Thailand Guide
The northeast: Isaan
Khao Yai trails
Opening time: Visitor centre daily 7am–6pm
Price: B400, or B200 for kids
Address: Most trailheads are near the visitor centre and park headquarters at kilometre-stone 37, 37km north of Pak Chong
The shortest and least taxing trail is the kilometre-long Kong Kaew Nature Trail. It's paved all the way and takes just thirty minutes in each direction; if it's not too crowded, you could see gibbons, woodpeckers and kingfishers en route.
Of the more adventurous hikes, the most popular runs to Nong Pak Chee observation tower. This is a fairly easy walk through forest and grassland that culminates at an observation tower built next to a lake. En route you'll hear (if not see) white-handed gibbons in the tallest trees, and might spot barking deer in the savanna. If you stay at the tower long enough you could see eagles soaring or needletails dive-bombing the lake; elephants and gaurs sometimes come to drink here, too. The walk takes about two and a half hours to the observation tower (4.5km), from where it's another 900m down a dirt track which meets the main road between kilometre-stones 35 and 36.
Another good focus for walks is the area around Haew Suwat Falls. These 25-metre-high falls are a great place for an invigorating shower, and they featured in the 1999 film The Beach. To get to the falls from the park headquarters, either follow the trail, or walk, drive or hitch the six-kilometre road – it's a popular spot, so there should be plenty of cars. The trail to the falls (8km one way; 3–4hr) begins on the Nature Trail behind the visitor centre, then veers off it, along a path marked with red flashes. En route to Haew Suwat you'll pass a turn-off to Pha Kluai/Orchid campsite and waterfall (6.1km from the park headquarters); near the end of the trail you may hear Haew Sai Falls in the distance, though these are easier to reach from Haew Suwat itself.
Day-trippers often do the shorter walk from Haew Suwat waterfall to Pha Kluai/Orchid campsite, which is paved most of the way and takes two hours at most (3.1km). You've a good chance of spotting gibbons and macaques along this route, as well as kingfishers and hornbills. The area around nearby Pha Kluai Falls is famous for its impressive variety of orchids.