By JENNIFER BILL, Toronto Sun

Waterlogged fields like this one are a main source of water in Chiang Mai. Ñ Jennifer Bill photo

When the Thailand jungle comes alive at night, counting pig snorts can have a deeper calming effect than counting sheep.

I learned this while traipsing way off the beaten path in the temple-filled province of Chiang Mai -- 700 km north of Bangkok. A three-day hike, which felt like three years, put my physical endurance to the test but nighttime conditions tested my mental stamina.

The gnarly woods, the moist swamps and the rugged mountains that make up Thailand's beautiful rainforest and rugged backcountry are also home to the creepiest of crawlies and the largest winged insects I have ever run from.

Picture the world's largest moth flying about. With a 20-centimetre wingspan the Atlas moth -- found only in northern Thailand -- knows how to command attention.

Darkness brings out some very grotesque creatures of the night that jump or fly too quickly to capture proof of their existence on camera.

Chiang Mai is known as a base for good trekking and for its famous, kilometres-long, night shopping market. The town attracts backpackers in droves to soak up the history dripping from its 300 Buddhist temples and hill tribe villages nestled deep in the jungle.

Encroaching civilization

Three- or four-day treks take travellers through the mountains and rainforests to camp and see some of the 10 semi-nomadic tribes (about 550,000 people) who maintain traditional lifestyles despite poverty and encroaching civilization. Most tribal families make their living cultivating rice, vegetables and the most famous crop: Opium.

A British friend, Claire Williams, met me in Chiang Mai. Williams and I had planned the trip days earlier after meeting on the idyllic southern islands of Phi Phi -- site of The Beach, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

We searched for trekking companies until we found one that offered a challenging trip -- nearly double the price of other outfits -- that would take us farther into the jungle and through the highlands, where the tribal families are not as used to tourists. They agreed to take just the two of us instead of the usual group of 10 or more.

Our guide was Oily, a diminutive, pretty, 21-year-old Thai woman with a cougar tattooed on her bicep. A van dropped us off 90 minutes from town in a small, dirty village where we were greeted by a skinny one-eyed dog and her mangy pup.

As the dogs begged for a speck of our lunch, we realized they must truly be starving. They probably never received hand-outs from the poor family who inhabited the land.

Hill tribes migrated more than 100 years ago from the southern part of China into Laos, Myanmar (Burma), Vietnam and Thailand. Their way of life has changed little during the last 1,000 years. Thailand has seven major tribes, each with its own distinct culture, religion and language, including the Karen tribe, which elongates their necks with metal rings.

I caught onto the symbolism behind Oily's cougar tattoo quickly -- she took to the rough terrain like a mountain lion commandeering its territory. Her steady, speedy pace and quick cat-like instincts made her impossible to keep up with.

Even a heavy backpack brimming with supplies didn't slow her down. Gentle, soft-spoken Oily was an animal when manoeuvring through the jungle. While hiking, she crocheted an intricate wall-hanging for her boyfriend.

The trek proved to be the most challenging activity of my life. Drenched in sweat, my back sizzling with pain from carrying my pack, my aching legs drizzled with mud and my blistered feet fried within my runners, my lungs struggled to expel my breath, which was coming out in staccato puffs.

The ground was wet and leaves and loose rocks made for wonky footing. I stumbled and slipped as the pack on my back weighed me down and kept me unsteady.

The ground was so steep I had to rely on tree roots and brush to pull me uphill. My toes were squashed against the fronts of my shoes as I tried to keep from slipping downhill. All the while I was also avoiding the red beetles Oily said were poisonous, pulling spider webs out of my mouth and eyes.

Oily floated yards ahead, crocheting and puffing on cigarettes, while I puffed my guts trying to keep up and not get lost behind. Once I stooped to tie my shoe, and Oily and Claire were gone. I could hear them calling for me faintly in the dense foliage, and only got more lost as I tried to follow the sound.

I wound up in a swamp, sinking in to my knees until they tracked down my hollering and scooped me up. My feet made squishing sounds for the rest of the day.

Four hours later I almost crawled into the first village. The small settlement was home to 35 people, including a farm full of pigs, cows, chickens, roosters, dogs and owls.

Spit of muddy land

Five families shared a spit of muddy land, each living in one big room in wooden huts tilting on tall legs, barely covered.

The children were dirty and thin but wore big smiles. A father and son sat on the ground, carving what we later learned were opium pipes. A girl was collecting baby chicks for dinner. A small boy wore a worn Jurassic Park shirt, even though he had probably never seen a movie.

Oily said the trek company compensates the tribes for letting people stay the night.

We were shown to a slab of wood a metre above the ground. A man hung overhead, weaving a roof of bamboo leaves for shelter. We hungrily tore open a bag of potato chips and the boy and his little brother crept over.

They stole our hearts with their wide eyes, bare feet and swollen tummies, gesturing to the snack and tapping their lips. We understood, and they returned many times for more.

Oily whipped us up a wonderful coconut soup and white rice with stir-fried vegetables and chicken, which we ate by candlelight. The leftovers went to the family we slept next to.

The creatures took over at dark, attracted by our candles and torches. I couldn't bear to turn the lights off and slip into darkness with them, so I brushed my teeth for 15 minutes in procrastination. Anything to stave off becoming a landing strip for insects the size of my hand.

I wrapped every part of my body in clothes and towels, leaving nothing exposed. My head was bundled up like a turban, with a small slit for my eyes, which were squeezed tightly shut.

Williams and I screamed ourselves to sleep at 8:30 p.m. The snorting pigs and clucking chickens wiggled underneath our wooden bed. Sheer exhaustion kept us asleep until 9 a.m.

Our sore feet, stiff backs and burning legs somehow carried us the three hours to the next day's reward -- a gorgeous waterfall.

We lunched on noodles laid on giant shiny leaves. We camped next to a different waterfall, and I prayed the rushing water didn't wreak havoc on my bladder overnight so I didn't have to unravel my bug shield. But the water kept the bugs away, and we zonked out from 8 p.m. to 9 a.m.

Our third day took us through rainforest so beautiful it nearly took my panting away. Breaking through the trees we found ourselves at a rushing river, our very own bamboo raft awaiting. Most treks end with rafting and an elephant ride.

A young Thai boy steered his bamboo cane through the calm water and then down the bubbling brook as we sat a few feet behind. We then plopped our wet bums onto a little bench strapped to an elephant's back, trying not to step too hard the animal's head as we climbed aboard.

Our feet rested on its leathery skin, its flapping wrinkled ears whipping my legs as it walked. The guide rode on its head as we crossed the river.

And the perfect end to a wondrous experience -- being treated to elephant farts, and repeatedly showered with elephant snot as it blew its trunk every step of the way.  

DETAILS: Trek companies arrange to pick trekkers up at their guest houses. I stayed at People Place, which kept my bags in storage while I was away, and made sure I had a room when I came back.

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ACCOMMODATIONS: I paid 400 baht ($16) per night for a very clean and comfy two bedroom with a TV, air conditioning and fridge. The staff are extremely nice, and the guest house is in the heart of town down the road from the famous Night Bazaar. 9 Soi 8 Charoenprathet Rd., Chiang Mai, (053) 818296, 282487.

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MORE INFO: See www.infothai.com/people.