This Red-throated
Pipit was
remarkably confiding at the viewpoint at Phu Cha Fa
The
"slow road" from Pha ayo to Chiang Khong
The Lonely planet
book recommends
the slow and scenic road through the mountains taking in, among other
things, the
village of Buan Hak and the viewpoint at Phu Cha Fa. We did these
things - perhaps not to be recommended for those with a tendency
towards travel sickness. In the lowlands we saw the rice being
harvested in the paddyfields by gangs of wokers. In the mountains the
views were stunning and the level of manual agriculture was both
impressing (for the amount of work involved) and disturbing as the
removal of the trees increases the number of landslides - something we
experienced a few times at first hand when the road was blocked or
under repair.
Buan Hak was a sleepy market town. For me the visit was made worthwhile
by seeing Striated Swallow and flocks of Dark-rumped Swift.
Other
stuff included the ever present Yellow-browed Warblers, Brown Shrike,
Grey Wagtail and Blue Rock Thrush. Time here was too short as several
species escaped ID here.
Phu Cha Fa threatened with fog - the magnificent view over to Laos
closed in as we walked to the summit (700m from the car park). Waiting
for the weather to clear I had time to photograph Dusky Crag Martins,
a confiding Red-throated Pipit and Brown-breasted Bulbul. A large
accipiter avoided
ID here as it dived into the forest never to be seen again.