A distinct lack of taxis had us walking the 6km to town, concerned we were going to miss our boat, and contemplating hiring a moped to get us to the pier on time, but fortunately a Songathew stopped for us and we made it in plenty of time.
Ang Thon is the setting for the novel “The Beach”, about that traveller’s nirvana of an off the beaten track place undiscovered and untouched by other tourists – although I doubt there is any beach in Ang Thon that hasn’t been invaded by tourists, given the number that we saw. Still, the beauty of the forty or so islands is undisputed. Whilst the water was a bit murky, snorkelling revealed spiky sea urchins and almost luminescent yellow fish. We didn’t actually need to snorkel to see those urchins as the next stop at a lagoon had plenty in it. After a beach lunch, and giggle at the attempts of some people to kayak and how frustrated they were getting, we took to kayaks ourselves and toured the cliffs and caves of a nearby island. That was our day done, just a ride back to shore with the sun shining and wind whistling past as the boat sped on.