We treat our natural world with Love and Respect

Climate Change and Tree Planting

Starting this year, we will involve ourselves in tree planting. We think climate change is happening. Our world is not in good shape even apart from climate change. We have polluted our world and not shown any respect for our environment. We have to do everything we can to improve ourselves and educate as many people as possible. Our capacity to do that is limited, but we have to set the example.

Reduce the use of plastic

We try to reduce the use of plastic on our trips. Thailand has made steps in the right direction: per January 1, convenience stores and supermarkets cannot hand out free plastic bags. There is still considerable overuse of disposable plastics and plastic bottles. It is not easy to find clean water in many of the areas where we operate tours. We do our best to stimulate the recycling of plastic bottles. To become plastic-free is, unfortunately, impossible at the moment.

Maintaining and clearing forest trails.

Walking in the forest is a wonderful experience. It gives you peace of mind. Enjoyment of a quiet and natural environment is good for your health. It is not only a good physical workout, but it will also have great benefits for your mental well-being. In the old days, trekking was one of the few activities on offer for tourists. Often tourists went on three- and four-day treks. Times have changed. There are now so many different tourists that most tourists only go trekking for two days/one night.

Morning sunlight in forest
Forest trail with morning sunlight

Great forest trails

Some great forest trails have deteriorated because no people are using them anymore. A trail needs to be maintained. Otherwise, nature will take over and make the trails impassable. We have been restoring some of these great and remote trails and will continue to do this. We love the forest and believe in its healing capacity for mind and body. Nothing is more disturbing during your hike than coming across plastic or other trash left by others. We stimulate our guides to pick up plastic trash and bring it back to our office to dispose of it.

Two men walking the forest
Exploring old trails in Chiang Dao

Natural History Education

We live in a beautiful and fascinating world. Unfortunately, there is very little wildlife left in North Thailand. Until the 1950s, forests in the north housed tigers, elephants, monkeys, gibbons, wild buffaloes, deer, and other big games. If you go trekking through the forests of northern Thailand, there is a small chance that you encounter wildlife. We will focus on flora. On our website, we now have a section dedicated to trees, plants, and flowers you might encounter on our trips. We also encourage our guides to focus on natural history.

Group of students at a tree nursery the mission statement of green Trails
Helping out at the FORRU nursery at Baan Mae Sa Mai

Tree planting

In 2020 we will work with FORRU, the Forest Restoration Research Unit of Chiang Mai University. We already work with FORRU on our trips to the Hmong village Baan Mae Sa Mai. We intend to restore the forest in the Chiang Dao area in several places. Our guests will be involved in this activity if they are interested. This project has been stalled due to the Covid-19 crisis.

Group of young people working on the land
Tree planting in the Mae Sa Valley