Kaew Komon Cave

It’s nothing like the massive caverns like Lod Cave further north near Soppong. In fact, it’s very small with just five small chambers you can visit with an escort, who points out the different types and patterns of mineral formation that smother the walls around. These deposits are amazing to look at, all sparkling and shaped like flowers, mushrooms, coral, snow and frost, and there’s even one section that looks like a butterscotch sundae.

The cave is located within the Kaew Komon Forest Park, a small area of about 50 square kilometers under the protection of the National Parks Department. To get there, follow signs for about 6km east of the center of Mae La Noi, and park at the ticket office. After buying a ticket, a songthaew takes you up the last stretch of narrow road that is extremely steep to the cave entrance.

Before entering the cave, you need to store all bags and cameras in locked draws, then a member of staff guides you down the steep steps in the illuminated cave, pausing to identify different types of calcite. It only takes about 20 minutes to see everything, but there is little air and it’s stifling inside, so you’ll probably be glad to reach the exit.

While it’s a great shame that photography is forbidden in the cave, as the deposits create such magical abstract patterns, it’s probably also true that the use of flash could harm the delicate balance of these mineral formations.