Pa Hin Ngam National Park
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Pa Hin Ngam (ป่าหินงาม) is a National Park in Chaiyaphum province in Thailand. The name Hin Ngam means beautiful stone, where Pa means forest.
In 1985, the Tep Satit Forestry Department first surveyed the area, long popular with the locals, and recommended its protection. In October 1986, the Pa Hin Ngam Park was created, covering 10 km² around the strange rock formations which gave the park its name. In 1993, the Forestry Department of Thailand conducted a more thorough survey including the surrounding area, and recommended that it become a national park. The national park covering 112 km² was created on September 19, 1994, but it is not yet officially recorded.
The park is located at the boundary of the Phetchabun mountain range with the Khorat Plateau. The steep cliff at the 846 m high Sood Pandin viewpoint allows a great view into a valley of the Pa Sok river and the Sublangka Wildlife Sanctuary. The name Sood Pandin means end of land, reflecting the steepness of the cliff. This cliff also marks the watershed between the Chao Phraya and the Mekong rivers.
Near the viewpoint is one of the fields of the Siam Tulip (Curcuma alismatifolia), called Dok Kra Jiao (ดอกกระเจียว) in Thai. The dipterocarp forests bloom with the purple flowers at the beginning of the raining season in July.
The park got its name from the strange rock formations in the Hin Ngam Rock Ground, located at the western end of the park. Erosion has formed several interestingly shaped rocks.
External links
- National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department (http://www.dnp.go.th/parkreserve/asp/style1/default.asp?npid=27&lg=2)
- Thaiparks123 (http://www.thaiparks123.com/en/nationalpark.cfm?parkid=26)
- World Database on Protected Areas (http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/wdbpa/sitedetails.cfm?siteid=313014&level=)