Tham Pha Daeng - MH0066
19.604228,98.103392
Location
Follow the road, about 1 km west of the Nam Khong bridge, which leads north from the check point on H1095. The Pha Daeng cliff is clearly visible to the west of the road 3 km south of Ban Sale. Where the road crosses a ravine there is an old toilet block and car park at 47Q 406270 2168020. To the south side of the ravine there is a set of steps, now falling into disrepair, that lead up to the resurgence entrance at the base of the cliff above.
Description
Tham Pha Daeng is a through cave formed by a small stream that drains a doline west of the cave. The cave has many attractive and active formations and several colonies of bats. The path through the cave follows the stream with a few short bypasses and is 1.2 km long. The upstream end of the cave begins with an impressive cliffside entrance, the stream entering via a smaller second entrance 20 m to the south. After a climb down among boulders in a 35 m long by 15 m wide chamber, the stream is reached on the right hand side. The passage forks for a short distance, with the easier route on the right. The cave continues as a single stream passage, averaging some 5 to 10 m in width and, for the most part, in excess of 5 m high. After passing two oxbows, first on the right and then on the left, the passage narrows to a small hole, widening again immediately on the far side. Although a simple crawl when the cave was surveyed at the end of the dry season, this constriction almost certainly sumps in wetter weather (one or two other parts of the cave probably also sump). The passage continues, past calcite flows on the left and right, then a sandy alcove on the left at a point where the passage turns sharply right. Several large columns up to four metres in diameter are encountered in this section and beyond. A small side passage (unexplored) is then passed on the right, and the stream is followed for a further 300 m before finally emerging from the side of a cliff, 1090 m from the upstream entrance. In the cliff face 20 m higher than the downstream entrance of the cave is a cave that contains a huge bat colony which may connect to Tham Pha Daeng.
Fauna
Spelaeoblatta thailandica Vidlicka, Vransky et Shcherbakov, 2003 (Arthropoda, Insecta, Blattodea, Corydioidea, Nocticolidae) û type locality (Vidlicka et al. 2003)
Topographie
The cave was surveyed by the 1988 Australian Expedition. The location of the survey notes is unknown. Published surveys:- DILOKWANICH, S. ET AL. (2000) SEFTON, MARK (1998) - ASF Grade 4.2 (Grade UISv2 3-3-A)
Documents
[Topo] Tham Pha Daeng 12/05/2019Bibliography 09/05/2020
- +Anon. (2011b) "Baseline study for ecotourism development in Mae Hong Son" Final mission report by Thailand Community Based Tourism Institute (CBT-I) for the United Nations Joint Program on Integrated Highland Livelihood Development in Mae Hong Son, Output 1.3: Ecotourism. June 2011. 175p +COGGAN, MARJORIE; DUNKLEY, JOHN ROBERT; ANDERSON, NEIL (EDS.) (1999) "Tham Sanuk: The Lighter Side Of Caving In Thailand" Canberra, 76pp +DILOKWANICH, S.; ET AL. (2000) "An Exploration and Database System of the Caves, Mae Hong Son Province" 6 Vols. Faculty of Environment and Resource Studies, Mahidol University, Bangkok - STD609, 610 +DUNKLEY, JOHN ROBERT (1995) "The Caves of Thailand" Speleological Research Council, Sydney ISBN 0-9589253-9-9 +Kiernan, Kevin (1988e) "Geomorphology of a tropical intermontane basin in the Sino-Burman Ranges" 26th International Geographical Congress 1988, International Geological Union, Sydney pp1-24 +Kiernan, Kevin; Spies, John; Dunkley, John Robert (1988) "Prehistoric occupation and burial sites in the mountains of the Nam Khlong area, Mae Hong Son Province, Northwestern Thailand" Australian Archaeology No. 27 pp24-44 +Kreuss, Markus (2014) "Thailand" www.troglophil.de/?section=location&id=25 (german) [accessed April 2015] +NATIONAL PARK OFFICE (2006) "National Parks in Thailand" National park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department, Bangkok 280pp +SEFTON, MARK (1998) "Tham Pha Daeng (MH 66) - North-west Thailand" Cave Exploration Group of South Australia News Vol.43 No.1 pp5-7 +SIDISUNTHORN, PINDAR; GARDNER, SIMON; SMART, DEAN (2006) "Caves of Northern Thailand" River Books, Thailand, ISBN 9749863135 +SPIES, JOHN (1994) "The Palaces of Darkness" Action Asia (Hong Kong) Vol.3 No.4 pp116-126 +SPIES, JOHN (2000) "Suggestions for Cave Management" in "An Exploration and Database System of Caves: Mae Hong Son Province" Vol. 6. Faculty of Environment and Resource Studies, Mahidol University, Bangkok +VIDLICKA, LUBOM-R; VRèANSK¦, PETER; SHCHERBAKOV, DMITRIJ E. (2003) "Two New Troglobitic Cockroach Species Of The Genus Spelaeoblatta (Blattaria: Nocticolidae) From North Thailand" Journal of Natural History Vol. 37 No. 1 pp107-114 +WIGFALL, MARK (1988) "Cave Lodge, Northern Thailand" Shepton Mallet Caving Club Journal Series 8 No. 5 pp202-205
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Pha Daeng Outflow (Pi Man) - MH0108 | 10 | 0 |
| 0.6 | Tham Chan Long - MH0141 | ||
| 0.7 | Coffin Cave MH0143 - MH0143 | 5 | 0 |
| 0.7 | Tham Pi Man Pha Daeng Scaffolds - MH0142 | 10 | 0 |
| 0.8 | Spirit Cave (Chester Gorman) - MH0064 | 70 | 0 |
| 0.9 | Tham Pi Man Long Yuk - MH0139 | 50 | 0 |
| 1.0 | Tham Srisopon - MH0140 | 100 | 0 |
| 2.3 | Sink MH0307 | ||
| 2.7 | Sink MH0308 |