Elephant Nature Park Celebrates 10-Year Anniversary

Time flies!

It is hard to believe it has been 10 years since Elephant Nature Park’s humble beginnings at this location. When we first came to look at this land, it seemed to take forever to get from the front of the property to the river at the back. At that time the river was so narrow it didn’t seem possible that we would actually be able to bathe elephants in it!

The first elephants

Hope, who was the first elephant to arrive, walked from Lek’s family village Baan Lao with his mahout and three volunteers.

That first night was spent in tents with Hope tethered nearby.

The next day Mae Perm, Mae Jokia, Lily, Mae Keow, the mighty Boon Khum, along with the newly rescued Max, Thai and Siam walked from the Haven.

They slowly emerged from in between the scrub, brush and banana trees along the property line and set eyes upon their new home. Only Hope, Mae Perm, Jokia, Mae Keow and Mae Thai still remain. The dog population at that time was only around 20!!!!!

So much has happened since 2003.

We have survived some incredible floods; trees and buildings have been washed away and as a result, we have invested tens of thousands of dollars on a reinforced river wall.

Thankfully, the acreage has grown with the years and the original 50 acres has blossomed to around 90 acres. Today, we still need more land.

Many elephants have passed through the front gates …

Old, worn out survivors were able to rest a while before passing on to the spirit world. The young and traumatized who arrived got a new lease on life and have learned to form families and friendships.

A decade ago, Hope and Jungle Boy were the babies and everything revolved around them. Presently we are embarking on a new era with the boys —  the teen years.

A new generation of babies, Faa Mai and Chang Yim — the first born in the park from ENP mothers, are now healthy youngsters. Within the past five months we have been blessed with two more babies; Navann, a male and Dok Mai, a female. Believed to be fathered by Hope and Tong Suk, our boys have progressed from childhood to fatherhood within these last 10 years!

Humble beginnings

We started out with a simple bamboo hut in the middle of the land. Volunteers and mahouts ate their meals in the same area, sitting cross-legged on the floor.

That little hut has now evolved into an elaborate feeding platform. Back in the day, “feeding time” consisted of two bags of bananas for each elephant.

Now we have an elephant kitchen with full-time staff attending it!

The visitor and volunteer programs have become quite successful as well.

Ten years ago, there were days when there were no visitors and weeks with no volunteers. For the lucky ones who did find ENP in the early days, the experience was intimate and for some, life changing. Word of mouth spread slowly but surely. In our second year, National Geographic magazine visited and wrote an article about Lek and the amazing work she was doing. This article generated worldwide awareness and the visitor numbers began to rise.

All of this has came to be thanks to the hard work and dedication from the many volunteers and park staff who have stayed with us over the years. We could not have grown without you!

A very special thanks goes to our big donors, without them we would not even have the land we occupy. Bert and Christine Von Roemer of the Serengeti Foundation and their lovely family have always been there for us when we needed them the most. Nancy Abraham of the Alexander Abraham Foundation, Antoinette Van de Water of Bring the Elephant Home, and more recently, American animal-lover and retired TV star Bob Barker, have been incredibly generous and invaluable to Elephant Nature Park evolving into what it is today.

To all of you, we give a trumpet of thanks for your support the past 10 years.

Lek’s continued efforts are creating slow but steady change in Thailand, change towards a better life for the captive working elephants who are the symbol of this beautiful country. We hope to continue to be successful and to be a role model, leading the way to a future where elephants do not have to give rides, paint pictures, play instruments or football, walk the streets or drag heavy logs to “earn their keep.” A future where the elephant’s only “job” is to simply be themselves.

The success of ENP shows that this concept can work.

May we continue to move forward despite any obstacles in our path. Our main goal at this time is to acquire more elephant habitat. To continue to rescue more elephants and to provide the best quality of life for those already in our care, more land, preferably forested, is desperately needed. Your continued support can help to make this possible.