Elephant Valley Project – A Sanctuary for Elephants and People

Written by Jack, Leo, and Seth (with editorial input from their parents).

Lately, there has been a lot of talk about the coronavirus, and it’s unsettling. At a time like this, it is nice to have a way to unwind.

When we saw an elephant sanctuary supporting ecotourism, we knew it was our chance. This elephant sanctuary was a good place to unwind because of the beautiful surroundings there. Immersed in nature, surrounded by other people enjoying their time, took our minds off COVID-19. We also felt that even when we were resting during our lunch break—playing Uno and Bananagrams—we had a chance to take our mind off our worries. Our favorite part was helping to make bricks that later will be used to build walls for a new shed at base camp. We were always either working or too tired to think.

In the morning, we started by heading to Hefalump Cafe, the office of the Elephant Valley Project. We ate a delectable breakfast of muesli, quiche, and the best dragon fruit ever tasted. Then, we climbed into the back of a tuk-tuk truck and squashed among cucumbers, pineapples, tamarinds, bananas (to feed the elephants), and people. Dust fuming up from behind the wheels, we struggled through the desolate, unkempt roads, holding our breath whenever another car shot past. During that ride, we thought about the exciting day ahead.

Elephant Valley Project

When we made it to EVP (Elephant Valley Project), our guide gave us a run-down of the project and elephants in Southern Asia. We learned how the project uses tourist dollars and how the elephants came to live at the sanctuary. The presentation listed numbers of Asian elephants inside and outside of captivity. Most live in India, followed by Thailand, with the rest of Southeast Asia coming in third. Here in Cambodia, there are surprisingly few, about five hundred wild and seventy-one in captivity. EVP is renting and buying elephants that used to work in tribal villages, giving the elephants a natural habitat and regular health care, while providing native people with jobs working on the project.

Bathing Yourself

To see the elephants, we started by trekking through the forest to the bathing area in a creek. The mahouts, elephant trainers, went out to find the elephants and bring them to bathe. Pearl, the youngest, knows how to bathe herself—she learned from her mother before she was taken away. However, humans must wash all of the rest of them since they never learned how to do it themselves.

Pearl had the best of times bathing herself. She rolled around and sprayed herself like a gargantuan fish floundering in shallow water. She even cleaned her teeth by sucking in water from the dirty swimming hole (that has lots of elephant pee and poo) and blasting it into her mouth. We’re pretty sure toothpaste would work better, but she seems to know what she is doing.

After bathing, the elephants got out, threw dirt on their freshly cleaned bodies, and made sounds like giant mice, low rumblings of car engines, and the occasional trumpeting of a big brass band. We thought, why do they get themselves dirty right after cleaning? Papa suggested that we often do the same thing.

Stalking the Elephants

Then we followed the elephants individually into the jungle. Our guide, Toeun, a man from the native Bunong tribe, told us all about the stories of each elephant’s life, including what they were doing before coming to EVP. Our favorite story was about Ning Wan, who apparently didn’t like loud noises and destroyed a boombox, two motorcycles, and a chainsaw because of that dislike.

One time, while Toeun was telling us a story, Pearl was standing behind him. Then, suddenly, she wasn’t! Toeun decided to investigate, saw wasps in the air, and figured out that she had stepped on a nest. We soon found her, standing in a stream, tossing as much mud as possible onto herself to soothe the pain of the stings. Little did we know, we would soon be slogging in the mud too!

Finally, Rest!

After a long trek back, we collapsed in a heap in the heat. We were convinced that it was a million degrees celsius! At base camp, there was an open-aired room with books, games, and a sofa, where we played with another kid at the camp. Next door, there was a room with a buffet, and past that was a dining room, where we ate vegetarian Khmer food. On the lower level, there were many hammocks for resting with a fantastic view of the valley.

Playing in the Mud

After our long, leisurely rest, we started working to make mud bricks. The first thing we did—actually what we did for most of the time—was walk around in a big mud pit. We added sand to keep the clay from cracking as it dried, and straw to hold the bricks together. The three other jobs were shaving dried bricks with rusty blades, chopping straw with the same tool, and making wooden molds for the bricks. Papa did the last job the whole time because he likes woodworking and does not like to get muddy.

After a long day of fun, it was time to go. With the prospect of being teased about trying to make bricks and not completing any, John, our teacher, let us stay late to finish a few. We wish our daily chores were to jump in mud 24/7.

Right now, while we are writing this article back at the Hefalump Cafe, there is a sign directly in front of us explaining ecotourism. It has a three-circle Venn diagram showing the components of ecotourism—tourism revenue, conservation of the environment, and local community benefits. It also has two sections about the “dos” and “don’ts” of being a responsible tourist in the Mondulkiri province and elsewhere. We learned that it’s not a good idea to give handouts because it makes people dependent on what we give them. Instead, what does help communities is buying handicrafts, respecting local culture, and creating good jobs that aren’t logging or poaching. You should be willing to pay a little more money to conservation projects so that animals don’t have to live caged in a zoo. Instead, they can roam free and be themselves, which is what we all want.

We hope you enjoyed reading! The Elephant Valley Project is a good one, so if you are looking for a cause to support, you should check it out.