The first stop on to our tour to northern Thailand. We left Bangkok at 10:40 and reached HKK at 15:30. At the checkpoint we were charged 250 baht (200 baht for me as foreigner).

On the access road there weren't many birds, though we saw a White-bellied Woodpecker fly over the road. That's one of my favourite birds which seems to be common here.
After putting up the tent I went looking for birds at the campsite but not much around. Just saw a lone Black-headed Woodpecker, probably the rest of the flock was in the denser trees. Moved over to the open area around the HQ which used to hold some birds in the evening but nothing this time. Had dinner at the restaurant and was told that just 3 days ago they had a lot of rain and that the water in the little stream almost reached the bridge.

The next morning was cold and clear with sunlight and finally we got some bird activity. The Red-billed Blue Magpies were up early around the toilets as usual. A Flameback seen up a tree and after a while I spotted a flock of Black-headed Woodpeckers, the signature bird of this place. I followed them around but they were a little shy and difficult to get really close to. I must develop a better technique here, must move ahead of them instead of behind them. Anyway managed to get a flight picture of this species which turned out quite well. Next time I'll go for flyers of this beautiful woodpecker.

Soon I heard the loud short call of some Black-hooded Orioles which moved around in a big tree close to the toilets. Always nice to see these colorful and cheerful Orioles. A flock of White-crested Laughingthrushes moved through the trees. Another species it's possible to picture in flight here.

Down in one of the corners there was a blooming tree which attracted a Vernal Hanging Parrot and some Golden-fronted Leafbirds. The Leafbirds were drinking the nectar of the flowers and the parrot was biting off pieces of the flowerbuds and ate it. If I could talk to the birds I would tell the leafbird to chase that parrot away! Anyway it was excellent light and I grabbed some frames of these nice birds. Some Sooty-headed Bulbuls joined in but was chased away when they came to close. An Indochinese Cuckooshrike displayed in a nearby tree and took off. Later I saw him flying around and I took some flight shots.

At 10am it was too hot and we took the tent down and went for Mae Wong. On the access road we drove slowly and I spotted another flock of Black-headed Woodpeckers. The forest here is quite open and you can walk inside it. I took my handheld camera (tripod would have been difficult here) and went after the woodpeckers which turned out to be in company with Rufous Treepies, Black-headed Orioles, a Indochinese Cuckoo-shrike and some Greater Racket-tailed Drongos. I tried to sneak up on them but it was difficult to get close. After a while I heard a loud drumming which must be a larger woodpecker. I homed in on the sound and spotted a male White-bellied Woodpecker. A magnificent bird with its large size and red head. I managed to sneak up behind a dense bush and found an opening to grab a few. The light was terrible though but I was happy to get my best pictures so far of this shy species. Again, I need to use a better approach and try and get in front of the bird wave.

After that treat we took off to Mae Wong at 1PM and we reached the Chong Yen campsite at 17:30. Took much longer to get to there than I thought. Some parts of the road was terrible with huge holes.