Tallest tree on Phuket?

[Gforcejunkypkt]

Admittedly a kinda off-the-wall question, but just wondering if anyone has any idea about the tallest (known) tree on Phuket? A definitive answer might not be possible as there are plenty of jungle or mountain places on the island people rarely if ever go, so would also be happy to hear any guesses or hunches as well. A photo would be great; if not just a description/location would be much appreciated.

[fiddlehead]

Good question.
There are still a lot of wild places on Phuket.
A few guesses:
There's a deep valley that's not easy to get to, just southwest of the kathu waterfall.
Take the last good left BEFORE you get to the waterfall parking lot and go up a hill and then cross a stream and make a sharp left on the other side.
Walking up that steep climb will have you parallel with a deep valley that has some tall trees.

Another possibility is: going east from the Heroines' monument, go about 5-8 kms and make a left on one of the many roads taking up towards the wilderness up there. I don't remember the exact one (have it marked on my GPS) but eventually you can leave the roads behind and start bushwhacking up the mountain. I remember some big ones up in there.

YOu could ask the Hash House Harrier guys.
They know the island as good as anyone.
I'd say the east side would have taller trees, but you are going to need steep and inaccessible places to find where it has NOT been logged or planted with rubber.

Good luck.
I'd be glad to go looking with you sometime after the Christmas season if you like.

Sounds like fun.

[Guest]

The road, which fiddlehead mentioned, is very nice way to go from Paklok to Thalang. Route to get there from the two lady roundabout http://goo.gl/maps/oFejR

The road is in good condition most of the year, unless there has been heavy rains.

There are some tall trees, like this one. Even if you don't find your tree I'm quite sure you'll enjoy the road.

This is a bit further to the west.

[Gforcejunkypkt]

Good question.

There are still a lot of wild places on Phuket.

A few guesses:

There's a deep valley that's not easy to get to, just southwest of the kathu waterfall.

Take the last good left BEFORE you get to the waterfall parking lot and go up a hill and then cross a stream and make a sharp left on the other side.

Walking up that steep climb will have you parallel with a deep valley that has some tall trees.

Another possibility is: going east from the Heroines' monument, go about 5-8 kms and make a left on one of the many roads taking up towards the wilderness up there. I don't remember the exact one (have it marked on my GPS) but eventually you can leave the roads behind and start bushwhacking up the mountain. I remember some big ones up in there.

YOu could ask the Hash House Harrier guys.

They know the island as good as anyone.

I'd say the east side would have taller trees, but you are going to need steep and inaccessible places to find where it has NOT been logged or planted with rubber.

Good luck.

I'd be glad to go looking with you sometime after the Christmas season if you like.

Sounds like fun.

Thanks for the great info fiddlehead! As I live closer to Kathu for now I might check out that valley in the near future. Sounds like you've done a bit of bushwacking yourself so would be happy to meet up sometime, PM me sometime when you're free after Christmas.

[Gforcejunkypkt]

The road, which fiddlehead mentioned, is very nice way to go from Paklok to Thalang. Route to get there from the two lady roundabout http://goo.gl/maps/oFejR

The road is in good condition most of the year, unless there has been heavy rains.

There are some tall trees, like this one. Even if you don't find your tree I'm quite sure you'll enjoy the road.

Much appreciated as well your contribution oilinki, nice of you to post the google map route and the nice photos. Visited your website also, you've got lots of great pix on there, you're a talented photographer.

Looks like a fun road to ride a motorcycle on, this weekend might take a cruise over Thalang way if the weather is nice.

[PJ33]

There's a very tall tree quite near you in Kathu which may be in the running for being the tallest...

...it's next to a small lake which was very popular for Loy Krathong....if you leave from the main Tesco Lotus in Samkong, on the main road towards Patong.....when you reach the next set of traffic lights, turn left. After about 1km on the right-hand-side is the place. It was a large, free-standing sign written in Thai letters only (i.e. not on a board, just the letters in multi-colour 3D). The tree is on the entrance to the lake and is quite awe-inspiring.

Photo attached was taken during Loy Krathong, hence the dark.

[fiddlehead]

I've been thinking about this.
How are we to measure these trees?
Any ideas?

[Gforcejunkypkt]

I've been thinking about this.

How are we to measure these trees?

Any ideas?

I could climb to the top and throw some weighted fishing line down to you

Just kidding, was thinking about this too, then thought there must be some smart phone apps for this; just checked and there surely are (e.g. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ee.deskis.android.height&hl=en ) though I'm not certain how accurate they are.

[Gforcejunkypkt]

There's a very tall tree quite near you in Kathu which may be in the running for being the tallest...

...it's next to a small lake which was very popular for Loy Krathong....if you leave from the main Tesco Lotus in Samkong, on the main road towards Patong.....when you reach the next set of traffic lights, turn left. After about 1km on the right-hand-side is the place. It was a large, free-standing sign written in Thai letters only (i.e. not on a board, just the letters in multi-colour 3D). The tree is on the entrance to the lake and is quite awe-inspiring.

Photo attached was taken during Loy Krathong, hence the dark.

Wow that surely is a big and wonderful looking tree, PJ33! I know the area but have never really stopped at that lake or noticed the tree, will surely stop in there soon and test out a newly downloaded measuring app. Like with many taller, older trees I'd love to know it's approx. age too, you gotta wonder how many Loy Krathongs that tree has seen!

[Guest]

I could climb to the top and throw some weighted fishing line down to you

Just kidding, was thinking about this too, then thought there must be some smart phone apps for this; just checked and there surely are (e.g. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ee.deskis.android.height&hl=en ) though I'm not certain how accurate they are.

The app accuracy would depend of the phone sensor accuracy as well as how well you measure the distance to the tree (gps can give some value, but it might not be as good as needed for this task).

The non mathematical solution. If you are going to use the old indian method in the urban environment, you might wish to have something with 45 degree angle with you which would do the same trick.

And with trigonometry

Somehow I also thought that you are looking for trees to climb up

[Gforcejunkypkt]

I could climb to the top and throw some weighted fishing line down to you

Just kidding, was thinking about this too, then thought there must be some smart phone apps for this; just checked and there surely are (e.g. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ee.deskis.android.height&hl=en ) though I'm not certain how accurate they are.

Somehow I also thought that you are looking for trees to climb up

Oilinki, what do you think I am, nuts? Ok...like George Washington I can't tell a lie -- you're right -- but unlike young Georgie I don't want to cut any trees down -- I love 'em! And I'm pretty sure more than a few of the people posting to or even viewing this thread like myself (and I bet you:) did at least a bit of tree climbing when they were kids; no reason (aside from perhaps physical) that we should stop doing things like that just because we're 'grown up' which I'd reckon you would agree with given a couple of quite profound points you made on another thread I started: "To live a fulfilling life requires far more courage than just live a long life. I'm still confused of the fact that when we grow older, we fear more of the challenges as at the same time we have less to lose compared to the people we once were." Good stuff that...

[fester the benevolent]

This being Phuket and all now would probably be a good time to invest in the 2nd tallest tree on the island.

Chances are it will be only minutes after the tallest is identified that you will find yourself as the owner of the newest tallest tree in Phuket.

[Guest]

@gforce: The way you describe your adventures is inspiring. I'm looking forward to read the reports when you team up with other active climbers on the forum. Just make the good judgement calls so that we can enjoy the stories for years to come.

As a kid me and the friends used to have competitions who dares to climb highest to the trees and sometimes light poles. It was great fun and fortunately did not result to any bad injuries.

We also used to have follow the leader game. One would lead the way through various climbing and other challenges, the other kids would follow if they dared. This resulted one boy having both hands fractured. After he recovered, he became a bit more cautious, the rest of us - not really. The most daring challenge was to climb from 8th floor balcony down to 7th floor, while underneath was asphalt and some bicycles. I don't remember ever doing it that in that height, but some others did. Great fun for us, but probably not for our mothers.

[Gforcejunkypkt]

Good advice to be sure @oilinki, which I do take to heart. Likewise and for the record I've been a certifiable adrenaline junky since I was 6 yr. old, it's just for some reason or another I really never stopped doing these kind of things unlike most (more practical) people as they get older (part dopamine/adrenaline addiction, part not wanting to grow up and partly because my career for many years has revolved around the adventure business). I've also not had all the tech toys in the past, so couldn't document or share via social media like we can so easily nowadays. And while I do take risks, they're very calculated risks which I don't take lightly. Of course *hit happens, I'm well aware, but that could happen on the way to get something at 7-11 or walking down the road during a rain storm.

I'll be the first to admit as well that there's some kind of 'mid-life crisis' dynamics going on as well -- I'm almost 48 and certainly not getting any stronger or tougher physically, so guess I just want to have some more extreme adventures as I can before the natural and inevitable toll of aging starts making such endeavors less doable -- then it'll be time to get into something physically less taxing, like parachuting and base jumping!

Edited November 28, 2014 by Gforcejunkypkt

[Guest]

One for the tallest tree competition. A truck for the scale.

Between Bang Rong and Muang Mai http://goo.gl/maps/GbFdC

[Gforcejunkypkt]

Holy moly, yes I'd say that's a contender Did you use the old Indian method to check the height? Using the truck as reference, I'd say about 20-22m?

[Gforcejunkypkt]

This being Phuket and all now would probably be a good time to invest in the 2nd tallest tree on the island.

Chances are it will be only minutes after the tallest is identified that you will find yourself as the owner of the newest tallest tree in Phuket.

Given the rabid pace of development here, unfortunately there's some truth in what you say @fester. Weirdly though when it comes to bigger and older trees (esp. banyan type), many locals believe spirits reside in them and show respect by tying those colored sashes or whatever as seen in @oilinko's nice pic above.

[KarenBravo]

This being Phuket and all now would probably be a good time to invest in the 2nd tallest tree on the island.

Chances are it will be only minutes after the tallest is identified that you will find yourself as the owner of the newest tallest tree in Phuket.

Given the rabid pace of development here, unfortunately there's some truth in what you say @fester. Weirdly though when it comes to bigger and older trees (esp. banyan type), many locals believe spirits reside in them and show respect by tying those colored sashes or whatever as seen in @oilinko's nice pic above.

Yes, correct. There was a huge tree hundreds of years old (banyan, I think) that was on the north side of Bangla with branches spreading well over to the south side of Bangla.

It had a hugely thick trunk that was wrapped in clothes and saw people waiiing it.

It still didn't stand a chance when it become "inconvenient" for the developers.

As far as I'm concerned, the day that tree got cut down in Bangla was the day the street lost it's soul.

[kirkoloft]

If you are looking for tall trees to build zip line then you should look for it in northern part of Chiangmai there is a village called Mae Khompong and the tallest trees I have seen into Thai life was there as well as the other part of town in Mae rim Chiangmai and the village name is called Pong Krai. But keep in mind there are 14 Zip Line companies in Chiangmai itself already . ( this is only of you are looking to build a zip line ).

;-)

[Gforcejunkypkt]

If you are looking for tall trees to build zip line then you should look for it in northern part of Chiangmai there is a village called Mae Khompong and the tallest trees I have seen into Thai life was there as well as the other part of town in Mae rim Chiangmai and the village name is called Pong Krai. But keep in mind there are 14 Zip Line companies in Chiangmai itself already . ( this is only of you are looking to build a zip line ).

;-)

Thx @kirkloft for contributing, I actually lived in CNX for a spell while doing a contract job for Flight of the Gibbon (having to do with staff training, overseeing the release of their 1st two gibbons back into the wild, and helping to open their awesome Chonburi site) -- but you're absolutely right, those rain forests in CNX (and in Khao Keow, Chonburi) have many massive, tall and beautiful trees! Mae Khompong is a lovely little village too. Did you do FOTG's zipline? Great fun there in CNX and the one in Chonburi is even more impressive (nature-wise and length of course, when we formally opened the facility it was the world's longest commercial zip-line, but not sure if it still holds that accolade). Only ~45 min. from Pattaya / ~1 hr from BKK and highly recommended to all.

Interestingly, from a bit of research during my work there I found that the rain forests of Thailand are actually older than those near the Amazon, apparently they were less affected by the last ice age or something like that.

But for clarification purposes, I didn't pose this question/thread for anything related to zip-lining for myself or any other party (there are already several such tour providers on the island, whom I would suppose are using some pretty tall trees too). And for myself I'm very happy with my own co. and no time/interest to get involved with (the quite costly) set up of a zip-line course, was just asking purely out of curiosity/love of nature (and because I might climb it if it were the right kind of tree/situation -- in fact the very tallest tree(s) might not be climbable without proper gear (which I don't have and don't want to use anyway) because a lot of these super taller trees don't have any branches near the bottom as we can see in @oilinko's pix.

[Gforcejunkypkt]

This being Phuket and all now would probably be a good time to invest in the 2nd tallest tree on the island.

Chances are it will be only minutes after the tallest is identified that you will find yourself as the owner of the newest tallest tree in Phuket.

Given the rabid pace of development here, unfortunately there's some truth in what you say @fester. Weirdly though when it comes to bigger and older trees (esp. banyan type), many locals believe spirits reside in them and show respect by tying those colored sashes or whatever as seen in @oilinko's nice pic above.

Yes, correct. There was a huge tree hundreds of years old (banyan, I think) that was on the north side of Bangla with branches spreading well over to the south side of Bangla.

It had a hugely thick trunk that was wrapped in clothes and saw people waiiing it.

It still didn't stand a chance when it become "inconvenient" for the developers.

As far as I'm concerned, the day that tree got cut down in Bangla was the day the street lost it's soul.

So nicely said, @KarenBravo.

[izh]

I like this one on Yaowarat Road (Phuket Police Headquarters):

[Gforcejunkypkt]

Wow, that is a big one! Using the basket as a reference I'd say it's a good 25m, maybe near 30m in height. Unlike some taller trees it looks quite climbable, but doing so there would probably end you up in the Police station's temporary Psych ward (remember that poor soul of a foreigner who climbed the radio antenna there not so long ago?), but a great looking tree nonetheless, thanks for contributing @izh.

[KarenBravo]

This really crap photo was taken from within my garden.

The tree in the photo is huge. I guesstimate 30 to 32 metres. See house and water tower for rough perspective.

The reason that it has lasted so long, is that every year it produces 100's of kilos of a fruit called "look year".

A small fruit that comes in bunches. It has a black, velvety skin. Big single stone and a tiny bit of fruit that tastes sweet 'n' sour.

Thais love it..........you can never get full.

Edited December 4, 2014 by KarenBravo

[losworld]

love those big trees

[Gforcejunkypkt]

love those big trees

Yep, when you walk up to a big old tree like that and touch it, you can just feel the 'power' (or whatever you want to call it).

And @Karenbravo, yes that is a bigun, easily at least 30m as you say, thx for sharing -- sounds like that tree has provided snacks for a few generations...

[Gforcejunkypkt]

OK I think I found it...utilizing a complex set of algorithms and trigonometric measurements from @oilinki's videos (based on the average height of a man and average height of a pig as seen in the foreground parking lot as reference points), I can with some confidence deduce the height of the tree in the background as being ~188m!

Edited December 5, 2014 by Gforcejunkypkt

[Gforcejunkypkt]

Have been trying out a few measurement apps for Android; not sure if it's the most accurate but the one that I like using the most so far is called Smart Measure (Lite) (they also have a Smart Distance app). Am going to an island a bit later today that has a quite tall and straight coconut tree, will test it out with that.

[KarenBravo]

This really crap photo was taken from within my garden.

The tree in the photo is huge. I guesstimate 30 to 32 metres. See house and water tower for rough perspective.

The reason that it has lasted so long, is that every year it produces 100's of kilos of a fruit called "look year".

A small fruit that comes in bunches. It has a black, velvety skin. Big single stone and a tiny bit of fruit that tastes sweet 'n' sour.

Thais love it..........you can never get full.

This tree is being felled as I type. A pity.

[Bogan Koori]

I seem to remember some massive trees when I went to the gibbon rehabilitation centre up the north east side if Phuket. I could be wrong but I am like 90 percent sure that's where I saw them.