Rent a Car and Drive from Kanchanaburi to Three Pagoda Pass Prepared by Harold Stephens
Travel Correspondent for Thai Airways International
For one reason or another, after living in Thailand for more than a quarter of a century, I had never been to Three Pagoda Pass. One reason, I believe, was the difficulty of getting there. I remember the story Jim Thompson, the Thai Silk King who disappeared in the jungle, had to tell. It had taken him three days of arduous travel by Jeep to get from Kanchanaburi to the Pass.
As for Kanchanaburi, I had been there many times. It’s only a two-hour drive from Bangkok and it’s a great place to take visiting friends who want to see Thailand and learn a bit of Thai history. But Three Pagoda Pass, that mysterious road to the north, was something else. That changed when a friend came to Bangkok and wanted to see Kanchanaburi and, since we were renting a car, I suggested we make the drive to Three Pagoda Pass. He agreed. We hired a Budget car and, at the office in Bangkok, I insisted we get a four-wheel drive vehicle for we had no idea what was ahead. We had some surprises awaiting us.
It’s an easy drive to Kanchanaburi. We performed the ritual of marching across the Bridge over the River Kwai, while whistling Colonel Bogey’s March. We also did a quick tour of the war cemetery, where 7000 prisoners of war who died working on the Death Railway are buried, and paid a short visit to the Museum, and continued on north.
Before this trip, I thought the rail line from the River Kwai Bridge continued westward into Burma directly from Kanchanaburi. I was soon to learn that the 230 kms of track that the Allied prisoners laid ran northward to Three Pagoda Pass. The impressive mountain range, through which the Imperial Japanese army attempted to build the railway, covers more than half of the province and today serves as home to several national parks, forestry and wildlife sanctuaries as well as the headwaters of the Kwai Noi (small Kwai) and the Kwai Yai (large Kwai) rivers.
The drive has to be one of the most beautiful in all Thailand. Only a decade or two ago the road was deeply rutted and heavily pot-holed. Today it’s hard surfaced and well maintained. The rugged hilly terrain is a maze of brooks and streams cascading down the hillsides and forming picturesque waterfalls. The hillsides are laced with large deep caves, some of which were once the homes of early man.
Although there are regularly scheduled tours that make the run daily to Three Pagoda Pass, behind the driver’s wheel is the best way to get there. We had the choice of stopping wherever we wished and I don’t think there is another stretch of highway in Thailand with so many signs pointing to a myriad of sites. Every few kilometers there are signs that point to waterfalls and caves. There would be no room on any map to put them all down. Then there are notices about trekking in national parks, fishing, rafting, canoeing and rapids shooting along the rivulets and among the ravines that are all accessible by car. Immediately the motorist realizes three days for the journey is not enough.
Ban Keo village is one example. It’s 35 kms north of Kanchanaburi. As I mentioned, the hillsides abound with large deep caves, some of which were once the homes of Neolithic man and whose remains were accidentally discovered by Dutch prisoners of war working on the death railway. The remains are now on display at the Ban Kao National Museum, near to the original burial site.
What I didn’t expect to find in this far western corner of Thailand were Khmer temples. They are the Prasat Muang Singh Temples, a western outpost of the Khmer Empire. A trip to Kanchanaburi, if only to visit Muang Singh, would be well worth the effort. It’s an interesting story and one that I will save for later.
Next stop after Muang Sing is “Hell Fire Pass.” The story of the construction of the "Death Railway" linking Thailand with Myanmar comes into focus here, the location of a last desperate rush by the Japanese to complete their line on schedule. More than 1000 prisoners of war worked day and night cutting through solid rock. Some 400 died in the completion of the 600-meter Hell Fire section alone and by mid-August 1943 there were only 100 survivors. The allied prisoners of war were those captured after the fall of Singapore and Malaysia (then Malaya) and force-marched to Kanchanaburi. The Memorial at Hell Fire was dedicated on 26 April 1987.
In memory of
Sir Edward 'Weary' Dunlop
AC CMG OBE KSTJ MS FRCS FRACS DSC
1907 - 1993
Patron of the Association and Surgeon of the Jungle
Whose ashes were scattered in this area
On 25th April 1994
'Weary' Dunlop was a hero to those who came into his care while they were slaving on the railway. He passed away in July 1993 and, in accordance with his wishes, his ashes were interred in Hellfire Pass at the ANZAC Day Dawn Service on 25 April 1994. During the Service his sons unveiled a plaque to mark the occasion. When we drove away from Hell Fire Pass, the message Dunlop left kept running through our minds: "When you go home, tell them of us and say, We gave our tomorrow, for your today." How right he was. The drive north to Three Pagoda today is all beauty, a far cry from the hell that it was 60 years ago.
After the town of Thong Pha Phum we came to the most beautiful part of the drive. Suddenly looming ahead through deep foliage appeared a body of water and, as we drove along, it grew in size until it encompassed the entire view. It was Khao Laem Lake, one of the largest in Thailand. The view from any point is dramatic. The lake is filled with picturesque floating grass houses built on rafts. Here the fishermen and their families live. The lake is famous for its sports fishing, including the rare Giant Snakeheads. Again, that’s another story for another time.
The road winds and wends through deep hills and arrives at Sangkhlaburi, the last town before Three Pagoda Pass. If you haven’t already planned it, here in Sangkhlaburi you can arrange overnight raft trips and stays aboard one of the floating houses on the lake.
We finally reached Three Pagoda Pass. In Thai it’s called Chedi Sam Ong, and that’s exactly what they are, Thai temples and not pagodas. The name might be misleading but the site, with the mountains rising up in all quarters, is quite impressive. What we didn’t know until we arrived is that tourists are allowed to cross the border for day trips into Myanmar. However, it is not an entry point into Myanmar.
There’s a plaque near the Three Pagodas that gives the engraved story of the building of the railroad that includes a map and the number of the causalities of those who built the railroad and the countries they were from. What came as another surprise was that the railroad had been completed and was in service right up to Three Pagoda Pass. It was dismantled after the war.
The history of Three Pagoda Pass is more than the construction of the Death Railway. The Burmese attempted to invade Siam centuries ago through the pass, and the Siamese fought many gallant battles defending their country on the same soil.
As we drove back to Kanchanaburi, there was little conversation. We were too filled with our own private thoughts. QUESTIONS & ANSWERSQ. Dear Mr. Stephens. I hear that this is the rainy season and not a good time to visit Thailand. Can you comment on that? Jenny, Auckland
A. Dear Jenny. Actually, in Bangkok it is not the rainy season. But remember, Thailand is in the monsoon belt, and there are two monsoons—the northeast and the southwest. They do not blow at the same time. Thus, you can escape the monsoon by traveling to another area. Most people think of the monsoon as rain. It is not rain. It is a wind. Generally, however, the winds bring the rains, but no always. ––HS
Harold Stephens
Bangkok
E-mail: ROH Weekly Travel (booking@inet.co.th)
Note: The article is the personal view of the writer and does not necessarily reflect the view of Thai Airways International Public Company Limited. | 
