Eastern Cambodia - Cambodia - page 587

THE ELEPHANT VALLEY PROJECT
For an original elephant experience, visit the Elephant Valley Project ( 099-696041;
www.elephantvalleyproject.org ) . The project entices local mahouts to bring their overworked or in-
jured elephants to this sanctuary, where, in the words of project coordinator Jack Highwood, 'they can
learn how to act like elephants again'.
A Briton with a contagious passion for elephants, Highwood is on a mission to improve the lot of
Mondulkiri's working elephants. While Bunong tradition calls for giving elephants a certain amount
of down time, Highwood says that economic incentives to overwork elephants prove too great for the
impoverished mahouts of Mondulkiri. In addition to toting tourists around on their backs, elephants
are hired to haul around anything and everything, including illegally cut timber. 'In Mondulkiri, the
elephant is basically seen as a cheap tractor', he says.
Most tour companies in Mondulkiri stress that their tours employ only humanely treated elephants.
Highwood commends this, but says it's the exception rather than the rule. 'Most elephants in Mon-
dulkiri are in a highly abused state', he says. 'They are beaten on the head and made to do things they
aren't meant to be doing.'
Enter the Elephant Valley Project. Mahouts who bring their elephants here are paid a competitive
working wage to retire their elephants full time to ecotourism. Mahouts continue to work with their
elephants, feeding and caring for them and making sure they don't escape into the wild. The ele-
phants, for their part, can spend their days blasting through the forest in search of food, uprooting sap-
lings to get to their yummy roots and hanging out by the river spraying mud on one another.
You are not allowed to ride the elephants here. Instead, you simply walk through the forest with
them and observe them in their element. In the process you learn a lot about not only elephant beha-
viour but also Bunong culture and forest ecology. Other project components include health care for
Bunong communities in the project area, and health and veterinary care for the mahouts of Mon-
dulkiri. The Wildlife Conservation Society lauds the Elephant Valley Project for helping to protect the
eastern reaches of the Seima Protected Forest.
There are two options for visiting the Elephant Valley Project. Option one is a day trip (half/full day
US$40/70) in which half the day is spent observing the the elephants, and half the day is spent wash-
ing the elephants and doing other tasks around the project site. The other option is an overnight in ex-
quisite bungalows tucked into the jungle on a ridge overlooking the valley. Dorm-style accommoda-
tion costs US$20, while private bungalows cost US$30 to US$50. You must still pay the day-trip fee
on top of this. Prices include full board. Short- and long-term volunteers who want to help the project
while learning mahout skills are welcome.
Access to the site is tightly controlled so don't show up unannounced (there are free-range ele-
phants wandering around after all). It's popular so book well in advance. The maximum amount of
day trippers allowed per day is 12. Green House ( Click here ) can handle bookings in Sen Monorom.
The project does not take overnight visitors on Friday and Saturday nights and is not open to visit-
ors on Saturday and Sunday; however, there are plans in place to open six days a week.
Sleeping