Nakon Nayok
A beautiful province of Thailand
Khao Yai National Park
Khao Yai National Park is one of the finest natural attractions in Thailand. It became Thailand's first national park in 1962. It covers 2,168 square kilometers of the Phanom Dongrek Mountain Range, which makes it the second largest national park in the country. 'Khao' is Thai for hill and 'yai' means big. Therefore, Khao Yai means big hills.
The park area is spread across four provinces, Nakon Nayok, Prachinburi, Saraburi and Nakon Ratchasima (Korat). It contains a wide range of plant and animal life including elephants, bears, gibbons, deer, wild pigs, porcupines, civet cats and even a handful of tigers.
A road runs through the park and the central area has tourist facilities such as a museum, accommodation and food. The majority of the rest of the park is jungle and grassland.
Climate
The park's altitude ranges from 350m to 1350m at the highest point at Khao Rom. This
means that the temperature is generally a little lower than in the plains. In fact, it can
be distinctly chilly at night.
Rainy Season: May-October. It does rain most days but there are also long dry spells. This is the best time of year to see the waterfalls.
Cold season: November- February. The weather is sunny and cool. It is the ideal time for hiking.
Hot Season: March-April. The maximum temperature does reach 30°C but the temperature is still comfortably cooler than in the plains. The waterfalls are at their least spectacular.
Plants and Animals
The park has an incredible diversity of plants (more than 2000 species). There are soaring trees swathed in moss and climbers. There is tropical moist evergreen jungle, dry evergreen forest, and dry deciduous forest. The grassland areas are an important habitat variation. They provide grazing for many park animals. The park rangers do an annual grassland burn to prevent the jungle from reclaiming the grasslands.
There are over 70 mammal species, including elephants, sambar deer, barking deer, gibbons, civets, porcupines, wild pigs and tigers. You may well see elephants in the evening at the salt-licks but you will be very fortunate to see a tiger. Even most of the park rangers have never seen one of these reclusive creatures. The occasional find of tiger droppings is the main evidence that a few tigers do still haunt this area.
There are lizards, snakes and an abundance of insects. There are over 300 species of bird. There is also a cave with around 1 million bats.
Waterfalls
There are many waterfalls within the park, some of which can be very spectacular during the rainy season. They certainly should not be compared with the fun-to-play waterfalls of Nakon Nayok such as Sarika and Nang Rong. The flow is often far too powerful and it would be dangerous to enter the water. The presence of blood sucking leaches should also be enough to discourage playing in the water.
Heaw Narok Waterfall
This is the highest waterfall in Khao Yai. It cascades over three levels with
the final level hurtling 80 meters into a deep abyss. At the height of the
rainy season, this waterfall is a truly fearsome sight. In fact, almost
every year at least one elephant loses its life after slipping into the
treacherous water.
Heaw Narok (hell abyss) is on the south side of the park (in Nakon Nayok province). There is a 2km hike from the road through the jungle to the falls.
Heaw Suwat Waterfall
This is the waterfall that Leonardo DiCaprio jumped off in the movie 'The Beach'. Of course, it is nowhere near a beach but such is the magic of Hollywood. It is a wide fall with a 20-meter drop.
You can easily reach this waterfall at the end of Thanarat Road in the center of the park. There is a viewpoint at the top and you can go down to the base of the falls.
Heaw Sai Waterfall
This is an interesting fall. A stream cascades over angled rock and drops 5-meters down a step formation. This fall is an 800-meter walk from Heaw Suwat Waterfall.
Heaw Pratoon Waterfall
This is a very beautiful fall. It cascades down 30 meters over a wide, jagged cliff. The water then swirls around some huge boulders at the base of the falls.
You can reach this fall with a 2.5km walk along a path from Heaw Suwat Waterfall or an 8km trek from the park headquarters.
Wang Heaw Waterfall
This is a big and spectacular fall. It is 60-meters across with lots of water pouring over the edge. This is a fall for serious trekking enthusiasts. It is a 2-day trek to the east of the park.
Trekking
There are plenty of trekking trails around the park. There are many short trails for the casual trekker to enjoy the natural beauty of the park. These range from 1 to 8 kilometers. Several of these start at the park headquarters.
For the serious trekking enthusiast, there are some trails into the depths of Khao Yai that will take 3-4 days to complete. You will be going into the depths of the jungle.
You should always inform park rangers before starting a trek. Guides are available at the park headquarters for a small charge.
Other Activities
Park HQ and Museum
The park headquarters are in the central area of the park. You can get information about the park's attractions and arrange guides, tours or accommodation.
There is also a museum with lots of great stuff about the park. There are photos and models of many of the species in the park and even a stuffed tiger. It was hunted down after it attacked and killed a local villager. Don't worry, such events are very rare.
Night Time Spot Light Tour
You can take a jeep safari spot lighting animals in the bush. These spot light tours start after sunset. They drive around the roads and tracks of the central park area, shining spotlights on the wildlife in the forest and grasslands. You will see lots of deer, which are confidently unconcerned by the spotlights. You may well see porcupines or even rarer animals such as civet cats or wild pigs. If you are lucky, you may see some elephants.
Bike Rides
You can rent mountain bikes from the park headquarters or at the campsites. They are a fun way to explore the roads of the central area of the park. However, believe us when we say you have to be fit to cope with the steeper slopes of the park. You should always inform the park rangers if you plan to stray off the main roads.
White Water Rafting
You can arrange white water rafting at the park headquarters. They will take you to the rapids at Kang Hin Perng.
Accommodation
Camping
There are several campsites in the central area of the park. You can bring your own camping gear or rent at the campsite. They have facilities such as toilets, showers and a small shop. You can light a barbecue but you should not light open fires.
In the evenings, the large sambar deer often walk right into the campsites. They are only grazing for food and do not worry about the campers. If you leave food unattended while you are away from the site, you may well find it is gone when you return. As far as the deer are concerned, unattended food is their food.
Park Bungalows
The park has plenty of bungalows for rent. They are basic accommodation but they mostly have electricity and running water. The bungalow sizes range from 2 people up to 30. You can contact the park headquarters to rent a bungalow.
Hotels
For something a little more comfortable, there is the Kao Yai Grandview Resort. The resort is in a picturesque location on route 3077 only 150m before the park gates. It has facilities including a swimming pool, tennis courts and mountain bike hire.
Getting There from Nakon Nayok
There are two ways to enter Khao Yai Park from Nakon Nayok, the easy way and the hard way.
Driving
The easy way is by road. From Nakon Nayok town, take route 33 towards Prachinburi and drive 15km until you reach a traffic circle. The left hand turn is route 3077 towards Khao Yai National Park. The park checkpoint is 15km along route 3077 and you will pay your park entrance fee there.
Trekking
The hard way is to trek in through the jungle. It is a demanding 2-day trek into the heart of Khao Yai. These treks started in 1992. They start from the base of Nang Rong waterfall and have become popular with tourists. The trekking season runs from December to June. They suspend the treks over the worst of the rainy season. Note that you need to book these treks in advance with the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Nakhon Nayok Office, tel: 037 312 282 or 037 312 284.
Park entrance is 200 baht for foreigners and 40 baht for Thais.