Champassak and 4000 Islands

Vientiane

After the most dangerous minivan we've ever experienced, complete with psychopathic driver and near death experiences, we celebrated with an excellent hotpot along by the Mekong in Vientiane and on the way back helped a young traveller who had twisted an ankle. Thankfully we only had to endure one night in yet another substandard room and spent the following day visiting COPE. This impressive charity provides prosthetic and orthotic services to the many still falling victim to unexploded ordnance scattered throughout Laos, the most bombed country by population thanks to cluster bombs dropped by the US during the Vietnam War. The statistics laid out at the visitor centre were shocking and sobering.

Champassak

An entertaining night bus from the capital arrived at Pakse in the early hours just as the busy market was opening up. From here on we were following in reverse the trip I had made solo in 2016. It was so good to have Karen with me this time around.

After some breakfast noodles here we took a songthaew to the little town of Champassak and were in our accommodation on the west shore of the Mekong by 9am. Temperatures had been rising since Vientiane and much of our three days here were spent in shady hammocks by the river. The views and great food made for a very pleasant stay.

Blue Nawab Polyura schreiber

Butterflies once again provided a welcome distraction. Blue Nawab, Grey Pansy, Lemon Emigrant and Common Birdwing. Brown-throated Sunbird was about the only bird of note however (also seen in Vientiane).

Si Phan Don (4000 Islands)

The journey to Don Khon involved a local boat transfer up river to the eastern dock of the Champassak ferry where a songthaew took us to the main road. A slightly nerve-wracking wait here in the middle of nowhere, but a bus duly turned up and took us the hour or so to Nakasong where we took the fabulous, scenic longtail boat to the island seeing a Shikra on the way. Door to door the journey took around 4 hours.

The Mekong is five mile wide here and splits into myriad channels to plunge over many waterfalls and rapids. This is one of the most beautiful places I've ever stayed and it was a shame Karen was down with a cold at the time, especially as it was getting even hotter. We did manage to get out and about though and walks around the north of the island to the tops of the waterfalls revealed common birds and insects: Large-billed Crow, House, Tree & Plain-backed Sparrows, Asian Brown Flycatcher, Dusky Warbler, Asian Palm Swift, Barn Swallow, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Common Myna, Common & Dark-necked Tailorbirds, Olive-backed Sunbird, Black-naped Oriole and Shikra, Common Mormon and Common Grass Yellow butterflies.

Grass Yellow Eurema sp.

Li Phi Waterfall

Yellow-spotted Keelback Fowlea flavipunctata

An early morning trip to Li Phi falls on the western side of the island was very entertaining. Good views of a Yellow-spotted Keelback here in the water at one of the pools provided for swimming. A harmless species but potentially alarming to some across if you were swimming there. Common Oakblue butterfly, Slender Skimmer (aka Green Marsh Hawk) dragonfly and an Argiope spider photographed and the following birds seen: 3 Indian Spot-billed Duck, Greater Coucal, Asian Koel, Little Cormorant, Little Egret, Chinese Pond Heron, 1 Osprey, 1 Chestnut-headed Bee-eater, Coppersmith Barbet, Large-billed Crow, Dark-necked Tailorbird, 1 Barn Swallow, 2 Wire-tailed Swallow, 2 Striated Swallow, Taiga Flycatcher, Olive-backed Sunbird.

Common Oakblue Arhopala micale

Slender Skimmer Orthetrum sabina

Dang's Cross Spider Argiope dang

On my previous trip I'd gone to see the Irrawaddy Dolphins from Kratie in Cambodia, so we thought we'd try for them here this time. It involved an early morning sidecar tuktuk along the old French railway line to the far south of Don Khon and the small port of Hang Khon. We then started looking around for a boat trip and bumped into the very same young woman we had helped in Vientiane a week before. She and her partner had hitched up with a Dutch couple and so we hired a boat between the six of us bringing the cost to less than a pound each!

We saw at least 3 (probably 5) River Dolphins including a mother and calf but not well enough to photograph. Views were better in Cambodia but this perhaps a more laid back experience and certainly not disturbing the dolphins much at all. The boat was out for about an hour.

Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius philippensis 

Bird life much as expected, including: 1 Green Sandpiper, 3 Oriental Darter, 4 Little Egret, 2 Chinese Pond Heron, 1 Intermediate Egret, 1 Osprey, 1 Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike, 1 Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, 2 Black-headed & 2 Black-crested Bulbul. Butterflies included Common Birdwing, Lemon Emigrant, Great Orange-tip and a Rose sp.

Our final day here was spent around the small town only adding a male philippensis Blue Rock Thrush to the bird list here, which finished on 49 species.

Indian Spot-billed Duck
Red Collared Dove
Spotted Dove
Zebra Dove
Greater Coucal
Asian Koel
Himalayan Swiftlet
Germain's Swiftlet
Asian Palm Swift
Green Sandpiper
Oriental Darter
Little Cormorant
Great Cormorant
Little Egret
Chinese Pond Heron
Eastern Cattle Egret
Intermediate Egret
Osprey
Shikra
Chestnut-headed Bee-eater
Coppersmith Barbet
Black-naped Oriole
Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike
Ashy Drongo
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
Large-billed Crow
Common Tailorbird
Dark-necked Tailorbird
Barn Swallow
Wire-tailed Swallow
Striated Swallow
Black-headed Bulbul
Black-crested Bulbul
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Yellow-browed Warbler
Dusky Warbler
Common Myna
Great Myna
Asian Brown Flycatcher
Oriental Magpie-Robin
Taiga Flycatcher
Blue Rock Thrush
Brown-throated Sunbird
Olive-backed Sunbird
Scaly-breasted Munia
White-rumped Munia
House Sparrow
Plain-backed Sparrow
Eurasian Tree Sparrow