Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand) Tourist Guide


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UP THE PING RIVER
with a paddle

by: Colin Hinshelwood

Dawn breaks slowly over Chiang Mai. A girl dressed in a sarong stands knee-deep in the river washing her long hair as her mother cleans plates. On the opposite bank a lone fisherman casts a line into the gentle current. He squats and waits. The groan of early-morning traffic can be heard on the bridge overhead. Below, the saffron reflections of monks' robes shimmer on the water. A perfect time of day to go canoeing.

And this is the right time of year: the water level is low, no more than a meter and a half in the center, and the current is barely detectable. The chances of capsizing and drowning are negligible. To avoid the midday heat, go either at dawn or two hours before sunset. You will only need to put on a T-shirt and shorts and perhaps some sunblock, and your children will love it too. All in all, these are the perfect conditions for a novice kayaker.

There are two clubs on the banks of the Maenam Ping (literally: Mother-Water Ping) that rent canoes cheaply to visitors. One is Chiang Mai Canoe Club Nakornping (*), set just south of Wat Faham; the other is Canoe Lanna (**), further south on the west bank inside Kavila Park. In fact you cannot paddle any further south than Kavila Park because of a dam or �shelf' on the river. Therefore we shall begin at that point and paddle northwards. You should always begin by paddling against the current anyway, because then you get the benefit of the downstream current when your arms and shoulders are tired.

As you set off from Kavila Park you will first pass Wat Chaimongkol on the other side of the river. With stairs descending into the water, this temple resembles a ghat on the River Ganges. Children can often be seen feeding ducks and geese at this point and the temple grounds are grateful for the ample shade of an enormous Raintree. It is from here that most of the scorpion-tail boat tours set off. Next door to Wat Chaimongkol you will see where the new luxury hotel, Chiang Mai Chedi is currently being built on the site of what used to be the British consulate.

The River Ping is no more than 50 meters wide. In the rainy season there is a stronger current, in which case you should save your energy by keeping to the inside lane as you cut your way through the city. Try to maintain a smooth circular stroke; conserve your strength and move your body to the rhythm of the paddle - don't try to keep your back straight or you'll strain it.

The first bridge you pass under is the metal expanse of New Bridge. (Watch out for fishing lines.) The impressive River Bar sits on the west bank and will probably be playing some music for you to paddle along to if you're passing around sunset. This is the busy section of Chiang Mai and if it's rush hour, you might well find yourself overtaking the traffic on the road alongside you.

Four hundred meters further on from New Bridge and on your right you'll see an imposing white church. This is the Chiang Mai First Church, founded by the legendary Dr Daniel McGilvary. Representing the American Presbyterian Church, Dr McGilvary was invited to Chiang Mai in 1867 by Prince Kawilorot who thought the good doctor might like to visit "the people of Laos" as the Lanna folk were regarded in those days. So, McGilvary, his wife, children and entourage set off from Nakorn Sawan (where the River Ping meets the Chao Phraya) and traveled through malaria-infested jungle by steamboat, canoe and poleboat to reach Chiang Mai. The journey took 13 weeks.

Naturally, the arrival of this tall, stern missionary with flowing white beard and bible in hand caused quite a stir. Daniel McGilvary, just like many other missionaries and expats in Chiang Mai ever since, is buried in the Chiang Mai Foreign Cemetery, just a mile or so further downriver.

Passing under the Nawarat Bridge, you immediately come upon the popular nightclubs and restaurants of the east bank - the Riverside, the Good View, the Fillmore Grill, the Gallery and the Brasserie. How much more exotic they appear from the middle of the river as opposed to the drab exterior you see from the roadside.

One hundred years ago this strip of the River Ping was known as tha chang (Elephant Port). Traders from as afar as China would be unloading silks, tobacco, fruit and teakwood at this junction. It is said that there was often so much timber on the river that 19th century residents could walk across from one side to the other on the flotilla of logs. Warorot Market first opened at this time, Chinese merchants being the first to capitalize on the Golden Age of Chiang Mai commerce with displays of foreign goods, exotic fruits and vegetables. You will next pass under a footpath known as Chansom Bridge. In fact this was the first bridge built over the river in Chiang Mai and its designer was another American missionary, a Dr Cheek. This teak bridge was erected in the 1890s and to impress the local prince, Chao Inthawichayanon, a grand opening was held where Dr Cheek personally led three elephants across the bridge to prove its strength.

Imagine the scenes on the River Ping and along its banks 100 years ago in the days when no other transport linked Chiang Mai to the outside world. Remember that it was not until the 1920s that the railway opened in this city and until then all trade was done by river. Picture yourself as a Chinese junk boatsman, sailing down from Yunnan with a booty of opium and silk; or as a Sikh trader arriving after a three-month boat journey from Bangkok. Think how wild and innocent Chiang Mai must have appeared back then - bare-breasted women smoking cheroots as they gut fish; husbands chewing beetlenut as they tend their bamboo fish traps. Traders on the look out for bandits hiding in the reeds along the riverbank. Bandits on the look-out for tigers.

Nowadays there is little if any traffic on the river. Children swim in the shallow banks, little old men cast fishing lines and karaoke melodies filter through the riparian air in the evening. After passing under Rama IX Bridge you'll see Wat Faham on the east bank and the other canoe club. It should have taken you 30 - 40 minutes to reach this point. If your arms are already tired or the sun is setting it's time to turn back. In reality, you might find that it's easier to canoe the river by doing it in two installments: firstly, from Kavila Park to Wat Faham; and then another day, start from Canoe Club Nakornping and paddle north under the Superhighway into nature. This second route is much quieter and ideal if you feel the need to breathe green freshness. Leaving the city behind, you glide past beautiful teak mansions with manicured gardens: one is a royal household, one used to belong to a notorious drug warlord and another belongs to Chiang Mai's most famous singer Soontaree Vechanont.

The river quickly becomes narrower and winds its way through rice paddies, scarecrows, bamboo shacks and sleeping dogs. It might be easier to believe that you are now in the Congo or a tributary of the Amazons, it's so lush.

You pass under bamboo stands and past old fish traps and marshy fields. Check your watch - you've probably lost track of time. About one hour (3 - 4 kms) upstream from Wat Faham and the river is usually blocked by another step, one that locals often employ for netting fish. This is always a good point to think about turning back even if the dam is not in use. Remember that you will need your strength for the return journey even though it is downriver. Keep your eyes peeled for makeshift cafes and bamboo store-owners who will gladly come down to the bank to serve you a refreshment. As you weave your way back into the city along the serpentine banks, perhaps for the first time you'll realize just how tropical Chiang Mai truly is.

Or how tropical it used to be.

*Chiang Mai Canoe Club
Nakornping Chareoenraj Road
Open: Mon - Fri, 16.00 - 19.00
Sat - Sun, 08 - 10.00, 16.00 - 19.00

**Canoe Lanna Kavila Park
Chiang Mai-Lamphun Road
Open: Tue - Sun, 16.00 - 19.00