Doi Inthanon
Encyclopedia
Doi Inthanon is the highest mountain
in Thailand
. It is located in Mae Chaem District. The mountain was also known in the past as Doi Luang (meaning big mountain) or Doi Ang Ka, meaning the crow's pond top. Near the mountain's base was a pond where many crows gathered. The name Doi Inthanon was given in honour of the king Inthawichayanon
, one of the last kings of Chiang Mai
, who was concerned about the forests in the north and tried to preserve them. He ordered that after his death his remains shall be placed at Doi Luang, which was then renamed.
watershed. Other high peaks of the Loi Lar Mountain Range are Doi Luang Chiang Dao (2,175 m), Doi Pui (1,685 m), and Doi Suthep
(1,601 m).
In 1954, the forests around Doi Inthanon were preserved, creating Doi Inthanon National Park
, as one of the original 14 National parks of Thailand. It covers 482.40 km². The park spreads from the lowlands at 800 m altitude up to the peak in 2565 m, thus covering many climatic and ecological different parts, thus with a total of 362 it has the second highest number of bird species of any national park in Thailand.
On the lower slope of Doi Inthanon, near the Karen
hill tribe village Ban Sop Had, are the Wachirathan waterfalls , where the Wachirathan (lit. "Diamond Creek") tumbles over a granite escarpment
.
. These temples were built to honor the 60th birthday of the King and Queen in 1987 and 1992 respectively.
batholith
in a north-south oriented mountain range. The second-highest peak of this range is Doi Hua Mod Luang at 2,340 m.
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. It is located in Mae Chaem District. The mountain was also known in the past as Doi Luang (meaning big mountain) or Doi Ang Ka, meaning the crow's pond top. Near the mountain's base was a pond where many crows gathered. The name Doi Inthanon was given in honour of the king Inthawichayanon
Inthawichayanon
Phra Chao Inthawichayanon was King of Chiang Mai and Ruler of Lannathai from 1870 until his death in 1897. His daughter, Princess Dara Rasmi of Chiang Mai become King Rama V's Princess Consort...
, one of the last kings of Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai sometimes written as "Chiengmai" or "Chiangmai", is the largest and most culturally significant city in northern Thailand. It is the capital of Chiang Mai Province , a former capital of the Kingdom of Lanna and was the tributary Kingdom of Chiang Mai from 1774 until 1939. It is...
, who was concerned about the forests in the north and tried to preserve them. He ordered that after his death his remains shall be placed at Doi Luang, which was then renamed.
Geography
Doi Inthanon is part of a mountain range separating Burma from Thailand also known as Loi Lar Mountain Range or Daen Lao Range. This range, the westernmost of the Shan Highland system, separates the Salween watershed from the MekongMekong
The Mekong is a river that runs through China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. It is the world's 10th-longest river and the 7th-longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annually....
watershed. Other high peaks of the Loi Lar Mountain Range are Doi Luang Chiang Dao (2,175 m), Doi Pui (1,685 m), and Doi Suthep
Doi Suthep
Doi Suthep , is a mountain located in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand.-Description: Doi Suthep is one of the twin peaks of a granite mountain located west of Chiang Mai, the other peak is known as Doi Pui and is slightly taller .Doi Suthep is located 15 km away from Chiang Mai city centre.Most...
(1,601 m).
In 1954, the forests around Doi Inthanon were preserved, creating Doi Inthanon National Park
Doi Inthanon National Park
Doi Inthanon National Park is located in Mae Chaem District, Chiang Mai Province, northern Thailand. It includes Doi Inthanon, the country's highest mountain. Established in 1972, is in size.-Geography:...
, as one of the original 14 National parks of Thailand. It covers 482.40 km². The park spreads from the lowlands at 800 m altitude up to the peak in 2565 m, thus covering many climatic and ecological different parts, thus with a total of 362 it has the second highest number of bird species of any national park in Thailand.
On the lower slope of Doi Inthanon, near the Karen
Karen people
The Karen or Kayin people , are a Sino-Tibetan language speaking ethnic group which resides primarily in southern and southeastern Burma . The Karen make up approximately 7 percent of the total Burmese population of approximately 50 million people...
hill tribe village Ban Sop Had, are the Wachirathan waterfalls , where the Wachirathan (lit. "Diamond Creek") tumbles over a granite escarpment
Escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that occurs from erosion or faulting and separates two relatively level areas of differing elevations.-Description and variants:...
.
Napamaytanidol Chedi
On the main road to the summit of Doi Inthanon stand the two Napamaytanidol ChediStupa
A stupa is a mound-like structure containing Buddhist relics, typically the remains of Buddha, used by Buddhists as a place of worship....
. These temples were built to honor the 60th birthday of the King and Queen in 1987 and 1992 respectively.
Geology
Geologically the mountain is a graniteGranite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
batholith
Batholith
A batholith is a large emplacement of igneous intrusive rock that forms from cooled magma deep in the Earth's crust...
in a north-south oriented mountain range. The second-highest peak of this range is Doi Hua Mod Luang at 2,340 m.