Phu Kraduend Mtn - Loei - New Years Eve

[Chao Lao Beach]

Has anyone done this before ?

I am picturing a massive push and shove as many thousands try to jam into one little camp site ? Is it easy to rent a tent ?

How far and how steep is the walk up to the the top ?

Is this the worse possible day of the year to go there, (I suspect this).

Any comments ?

Anyone know how long it takes to drive form Chaing Rai ?

Thanks for any tips ?

[Chonburiram]

New year is the busiest time there. Accommodation could become a problem. Bring your own sleep bag with you, if you can rent a tent they will give you a well used sleep bag...

I've seen grandmothers with walking stick going up, it's not that difficult, maybe 6km up, and on top (Pu Kradueng is a table mountain) 6km to the camping area on quite sandy ways. Do not leave the camp strolling around at nighttime you could end up meeting a wild Elephant. At night it will be cold (under 10°C) and dark, bring a flashlight with you. There is not much shadow, a hat or an umbrella is recommended. For your convenience, you can hire "sherpas" to carry your stuff, they charge per kg, and are happy to earn a little cash. Food and drink is best provided by yourself, you can buy things on the mountain but very limited (in case of an Invasion maybe not sufficient).

It's a National Park, you have to pay entrance money, if you drink alc bring your own.

Try to arrive in the morning, for better chances for a tent or bring your own tent which you are only allowed to set up on the camping side (remember these Elephants).

I've been to Pu Kradueng 3 times, once on New Year, lots of people all in good mood/spirit. On "normal" days it is very quiet.

It's only open to the public for a half year. The "typical" routine is watching the sunset on arrival day and the sunrise the next morning from really nice cliffs. Inbetween, not much to do besides trying to avoid these wild Elephants...

[CharlieH]

Moved to local forum for localised knowledge and info

[TerryLH]

I think they limit the number of people allowed there each day.

[Chonburiram]

A few impressions from Puu Kradueng:

Edited December 20, 2014 by petercool

[Chonburiram]

And a few more...

[Chonburiram]

Moved to local forum for localised knowledge and info

Yeah,

right... furck the locals...

[WormFarmer]

We went up in October this year. It's a 5km climb, quite steep in places, best to take a hiking stick (a good solid bamboo does the trick) which is especially useful when coming back down. It's a 3km walk along the top to the camp. Journey time about 5 hrs.

Here's a sketch of the route up, they'll give you a copy when you sign in.

[8OA8]

New year is the busiest time there. Accommodation could become a problem. Bring your own sleep bag with you, if you can rent a tent they will give you a well used sleep bag...

I've seen grandmothers with walking stick going up, it's not that difficult, maybe 6km up, and on top (Pu Kradueng is a table mountain) 6km to the camping area on quite sandy ways. Do not leave the camp strolling around at nighttime you could end up meeting a wild Elephant. At night it will be cold (under 10°C) and dark, bring a flashlight with you. There is not much shadow, a hat or an umbrella is recommended. For your convenience, you can hire "sherpas" to carry your stuff, they charge per kg, and are happy to earn a little cash. Food and drink is best provided by yourself, you can buy things on the mountain but very limited (in case of an Invasion maybe not sufficient).

It's a National Park, you have to pay entrance money, if you drink alc bring your own.

Try to arrive in the morning, for better chances for a tent or bring your own tent which you are only allowed to set up on the camping side (remember these Elephants).

I've been to Pu Kradueng 3 times, once on New Year, lots of people all in good mood/spirit. On "normal" days it is very quiet.

It's only open to the public for a half year. The "typical" routine is watching the sunset on arrival day and the sunrise the next morning from really nice cliffs. Inbetween, not much to do besides trying to avoid these wild Elephants...

Splendid report, thanks.

[JungleBiker]

In which month were the photos of the red and white flowering rhododendrons taken?

Thanks.

JB.

[jcates29]

In early May 2009, in Chiang Rai, I loaded up me, my wife, my son (who met us in Korea, where he was stationed with the U.S. Army, and flew with us to Thailand), and eleven other Chiang Rai-based family members, and we embarked on a very memorable trip to Phu Kradeung.

Regarding the drive from Chiang Rai to Phu Kradeung, on the outbound leg we split the trip into two days, staying overnight in Phitsanulok. That made the driving very manageable, and we were not exhausted when we arrived. When we left Phu Kradeung, we went over to Udorn Thani and stayed overnight there, then drove back from there to Chiang Rai in one day. We took a meandering route along the Thai-Lao border and we were dead tired when we pulled into home in Chiang Rai.

Bottom line, you can make the drive in one day, but it will take most of the day. If you drive in to Phu Kradeung in one day, I recommend you stay overnight in the village at the foot of the mountain and make the trek up to the top on the next day.

Others have commented on the trip up the mountain. In our group, the youngest was 13 years old, and the oldest (my wife's older sister) was 67. Her husband walked up the mountain in his flip-flops, but he is a tough dude. Me, a soft, decadent westerner, I found the climb to be strenuous, but ultimately not that hard. I recommend good boots, and take your time, because you will be scrambling over very steep, rocky terrain with lots of tree roots and other uneven ground. But, there are several stopping places along the way up with bathrooms and places to eat or drink.

We naively thought we could go up the mountain and down in a single day, and that turned out to be a bad plan. First of all, the walking trails on the top of the mountain are closed after about 3:00 PM because of the real threat of encountering dangerous wildlife (such as the aforementioned wild elephants). Luckily for us, it was not high season, and we were able to contact the staff in the office at the top of the mountain, and we rented two large bungalow rooms with seven beds each. Frankly, it could have been a real disaster if we were not able to rent those, because we were totally unprepared to stay overnight without the availability of the bungalows. Sounds like you are doing more pre-planning than we did! You can rent the bungalows before you make the ascent, and you may be able to reserve them in advance. With New Year's upon us, they are likely sold out by now.

The highlight of the trip for my wife was the next-day visit to Sa Anodat, a water pool in the interior. My wife was enthralled by this water pool, and we actually made the trip because she wanted to visit it. She related that this pool is the location in the "secret forest of Himmaparn" where the legendary Kinnaree would frolic, and where the most famous Kinnaree, Princess Manorah, was captured by the mortal Pranhbun. But, I've found nothing on the internet to correspond with the story. Regardless, it was fun to imagine catching sight of young, lissome Kinnaree bathing in the remote mountain pools, and I thought I saw one out of the corner of my eye, but when I turned to look, she was gone... Ah, well.

I guess the "highlight" of the trip for me was the realization that my blood is very tasty to the ground leeches which inhabit the mountain and which come out in the rainy season. Apparently these parasites are relatively harmless, but definitely provide the "eeeewwwwww" factor. They sell socks down at the bottom of the mountain that are kind of like a canvas sack that you can put your foot in and then tie up around your pant leg so the ground leeches can't climb up inside your pant leg. I would definitely buy them next time!!!

The trip up the mountain took about four hours, and the trip down took about three hours. We talked about the trip for months afterwards! The whole family will love it. I highly recommend it!

[Tuskfish]

Be sure to check out the temple at Dansai on the way, it's quite special

[malt25]

Moved to local forum for localised knowledge and info

Charlie. Don't you think others just might be interested in this ? Not just the locals.

You appear to have an urge to move many posts that are of general, not only localized interest.

Just sayin.

Cheers..... Mal.

[Chonburiram]

In which month were the photos of the red and white flowering rhododendrons taken?

Thanks.

JB.

That time,we went with the kids, so it must have been during their school holiday in April.

Sorry for the late answer, forgot there was something interesting burried in the local Isan forum...