Thailand: Caves

Another local attraction was at the boat accessible National Park - a cave that has been visited by three Thai kings. If the king has been there, then certainly the Russell family must go!

We hired another fishing boat and captain to take us to the park. On the way, we saw a pod of pink and gray dolphins - a totally amazing sight!


After a 45 minute boat trip, we landed at the National Park and waded to shore. Here is Teddy and Michael at the entrance to the park.


You would think that seeing caves would require a downward trek - I remember visiting caves in New York and Pennsylvania on the way to see both sets of Grandparents during the summer. I certainly didn't think that we would have to hike up a mountain via a steep set of crudely built steps. Did the king have to make this trek too?

Here is Michael and Teddy at the midway point overlooking the ocean.

We reached the opening of the cave after about 30 minutes climbing straight up followed by a 10 minute climb straight down.


The further into the cave that we climbed, the darker and more mysterious it became. Michael and Teddy are standing on the "crocodile's back," a part of the path that is covered in small rocks resembling a long crocodile.


Once through the darkness, the cave opens to the light above to mark the place where the kings have made their royal visit. Below is a small section of the cave that has been turned into a temple.


In the middle of the cave is a shrine to the royal visitors. I can't imagine how much time and energy went into hauling all of pieces needed to put this very ornate temple together. Please note that Teddy and I are standing in the foreground so you can see how big this cave and temple really are.

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After enjoying the cave and making our way down the mountain, we had a wonderful lunch just off the beach. It was one of the best meals we have eaten and it only cost us $5. We had such a fun morning together and we even got to see the pod of pink dolphins again on the way home!