Imagine a warm, sunny morning in a rural tropical destination, with the sun just making its daily debut above the horizon and the world seemingly having a golden glow. It’s just shortly after sunrise, but it’s time to make your way to an air conditioned van to be driven about an hour outside of the city within the foothills of the Kulen Mountains. Deep within the trees after navigating through a winding dirt road, you find yourself at a recycled wooden hut to meet your enthusiastic guide. After preparing some food, you make your way down the back stairs and down a small dirt path before you find yourself at an open field with the breathtakingly majestic elephants just waiting to say hello. This is Kulen Elephant Forest.
If I can incorporate an animal encounter in my travels, I most certainly will find a way. With Southeast Asia being known for its elephant population, it did not take long for me to find an elephant sanctuary nestled in an open area near the mountains outside of Siem Reap. It was very important to me that we meet animals under humane conditions, not animals in captivity or used for malicious purposes. Elephants have a history of abuse over the centuries, and the sanctuary we found is a rescue for elephants that had been used for temple tours and pulling plows – two things elephants are not meant to be doing. With elephants being one of little bean’s favorite animals, I knew we needed to visit.
Kulen Elephant Forest is located on the outskirts of the Kulen Mountains, out in rural Cambodia just over an hour away from Siem Reap. They offer two times of day to come visit – 9 am or noon. Since we had little bean with us, we knew a morning visit would be best for her. The morning session also meant that we would get to head back to our hotel pool for the hot and humid afternoon. So after a quick sunrise breakfast at our hotel, our hotel arranged for a remork (tuk-tuk) to bring us to Kulen Elephant Forest’s office in Siem Reap. A few other guests were joining us as we all huddled into an air conditioned van that would bring us out to the elephants’ home. As we drove further away from the city, we got a glimpse of life in smaller towns and rural Cambodia. After a bit of a drive down a long dirt road, where cell service became nonexistent, we turned down another winding dirt road that led us deep into the trees. We hopped out of our van and walked along a small wooden bridge that took us to our base camp – a recycled wooden hut nestled amongst the trees.
Inside the hut, we were offered cold water and coffee before we were introduced to our guide, who was a new elephant caretaker at the sanctuary. He told us he had not yet been at the sanctuary very long, but that he grew up nearby in the Bos Thom community and had already developed a strong bond with one of the elephants that he lovingly and jokingly called “his girlfriend.” He then allowed us to make breakfast for the elephants, which meant getting our hands a bit dirty and conjuring up some nutritious rice balls. After gathering together the rice balls, some bananas, and some pumpkins, it was time to head downstairs and out towards the open field where the elephants would be waiting for us. As I carried my almost 2-year old across the dirt path that led us to the field, I will never forget the way her eyes widened and the way she exclaimed, “Elephants!” when she first made eye contact with them across the field.
To introduce ourselves to the elephants, we got to hand feed them the breakfast that we had made for them. Little bean was a bit nervous to feed them herself, but she insisted that I carry her while I fed them for her. These elephants were very happy and excited to see us, with their ears flapping enthusiastically (an elephant’s way of saying “hello”) and their tails swishing side to side. These ladies (all the elephants we were interacting with at this point were female) had been through a lot in their lives. I cannot reiterate this enough – do not ride elephants in Cambodia. A lot of elephants at this sanctuary had been used for tourist traps such as elephant riding at temples, which they are not meant to do, and also for plowing up the mountain, which is also something they are not meant to do. Also during the reign of the Khmer Rouge, war destroyed many forests throughout Cambodia and although the wild elephant population had not been severely affected, it did affect future populations.
The Kulen Elephant Forest is located on 1100 acres of protected forest, with the elephants freely roaming around through open fields and dense trees. As far as I could see, there were no chains, no leashes, and no fences. The elephants just do whatever their heart desires and we observe or follow them on their walk. As land mines were abundant during the time of the Khmer Rouge, the area surrounding Kulen Elephant Forest was safely examined for land mines many years ago and any that were found were safely detonated or destroyed. This makes the forest safe for the elephants and the residents of Bos Thom.
The caretakers encouraged us to walk with the elephants as they performed their daily exercise routine of walking through the forest. As these animals were used for tourist purposes, they are used to people being around and would not survive long out in the wild. However, their wishes are to be respected. We were free to touch an elephant, however if their body language stated they wanted to be left alone, we were to move away from her and leave her be. This happened a few times, and it was actually a great way to continue the conversation of consent that we had been having with little bean. She eventually mustered up the courage to touch an elephant, but when one would turn away she would adoringly say, “Mommy Elephant said no” and would move on. We observed one elephant having a moment to herself in the field, and while the caretaker didn’t say we couldn’t go up to her, we chose not to just to give her some peace.
After about an hour of walking around with the elephants, it was time to lead them back to the big pond for a refreshing dip. The sun was making its way out, and everyone was hot and hungry. The elephants entered the water, splashing around with their trunks to everyone’s delight. It was at this point that the sanctuary’s only male elephant came out, and he pretty much bee-lined straight for little bean while flapping his ears endlessly. Realising he wanted her to touch him, she put out her hand to scratch his trunk. He flapped his ears again, which startled her a little, and when she pulled away he gently stepped toward her to ask for more scratches. Eventually she felt more comfortable, and then finally she happily told everyone, “Daddy Elephant is saying yes!”
After a gorgeous morning wandering through the forests with elephants, it was time to say goodbye. Little bean was sad to have to leave, and I have to admit I could have spent all day relaxing under the sun in the grass with those majestic creatures. As we walked back towards the wooden hut to enjoy a traditional Khmer lunch, we turned around to wave goodbye one last time to the elephants. It was a pleasure getting to spend a few hours with them. If you get the chance to spend a morning or afternoon with rescued elephants, I highly recommend Kulen Elephant Forest.
