After breakfast we rent a scooter and head towards Hat Thong Nai Pan Yai in the north east corner of the island. I have read that the beaches in this area are perhaps the best for swimming and snorkelling, and we only have a few days left on Ko Pha Ngan before taking the overnight train south, back to Malaysia for the Malaysian Grand Prix.
After riding south we find the turning and head north into the heart of the island. After a few kilometres the concrete road turns to dirt. Soon after we come across a road team who are using a swing shovel to further flatten the road, preparing it for concreting in the future. The road deteriorates until we find ourselves ascending and descending very steep slopes covered in loose gravel, definitely not the ideal terrain for a little (worn out) scooter with two people on. We think about turning back, but persevere, and after 30 minutes, and with 2 sore bottoms, we finally see the turquoise water of the bay appear.
We park up and find a paradise of a beach. Because this area is difficult to get to the atmosphere and people are laid back. After sipping an ice cold drink and taking a swim we rent a double kayak and paddle over the sister beach of Thang Nai Pan Noi. The waves are bigger there, so we beach the kayak and take a little swim. We paddle back across the bay and take a close look at the rocks and boats before returning the kayak.
After lunch and relaxing on the beach we head back along the treacherous road, and although we left it a little late in the day, we get back without and troubles.