Kanchanaburi - Wat Baan Thum

Wat Ban Tham is a cave temple beside the Khwae Noi river. The temple features a long staircase leading into a dragon's mouth. Inside the dragon's head are murals depicting scenes from the classic

Thai novel Khun Chang Khun Phaen, particularly the scene where Khun Phaen murders the preganant Nang Buakhli to make a Guman Thong spirit helper from her unborn baby. There is a stone shaped like Nang Buakhli inside the cave as well as a statue of the Guman Thong.

The cave has a metal gate which may be locked if the temple staff are elsewhere. Normally, Thai visitors are shown up some stairs (shoes off inside the cave) and up the hill to receive a blessing from a monk at a small shrine.



Recommendation *****

There are about 120 steps up leading past the Dragon

Another 200 steps

These are not easy to conquer - 300 steps of irregular, uneven rocks of various heights,
some are as high as 30cm

At the top of the mountain houses Buddha Relics and some beautiful scenery

Even going down is not easy, please be caution

Looking back, at the highest point of the mountain I don't know how I managed
to climb up to the top.  But I do felt my leg muscle cramp after two days later