. Apparently, this had already
been moved once due to land erosion. Walking further we passed a number
of wooden shacks. Some of them looked deserted. There were of course no
7-Eleven's but there were also no shops of any kind. We felt like that
we were intruding on this community and we wanted to give something
back by buying something. Even if just a bottle of water. But, there
just wasn't anything. Of course, I can see this changing as soon as
this location gets into the guidebooks. If I come back here in a year
or two, I can just imagine that this dirt track will be paved and every
other house will be restaurants and souvenir shops. Much like Koh Kret
in northern Bangkok has become today.
We walked along the outskirts of several shrimp fields and then
walked on a rickety wooden walkway through a mangrove forest. After
about twenty minutes of walking we finally emerged at the edge of the
Gulf of Thailand. Straight ahead of us was a new concrete raised
walkway with the temple in the distance surrounded by trees. To our
right I could see where the locals had planted saplings as part of
their reforestation plan. Evidence of the land erosion could be clearly
seen by looking out into the Gulf of Thailand. A line of electricity
pylons stood testament that there was once a thriving community under
these waters. A bit further I spotted the remains of a concrete water
tank that used to belong to the local school. I am also told that out
there somewhere are the remains of the local clinic.
Wat Khun Samut where the floor has been raised half way
Wat Khun Samut
The total distance from the boat jetty where we started our walk to
the temple was 1,644 metres. As we arrived at the temple the first
structures we passed were the kutis, the accommodation for the five
resident monks. These were built on stilts in order to stay above high
tide. A bit further I spotted the crematorium on our left and then the
open sala where the local people would come to meet the monks. We were
met by the village chief. Her son had phoned ahead to say that we were
on our way. They had apparently just finished eating and invited us to
sit down and have some food. We weren’t really that hungry as we had a
late breakfast not that long ago. But, they were insistent and started
spreading out food on the floor in front of us. As it would have been
rude to refuse, we sat down to tuck into a very delicious meal.
While we were eating, I asked Khun Samron about the local community.
She told us that due to the land erosion, there were now only 400
people left in Ban Khun Samut Chin. A reduction of about 30% compared
to about 20 years ago. There are now only 70 houses. She said that she
herself had moved her house three times. Her mother had moved five
times in the last thirty years. Many people had given up and had now
moved away. This has led to limited human resources for the community
such as doctors and dentists. The local school now only has 30 students
which shows that most of the young families have moved away. Their
other problem is that many of them have a title deed to land that no
longer exists. Their future is looking bleak.
The breakwater and the pylons in the distance
After eating, Khun Samron then invited us to go and take a look at
the temple. They have now built a raised walkway that took us to the
temple. In that Bangkok Post article, I had seen a photo of people
jumping from water jar to water jar in order to reach the temple. Shame
in some ways that they are no longer here. But it is understandable
that the most convenient method is used now. During our visit it was
low tide and so there was only mud around the temple. Nothing like the
dramatic pictures I had seen on the poster for Global Warning. I am
told it is only like that during the monsoon season and only at high
tide. The day we went it wasn’t high tide until 8 p.m. So, I don’t
really have any “dramatic” pictures to show you. However, their story
is dramatic enough.
We decided to save the temple to last and walked straight past it to
the jetty. Here we could see the concrete pillars that had been drilled
into the soft mud in order to provide a breakwater. The sea wall seemed
to be working to an extent as sediment had built up on the far side
resulting in the water level on that side being higher. But, more is
needed to make it more effective. We could also see evidence of where
the monks and other local people had been planting saplings. Mangrove
forests are nature’s way of stopping land erosion. In the distance we
could see many more of the telephone and electricity poles. Also we
could see concrete structures that were probably the remains of
community buildings.
Surfing on the mud
I had said earlier that most people around here seemed to be shrimp
farmers. But, looking out to sea, I could see quite a few people out on
surfboards. No, I don’t mean that they were surfing on the waves. They
were using flat boards to skim over the surface of the mud in order to
look for cockles. This is a traditional method that goes back hundreds
of years. Some modern versions use boats which kind of ploughs the sea
bed digging up the cockles. But these have been accused of ecological
damage and I am glad that they are not being used here. I could see
small boats further out, but I was told that they were looking for
plankton to be used to make a shrimp paste.
There had been a heavy storm earlier in the day. Now there was a
clear blue sky and a refreshing sea breeze. It was extremely pleasant
and we decided to just sit there for a while and enjoy the sea air. I
can see why the locals were keen to stay here. Before, when I was
thinking about catching the public boat here, I was worried that I
wouldn’t have anything to do all day. I would have to stay here for
nearly five hours waiting for the public boat to return. But, as it
turned out, we were there for over four hours anyway just hanging
around. I think I will come again soon so that I can spend the day
exploring the area a bit more. And I could always bring a book to read.
Inside the temple
After resting, we decided to take a closer look at the temple.
Really, it is an ordinary looking temple though with an extraordinary
history. It has developed from a religious symbol for the local
community to one for their fight against the threat of land erosion.
While all other buildings, both private and government, have moved
further inland, it is the temple alone that has refused to relocate.
Though, of course, compromises had to be made. The kutis where the
monks slept were rebuilt on stilts. The temple building itself couldn’t
be raised. However, what they did do was raise the level of the floor
by about a meter. They have also blocked the lower half of the windows.
So, to look out of the window, you have to sit down on the floor.
To enter the temple from the front, there is a gangplank that we
used to safely cross without getting our feet muddy. During high tide,
there would be a moat of water around the building. As the once grand
entrance had now been halved, I had to dip my head as I entered. I was
almost hesitant to take off my shoes because of the condition of the
building and floor. But, the Buddha images were all arranged close to
the floor and tradition dictates that we should humble ourselves by
bringing ourselves as close to the physical floor as possible. We could
see straight away that there must have been a fair amount of damage to
the interior design. The whole inside of the building had been
whitewashed. Though, with gaps everywhere, it looked like someone was
either in a rush or ran out of paint. Leaning against the wall behind
the Buddha statues were the original hand carved wooden doors that
could no longer hang from the smaller doorframes.
At high tide the water is almost as high as the floor
At the back I jumped down from the raised floor to the ground to
take a closer look at a Buddha image that was standing guard there.
Despite the battering it had received from the monsoon weather, it was
still in relatively good condition. Looking under the raised floor
boards, I could only see mud in the dim light. However, at the far end,
I could just make out the pedestal for a large Buddha image. This was
probably made from concrete and couldn’t be moved up. So they just
raised the Buddha image up onto the new wooden floor. Around the temple
I could see where they had planted saplings over the years as the
mangrove forest was of varying ages. At least they were doing their
best to stop the waves eroding the foundations of the temple. But, it
might all be too little too late.
Before we left we went to say a farewell to the village chief. She
was only too happy that we had come to visit her community. She got her
camera out and took a picture of our group. Before I parted I gave her
a print out from Google Earth showing this area. She seemed pleased
because it was far greater quality than what she had seen before. She
excitedly picked out individual houses saying who lived where. It would
be interesting to see satellite pictures of this same location five
years ago. Then we could clearly see the rate of progress of the land
erosion. Some experts put it at least 5 meters of erosion per year in
this year. Others say more.
As we parted, I promised that I would help spread the message of the
plight of the villagers and their fight against land erosion. I also
said that I would be back later this month in order to explore the area
more thoroughly.
To find out more details, please visit our sister site at www.KhunSamut.com.
You will find more pictures and videos as well as detailed instructions
on how to reach the temple. Much more to come later this month when I
return.
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