and from there received the name that it
bears today. Given by His Majesty King
Bhumibol Adulyadej on the opening day
of his sixtieth birthday, Ratchaprapha
means “the light of the kingdom” in Thai
and within it is contained the beauty
that it can boast of, something one sees
immediately upon arrival.
The curious anecdote of this small
enclosed paradise is in the fact that the
calmness and stillness of its crystalline
waters was duly aided by a man made
construct. Today it is known as the
Ratchaprapha Dam and it falls merely
four metres short of a hundred imposing
metres in length. The dam was built to
strategically block the Klong Saeng River,
which weaves its way across the area. It
was done so in foresight by the Electricity
Generating Authority of Thailand of
Khao Sok holding the largest watershed
in Thailand. This was done in 1982 and
since then, the area has transformed itself
into what is known today as the Cheow
Lan Lake. Visitors to the area have since
then grown in number, but it is not the
type of tourism one usually associates
Thailand with. Far are the beac