Even as I write this I am aware of sounding like a grumpy old man with nothing better to do than sit at home and moan about change and progress! Still, why do so many backpackers and tourists feel compelled to hire a motorcycle on an island that is only 7km long and has only one sealed road of note?

The island in question is Koh Tao in the Gulf of Thailand which has long been a mecca for divers and people trying to find that elusive bit of tropical paradise. But from my recent experience, it has pretty much reached its carrying capacity of tourists and is on the slippery slope to becoming unsustainable.

There are token efforts going on around the island such as notices asking people to reduce the amount of plastic bottles they use or to recycle, but any evidence of recycling bins is fairly scant and there seemed to be no shops at all that were offering a water refill service.

The majority of tourists no longer seem to be content to ride a 125cc Honda Wave either, and are opting for the 250cc dirt bikes and quad bikes on offer, with an accompanying increase in noise, and notably in accidents.

It's easy to blame the Thais in all this but tourists need to take a far greater share of the responsibility and start thinking seriously about the choices they make otherwise islands like Koh Tao will stumble from success to decline and they destroy everything that was appealing about the place in the process.

I completely understand where you are coming from on the whole Tourist thing. I live in Chicago and though a very sustainable city without tourism it is a big part of our city and I imbrace in because ofhow much business it brings to the city. This 1 route on this island sounds pretty interesting though. If you have a minute or 2 please post it on my online map. The link is below thanks. I am an affiliate of allstate and thus I am using their web pages for my own use, thanks again.

David Lipsky
allstategarage.com/routes
allstategarage.com