Lone Rider
Blokes Who Can
Had to go to the Thai Elephant Conservation Center on the way to Lampang (about 78 Km. from Chiangmai along Rd. 11) for some work and decided to combine work with a bit of pleasure by making a quick trip to Wat Lampang Luang (coordinates: N18.21667 E99.38892). Wat Lampang Luang is located on Rd. 1034 between Hang Chat on Rd. 11 and Ko Kha on Rd 1. I had been to both places before but that was quite some ago so I spent a bit of time to look around.
The Government owned Thai Elephant Conservation Center (TECC - http://www.thailandelephant.org/ - coordinates: N18.35996 E99.24843), founded in 1993 under Royal Patronage, cares for more than 50 Asian elephants in a beautiful forest conveniently located on Highway 11 between Chiangmai and Lampang. It has, beside the usual touristic elephant activities, also other activities such as elephant conservation, caring for sick elephants at its hospital or with its mobile elephant clinic, a mahout and elephant training school, etc. In addition it has an Elephant Rescue Unit and it manages the Pang La Sanctuary where it cares for elephants which have been abandoned and/or confiscated. The TECC houses also six of H.M. King Bhumibol's ten white elephants in the Royal Elephant Stables (normally off-limit to visitors).
Just some pictures of the non-touristic activities of the Conservation Center:
The Elephant Nursery
The Elephant and Mahout Training School
Mahout training for tourists
Tourists can stay overnight in the Changthai Resort next to the Mahout school
The Pang La Sanctuary where they keep elephants which have been rescued and/or confiscated
The Elephant Hospital
The Elephant Cemetary
To be honest I found it a bit strange that there would be an elephant cemetary but I was told that also in nature you might find "elephant cemetaries". Apparently elephants have six sets of teeth in their lifetime and once the last set of teeth has been worn out, they often die of malnutrition as it no longer can eat. Therefore, when the old elephant's teeth are worn out, the elephant will seek a level place in the forest that has soft grass and plants on which it can feed and near a small river or lake as source of water. In due course it will die there. Since such locations for a wild ageing elephant may be few in forests, most elephants in this stage will congregate to the same location and finally die in the same place which local people, in case they encounter these areas, call "elephant cemeteries".
In the same area there is another Elephant Hospital (Home - ????????????????? | Friend of The Asian Elephant - coordinates: N18.35361 E99.24552) which is run by the "Friends of the Asian Elephant" or FAE. This hospital is completely separate from the Thai Elephant Conservation Center (TECC) and it is run by a Foundation/Registered Charity unlike the TECC which is run by the Government owned "Forest Industries Organization).
This hospital is probably best known for its care of Motala and Mosha - a 50 year old and a baby elephant which stepped on landmines along the Thai/Burma border and lost a leg. Both elephants are staying permanently at the hospital and have been fitted with artificial legs so they can move around. Both have their own Facebook page and Motala's Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/FAEmotala while Mosha's Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/FAEmosha
From here it is just a short drive to Wat Phra That Lampang Luang which literally means the Temple of Lampang’s Great Buddha Relic and is one of the oldest surviving temples in Thailand made of wood. The Wat is built on a hill top in picturesque surroundings in the midst of rice fields. It is believed to have been constructed around 650-700 AD during the time of princess Chama Devi, as the ornaments of the temple dates back to that era. The Wat is a good example of a fortress monastery, or Wiang and when travelling to the wat, the first impression the visitor has are the huge walls that surround the site. The wat actually saw battle in the early 18th century as a result of an incident between Burmese troops and a local Lord who was killed near here. After the incident, the Burmese troops took up residence in the fortified monastery. A local fighter named Thippachak rose up against the Burmese here with 300 men, gaining access to the monastery via a water channel in the rear. The site where he killed the Burmese commander, Tao Maha Yot, can still be seen as the bullet holes remain in the railings.
The bullet holes
The main entrance into Wat Phrathat Lampang Luang is up the staircase with a naga balustrade (nag sadung) thru a 15th century Northern Thai style ceremonial gatehouse (sum khong).
One of the most imposing structures of the temple is the 45-meter high chedi, with two shrines on the sides, and a beautiful wiharn (prayer hall) in front, carved with flowers and leaves, and containing two Buddha statues. The copper and bronze sheet covering has lost its sheen and appears with a touch of green. Hidden more or less in a corner is the Wat Phra That Lampang Luang’s holy section with a little Buddha reportedly made from the same piece of jade as the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok. A museum next to it holds many holy artifacts and precious objects.
The 45 meter high Chedi
The Guardians of the Chedi
The small Emerald Buddha
Wat Phra That Lampang Luang is said to be one of the few unique temples where major maintenance work has not been undertaken although the roof has been covered with new rooftiles. The main wiharn which dates from about 1496 remains accessible from as it is open from all four sides.
The gilded "Ku" (a kind of pagoda) which contains the main Buddha image
The grounds of this temple are still covered with sand, symbolizing the ocean that surrounds Mount Meru, the central world-mountain in Buddhist cosmology, represented by the chedi of the temple. The Ho Phra Phuttabat is a small tower behind the wiharn and contains a footprint sculpture of Buddha. It is closed to women and is open mainly for festival celebrations when the locals come to pray and seek blessings.
There are so many structures with Buddha Statues in the grounds of the original temple as well as the temple which has been built just outside the main Wiang that the sights become a bit overwhelming so here just a few of the other pictures I took.
The Government owned Thai Elephant Conservation Center (TECC - http://www.thailandelephant.org/ - coordinates: N18.35996 E99.24843), founded in 1993 under Royal Patronage, cares for more than 50 Asian elephants in a beautiful forest conveniently located on Highway 11 between Chiangmai and Lampang. It has, beside the usual touristic elephant activities, also other activities such as elephant conservation, caring for sick elephants at its hospital or with its mobile elephant clinic, a mahout and elephant training school, etc. In addition it has an Elephant Rescue Unit and it manages the Pang La Sanctuary where it cares for elephants which have been abandoned and/or confiscated. The TECC houses also six of H.M. King Bhumibol's ten white elephants in the Royal Elephant Stables (normally off-limit to visitors).
Just some pictures of the non-touristic activities of the Conservation Center:
The Elephant Nursery
The Elephant and Mahout Training School
Mahout training for tourists
Tourists can stay overnight in the Changthai Resort next to the Mahout school
The Pang La Sanctuary where they keep elephants which have been rescued and/or confiscated
The Elephant Hospital
The Elephant Cemetary
To be honest I found it a bit strange that there would be an elephant cemetary but I was told that also in nature you might find "elephant cemetaries". Apparently elephants have six sets of teeth in their lifetime and once the last set of teeth has been worn out, they often die of malnutrition as it no longer can eat. Therefore, when the old elephant's teeth are worn out, the elephant will seek a level place in the forest that has soft grass and plants on which it can feed and near a small river or lake as source of water. In due course it will die there. Since such locations for a wild ageing elephant may be few in forests, most elephants in this stage will congregate to the same location and finally die in the same place which local people, in case they encounter these areas, call "elephant cemeteries".
In the same area there is another Elephant Hospital (Home - ????????????????? | Friend of The Asian Elephant - coordinates: N18.35361 E99.24552) which is run by the "Friends of the Asian Elephant" or FAE. This hospital is completely separate from the Thai Elephant Conservation Center (TECC) and it is run by a Foundation/Registered Charity unlike the TECC which is run by the Government owned "Forest Industries Organization).
This hospital is probably best known for its care of Motala and Mosha - a 50 year old and a baby elephant which stepped on landmines along the Thai/Burma border and lost a leg. Both elephants are staying permanently at the hospital and have been fitted with artificial legs so they can move around. Both have their own Facebook page and Motala's Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/FAEmotala while Mosha's Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/FAEmosha
From here it is just a short drive to Wat Phra That Lampang Luang which literally means the Temple of Lampang’s Great Buddha Relic and is one of the oldest surviving temples in Thailand made of wood. The Wat is built on a hill top in picturesque surroundings in the midst of rice fields. It is believed to have been constructed around 650-700 AD during the time of princess Chama Devi, as the ornaments of the temple dates back to that era. The Wat is a good example of a fortress monastery, or Wiang and when travelling to the wat, the first impression the visitor has are the huge walls that surround the site. The wat actually saw battle in the early 18th century as a result of an incident between Burmese troops and a local Lord who was killed near here. After the incident, the Burmese troops took up residence in the fortified monastery. A local fighter named Thippachak rose up against the Burmese here with 300 men, gaining access to the monastery via a water channel in the rear. The site where he killed the Burmese commander, Tao Maha Yot, can still be seen as the bullet holes remain in the railings.
The bullet holes
The main entrance into Wat Phrathat Lampang Luang is up the staircase with a naga balustrade (nag sadung) thru a 15th century Northern Thai style ceremonial gatehouse (sum khong).
One of the most imposing structures of the temple is the 45-meter high chedi, with two shrines on the sides, and a beautiful wiharn (prayer hall) in front, carved with flowers and leaves, and containing two Buddha statues. The copper and bronze sheet covering has lost its sheen and appears with a touch of green. Hidden more or less in a corner is the Wat Phra That Lampang Luang’s holy section with a little Buddha reportedly made from the same piece of jade as the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok. A museum next to it holds many holy artifacts and precious objects.
The 45 meter high Chedi
The Guardians of the Chedi
The small Emerald Buddha
Wat Phra That Lampang Luang is said to be one of the few unique temples where major maintenance work has not been undertaken although the roof has been covered with new rooftiles. The main wiharn which dates from about 1496 remains accessible from as it is open from all four sides.
The gilded "Ku" (a kind of pagoda) which contains the main Buddha image
The grounds of this temple are still covered with sand, symbolizing the ocean that surrounds Mount Meru, the central world-mountain in Buddhist cosmology, represented by the chedi of the temple. The Ho Phra Phuttabat is a small tower behind the wiharn and contains a footprint sculpture of Buddha. It is closed to women and is open mainly for festival celebrations when the locals come to pray and seek blessings.
There are so many structures with Buddha Statues in the grounds of the original temple as well as the temple which has been built just outside the main Wiang that the sights become a bit overwhelming so here just a few of the other pictures I took.
