Porcupine Walk – Chiang Mai – Thailand

Flying into Chiang Mai airport, one look at the beautiful hills inspires you to get out there and explore. So, when we were invited by Peter’s brother Mike, to join the Chiang Mai Walk and Talk group on a route known locally as Porcupine Route 3, we jumped at the chance.

The city of Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand nestles below the hills of the Doi Suthep National Park. This walk starts where the city merges into the national park – it takes about 20 to 30 minutes by taxi from the city moat to start at Wild Coffee Bistro in Amphoe Mueang, where you can park your vehicle if you are arriving under your own steam.

Three Waterfalls

We arrived in the area in early February, in the middle of the dry season. Despite this the forest still appeared lush and green, thanks to the many waterways of the hills. The description of this walk promised 3 waterfalls and the first one appeared as soon as we turned off the road and on to a hillside track.

The walk was led by Daniel who was joined on this occasion by a dozen of us from various nationalities. The result of 10 weeks without any rain soon became obvious with a good layer of dried leaves covering the paths, similar to our northern autumn. The lack of rain did have a couple of advantages: one, the crossings of tributary streams were easy as they were very low; and two, the water coming over the falls was beautifully, temptingly clear. Apparently in the rainy season the water is a torrent of brown mud coming off the hills.

From previous experience of walking in these hills, we expected the paths to be well defined and there would be quite a lot of uphill. Nothing too difficult, but we knew the heat would be an issue for us, so we had plenty of water and snacks with us. After a bit of a climb on a well-marked route, we soon reached waterfall number two. Peter and I were already perspiring, we were amazed that other walkers were in long sleeves and one was even in a fleece. Happily two of the party stripped down to their swimming costumes to enjoy the freshness of the water spilling over the rocks. Green with envy, I decided that I would cool down by standing under the waterfall fully clothed. This approach kept me cool for much of the next section.

Welcome Shade

After this stop we had a bit of a scramble and then a steady uphill slog for about 30 minutes. The sun was rising as was the temperature, so the forest gave welcome shade as the sun filtered through the remnants of the leaf canopy and bamboo stands. Once we reached the highest point of the route we had a good respite of flatter terrain, passing through some cultivated land, before we started the descent.

Whilst the paths were well trodden, I was pleased we had a group leader as there were several other routes criss-crossing the forest and it could be easy to miss the correct tunings. It was further than I anticipated before we reached the third waterfall, where we had a very welcome snack break in the shade.

This was a different type of waterfall than number two with a fairly gentle gradient flowing over rocks and making small pools that were warmed in the sun. I have noticed before that this type of waterfall is a magnet for butterflies and there were some beauties on display. As an avid pond dipper I investigate some movement on one of the pools, which turned out to be the largest pond skaters I have ever seen!

From this break we all set off down the hill at differing paces, I find that very dry descents require caution as they can be quite difficult to grip. This was a chance to take in views across Chiang Mai, which was hazy as usual!

Peter, Mike and I stopped for lunch at the Wild Coffee Bistro, which is a gorgeous place with tasty food – unfortunately the service was excruciatingly slow – a good thing we were not in a rush!

The Walk and Talk group is aimed at people who live long-term in Chiang Mai. For people visiting the area as a tourist, we would recommend using local tourist guides to make the most of your walk.

If you prefer to go solo, follow the map on All Trails.