I returned to my favorite location for the last few days of the trip. This area was what spurred my interest in Thailand 5 years ago and definitely did not let me down. It lies in a small bay closed off to the cities around it by jagged cliffs. Just 2 miles to the north lies the city of Ao Nang with cars, traffic, and lots of pavement. None of those things are present in Ton Sai. The beach is lined by small restaurants and bars with sand floors and bamboo walls. A generator is run at night to provide electricity between the hours of 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. Bathrooms are less than accomadating and AC is virtually non-existent. Bungalows on the beach cost about 12 dollars and thrifty vagabonds walk inland a bit to save a few bucks. The population is that of the mid 20 something traveler and professional rock climbers. Many people stay for months at a time and I met up with a few people that were there with us a week before. There was one last activity lingering on my list of things to do. This is what caught my attention so many years ago and I was finally getting to do it. Deep Water Soloing.
Deep water Soloing is a bit of a mixture between climbing and cliff jumping. No ropes are used during the climbing because if you fall you land in the water. The height of your climb is only limited by your skill and how high of a jump you want to make. A boat took us out to an island where a cliff face drops down into the warm, clear ocean water. With an old pair of climbing shoes and a kayak to assist us getting onto the wall we climbed and jumped for hours. As the sun came closer to setting we beached the boats on a long sandy spit and the Thai guides began fixing us a BBQ. We watched thousands if fruit bats leave a neighboring island as the sun slowly sank into the sea. A fitting last night of an amazing vacation.