Almost 2 years since Mum & Shane gave us our engagement present of a stay in the tree houses at the Gibbon Project we finally made it to Lao. We are both huge nature lovers and nothing more so than the primates. So this to be and Adventure! Unfortunately for us Gibbons are highly territorial family units, so around 5 gibbons patrol a large area, making them difficult to find.

We chose the Waterfall Experience which keeps you walking and zipping through the jungle each day. For the most part outside the main Gibbon territory. For anyone else going I would suggest the Classic Adventure. The zip lines are better (you do them on the Waterfall Experience, but you only get one go ) and your chances of gibbon sightings are much better.

Whilst we didn’t see Gibbons we did get to hear them and this is a treat in itself. Unbeknownst to us they sing like birds, well almost, it’s a hooting that sounds a bit like a whip-bird and bell bird combined (one that is a little hoarse). Walking through misty jungle in the morning hearing these hoots was a great experience.

Overall the experience is great. The zip lines are fantastic as are the vista’s from the tree houses. The only let down being the lack of wildlife. This was not so surprising on our journey home when we saw a lot of what was missing being sold in the meat markets. Conservation is a much easier idea for those of us who have no fear of going hungry. I mentioned this to one of our fellow Gibbon “hunters” and they replied with an interesting concept they had see working in the game parks of Africa. The local people are paid a considerable amount of money every month. Every time an animal is killed in the park that money is reduced. It has been apparently extremely effective as the leaders quickly see that the one of gain from the death of the animal is not worth the compounding factor of the lost money.