Comprehensive Guide Collection for Phu Kradueng National Park in Loei Province

Thailand's second national park, a cool-climate sandstone mesa with pine savanna and rich biodiversity

Phu Kradueng National Park

Phu Kradueng National Park represents one of Thailand's most distinctive protected mountain landscapes, offering a cool-climate experience that contrasts sharply with the country's tropical lowland environments. The park's centerpiece is Phu Kradueng mountain, a towering sandstone mesa composed of Jurassic and Cretaceous geological formations that rises abruptly from the surrounding valleys of Loei Province in the country's northeast. The summit plateau, approximately 60 square kilometers in size, forms a roughly square area with average elevation around 1,250 meters, sloping gently northward while the western, southern, and eastern edges are defined by dramatic abrupt sandstone cliffs. The mountain reaches its highest point at Khok Moei, standing at 1,316 meters above sea level. The park's establishment in 1962 as Thailand's second national park reflects its early recognition as a region of exceptional natural value. The name Phu Kradueng derives from the Thai-Isan word "phu" meaning mountain, combined with "kradueng" or "krading" in the local dialect, which translates to "large bell" referencing a legend about townspeople hearing the sound of a great bell during a Buddhist holiday, which they believed to be the bell of the deity Indra. The park occupies 217,576 rai, equivalent to approximately 348 square kilometers, and is administered by the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation.