Petchabun - Thung Salaeng Luang National Park

The park is located both in Phitsanulok and in Petchabun provinces. It is a vast expanse of mountain ridges, ponds, grassland (or savanna), and forests. Streams zigzag through the pine and evergreen forests, and there are of course several caves and waterfalls in the ridges. The mountain peaks in the west of park are the tallest with some reaching 1,500 meters above sea level.

The area has an interesting history. It surveyed in 1959 in preparation for becoming a national park, but the area was closed to the public between 1968 and 1982 as the Royal Thai Army conducted operations against communist guerillas that were hiding in the area.

The park headquarters is located at km. 80 on Highway No. 12. Information on the park and accommodations can be obtained there, trekking / biking tours can start from there, and the peace of camping on the bank of Huai Khek can be enjoyed. Cars are no longer allowed access to Thung Saleng Luang’s main savannah from the park headquarters – i.e., from the north – they have to enter the park at Nong Mae Na.

All in all, there are 11 big and small savannas in the park spread along the left bank of the Huai Khek Yai River. The largest savanna (where the Nong Mae Na ranger station is located) covers around 10 square kilometers. By the end of the rainy season, the grass will often have grown as high as eye-level of a Thai soldier thus making hiding easy.

A purple flower (ngon nak) has adapted to the tall grass with impressively tall stems.

The evergreen forests shed their leaves to reduce evaporation during the dry season. Before the leaves are shedded, they turn yellow, orange, red, and brown thus giving the forest a wonderful “autumn look”.

In the southern part of the park, you’ll find Thung Nang Phaya, which probably is one of the largest pine forests in Thailand. It contains some very old and tall pine trees as well as a rare wild orchid (ueang chani), which nestles on the pine stems. The orchid’s stalk and leaves are covered with white “hair” and its flower is bright yellow.

A brochure for the park boasts that in the park there is 150 species of birds, 40 mammals, 200 amphibians, 200 kinds of reptiles, and an unknown number of butterflies.

Nature lovers can take advantage of the trekking and biking routes to enjoy the spectacular scenery. Best time to do so is probably between October and January whereas the worst time is probably June through September. The national park rents out tents and can also provide basic lodging to visitors.

Sa Kaeo - Lalu

Lalu means "pierced", but the signs on the main road attracted my attention because it almost sounds like Lula, the former Brazilian President.

Lalu is a natural attraction in Sa Kaeo province. It is located somewhere out in the boonies - at Ban Noenkham and Ban Khlong Yang of Tambon Thap Raj some 40 km north of Sakaeo city.

Lalu is a collection of earthern pillar formations caused by erosion and subsidence in the ground resulting in gorges or canyons with shapes like a city wall, cliffs, rocket and others. It covers an area of approximately 2,000 rai with intriguing scenery in the middle of rice fields.

Similar earthern pillars can also be found in Ratchaburi and Phrae. Pong Yup takes up 60 rai and is located in private land in Tambon Tha Khoei, Ratchaburi. Phae Muang Phi in Phrae province is much bigger than Lalu and Pong Yup and is more famous. 

Some in Sakaeo are trying to promote Lalu as „the miniature Grand Canyon of Thailand“, which – however – is vastly exaggerated. It shows that the promoters don’t expect that potential visitors actually have visited the real Grand Canyon nor the Charyn Canyon in Kazakhstan.

The promoters miss that fact that Lalu is not „grand“, it’s cute, intriguing, and slightly difficult to locate. The sign at he main road (Ban Koklan - Nong Pak Wan road) indicates one has to follow a side road for 20 km. But after about 18 km, the road comes to a village and you’ll then have to use trial-and-error (real men don’t ask for directions) to come out on the correct gravel road at the other end of the village. Then cross a rickety wooden bridge and you're almost there.

Petchabun - Si Thep Historical Park

Surely, everybody has visited Lopburi's capital to take pictures of monkeys running around freely on the city's Khmer ruins. People may even, like me, have travelled to Lopburi to take pictures of blooming sunflower fields and visited the Pa Sak Cholasit dam and tried the train.

However, I think only few have thought of continuing north to visit Si Thep Historical Park, which is located in Petchabun, only a few dozen kilometers north of the Pa Sak Cholasit reservoir.

Si Thep is today's name of a Khmer town that – at the time – rivaled Phi Mai and Khao Phanom Rung in importance. Moreover, traces have been found of the area being populated as far back as 2,000 years ago, i.e., predating the Khmer settlement by more than 1,000 years.

The Si Thep Historical Park covers an area of almost 5 square km complete with remnants of walls and moats. Near the park are ruins of a tower and couple of Khmer monuments.


To be honest, what is left of the Khmer ruins is not all that impressive. Maybe that is one reason that - compared to famous Phi Mai and Phanom Rung - Si Thep does not have many visitors. It is thus possible to take leisurely strolls among the ruins and the ponds spread out across the park. At the same time, the service and the quality of the information offered from the park's officers are far better than at Phi Mai and Phanom Rung.

Petchabun - Khao Kho

Khao Kho is made up of mountain ranges to northwest of Petchabun town about 1,200 meters above mean sea level. The area is being marketed as “Little Switzerland” and is thus competing with Wang Nam Khieo (in Nakhon Ratchasima) that is claiming to be “the Switzerland of Isan” when advertising in Thai media. 

I must hasten to add that when these areas are trying to market themselves as being Swiss, it is because of their natural beauty. They don’t want to be associated with the “Swiss village” Baan Jaarn (in Roi Et) that earned its moniker because around 20% of the village’s households have at least one Swiss son-in-law. The resulting influx of Swiss Francs has led to many design changes so many houses in the village now vaguely resemble Swiss houses. 

Sorry for the digression.

You certainly won’t find any snowcapped mountain peaks in Khao Kho, but by Thai standards, it gets very cold during November-February. Visitors from Bangkok can thus “rough it out” a bit at the many resorts in the area. Often, early risers can experience dense mist in the valley. So, if you stay on the ridges and peaks, it is like you are looking down on clouds.

Highway No. 12 (Phitsanulok - Lom Sak) is one of the main access routes. Along it, you can stop and enjoy the view at a coffee shop with tons of Americana trinkets.
Or you can stop a http://www.ilovekhaokho.com/ - a resort squarely aimed at young Bangkokians that come to “experience nature” including a children's zoo where even teenagers seem to enjoy playing with pet farm animals.

Personally, I certainly prefer Khao Kho to Wang Nam Khieo, but it is much further from Bangkok, so getting there requires more effort.

Phitsanulok - Phu Hin Rong Kla National Park

The park has its name after some unusual rock formations. 50 or 100 million years ago, the Earth’s crust moved and broke into large cleavages. These rock plates cracked open and moved slightly apart.

To approach the park from the east (i.e., from Lomsak) is the best option by far. At least if you like to drive up serpentine roads enjoying wonderful views.

The park area is mainly covered with lush green forests, several awesome waterfalls, and a vast plain of rocks with cracks scattered all around. The highest point of the park is 1,667 meters above sea level.

Like in the rest of the Phitsanulok, Petchabun, and Loei highlands, the weather in the park is relatively cool all year and the rainfall is heavy during the rainy season.

So, Bangkokians like to visit during the cold season, rise early from their tent, and witness the sun rise

The park is located both in Phitsanulok and in Loei provinces. It was an important battlefield in the 1970s fight between the Communist Party of Thailand and the Royal Thai Army.

One of the main rebel bases, complete with a hospital, a rice mill, and a School of Military Tactics were located inside the park.
A brief look at the accommodation at those bases is enough to convince me that communism is not the way forward.

There is a trail leading to Lan Hin Pum, an area of jutting rocks that the CPT used as an air-raid shelter. Follow another trail to Pha Chu Thong, the cliff where a red flag was raised when the CPT gained a victory.

I’m no military expert, so I’m wondering why the communists raised the flag so near their headquarters. The flag must have been a strong indication to the military where they were hiding and an invitation for more attacks.

There were no reliable indications of the number of casualties, but the area earned the nickname “lan leud” (field of blood) as the communists folklore was that a large area had become soaked in the blood of heroic communists.