The Elephant Mask

Lek Chailert, founder of Elephant Nature Park, with a few of her kids.

A couple of years ago, I visited Elephant Nature Park in northern Thailand, where I met and interviewed its founder, Lek Chailert. [One day soon you may even see that interview!] The following year, I was solo hiking in Khao Yai National Park, where I witnessed my very first free-roaming elephant. Not an elephant in a zoo or circus. Not at a sanctuary. An elephant living free of human chains or boundaries. It’s an experience I’ll never forget.