Tham Bpra Gaai Phet [Tham Phra Khai Phet] [CH0075]
16.484295,101.784765
Location
This cave is in a wat beside the road to the Chulaphon Dam. A few steps lead up to the gated entrance.
Description
Inside the entrance there are steps up to the left which lead to a chamber with a well appointed monkÆs bedroom, some flowstone and an upper entrance. There is also a high level crawl that has not been pushed. Back at the entrance, going straight ahead is a walking height passage that has a tile floor and leads past some statues, through a gate, to a junction. Keeping left a short low section leads to more walking passage and a small chamber with a passage on the right. This passage heads south and links with the right hand passage mentioned above. A small passage descends steeply for about 40m to a blind pot. Back in the chamber the way on is to the left that leads to a chamber with pools of water and the remains of an electric pump and some piping. Beyond the pools there are some holes in the floor that need to be traversed over and a large passage on the left. The main passage continues for 50m and eventually reaches the top of a pitch into a large rift. The first part of the pitch is a 5m drop to a large ledge. The pitch continues down the slope which becomes vertical for the last 10m (estimated) to land in what sounds like deep water. Some rope and a homemade rope ladder has been left on this pitch and is assumed to be left over from the rescue in 2009. The news report stated this pitch was 45m deep, but it is probably nearer 30m deep. A handline up a difficult climb to an inlet passage can be seen from the ledge 5m down the pitch. The large side passage on the left, just after the pools in the main passage, heads south-west for 40m with a couple of holes in the floor, before abruptly turning north and after 30m there is a pitch (estimated at 6m) into a rift that has not been descended.
Equipement
Main passage pitch:- Sling to natural 5m before pitch Large loop of rope around natural at pitch head Rebelay to the old rope left from the rescue. Rope protector used on lower part of pitch, but rebelay would be better. 30m rope is at least 5m too short, Side passage pitch:- No good belays at pitch head,
Topographie
SMCC February 2014/June 2015 - UISv2 6-3-F/3-3-B Filoux et al. (2015) - survey to the pools, entrance area based on Ellis Ellis, Martin (2018)
Fauna
Thereuopoda longicornis (Fabricius, 1793) (Arthropoda, Chilopoda, Scutigeromorpha, Scutigeridae)
Documents
[Topo] Tham Bpra Gaai Phet 28/04/2019Bibliography 23/06/2019
- +ANON. (2009e) ô[Big young man out surveying a cave tumbles into abyss for 3 days]ö news.mthai.com/general-news/53217.html +ELLIS 2011 +ELLIS 2017 ***Ellis, Martin (2018) "Some caves in Thailand Part 5" Shepton Mallet Caving Club Journal Series 13 No. 7 pp299-323 ***Filoux, Arnaud; Becam, GaÙl; Wattanapituksakul, Athiwat (2018) A late Pleistocene Hominin from Tham Prakai Phet (Chaiyaphum Province, Thailand): preliminary analysis of an isolated upper premolar" 5th International Paleontological Congress, Paris, 9-13 July 2018, Session S29, p620 ***Filoux, Arnaud; Wattanapituksakul, Athiwat (2019) ôThe Late Pleistocene Orangutan from Tham Prakai Phet: New discoveriesö Annales de Pal?ontologie in press DOI 10.1016/j.annpal.2019.03.004 ***Filoux, Arnaud; Wattanapituksakul, Athiwat; Lespes, Carole; Martin, Jeremy; Becam, GaÙl; Liard, Romain; Thongcharoenchaikit, Cholawit; Gr³n, Rainer; Duval, Mathieu (2018) "The late Pleistocene (MIS 4) mammal assemblage of Tham Prakai Phet (Thailand): a new biochronological benchmark for mainland Southeast Asia" 5th International Paleontological Congress, Paris, 9-13 July 2018, Session S29, p655 +Filoux, Arnaud; Lespes, Carole; Wattanapituksakul, Athiwat; Thongcharoenchaikit, Cholawit (2014) "Note about new Pleistocene faunal remains from Tham Prakai Phet, Chaiyaphum Province, Thailand" Journal of Science and Technology Mahasarakham University Vol. 33 No. 4, July-August 2014, pp378-385 +Filoux, Arnaud; Wattanapituksakul, Athiwat; Lespes, Carole; Thongcharoenchaikit, Cholawit (2015) "A Pleistocene mammal assemblage containing Ailuropoda and Pongo from Tham Prakai Phet cave, Chaiyaphum Province, Thailand" Geobios in press +Goddard, Andy (2016) "Thailand Expedition 2016" Shepton Mallet Caving Club Newsletter Vol. 53 No. 2 April 2016 pp40-43 +LOUYS, JULIEN (2007) "Ecology and Extinction of Southeast Asia's Megafauna" PhD thesis, University of New South Wales, Sydney 290pp +LOUYS, JULIEN; MEIJAARD, ERIK (2010) "Palaeoecology of Southeast Asian megafauna-bearing sites from the Pleistocene and a Review of Environmental Changes in the Region" Journal of Biogreography Vol. 37 Issue 8 pp1432-1449 ***Suraprasit, Kantapon; Jaeger, Jean-Jacques; Chaimanee, Yaowalak; Chavasseau, Olivier; Yamee, Chotima; Tian, Pannipa; Panha, Somsak (2016) "The Middle Pleistocene vertebrate fauna from Khok Sung (Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand): biochronological and paleobiogeographical implications" ZooKeys No. 613 pp1-157 DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.613.8309 +TOUGARD, CHRISTELLE (1998) "Les Faunes de Grands MammifÞres du PlÚistocÞne Moyen Terminal de Tha´lande dans leur cadre PhylogÚnÚtique, PalÚoÚcologique et Biochronologique" ThÚse de Doctorat II, University de Montpellier, 175pp +TOUGARD, CHRISTELLE (2001) "Biogeography and Migration routes of Large Mammal Faunas in South-east Asia during the Late Middle Pleistocene: Focus on the Fossil and Extant Faunas from Thailand" Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology Vol. 168 pp337-358 +Tseng, Zhijie Jack; Chang, Chun-Hsiang (2007) "A study of the new material of Crocuta crocuta ultima (Carnivora: Hyaenidae) from the Quaternary of Taiwan" Collection and Research Vol. 20 pp9-19 +VOGT, NILS B. (2013) "Temple Caves & Grottoes in Thailand: A Picture-Guide Book" Booksmango, Bangkok ISBN 978-616-222-160-6 214pp
History
2006-01-09 M. Ellis - first visit by speleologists 2009-08-02 a 30 year old man was rescued from the cave after falling down a pitch and being stuck for 3 days. 2011-12 - 2012-01 Palaeontological collections by Mahasarakham University and Natural History Museum of the National Science Museum, Thailand. 2014-02-16 P. Collett - UISv2 6-3-B survey of the entrance and the chamber to the left. 2015-06-08 M. Ellis, P. Collett - The survey was extended along the main passage to the pools of water and the cave explored as far as the pitch. 2015-10-21 M. Ellis, T. Bolger, P. Collett - surveyed the main passage to the pitch and the side passage to the another pitch. 2016-02-09 M. Ellis, P. Dummer, C. Dummer, K. Batten, J. Biffin, J. Campbell, A. Goddard, S. Howe (SMCC) surveyed the right hand passage, but failed to descend the two pitches at the end of the main passage and left hand passage due to a lack of belays and poor rock.
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.8 | Tham Wiman Na Din - CH0084 | 75 | 10 |
| 2.5 | Cave CH0068 [Sketch Cave] [CH0068] | 20 | 0 |
| 4.7 | Tham Chedi Boraphot 2 - CH0099 | 10 | 0 |
| 4.7 | Tham Chedi Boraphot 1 - CH0098 | 5 | 0 |
| 5.4 | Tham Satchatham [CH0111] | ||
| 5.4 | Tham Sai Chai Patgui Tip 2 - CH0070 | 168 | 24 |
| 5.6 | Tham Phrom Nimit - CH0076 | 20 | 0 |
| 5.8 | Tham Sai Chai Patgui Tip 1 - CH0069 | 70 | 0 |
| 7.0 | Pha Sam Tham [CH 0087] |