Thale Noi, Phattalung

Thale Noi Lake (Little Sea) is located about 30km from the city of Phatthalung, and for us who are coming from Phuket, 380 km away, about 5 hours drive, very far away from mass tourism...

This freshwater lake with an average depth of 1 meter, is settled on about 5km in one direction and 6 km in the other, which gives it a surface of about 25km². It is the largest ornithological reserve in the country and migratory birds can be found here in numbers from November to April.

With the birds, the buffalos, and the innumerable lotus flowers you are immersed in a natural, peaceful wild landscape, without forgetting the presence also of the always smiling and very photogenic fishermen. All this together forms a landscape for which one can only remain in admiration. The noise of the motors of the dugout canoes comes a little bit to break this tranquility, but is finally part of the scenery.

Practical side: For those who would like to visit this place, while taking a boat trip on the lake, you should be warned that it is better to be there in the morning to take advantage of the good temperatures, and on the other hand, it is necessary to know that the lotus flowers are open only in the morning... photographing a stretch of closed lotus is much less interesting, aesthetically...

The ideal, therefore, is, I think (and that's what I did) to sleep near the lake in order to be able to be there very early.

The pirogue ride which lasted about 2 hours cost us 450 baht. We are several leagues away from the prices practiced in Phuket... as for the accommodation, we had a small spacious bungalow with an extra bed for our daughter made available for free. The breakfast for the three of us was included in the 800 bahts! Here too, we were in another world compared to Phuket.

It was the discovery of a fantastic place, a place where nature is preserved and protected... with naturally welcoming, smiling people, a deep Thailand, in short, you will have understood it... we loved this visit. 

Note also, that this discovery is not limited to the Lotus Lake... a few minutes away, you will find the Songkla Lake and its suspended fishing nets also called Carrelets. You will find a link at the end of the article to discover this other beautiful place...

Arriving the day before in Thale Noi and staying close to the lake, I took the opportunity to get up at dawn to take some pictures of the sunrise rising gently over this ocean of lotus... I thought it could give good pictures... but Mother Nature had decided otherwise: the horizon was blocked by a few clouds and the sun did not appear until later...

You can't have everything... but as a compensation, I saw monks doing their morning Tak Bat in search of provisions for the day, I hadn't gotten up for nothing.

The first time I had discovered this ritual, I was quite surprised, thinking that the monks were walking slowly... but no, they walk at a steady pace, a not really alert step and I even wonder if I will be able to follow them for a long time at this pace, if I should follow them... 

We start our pirogue tour at 7 o'clock sharp! It's early, yes... but the ride will last about 2 hours and it's at this time that the temperature is the most pleasant. Two hours of a ride that we will not see the time pass.

We are the only tourists to go on this big lake, no groups of tourists on the horizon.

Thin and long, the colorful pirogues of Thale Noi are waiting for us, ready to take us at a good speed on this big fresh water lake which is close to the sea.

Very quickly we find ourselves in areas completely covered with pink lotus trees all open. These flowers remain open until about noon... coming to Thale Noi and opting for a walk on the lake in the late afternoon, will not have the same taste since the lotuses will be closed...

Thale Noi Waterfowl Park is a freshwater lake located in the northern part of Songkhla Lake. With a Nang Raem canal connecting Thale Noi and Lake Songkhla.

Thale Noi is an area that has water all year round. Most of the plants are aquatic plants that stand out and create colors for the sea, such as algae, sticky algae, small yellow-purple flowers, beautiful lotus flowers, water lilies, water lilies, etc. There are also many water birds, both regular birds. Both endemic and migratory birds come to live here. Due to the abundance and biodiversity of the natural cycle of Thale Noi, it is suitable for animal sustenance.

Most of the land is flat plains of the lake. Consisting of rice fields and grasslands, swampy forests and forests.
The seabed is about 5 kilometres wide and 6 kilometres long, with an average depth of 1.5 metres. Covered by various aquatic plants such as lotus grass, Kraod, Prue and Kong, it is scattered everywhere, especially in shallow and relatively calm waters.

Thale Noi was declared a no-hunting zone on 18 February 1975. 

It is considered Thailand's first non-hunting zone, under the aegis of the Department of National Park, Wildlife Conservation, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. 

The fauna living there is composed of 287 species of water birds, 26 species of reptiles, 6 species of mammals, with local birds and migratory birds of other seasons, such as gazelle, stork, white heron, red heron, small water raven. White-breasted birds, teal, pelican, seagulls, splashes, red herons, etc. 

The period from January to April is when birds are most abundant, about a hundred thousand.