Rating: 3.8/5 (5 votes)

Operating day: Daily

Operating time: 06.30 - 18.00

 

Mukdahan National Park (Phu Pha Thoep) is 17 kilometres from the city on the Mukdahan-Don Tan Road. To get to the park, turn right at the 14-15 km marker and drive for 2 kilometres. The park has an area of 48.5 square kilometres and consists mainly of many high mountains connected together like Phu Manorom, Phu Nang Hong, Phu Pha Thoep, Phu Tham Phra, Phu Lak Se, Phu Rang, Phu Pong, and Phu Kham Mak Mi.

 

The highest peak is Phu Chom Si, which is 420 metres above sea level. The forest is a hardwood forest and is the source of several waterways. Some parts of the park are steep cliffs and wide rock plateaus. The most striking of these is Phu Pha Thoep where rocks of peculiar shapes abound.

 

It is believed that this area was once a dirt mountain that eventually eroded due to rain and wind. Around the end of the rainy season in October, flowers of different colors bloom from the rocks, giving the park magnificent colors.Other places of interest include Phu Tham Phra, the largest mountain in the park.

 

Visitors can find a waterfall and a cave where hundreds of small wooden Buddha and animal images are placed. Another site is the Tham Fa Mu Daeng on Phu Pha Thoep where numerous prehistoric drawings of hands and people can be seen. Drawn with red paint, the drawings are estimated to be older than 5,000 years.