Erawan Cave: The Elephant Mountain Cave Between Loei and Nong Bua Lamphu
On Highway 210, right where Loei province meets Nong Bua Lamphu, a limestone mountain rises from the rice fields in the shape of a kneeling elephant. Local people saw the resemblance long ago and named it for Erawan, the great three-headed elephant of Hindu myth. Halfway up its flank gapes the mouth of Tham Erawan — Erawan Cave — with a huge Buddha seated at the entrance, visible from the road far below. It is Nong Bua Lamphu's most dramatic sight, shared with Loei across the provincial border, and it still flies well under the tourist radar. The 600 Steps There is no shortcut: the cave is reached by a stairway of about 600 steps climbing from the temple grounds of Wat Tham Erawan at the mountain's foot. Take it slowly. Shaded rest stops break the climb, the views open wider with every flight — rice fields, sugar cane and the long green run of the Phetchabun foothills — and by the time the great Buddha fills your frame, your legs will know they have earned it. Most visitors t...