Kong lor Cave

Mar 30, 2010
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G'day All,

Kong lor cave is pretty stunning.. The following pictures do not do it justice.

As dark as the black hole of Calcutta and navigating by head lamp at a brisk speed.
Head lamp zipping all over the cave walls looking for the path to follow

There are a couple of small rapids you have to get out of the boat to get over.
One rapid you walk around the limestone which is pretty spectacular with lighting.

The other is just to get over the rocks.

A couple of tips:-

Headlamps:- Head lamps are provided.. Which are OK. But if you have you own high powered headlamp.. Bring it along

Footwear:- A pair of flip flops (Thong for the Aussies) are provided.. These are as slippery as hell.
Wear your own sandals or get your trainers wet.. I nearly went A over T a couple of times.. Only because of the Flip flops.

Here is a Wiki link with more detail on the cave for those that would like to know more.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tham_Kong_Lo

Arrive at the gate and pay your entrance fee and boat fee.
The boat fee is the same no matter how many people.. You have to pay per person for entrance to the cave.

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Lockers are available free of charge.. You can pick up flip flops and headlamp here and leave any gear behind.
The caves can be a bit wet inside with water dropping from the ceiling.. Wasn't too bad on my visit.

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You walk right in to the cave entrance with the skipper. He has a small Pepsi bottle of fuel.
Enough to get you to the other side and back

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It is really dark.. only a small section you walk through has lights.

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The camera flash captured some of the wall.

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After you walk through this part of the cave.. the skipper is waiting for you on the other side.

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Navigating all the way like this.

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Over some small rapids

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Ah yes.. The proverbial "Light at the end of the tunnel..."

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Once you make it through the cave you have 10 mins for a drink and look around on the other side.
Not much to see really.. Vendors selling drinks and snacks.

This local lady asked for a lift back.. Which I agreed to with no problem..
Just asked that she give me the freshly slaughtered chicken she was carrying as payment :)

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Emerging at the other side of the cave.

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Well worth a visit.. Photo's can't capture the place.. Seeings is believing.

Cheers
Brian
 
Nov 21, 2010
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Indeed pretty amazing .... at least it looks like you guys had some light in the tunnel of darkness.

I was there 2 years ago and there was NO light at all except our head-lights. And indeed you should have your own sandals (especially if you are not used to flip-flops). When we were there it was a bit chilly inside.

On the other side you can make a small hiking to another village.

Still a stunning area to be, we did stay overnight nearby the cave.

See my travel-blog http://changnoi1.blogspot.com/2012/11/going-to-kong-lor-cave.html