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AlbuqRay Says: A lady at the Sum Haek reststop had the best lemonade ever. She was in the group of shelters on the right hand side about in the middle. Two lemonades and a small bottle of water were 20 baht. Her secret was the hand-driven ice crushing machine. You can decide whether you...
Phu Kradung National Park Headquarters
AlbuqRay Says: The lower Visitors' Center is the park headquarters. You need to register here. We had made our reservations and prepaid (2000 baht) for the mountaintop bungalow at the Forest Service office in Bangkok. They will store suitcases for you for free, so only take up what you...
AlbuqRay Says: The trails in the southern part of the park on top of the mountain are well marked with signs like these, as was the trail up the mountain. They also give you a handout with maps at the Park Headquarters. You can find your way around easily.
AlbuqRay Says: I am not a geologist so I cannot tell you what the gray rock formations are. I think they are a type of granite but it is different from what we have in New Mexico. There were also beautiful lichens everywhere. Too bad it was hazy from the rain the night before or this...
AlbuqRay Says: There are many places like this along the south rim. I was a little nervous standing next to that drop-off at the edge of the cliff. You cannot see it in the picture but it was several hundred feet down just one step to my right.
AlbuqRay Says: The trails on top of Phu Kradung wind through mountain meadows. Phu Kradung is a flat-topped mesa, so you can see a long way.
AlbuqRay Says: It really rained hard the first night we were there and the next morning you could see that many people had moved their tents under whatever shelter they could find, e.g. picnic shelters. I was a little disappointed in the bungalow (see my Accommodations tip) but at least it...
AlbuqRay Says: The upper Visitors' Center is where you check in to let them know that you made the climb safely. This is also where you get your bungalow key or your tent and sleeping gear. It was starting to rain when we arrived. Just be aware that the climate changes a lot as you get...
AlbuqRay Says: Approximately every kilometer on the way up there are places to stop, rest, and get food or drinks. The prices are set by the Forest Service and they increase as you get higher. This is probably because everything must be carried up by hand. Sum-Haek was the first place to...
AlbuqRay Says: I was very happy to get to the mountain top. It was a long and tiring climb for me. We had started about 8:45 AM and it was now about 1:30 PM. After the stop at Sum-Haek, we also took breaks at Sum-Kor-Sang, Sum-Kok-Done, and Sum-Krae. The latter only had one vendor but he...
There are several outdoor restaurants near the Phu Kradung Visitors' Center. We happened to try the last one in the first building (4th or 5th from the end toward the Visitors' Center). The owners were nice and the food good, so we ate there every time. The prices are controlled by the Forest Service and are reasonable (80-100 B for a meal). There are tame deer that beg for scraps but, as one little boy found out, don't bother them while they are eating. The deer snapped at him but fortunately missed.
Favorite Dish: Over three days, we had tom yum, curry pork, omelete, pork fried rice, boiled rice soup, som tom, tom kha gai soup, and dry suki. The suki made with noodles, pork, chicken and vegetables was my favorite.
Updated Jul 4, 2004
Address: Near the Visitors' Center
Hire a Porter to Ease the Climb
AlbuqRay Says: There are porters (both men and women) who will carry your "stuff" up and down Phu Kradung for 10 B per kilogram. Believe me, it is worth it. We combined what we needed, had 19 kg. going up and 16 kg. going down. The porter does not go with you, so you will need to carry any...
AlbuqRay Says: Maybe the Forest Service and VIP guests can use helicopters, but otherwise you must climb/walk up and down Phu Kradung, unless you want to pay to be carried up by porters. It was 5.4 km from Park Headquarters to the mountain top (1288 m) with a change in elevation of 1200 m...
AlbuqRay Says: You can see what leech leggings look like in this picture. The Forest Service staff were wearing leech leggings that morning too. BTW, screaming does not help get rid of leeches. Just flick them off with your finger if you find them before they find skin; otherwise, use some...
AlbuqRay Says: Even though it is not jungle, there were still plenty of leeches out after the rain. Anywhere it was shady and had vegetation on the ground, there were leeches. The waterfalls were all in such places. Lucky bought leech leggings (50 baht) and I tucked my pantlegs into my...
Be Careful of the Wild Elephants
AlbuqRay Says: There are wild elephants on top of Phu Kradung and on the plateau just below the summit. I heard that a monk was killed a few months ago by a wild elephant near the Buddha Image. We never saw anything but their droppings and warning signs to be careful of wild elephants....
AlbuqRay Says: Pha Nok Khao is on the main road between Khon Kaen and Loei. It is where the buses stop for Phu Kradung. Park Headquarters is about 5 km from this village on a paved road. The mountain in this picture is not Phu Kradung, but a small spectacular mountain next to the village.
AlbuqRay Says: I bought some sticky rice in a bamboo stick while we were waiting on the bus to Khon Kaen in Pha Nok Khao village. The nice lady who sold it to me is thinking...that big farang is really going to eat my cooking. You can see fresh pineapples and sweet tamarinds in the...
AlbuqRay Says: It is hard to read here, but the map shows the elevation and reststops on the trail up Phu Kradung. The two steepest parts are at the beginning (Entrance Gate to Sum-Haek) and the end (Sum-Krae to Mountain Top). It was a good feeling getting safely to the top. At my age, I...
AlbuqRay Says: One does not expect to find a pine forest in Thailand. However, if you climb up almost 4000 feet, you can certainly find a beautiful, cooler place. The taller pines are Pinus merkusii. At least I think that's what the sign said. I miss the vistas of pines, grasslands and...
This is Thailand's national park on top of a mesa, 1200 meters above the surrounding countryside. It is 135 square kilometers of a cooler climate and the associated ecosystem. To reach its pine...
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