Phu Pha Man is located in Na Nong Turn, Thailand. I was doing a self drive through the interior part of the country and heard about this amazing bat cave located here. It is in a bit of a remote area but that's right up my alley. I was off to catch the dusk time sky show,
The name of the cave is Klang Khao (sorry Batman). It is one of several attractions in this park. Others include waterfalls and more caves with stalagmite and stalactite formations. There is an additional cave, Lai Thaeng, which hosts paintings that date back 2,000 years! This did not appear to be one of the more popular areas to visit compared to other national parks I'd seen in the country.
I think of central Thailand (really more north central Thailand) as the forgotten part of the country. Few tourists travel here as they prefer the bustle of Bangkok, the beaches of Phuket, or the cool mountains of Chiang Rai. But the interior has some pretty amazing sites I'll document in posts over time. This post will focus on the bat cave at the Phu Pha Man national park.
I arrived at the parking lot near the cave about 30 minutes prior to sunset. I expected there to be a bit of a crowd as I expected this was a popular event. No one was in the parking lot but me! It surprised me some, but not entirely because of the remoteness of the area. But soon after arrival a small family appeared and then a young couple.
Then the bats!
And more bats....
And more bats....
And yes, more bats!
It seemed to go on forever, this constant line of bats. Actually the line extends for about 6 miles. There are millions of bats visible during this parade.
Why do they stay so close together? Isn't it literally the blind leading the blind? Maybe that's where that saying came from!
It was quite a show worthy of a larger audience, but this is a bit remote even for locals. If this were anywhere in the USA I'm sure there would be 100's or more spectators every night. So impressive!
I'll leave you with a video. You can hear my concern in the video of being pooped on by these creatures. I was in a bat cave in Borneo where you can see and smell the bat feces that have piled over the years. A very obnoxious odor. If I ever find those photos I'll post on that experience.
Enjoy the video:
OMG, that’s a lot of bats. My wife would lose it if she ever saw them. She is scared to death of bats. I think it is very impressive. 👏👍🙏
Quite a sight your perspective on the blind leading the blind I enjoy. I wonder why they all stick together? Very odd