Cha-Am beach forest (ศูนย์ฝึกอบรมการป่าไม้ชะอำ)
GPS coordinates: 12°48’00.5″N 99°59’01.7″E (12.800138, 99.983806)
GPS coordinates of 2d entrance: 12°48’28.3″N 99°59’12.8″E (12.807866, 99.986881)
Entrance: Free. Open from 6:00 to 18:00.
You are advised not to visit Cha-Am beach forest between 11:00 to 14:00 due to the heat (it’s really very hot, I’ve been there).
Cha-Am beach forest is a small nature reserve with 2180-meter long nature trail. It’s definitely not a must-see sight of Cha-Am, but you’ll get a pleasure from walking there if you have at least some interest to plants and nature of Thailand.
The trail is located in the area between 2 entrances that I have marked on the map in the end of this article. Along nature trail there are some shields with information in English & Thai.
In Cha Am beach forest you will see butterfly lizards, deserted dogs (that hunt for these lizards), songbirds (they sing in the morning), singing cicadas (that do it in daytime), wild opuntias (huge cactuses that seem to create a forest of their own), natural thickets of mother-in-law’s tongues (that in my country grow only in pots) etc.
Visiting Cha-Am beach forest you’ll be kindly asked:
- To be quiet.
- Not to step off the trail.
- Not to feed, offend or disturb local animals & plants.
- Not to leave rubbish.
- Not to use fire (this area is dry and full of firewood).
- To take care of yourself (some plants & animals are poisonous and can cause allergy issues).
Important factors that created such beach forest are:
- The climate (constant winds & heat).
- The soil (that consists of sand, shells and rock outcrops).
- The altitude (is not higher than 30 m above mean sea level – plants adapt to salty vapour from the sea).
Map
Take the map of Cha-Am town & Phetchaburi province with you – just click the star and it will be saved in your Google account. Any locations in this region that I will add later will appear on your map.
