Surin Islands

Reminder of a very recent past
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Well , what can I say? I've had 5 of the most fantastic days on an island 60km off the West coast.

I went there  on the advice of an Aussie couple who knew i wanted some good snorkelling. Having recently been on the Similan islands it was going to be hard for anything else to impress , but impress they do.

Not only are the string of five islands home to the best coral reefs I've ever seen , but also the water is so clear you can see the big beasties.

The coral is stunning. Vibrant colours and a wealth of shapes and sizes earn it name as the underwater garden. In this ' garden' are a multitude of brightly coloured fish large and small.

This is as near as I could get
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As the visibility is 30 - 40 metres , it's possible to see those monsters of the deep normally only seen by scuba divers. I found this out on my first full day.  A longtail boat takes you to differant areas. At the second drop , as I started to look around , there ahead - A SHARK!

I don't think anything can come close to the rush of that first encounter. It swam slowly across me about 5 metres away , turned and went off into the deep.It certainly made my day.

I now know it was probably a ' blacktip' , about 6' long. I was lucky to see about a dozen on another trip. I found that if you stop swimming as soon as you see them , theres a good chance they will swim nearer. They only seemed to be spooked when they swam directly underneath.

The sexy voiced Fabion
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Another first was a moray eel. About 5 - 6' long , partially hidden in coral. it took no interest in me as it had it's mouth open whilst 'cleaner' fish swam in and out .

I was also lucky to see several Humphead fish. Incredibly ugly , with a face reminiscent of the Elephant man but impressive by their sheer size. The biggest must have been around 6'.

Away from the delights of the sea , I spent time with my fellow travellers.I'd met some the evening before coming to the island in the coastal town Karuburi. We had a 'bar' on the beach where we could enthuse about the days events and plan the next day.

The Italian Mob
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I only found out as I was leaving that some Monitor lizards visit the tip to forage . I went with Jan for a look. We were rewarded with the sight of one maybe 5' long that was a little camera shy. I made a return visit and just managed to photo a smaller one before he dissapeared.

The guy who runs the boat trips is a very busy guy indeed. Tom shuttles people to and from the pier , runs accommodation and puts on a mean BBQ for his clients.

On return from the island I went with Tom to the market to select my chicken for that evenings dinner. I tried to ignore the flies and the birds pecking at the meat for sale at a briefly unmanned stall as I paid my 30p equivalent for a chicken quarter.A short time later it was cooked ,and served with rice , salad and dips- all at no charge. Can't be bad.I had a large bottle of beer and still had change from a quid.

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I've heard that a nearby island is worth a visit , so after an overnighter in Ranong will be off to Ko Chang.