The 

Cardamom Mountains of Cambodia & The Termple of the Lotus Pond

Apart from the astonishing remnants of past civilisations in and around Siem
Reap, the main asset of Cambodia must be its charming and hospitable people.
The Cardamom Mountains stretch over an impressive four and a half million
hectares, covering a significant portion of southwestern Cambodia. The
mountain range rests at the edge of the Thai border, once providing an escape
route across the border during the horrific period that the Khmer Rouge
reigned. From Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh, you will head southwest to the
Cardamom Mountains which cover about 12,000 square miles of southwest
Cambodia. These little-visited mountains are formed from gentle peaks, lined
with trees and lush vegetation. The maximum height of the range is only
1,800m/5,905ft, so there are no altitude issues to worry about. Opened up
only relatively recently, the area you visit is in the lower foothills and offers the
chance to experience village life in a remote community. You will follow walking
trails through pristine forested landscape to discover picturesque water falls
and mountain views and spend time witnessing village life at first hand in Chi
Phat. The area is renowned for its bio-diversity and you may see silver langurs,
long-tailed macaques, greater hornbills and other forest creatures whilst
walking and on boat rides.

The Ca
rdamom Mountains (Phnum Krâvanh ) Krâvanh Mountains, Khmer Chuŏr Phnum
Krâvanh- Thio Khao Banthat or the Krâvanh Mountains, is a mountain range in the

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south west of Cambodia and Eastern Thailand. The majority of the range is within
Cambodia.The silhouette of the Cardamom Mountains appears in the provincial
seal of Trat Province in Thailand. The mountain range is one of Southeast Asia’s last
expanses of thriving lowland rainforest – a place where adjoining mountains are
connected to the ocean through rivers that cascade into the sea. The mountains are
widely considered as Southeast Asia’s greatest natural resource, one whose wildlife
habitat is yet to be explored and documented.
The region is so undeveloped, unresearched and largely unprotected because of
the presence of the Khmer Rouge in the early 1980’s. After the regime fell,
guerrillas retreated into the mountains. The area was consequently avoided for
over twenty years out of fear for the guerrillas and the mines that they had
laid.

Today, around 25 000 thousand people are believed to live in the mountains,
many of which are the ethnic minority – the Porr.

The mountains are known to contain almost all of the country’s known animal
species. Not only that, it is home to some of the most endangered animals in
the world – some of which are entirely extinct in other parts of the world. The
incredible array of animal species is due to the extremely rich diversity in
habitats that the mountains offer. However, the known animals are just the tip
of the iceberg. The area is incredibly under-researched and is speculated to
have hundreds, if not thousands of undocumented species.

If this is not reason enough to explore the countryside and satisfy your inner
zoologist, then nothing will be. Just a handful of the potential sightings that lay
in wait include those of the Asian elephant, Indochinese tiger, Siamese
crocodiles, pleated gibbon, Malaysian sun bear, and clouded leopard. It is hard
to believe, just writing all these names that all these creatures can exist in one
small corner of the earth.

Tep Sokha, P. Bion Griffin and D. Kyle Latinis recording ancient rock art at Kanam in 2015.
Over 220 separate images were identified - mostly elephants, deer, wild cow/buffalo, humans
riding elephants, and unidentifiable
mammals. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/301898893_The_Kanam_Rock_Painting_Sit
e_Cambodia_Current_Assessments

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The mountain range extends along a southeast-northwest axis
from Chanthaburi Province in Thailand, and Koh Kong Province in Cambodia
on the Gulf of Thailand, to the Veal Veang District in Pursat Province, and
extends to the southeast by the Dâmrei (Elephant) Mountains.[3] The Thai part
of the range comprise heavily eroded and dispersed mountain fragments of
which the Khao Sa Bap, Khao Soi Dao and Chamao-Wong Mountains, east,
north and west of Chanthaburi respectively, are the most prominent.
Dense tropical rainforest prevails on the wet westward slopes which annually
receive from 3,800 to 5,000 mm (150 to 200 in) of rainfall. By contrast, only
1,000 to 1,500 mm (40 to 60 inches) fall on the wooded eastern slopes in
the rain shadow facing the interior Cambodian plain, such as the Kirirom
National Park. Most of the mountains are a dense wilderness, with almost no
human population or activity, but on the eastern
slopes, cardamom and pepper are grown commercially, and several large-scale
construction projects have begun since the turn of the century.
Summits
The highest elevation of the Cardamom Mountains is Phnom Aural in the
northeast at 1,813 m (5,948 ft). This is also Cambodia's highest peak.
Other important summits in the Cambodian parts are:

 Phnom Samkos (1,717 m (5,633 ft)

 Phnom Tumpor 1,516 m (4,974 ft)
 Phnom Kmoch 1,220 m (4,003 ft)
In Thailand, the most prominent peaks in Thailand are:

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 Khao Sa Bap 673 m (2,208 ft)
 Khao Soi Dao Tai 1,675 m (5,495 ft)
 Khao Chamao 1,024 m (3,360 ft)
The mountains contain many historic sites from the 15th- to 17th-century,
containing 60 cm exotic ceramic jars and rough-hewn log coffins set out on
remote, natural rock ledges, scattered around the mountains. The jar burials
are a unique feature of this region, and forms a previously unrecorded burial
practice in Khmer cultural history. Local legends suggest the bones are the
remains of Cambodian royalty.

Buddhist shrine.-Chulasirachumbot Cetiya in Namtok Phlio National Park,

Thailand.

This ride takes you through the area.The Cardamom Mountains are located in
southwest Cambodia. The western edge of the Cardamom region abuts the Thai
border, while the easternmost part ends about sixty miles northwest of the
Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh. The region's area is 2.5 million acres (1
million hectares). The highest point in the range (and in Cambodia) is Mount
Aural, at 1,813 meters (5,946 feet). There are five main rivers that run through
the Cardamoms, creating dozens of waterfalls. About 25,000 people live in this
region, some of whom are ethnic minorities, such as the Porr.
A unique rock art cave site known as Kanam depicts ancient elephants,
elephant riders, deer and wild cow (or buffalo) in red ochre paint. [7] The site is
located in the eastern part of the Cardamoms near Kravanh Township (Pursat
Province). The Cardamoms are home to one of the largest protected wild
elephant populations in Southeast Asia. The human riders may represent
elephant capture and training activities - a major cultural tradition among
various ethnic groups in the area until the 1970s. Traditions, experts, and
elephant populations were decimated by the Khmer Rouge Regime.
The cave and paintings may have played important roles for rituals and magic
used to placate ancestors and spirits; seek protection (elephant capture is very
dangerous); bring good fortune; and transmit specialized knowledge
(teaching/training).
Some of the paintings may be various species of wild cow or buffalo. It is
difficult to distinguish the possible cow from the possible deer representations
due to the simple silhouette style. However, cowhides are extremely important
for lassoes, ropes, snares and riggings related to elephant capture. Local
elephant masters claimed there was more ritual and magic associated with
these highly critical items than all others related to elephant capture. Thus,
wild cow or buffalo representation might be expected.
The large representation of deer may relate to the massive deerskin trade to
Japan in the 15th - 17th centuries. Taiwan's deer populations had been almost
annihilated due to insatiable demands for Samurai armor and Japanese

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accessories made of deerskin. Deerskin sourcing shifted to Cambodia and
Thailand. As deer populations decreased, local hunters also may have resorted
to more investment in magic and ritual to seek assistance from ancestors and
spirits to increase luck. The paintings are thought to date from the late
Angkorian period through the post-Angkor period (contemporaneous with the
jar burials, perhaps created and used by the same ethnic groups). The site may
date to as early as the Funan period (1st - 6th centuries) when the practice of
capturing, training, and trading live elephants was first historically noted (a
mission was sent to China in 357 AD with trained elephants as part of the
tributary gifts to Emperor Mu of Jin). Whether or not elephant capture,
training, and use for labor, prestige and warfare existed prior to the Funan
period is unknown. It is possible that the practice, technology and knowledge
was obtained through South Asian influence in the early first millennium AD.
Indigenous people
Part of the mountains are home to indigenous people, including the Chhong in
both Thailand and Cambodia, and the ethnic Por (or Pear) in Pursat Province,
Cambodia. They all belong to the group known as Pearic peoples. In Cambodia,
indigenous people are collectively referred to as Khmer Loeu.
Khmer Rouge
This largely inaccessible mountain range formed one of the last strongholds of
the Khmer Rouge, driven out by Vietnamese forces during the Cambodian–
Vietnamese War. The Thai border to the west acted as a conduit for Chinese
support and, eventually, a sanctuary for fleeing Khmer fighters and refugees

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Modern development
The inaccessibility of the hills has also helped to preserve the primeval
forest and ecosystems of the area relatively intact. In 2002, however, a
transborder highway to Thailand was completed south of the Cardamoms,
along the coast. The highway has fragmented habitats for large mammals such
as elephants, big cats and monkeys. International conservation organizations
working in the area includes Wildlife Alliance, Conservation
International, and Fauna and Flora International. In 2016, the southern slopes
of the Cardamom Mountains were designated as a new national park; Southern
Cardamom National Park It appears, however, that rampant illegal poaching is
continuing nonetheless.
These relatively isolated mountains are part of the Cardamom Mountains rain
forests ecoregion, an important ecoregion of mostly tropical moist broadleaf
forest. Being one of the largest and still mostly unexplored forests in Southeast
Asia, it is separated from other rainforests in the region by the large Khorat
Plateau to the north. For these reasons, the ecoregion is home to several
endemic species and is a refuge for species who has been decimated or are
endangered elsewhere. The Vietnamese Phú Quốc island off the coast of
Cambodia has similar vegetation and is included in the ecoregion.
Most of the ecoregion is covered in evergreen rain forest, but with several
different habitats. Above 700 metres, a special thick evergreen forest-type
dominates, and on the southern slopes of the Elephant Mountains, dwarf

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conifer Dacrydium elatum forests grows. On the Kirirom plateau, Tenasserim
pine forest is found. The northern part of Cardamom Mountains is home to the
southernmost natural habitats of Betula (species Betula alnoides).
Throughout, Hopea pierrei, an endangered canopy tree rare elsewhere, is
relatively abundant in the Cardamom Mountains. Other angiosperm tree
species are Anisoptera costata, Anisoptera glabra, Dipterocarpus
costatus, Hopea odorata, Shorea hypochra, Caryota urens and Oncosperma
tigillarium.[19] Other conifers include Pinus kesiya, Dacrycarpus
imbricatus, Podocarpus neriifolius, P. pilgeri and Nageia wallichiana.

Protections in the Cardamom Mountains comprise the following:

Cambodia

 Central Cardamom Mountains National Park

 Southern Cardamom National Park
 Botum-Sakor National Park
 Kirirom National Park
 Preah Monivong National Park (aka Bokor National Park)

 Phnom Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary

 Phnom Aural Wildlife Sanctuary
 Tatai Wildlife Sanctuary
 Peam Krasop Wildlife Sanctuary

 Samlaut Multiple Use Area

Thailand

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 Namtok Khlong Kaeo National Park
 Namtok Phlio National Park
 Khao Khitchakut National Park
 Khao Chamao-Khao Wong National Park
 Khao Soi Dao Wildlife Sanctuary
 Klong Kruewai Chalerm Prakiat Wildlife Sanctuary
 Khao Ang Rue Nai Wildlife Sanctuary.

Western Khmer, also known as Chanthaburi Khmer, is the dialect of

the Khmer language spoken by the Khmer people native to the Cardamom
Mountains on both sides of the border between western Cambodia and
eastern Central Thailand (Chanthaburi Province). Developing in an historically
isolated region, Western Khmer is the only dialect of modern Khmer to
conserve the Middle Khmer phonation contrast of breathy voice versus modal
voice that has been all but lost in the other dialects.

Beng Mealea, a hidden-away jungle temple in the earlier called Cardamon

Mountains invokes the earlier, less-discovered days of Angkor. Beng Mealea,
which lies about 40km east of the main group of Angkor temples, is
administered by the Apsara Authority, the governmental agency that oversees
Angkor. But it is not considered part of the Angkor complex, and a separate
admission ticket is needed – though the US$5 entry fee is a bargain compared
to the US$37 presently asked for a one-day entrance to Angkor.

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The hidden Beng Mealea invokes the earlier days of the now-popular Angkor Wat
(Credit: Dave Stamboulis)

It is also known as the "Temple of Lotus Pond"),or Boeng Mealea, is a temple

from the Angkor Wat period located 40 km east of the main group of temples
at Angkor, Cambodia, on the ancient royal highway to Preah Khan Kompong
Svay.

The ruins of Beng Mealea

Beng Mealea was built as a Hindu temple, but some carvings

depict Buddhist motifs. Its primary material is sandstone and it is largely

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unrestored, with trees and thick brush thriving amidst its towers and
courtyards and many of its stones lying in great heaps. For years it was
difficult to reach, but a road recently built to the temple complex of Koh
Ker passes Beng Mealea and more visitors are coming to the site, as it is 77 km
from Siem Reap by road.
The history of the temple is unknown and it can be dated only by its
architectural style, identical to Angkor Wat, so scholars assumed it was built
during the reign of king Suryavarman II in the early 12th century. Smaller in
size than Angkor Wat, the king's main monument, Beng Mealea nonetheless
ranks among the Khmer empire's larger temples: the gallery which forms the
outer enclosure of the temple is 181 m by 152 m. It was the center of a town,
surrounded by a moat 1025 m by 875 m large and 45 m wide.
Beng Mealea is oriented toward the east, but has entranceways from the other
three cardinal directions. The basic layout is three enclosing galleries around a
central sanctuary, collapsed at present. The enclosures are tied with "cruciform
cloisters", like Angkor Wat. Structures known as libraries lie to the right and
left of the avenue that leads in from the east. There is extensive carving of
scenes from Hindu mythology, including the Churning of the Sea of Milk
and Vishnu being borne by the bird god Garuda. Causeways have long
balustrades formed by bodies of the seven-headed Naga serpent.
It was built mostly of sandstone: Beng Mealea is only 7 km far from the
angkorian sandstone quarries of Phnom Kulen, as the crow flies. Presumably
sandstone blocks used for Angkor were transported along artificial water
canals and passed from here. [1] Despite of lack of information, the quality of
architecture and decorations has drawn the attention of French scholars just
from its discovery.
Preah Vihear - a Shiva temple on the border between Cambodia and
Thailand, is in the Dangrek Mountains, about 160 km north-east of Angkor.
The temple was built by the Khmers in the years 893-1200 at the edge of the
cliff and dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, located in the UNESCO World
Heritage List.

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Krâvanh Mountains, Khmer Chuŏr Phnum Krâvanh, formerly Cardamom Mountains,
French Chaîne Des Cardamomes, range of high hills in southwestern Cambodia that is
situated on a southeast-northwest axis and continues westward into the highland area around
Chanthaburi, Thailand. The Krâvanh Mountains extend (some discontinuously) for about 100
miles (160 km) southeast and east to the Dâmrei Mountains, reaching their highest point (5,949
feet [1,813 m]) near Poŭthĭsăt in Cambodia. Farther west, they reach 5,128 feet (1,563 m) in
Tumbol Hill, just east of the Thailand border. Dense tropical rain forest prevails on their
western slopes, which annually receive from 150 to 200 inches (3,800–5,000 mm) of rainfall;
only 40 to 60 inches (1,000 to 1,500 mm) fall on the wooded eastern slopes in the rain
shadow facing the interior Cambodian plain. On their slopes cardamoms and pepper have been
commercially grown.

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Krâvanh Mountains, southwestern Cambodia.-Paul Mason/U.S.Agency for
International Development

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