Volunteering with elephants in Thailand through WWV

Around this time last year I decided I’d had enough and wanted to explore a bit. Having never been interested in travel or beyond my own front gate before, I didn’t have a clue where to begin. I stumbled across World Wide Volunteering, filled in the online profile and the printer spewed out about 20 pages, all filled with details of companies offering adventures.

It took me a while to plough through them and all suited some part of my personality but one stood out instantly: the Elephant Mahout Project. I’ve always admired these beautiful creatures from afar and dreamed of visiting Thailand so it seemed the perfect choice for me. Even the price was reasonable so after a couple of months of filling out forms, doing lots of overtime and having lots of injections I left in April. It was that simple.



After surviving Bangkok’s Khao San Road for a few days, I was met by Arnon, the project leader, and we travelled overnight on train and then half a day on a truck/cart to the village of Ban Ta Klang (meaning Elephant Village). The village had once been prosperous, with lots of tourists arriving to visit the elephants but all that remained for us were the shells of old accommodation huts and a dirty, neglected, locked visitor’s centre. Below most of the houses were silk looms where the women would sit and work all day. There were palm trees everywhere and one afternoon Arnon simply shinnied up one to retrieve coconut for me! By the end of the first day I was totally in love with how beautiful and simple it all was.

I lived with a family for a month who were lovely and welcoming, despite not speaking any English. When it came to the elephants, words just can’t describe it! They live wild in the forests surrounding the village and it is the villagers’ job to look after them. Each family is responsible for at least one and each of us volunteers had our own. My elephant was called Som Soi, meaning strong woman. She was 18 years old and stunning, despite a few teenage temper tantrums! She was so intelligent and we got along great!

Each day was filled by making our elephants happy. We would get them breakfast of banana trees or bamboo, often involving walking a couple of miles to the next village as food shortage is a real problem in the village, take them to one of the lakes for a bath and then return for lessons on how to control and communicate with them. In the afternoons it was more lessons and another bath before we would finish working and help the families prepare the evening meal. Over the month I learnt so many skills and my elephant learned to respond to my commands. The first time I rode her I was terrified but by the end it was so natural.

I was so sad to leave the village and Thailand. It really was a chance of a lifetime experience, as unfortunately the project no longer runs. I always look back on the whole experience of finding a project, organising myself and then experiencing it, very happily. Going away and volunteering was the best decision I ever made and the happiest time of my life. I still have my profile from the WWV organisation so am plotting my next adventure!