Thailand (Lonely Planet, 13th Edition) - China Williams [349]
UM PHANG & AROUND
Rte 1090 goes south from Mae Sot to Um Phang, 150km away. This stretch of road used to be called the ‘Death Highway’ because of the guerrilla activity in the area that hindered highway development. Those days ended in the 1980s, but lives are still lost because of brake failure or treacherous turns on this steep, winding road through incredible mountain scenery.
Along the way there are short hikes off the highway to two waterfalls, Nam Tok Thararak (26km from Mae Sot) and Nam Tok Pha Charoen (41km). Nam Tok Thararak streams over limestone cliffs and calcified rocks with a rough texture that makes climbing the falls easy. It’s been made into a park of sorts, with benches right in the stream at the base of the falls for cooling off and a couple of outhouse toilets nearby; on weekends food vendors set up here.
Just beyond Ban Rom Klao 4 – roughly midway between Mae Sot and Um Phang – is Um Piam, a very large Karen and Burmese refugee village with around 20,000 refugees that were moved here from camps around Rim Moei. There are also several Hmong villages in the area.
Sitting at the junction of Mae Nam Klong and Huay Um Phang, Um Phang is an overgrown village populated mostly by Karen. Many Karen villages in this area are very traditional, and elephants are a common sight, especially in Palatha, a traditional Karen village 25km south of Um Phang. Yaeng (elephant saddles) and other tack used for elephant wrangling are a common sight on the verandas of the houses in this village.
An interesting hike can be done that follows the footpaths northeast of the village through rice fields and along Huay Um Phang to a few smaller Karen villages. At the border where Amphoe Um Phang meets Myanmar, near the Thai-Karen villages of Ban Nong Luang and Ban Huay, is a Karen refugee village inhabited by more than 500 Karen who originally hailed from Htikabler village on the other side of border.
South of Um Phang, towards Sangkhlaburi in Kanchanaburi province, Um Phang Wildlife Sanctuary is a Unesco World Heritage Site. One of its most popular attractions is Nam Tok Thilawsu (below), the largest waterfall in Thailand. Um Phang Wildlife Sanctuary links with the Thung Yai Naresuan National Park and Huay Kha Kaeng Wildlife Sanctuary (another Unesco World Heritage Site), as well as Khlong Lan and Mae Wong national parks to form Thailand’s largest wildlife corridor and one of the largest intact natural forests in Southeast Asia.
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Information
There are now two ATMs in Um Phang, although it’s still probably a good idea to bring cash. Internet (per hr 20B) is available at a large cafe on the way to Ban Palatha. There’s a post office, which has a couple of long-distance phones. There’s a police station and a small branch of the TAT (0 5556 1338; 8.30am-5pm) across from the school, along the road leading to Mae Sot.
Sights & Activities
NAM TOK THILAWSU
This waterfall is Thailand’s largest, measuring an estimated 200m high and up to 400m wide during the rainy season. Thais, particularly fanatical about such things, consider Nam Tok Thilawsu to be the most beautiful waterfall in the country. There’s a shallow cave behind the falls and several levels of pools suitable for swimming. The best time to visit is after the rainy season (November and December) when the 200m to 400m limestone cliffs alongside the Mae Nam Klong are streaming with water and Nam Tok Thilawsu is at its best.
The falls are near the headquarters of the Um Phang Wildlife Sanctuary (0 5557 7318; admission 200B), a distance of about 50km from Um Phang. The 2km path between the headquarters and falls has been transformed into a self-guided nature tour, with the addition of well-conceived educational plaques. Surrounding the falls on both sides of the river are Thailand’s thickest stands of natural forest, and the hiking in the vicinity of Nam Tok Thilawsu can be superb. The forest here is said to contain more than 1300 varieties of palm; giant bamboo and strangler