Namtok Phlio National Park, 14 kilometres from Chanthaburi, is named after one of Thailand’s best known waterfalls, which cascades straight out the side of Khao Sabap mountain into a pool below where both people and fish frolic. The waterfall is most impressive during rainy season when the falls are so powerful that mist fills the air as far away as an observation area 100 metres away and dampens visitors’ clothes. Although it’s possible to walk straight down to the shallow pool, views of the falls are partially blocked by trees from every reachable vantage point so don’t expect a perfect frontal photo.
The park is also famous among Thais for a bell-shaped chedi near the falls, which was built by King Rama V to mark the spot where he and the queen courted. Covered in thick, bright green moss, the chedi and surrounding area reminded us a little of the ancient mossy stone temples found in the jungles of Bali. A pyramid shrine nearby was built to hold the queen’s ashes after she drowned in 1876. A rather challenging trail leads uphill from near the stupa and rings the top of the falls.
The park spans some 135 square kilometres in total, mostly unaccessible and comprised of granite protrusions from the surrounding plains. The rainforest has been extensively logged over the years but what’s left along with the regrowth still holds some interesting wildlife, mainly birds including the Siamese fireback, silver pheasant, chestnut-headed partridge and the blue-rumped pitta.