Railey

We left Ao Nang on some kind of small long boat. It took us along the bay, which was really a really nice ride, to drop us off in Railey.

Railey is not an island but it's cut off from the mainland by mountains. It's a really nice little place with just a handful of accommodation options. There's some really fancy beach huts on the west beach but that was a little pricey so we walked across, through the monkey filled jungle to the not-as-picturesque east beach to grab a basic fan room in the hostel there.

After settling in we grabbed some food at the hostel's restuarent and arranged for me (I couldn't persuade Courtney to join) to go rock climbing, one of the activities Railey's known for.

I hadn't done any climbing in ages but I really enjoyed it. I'd never done it on actual rock before either but it was incredible doing it right on the beach. I did about 5 climbs in an hour or two, as I was the only one with the guide. The last one was quite high and before abseiling from the top I sat on my ledge looking over the beautiful bay, it was a great view. After that my arms were destroyed so I called it a day.

In the evening we headed back over to the west beach to sit, read our books and watch the sun go down. I've heard from a few people that the sunsets in Railey are great and I completely agree. Despite the cloud, it was stunning! The silhouette in my picture is Courtney.

After this we sat around a beach bar with some drinks, watched some people light chinese lanterns and then headed back for some sleep.

Uploaded 27/06/2012