This out-and-back trek with an overnight at The Nests camp offers great birdwatching opportunities and a chance to spot wildlife at night from an observation tower located above a salt lick and near a ranger station.
Highlights
- Wildlife observation tower
- Birdwatching
- Camera Trapping
- Overnight at The Nests
- Ranger station
Wildlife species
The Nests wildlife observation tower is located above a salt lick and offers excellent birdwatching opportunities. You may see Blyth’s paradise flycatcher, rufous-faced warbler, long-tailed and silver-breasted broadbills, pale-headed woodpecker, greater and lesser yellow napes, and many more.
Detail Itinerary
Please note that the itinerary below is approximate. Small change can occur as we are in remote and wild Laos and it is impossible to predict everything. However, please trust that the National Park guide will do the most to ensure you have the best possible wildlife experience.
Day 1: Enter the National Park. The Nests Wildlife Observation Tower
Distance: 5 km tok-tok & 7.5 km trek
Duration: 1h tok-tok and 4-hour trek
Elevation Gain/Loss: +460m / -420m
Meals: L/D
At 8am, meet your guide at the national park visitor center for a brief orientation ( or pick you up at your guest house in Muang Hiem ) Then, travel for about 30 minutes to a small Khmu village, where you’ll meet the community ecotourism team.
For the first 5 km of the trail, ride a tok-tok (hand tractor) through rice fields to the park boundary, then trek 7 km through the park to the camp, identifying signs of wildlife along the way.
Once at The Nests camp, relax, and enjoy late afternoon birdwatching. After a campfire dinner, head to the observation tower located next to a salt lick for nighttime wildlife spotting. Overnight in The Nests.
Day 2: Return To Muang Hiem
Distance: 7.5 km trek & 5 km tok-tok.
Time estimation: 4h trek, 1h tok-tok.
Elevation Gain/Loss: +420m / -460m.
Meals: B/L
Start the day with birdwatching and verifying the wildlife camera traps. Twelve surrounding villages involved in the ecotourism program receive monetary bonuses through the ecotourism benefit fund that is based on the wildlife spotted on the tours and in the camera traps.
Trek out from the national park and enjoy birdwatching along the way, then ride a tok-tok (hand tractor) back to the village. Return to Muang Hiam in the mid-afternoon. Recommendation: spend the afternoon relaxing at the hot springs.
You will be then transferred back to Muang Hiem by private truck or van.
-End of the Tour-
Please consider the environment before printing
Tour price: Contact us
Group size: 2 to 15 pax
Departure date based on your inquiry
Accommodation on tour: 1 night in The Nests.
Option: Add extra night in the ecotourism village home-stay the night before/after the tour.
Seasonality: Dry season only, from October to May/June (depending on the rainy season).
Difficulty: Moderate to Hard. Please note this itinerary requires a total of 14 kilometers walking in difficult terrain over two days (rocky streams to cross, steep hills to climb and dense vegetation). Please sign up for this tour only if you have experience with trekking and if you are confident in your physical ability to deal with such stresses.
Elevation profile, Day 1 & 2 follow the same path:
What to bring?
Weather note – Weather can be both very hot during the daytime and very cold at night. It is recommended that you bring clothes for both extremes.
Water note – Please note that we provide boiled stream water on the multiple day trekking tours. Please take your own water purification tablets.
We ask that you please bring just one small backpack and leave large suitcases or long‐haul backpacks in the village or your car.
Please bring the following:
- light rain jacket or poncho (strongly recommended)
- fleece jacket (strongly recommended as November to February can be very cold)
- both sun hat for daytime and wool cap for night
- long pants for walking in the forest
- good walking shoes and sandals for bathing
- clothes for bathing (shorts and t-shirt). Please no nude/bikini bathing.
- Warm clothes for sleeping (as November to February can be very cold)
- snacks (food is provided, but you might want to bring something to snack on)
- water purification tablets (for multi-day treks the water is boiled)
- towel and toiletries
- insect repellent
- flashlight
- binoculars
- reusable water bottle (help us reduce waste)
Departure suggestion (Local transport)
Overnight in Village home stay or in Muang Hiem before and after the tour.
The local bus to Sam Neau and Phonsavan junction departs at 8am every morning from the Muang Hiam bus station.
The local bus to Nong Khiaw and Luang Prabang passes through Muang Hiem every day at approximately 12pm -1pm.
In the morning go for walking through the school forest trail and/or enjoy the Muang Hiem Hot Springs before getting the bus at noon at the bus station.
What is included
- National Park Entrance Fee
- Village Entrance Fee
- Village Ecotourism Benefit Fund
- District Tourism Fee
- English-speaking guide
- Community Services: wildlife spotter, porters, cooks, cleaning, handicraft group, etc.
- Transport from Muang Hiam to the tour
- Food and water (boiled)
- Sleeping equipment
- Leech Socks
Optional:
- Your own sleeping bag and/or sleeping sheet (we provide a sleeping bag, but you can use your own if you have)
- Our porters will carry all camping equipment, however if you would like someone to carry your personal items for you, you may pay extra for an additional porter. Please ask our staff about this.
