Each one is slightly different. Some are dry and one can walk into them but others are only accessible via dinghy and some only by canoe.

Most impressive of all is Koh Hong, the whole island is hollowed out into a series of massive caverns open to the sky leading one from the other into the centre which is richly silent and rather like being inside a cathedral.

Hongs are a great attraction and some are over popular with tourist boats, but by visiting early or late one can still have these atmospheric and unique environments to oneself.

Entrance tunnel into Koh Hong.

The one below that Lorraine and Peter discovered was only accessible by a narrow rock tunnel. Inside the tunnel there were remnants of a bamboo ramp up to a higher entrance for high tide.

Inside this opened out into an enormous hong with lots of trees, much vegetation and some mangroves in the extensive middle area which was thick with mud. A shallow rampart had been built with drainage channels and we think this may have been used as a prawn farm in the past although we were intrigued by the evidence of ironmongery for heavy gates embedded in one of the old walls at the entrance.

On a small beach close by the rock had been turned into surfaces of tiny razor sharp peaks due to years of action by oysters. The pools and water’s edge were full of mudskippers swimming, slithering and keeping their enormous eyes on us.  

Amongst the foot slashing razors  were deeper cavities where primitive chitons were sucking down hard onto the rock, they were about 6” to 8” long with fuzzy edges and each one had a little pile of rice like ‘droppings’ as you can see.  These primitive creatures added to the other-worldliness of this hidden hong at Koh Khlui.

Our favourite hong of all was a very beautiful bay which we shared with another couple originally from the UK but now Ausi residents with a boat almost identical to our own except being the larger model.

Needless to say we had a wonderful week and were happy and relaxed… perhaps too relaxed……