Nong Han Lake

Our car and driver met us at 5:45 Wednesday morning to head out to the Red Lotus Sea at Nong Han Lake, about an hour away. Ong turned out to be a wonderful driver and guide. She spoke good English and knew a lot about the places we went.

Although it is called the Red Lotus Sea, the flowers are actually pink tropical water lilies. They are out in the center of the large lake, not visible from the shore. When we arrived, we saw many boats available for hire — larger ones that carry 6-8 people, and small ones for two. We definitely wanted a small one so our view wouldn’t be obstructed.

View of larger boats from arrival area

The small boats turned out to be extremely shallow. It was probably less than 6 inches from the seat to the bottom of the flat hull. It proved somewhat of a challenge for me and a few times I had to lie back down on the seat mat to rest my back. Fortunately, when we returned to the shore, a woman helper hauled me up and out.

My friend Barbara is a professional photographer and travel writer (check out her blog at holeinthedonut.com). Most of the pictures below are from her.

Barbara sat behind me.

Sunrise on the lake

There were many birds on the lake. Small ones that appeared to be swifts flew around us. And we saw lots of these larger birds who flew and walked on the lily pads. They were stunning, with a reddish head and blue-gray body. When we got back to the hotel, the desk clerk was able to look them up and tell us they are gray-headed swamp hens. Our boatman called them eagles, but we were pretty sure they weren’t!

There were many of the larger boats

Lilies, another green growth, and a flying swamp hen

We saw views like this throughout the hour-plus ride

What a stunning way to start our day! And it was only the beginning of our adventure. More tomorrow.