Erin and Justin

Please view their website: http://www.elephantnaturepark.org

Elephant Nature Park is a sanctuary for elephants, set up as an exemplary elephant tourism alternative to elephant camps or begging elephants.

Elephant Camps are surprisingly common, and popular amongst tourists. These are places where elephants give rides and perform tricks like dancing or painting. Assumingly, most tourists do not give any thought as to how these elephants come to learn these tricks, and what being “broken” means, so that the elephant is able to “work”.

Elephant Nature Park is run by an incredible woman named Lek, a Thai woman who grew up in a local village where elephants are used for work, and are “broken” so as to be able to perform that work. She has volunteers supporting her, and one of those volunteers – an Australian woman named Michelle – went there for a 2-week volunteer trip with her husband in 2002, and has only returned to Australia in that time to pack up her gear and collect her dog. They live there now, spending their days talking to tourists about elephants and promoting elephant well-being! What a job!!!

We fed elephants, got in the river with them and scrubbed them, watched babies play… it was a really amazing day! And we took about 500 photos!

TO SEE MANY PHOTOS, GO TO: http://s136.photobucket.com/albums/q164/erinfearn/SE%20Asia/Elephants/?start=all