Tuesday 16 January 2018
Hiking to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

With the weather expected to get warmer over the next few days, I thought today would be a good day to make a hike up the mountain to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep. A week ago I hiked up to Wat Phalad with my Australian friend Tom. Wat Phalad is a little less than half-way up the mountain to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep. We stopped at Wat Phalad and returned down the mountain and back to the city because Tom had an appointment later in the afternoon.

Doi Suthep Legend

There is a legendary story to the temple at the top of the mountain. In the mid-1300s, a monk in the Sukhothai kingdom named Sumanathera had a dream in which he was to go to Pang Cha and look for a relic.  He went there and found a bone, which it has been said that many claimed to be Gautama Buddha’s shoulder bone. And the legend says that the relic displayed magical powers: it glowed, it was able to vanish, it could move, and it could replicate itself. Sumanathera took the relic to King Dhammaraja, the ruler of Sukhothai. However, when presented to King Dhammaraja, the relic displayed no abnormal characteristics, and the king, doubtful of its authenticity, told Sumanathera to keep the replic.

In 1368, King Nu Naone of Lanna heard of the relic and sent word to Sumanathera to bring him the relic. When presented, the relic showed some of the magical powers, and the king ordered a chedi built at Wat Suan Dok, about 1 kilometer west of the Chiang Mai city wall to house the relic. Suan Dok translates to “flower garden” and at the time, this area to the west of the Chiang Mai city wall was the king’s flower gardens. When the chedi was completed and the relic was to be placed inside, it broke into two pieces. The smaller piece was placed into the chedi at Wat Suan Dok. The larger piece was placed on the back of a royal elephant which was released into the jungle. The elephant (followed by the king and his army on horseback) climbed up the mountain, now known as Doi Suthep, and near the top, stopped, trumpeted three times, and died. King Nu Naone ordered the construction of a temple and a chedi into which to inter the relic.

Thousands of tourists foreign and Thai visit this temple now known as Wat Phra That Doi Suthep every day. Wat Phra That Doi suthep is a sacred temple to the Thai people and is a Royal Temple of the Second Class. Of the thousands of tourists that travel up the mountain to see Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, only a very few visit Wat Suan Dok, even though it is part of the story.

Hiking up the mountain

I got transportation to Chiang Mai University, an easy landmark, and only about 2 or 2.5 kilometers from the trail head. Most of the taxi, tuk-tuk, or red truck drivers do not know the location of the trail head, but everyone knows where Chiang Mai University is. After walking uphill for a little while, I was at the trail head and soon on the familiar path to Wat Phalad and Wat Phra That Doi Suthep.

The beginning part of the trail to Wat Phalad

Deeper in the jungle on the way up to Wat Phalad

Just after passing Wat Phalad (a few pictures shown in this blog several days ago), the trail gets steeper, and I passed this waterfall. Because of recent rains, there is much water flowing down the mountain, and the sound is loud at times.

One of the waterfalls just past Wat Phalad

After the waterfall, there is a very steep section of the trail to get up to the road, steeper than climbing stairs. The road was resurfaced since last year, and some of the marks indicating where the trail re-starts across the road have not been replaced, but I found the entrance, and headed up into the jungle for the second part of the climb.

Into the jungle, starting the long, steep, climb to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

And the path keeps going, up, up, up. It took me about 40 minutes to get from the trail head to Wat Phalad. It takes a little over an hour to get from Wat Phalad to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep; almost twice as long, and slower due to the increased steepness.

Fairly dense jungle, but the trail is well-trodden and easy to see.

At times, the trail is steep, like climbing stairs. I do stop and rest, the heat and humidity are taxing, and this is not a race.

A steep section of the path, not so obvious how steep in the picture.

And finally, this last section that is VERY steep just before reaching the road.

The last 40 meters before the road, very, very steep.

I made it, rested, and got some water at one of many vendors along the last stretch of the road (between the parking lots and the temple entrance).

Wat Phra That Dio Suthep

One of the significant landmarks of the temple are the 307 or 309 steps up the “naga stairway” (the number of steps is a bit of a challenge to get right – I have counted several times and gotten 307 or 309, but it is easy to lose count. Various sites on the internet also report either 307 or 309 steps). Here is the naga head on one side at the base of the stairway:

And here is a view looking up to the actual temple – no shortage of tourists today … this is the “high season” for tourism.

Once at the top, I walk around the outer perimeter of the main part of the temple. I always like this smaller viharn (worship hall) with the dancing thewada on the doors. It always makes me smile.

Small viharm with the dancing thewada on the doors.

And here is a fairly recent addition, a large standing Buddha statue. I think it is stone, but it seems to be made to look like wood. It is quite large, more than 5 meters (16 feet), maybe even taller.

Tall standing Buddha statue at Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

Finally, I go up the stairs and inside the main temple area and the large gold chedi is large and bright in the sun:

Main chedi at Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

All around the main chedi are smaller Buddha statues, many of which i have displayed on previous blogs from previous visits to Chiang Mai. Here is a small sample:

Smaller Buddha statues around the main chedi at Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

After a short rest, I headed down the mountain. One must be careful going down as it can be slippery and footing unstable at times, but it is easier going down than up. And it is still a sweaty hike, although not as much as going up.

Heading down the mountain in the jungle.

And finally I get to the waterfalls at Wat Phalad:

I continued down the mountain path to the trail head, then walked down the road to Chiang Mai University and flagged down a red truck for a ride into the old city. By the time I returned to See You Soon and a shower, I had been gone for over five hours. A lot of walking, hiking, and climbing, but a beautiful day in the jungle, and another wonderful day in Chiang Mai.

Next: A return visit to Wat Srisupan