Tham Pha Ngam - LA0054
19.108321,99.568105
Location
From Wang Nuea take the H1035 south for 3.5 km to Ban Huai Khoi. Tham Phra Ngam is inconspicuously signed in Thai. The side road leads to Ban Mae Phrik with occasional signs to Tham Phra Ngam. From Ban Mae Phrik head westwards and continue where the sealed road becomes a dirt track and reach Wat Tham Phra Ngam. The cave is not in the grounds of the wat! Turn left at the gate to the wat, back onto a dirt track and follow this up the valley to the national park ranger station. Head straight on (Tham Phra Ngam is signed 800 m away) and drive along the grass covered track to a parking area with a partically built building. Tham Phra Ngam is just up the hill from the car park.
Description
A 400m long easy walking passage ends at a squeeze over a mud fill with a strong draught coming out. The mud fill was later dug out at the end of the fossil passage to give access to another 100m of passage that ended at a 3 m high draughting boulder choke that was felt to be close to the surface. Half way between the entrance and the crawl there is a small network of passages leading to a descending, vadose passage that descends three awkward climbs to end at a 4 m pitch into a lower seasonal streamway. The lower streamway has been explored upstream for along a fine vadose passage that starts to ascend a series of cascades and pools (no water flow in March 2012). Exploration was stopped at the bottom of a 4 m climb that had large tree branches wedged across it creating an overhang. This will probably require bolting, but the passage could be seen to continue at the top. Downstream the passage ended at a seasonal sandy sump that was dug through from the resurgence (Tham Nam) to link the two caves.
Topographie
ELLIS (2013a) - Grade UISv2 3-3-F Ellis, Martin (2018)
Hydrology and Geology
In March 2012 the main flow of water came out of a very small inlet sump on the west of the passage, just before the low section caused by a stal false floor. The main stream passage did not have a flowing stream.
Fauna
Bryocyclops maewaensis Brancelj, Watiroyram et Sanoamuang, 2012 (Arthropoda, Crustacea, Maxilliopoda, Cyclopoida, Cyclopidae) (Watiroyram et al. 2012) Elaphoidella intermedia Chappuis, 1931 (Arthropoda, Crustacea, Maxilliopoda, Harpacticoida, Canthocamptidae) (Watiroyram et al. 2015) Elaphoidella jaesornensis Waitroyram, Brancelj et Sanoamuang, 2015 (Arthropoda, Crustacea, Maxilliopoda, Harpacticoida, Canthocamptidae) û type locality (Watiroyram et al. 2015) Elaphoidella namnaoensis Brancelj, Watiroyram et Sanoamuang, 2010 (Arthropoda, Crustacea, Maxilliopoda, Harpacticoida, Canthocamptidae) (Watiroyram et al. 2015) Epactophanes richardi Mrßzek, 1893 (Arthropoda, Crustacea, Maxilliopoda, Harpacticoida, Canthocamptidae) (Watiroyram et al. 2015)
Documents
[Topo] Tham Pha Ngam 30/04/2019Bibliography 06/12/2019
- BRANCELJ, ANTON; BOONYANUSITH, CHAICHAT; WATIROYRAM, SANTI; SANOAMUANG, LA-ORSRI (2013) "The groundwater-dwelling fauna of South East Asiaö Journal of Limnology, Vol. 72 Supplement 2 pp327-344 ELLIS, MARTIN (2013a) "Some Caves in Thailand Part 3" Shepton Mallet Caving Club Journal Series 12 No. 10 pp554-578 ***Ellis, Martin (2018) "Some caves in Thailand Part 5" Shepton Mallet Caving Club Journal Series 13 No. 7 pp299-323 NATIONAL PARK OFFICE (2006) "National Parks in Thailand" National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department, Bangkok 280pp WATIROYRAM, SANTI; BRANCELJ, ANTON; SANOAMUANG, LA-ORSRI (2012) "A New Bryocyclops Kiefer (Crustacea: Copepoda: Cyclopoida) from Karstic Caves in Thailand" The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Vol. 60 No. 1 pp11-21 Watiroyram, Santi; Brancelj, Anton; Sanoamuang, La-orsri (2015) "Two new stygobiotic species of Elaphoidella (Crustacea: Copepoda: Harpacticoida) with comments on geographical distribution and ecology of harpacticoids from caves in Thailand" Zootaxa Vol. 3919 No. 1 pp81-99
History
2009-06-26 (M. Ellis) Visited Tham Nam resurgence 2009-10-05 Santi Watiroyram collected the type specimen of Elaphoidella jaesornensis Waitroyram, Brancelj et Sanoamuang, 2015 2009-10-06 Watiroyram collected a specimen of Bryocyclops maewaensis Brancelj, Watiroyram et Sanoamuang, 2012. The upper cave was explored and surveyed in December 2009 by a team of SMCC and San Diego Grotto members. 2009-12-15 (M. Ellis, J. Jaskowiak, D. Joseph) On two return visits in March 2010 a SMCC team explored and surveyed the vadose linking passage and lower streamway and on the second trip the upper cave was extended and Tham Nam resurgence connected to the stream passage. 2010-03-03 (M. Ellis, P. Collett) 2010-03-10 (M. Ellis, P. Collett) Exploration of the upstream end of the active series continued in March 2012. Since the visit in 2010 a large Buddha had been installed in the upper passage, but it appears that the monks have been evicted by the park authorities. 2012-03-03 (M. Ellis, P. Collett, S. Hall)
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.6 | Tham Mor [LA0065] | 106 | |
| 0.9 | Tham Luk Kae - LA0067 | 306 | 5 |
| 1.1 | Tham Luang [LA0066] | 226 | 8 |
| 1.5 | Sink LA0082 | ||
| 2.4 | Sink LA0083 | ||
| 14.0 | Ban Pong Tham - LA0019 | ||
| 23.3 | Tham Pha Cho - LA0048 | 75 | 5 |
| 28.1 | Ban Pa Kha Sink [LA0078] | ||
| 37.7 | Tham Nang Phaya Pang Din Fai - LA0049 |