While we were still in Don Det, Josh and I had tried to reach the Gibbon Experience's office several times. Thankfully, Josh was eventually able to reach them and secure a reservation. However, due to the distance and timing of our reserved date, we had no choice but to be in perpetual motion and on a ridiculous amount of buses in order to reach it.
In Huay Xai, we found a place to spend the night and waited around until the park's office opened. When it did, we registered, paid and were briefed about the schedule for the following days.
In the afternoon, after several phenomenal mango smoothies, I made my way to a hilltop wat and then attempted to visit an old French hill station, which was unfortunately closed when I reached its gates.
For the Gibbon Experience, Josh and I opted for the classic package: this option entails less trekking than the other option, but with more zip-lines and time to enjoy the raw beauty of the jungle from above its sprawling canopy.
Before starting our trek, we were joined by around twenty other travelers. We all then hopped in the back of various trucks and were driven towards the forest in Bokeo Nature Reserve.
After several hours of paved roads, we turned off onto a bumpy dirt path carved into the jungle.
This road eventually brought us to a small village where the previous group of trekkers were waiting to be brought back to Huay Xai.
Once out of the trucks, a few guides greeted us and led us into the jungle.
The hike started off fairly easy, but soon became steep and more challenging.
We were all sweaty messes by the time we got to the 'base camp', but the physical activity was a great change of pace to the day's worth of bus travel we had done in order to get there.
It was here where we were given our harnesses for the zip-lining and split into groups for the various tree-houses.
Josh and I were joined by Teresa from Germany and Kara from Australia. The four of us would be sharing treehouse 4.
Once we had been assigned to a group, we were then led to our tree-houses by our respective guides.
Within minutes of splitting up, we already approached our first zip-line of the day. We were given instructions on how to attach the carbines and most importantly how to brake.
The initial anxiety subsided rather quickly once you felt the wind in your hair and the exhilaration of flying above a pristine jungle. It was quite remarkable to see just how fast we traveled and how high we were above the trees.
More trekking and several more zip-lines revealed just how deep into the jungle we actually were. It was refreshing to hear nothing but the sounds of nature and to really feel removed from it all.
So sweet.
Remarkably, our treehouse was only accessible via zip-line and provided a spectacular view onto the sprawling jungle canopy surrounding us.
It was Eco-friendly and surprisingly (and thankfully) sturdy considering it was 40-50 meters in the air.
After dropping off our things, we continued to zip-line over some nearby lines until the sun began to set and Josh almost broke his legs by underestimating just how fast he was going and started to brake too late.
The zip-line this happened on was half-a-kilometer long and we traversed it in around 30 seconds. Yep, that's fast!
After a great dinner and some laughs with our new friends, we called it an early night.
The Gibbon Experience (www.gibbonexperience.org), while focusing on zip-lining and trekking in practice, is actually an incredible conservation project for the project's namesake, the Black-Crested Gibbon.
Once poached for its fur, meat or just for fun; this animal was once at the brink of extinction in this area of Laos.
Thanks to the incredible ingenuity and hard work of the Cue Amino tour group, the hunters were encouraged to become guides and now earn a greater living from these animals alive, than they ever did dead.
The project has been in operation for almost 10 years and continues to grow in terms of interest and scope. Who knew that having so much fun could be so beneficial to the forest and its magnificent creatures!
Following our early night, we woke up to the jungle covered in a thick mist.
Although the visibility was low, the auditory stimulation was through the roof.
The black-crested gibbon makes a sound so distinct and bizarre that you'd have to hear it to believe it.
It starts off as a high-pitched sound that increases in pitch, speed and intensity as it progresses to the otherworldly siren-like sound that forms its throaty crescendo.
Although these animals scream like banshees, it is far more difficult to see them than to hear them. In fact, some groups leave the 3-day adventure without having seen them at all!
For the rest of the day, we trekked, zip-lined and visited the other groups' tree-houses. It seemed as though each zip-line got higher, faster and even more visually impressive as the day progressed.
The wow factor seemed to culminate on the way to tree-house 5, with its relative isolation, stature and dominant location.
Later, our guide decided to lead us through an unmarked trail to get to tree-house 1.
As we were climbing over downed trees and through thickets of untamed wilderness; there it was, high up in the trees, swinging with a grace and confidence like no other: the black-crested gibbon!
Although we could only see this rare animal for a few seconds, its impression on us (at least me), would surely last a lifetime.
Surprisingly enough, when we met up with the other groups, they too had seen gibbons on their respective trips!
A good time was had by all!
Despite the high price and long-distance traveled for this 3-day, 2-night trip; the amazing Bokeo Nature Reserve, the exhilarating rush of adrenaline at every turn, and the magnificent black-crested gibbon and its extraterrestrial cry, make this experience truly worth every agonizing hour spent on innumerable buses and worth every penny!
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