General Information
The park is situated on the Andaman sea coast in Satun and Trang provinces. It consists of an area of coastline and over 30 islands. The park has many diverse habitats including; open water, coral fringed islands, sandy beaches, forest covered islands to sheer rocky islands which rise steeply out of the sea. There are also a few patches of mangrove forest, beach forest and tropical forest. The islands within the park are small the largest being Khao Yai Island which is about 4.7 sq.km in area. The sea area of the park includes many important fishing grounds for this reason many of the islands act as temporary refuges for fishing boats during monsoon storms.
The park was established by royal decree on the 31st December 1984. The park covers a total area of 494.38 km2, of which 468.38 sq.km or 94.74% is open water. Mu Ko Phetra is the third protected area in Satun province and is the 14th Marine park in
Thailand.
Topography
The topography of the park is dominated by Limestone rocks which were deposited in a shallow sea around 470 million years ago, during the Ordovician period. This rock unit was laid down over a very long period of time and as a result in places it is over 2,750m thick. Limestone rock is impermeable but is soluble in water. Thus over a long period of time water seepage through natural fissures results in the fissures enlarging to form a variety of structures and eventually caves. This process results in some fantastic landforms being observed at Phetra National
Park.
Climate
Mu Ko Phetra National Park is located in the Tropic Zone with rather constant temperature and rainfall all year round. The rainy season, therefore, may seem quite lengthy but the months with most heavy rainfall are May through October. From the end of November until March, the rainfall will start to decrease, shifting into a short period of Summer from March to April which is also the period of transition for the Monsoon season (from Northeast Monsoon to Southwest Monsoon). As for the transition from the Southwest Monsoon to the Northeast Monsoon in October, although such transition can cause some variation in climate, no major differences can be
detected.
Flora and Fauna
Types of vegetation on the Mu Ko Phetra National Park can be divided into 4 categories
Rain Forest scatters around the islands. Common vegetations found are Hopea ferrea , Ironwood and Kradon. Grounds covering plants found are fern, rattan, moss and ginger/galangal species
Open Forest found along the beach and common vegetations are Casuarina equisetifolia , Calophyllum inophyllum, Hibiscus tiliaceus , Thespesia populneoides, Terminolia catappa, Dialium cochinchinense and Barringtonia asiatica. Grounds covering plants found are Pandanus odoratissimus.
Mangrove Forest found in the muddy area by the sea and mouth of the canal. Common vegetations are Rhizophora mucronata (Red Mangroves) , Rhizophora apiculata, Brownlowia peltata , Xylocarpus moluccensis , Xylocarpus granatum, Bruguiera parciflora and Bruguiera cylindrica.
Aquatic life such as seaweeds and planktons can also be found.
Wildlife
Prominent birds found are Haliacetus leucogaster, Haliastur indus (Brahminy kite) and Spilornis cheela (Crested).
Common mammals in the area are Nycticebus coucang, Presbytis Cristata (Silvered langur), Trangulus javanicus, Sus Scrofa (wild pig) and bats.
Reptiles found are Python reticulatus (Regal Python) and Varanus nebulosus (Indian Monitor) and etc.
Marine Life, The waters around the park are clear and thus support an abundant marine fauna. Most of the islands have coral reefs those found around the outer islands being especially diverse. Coral types commonly seen include Brain coral, Staghorn coral, Soft coral, Plate coral and Mushroom coral. The sea is also rich in economic marine species, and many fish, crabs, lobster and squid are caught from the waters surrounding the
park.
Lidi island
The total area of Lidi Island is 2 sq.km with cliffs and caves which are habitats for swallows. The area is suitable for swimming and is also quiet and tranquilizing. Tent area is also available on this island and is also the location for Ranger Station 2
(Ko Lidi).
Khao Yai Island
Khao Yai Island is essentially a sculptural work of nature, similar to rock castle which has a natural bridge protruding into the sea, whereby, during the low tide, boats can be rowed through. There is also a bay on this island called Kam Pu Bay with small falls and creeks. Kam Pu Bay is rather calm with no waves all year round and during the lowest tide, coral reefs and marine life will be very visible along the coastline. Moreover, sea turtles often come ashore and lay their eggs around Kam Pu Bay as
well.
Bulon archipelago
Bu Lon archipelago is situated 22kms from Pak Bara port on the coast of Satun province. The archipelago has many beautiful sandy beaches and clear water, this makes it a popular tourist spot, very good for snorkling. The water is very clear making the viewing of corals easy
Ra Wai Beach
This is the most beautiful beach on the mainland of Satun province. The beach is located near Khon Klan village in Tung Wa district. It is about 26km from Tung Wa town on the road to Langu, with the turn off for the beach at Wangtong village.
The beach is of clean white sand and stretches for about 3.5 kms. Being so long it can be very peaceful here and it is therefore the ideal spot for a quiet picnic. To escape from the heat you can shelter under the shade provided by Casuarina trees which extend for the whole length of the
beach.
Phetra Island
This island is the main island of a group and is situated in Trang province, almost 40 kms north of park headquaters. These islands can be reached by boat from Palian district, which is about 20kms away. The islands vary in size, with some being little more than rocks rising steeply out of the sea.
Phetra island is the biggest with the summit reaching 380m, this island is said to look like a boat when observed from the coast. The islands have good potential for visitors with coral reefs and small sandy beaches, but remain undisturbed due to their remoteness. Some of the islands have caves which contain nests of the edible nest
swiftlet.
Two trekking routes:
Ao Lam Phu- Wa Hin Observation Point route. Total distance of 400 meters
Ao Lam Phu- Ao Ma Phrao route. Total distance of 600 meters
Two Nature Trails routes:
Pha Kluai Mai Nature Trail 570 meters from the National Park Headquarters to Laem Hin Khon Observation
point.
Khao To Ngai Nature Trail 200 meters from the National Park Headquarters to Khao To Ngai Ranger Station .
Three shallow under water:
Bulon Mai Phai under water (22 kilometres) Ko Bu Lon Mai Phai
Hin Khao under water (26 kilometres) Ko Luk Hin
Ko Phetra (29 kilometres) Ko Phetra
Nun Bay
3km from Pak Bara port. It is located in a small bay which is locally called Nun Bay, the mouth of the bay is about 800m across. Located at the headquaters is a visitors centre, accomodation, rest houses, toilets, conference room, restaurant and an attractive boardwalk, which extends nearly to the mouth of the bay. A walk to the end of the boardwalk gives pictureesque views back across the bay towards the
headquaters.
Contact Address
Mu Ko Phetra National Park
298, Mu 4, Ban Talo Sai, Paknam Sub-district, Amphur Langu Satun Thailand 91110
Tel. 0 7478 3074, 0 7478 3504 Fax 0 7478 3504
How to go?
By Car
From Bangkok, take Highway No. 4 past Prachuap Khiri Khan and Chumphon then take Highway No. 41 to Nakhon Si Thammarat and Phatthalung. From Phatthalung, drive on to Rattaphum District, Songkhla then take Highway No. 4 and turn right to Highway No. 406. It is 973 kilometres from
Bangkok.
By Airplane
There is no direct flight to Satun. The trip by air can be made via Hat Yai Airport then taking a taxi or public bus to Satun for 97
kilometres.
By Train
Visitors can take a Bangkok-Ya La or Bangkok-Hat Yai train and get off at the Hat Yai Train Station, then take a taxi from Ratthakan Post Office to Satun. It is 97 kilometres from Hat Yai to Satun. Vans and public buses are also available. Transportation from Hat Yai Train Station is operating daily, departing every hour starting from 6:00 a.m. 4:00 p.m. Normal buses (Hat Yai PakbaraSatun route) from Hat Yai Clock Tower are also operating 3 times daily starting from 7:00 a.m. 3:00
p.m.
By Bus
The distance from Bangkok to Satun is 980 kilometres. The cost for standard bus is 450 Baht and 580 Baht for air-conditioned bus.
The distance from Satun to Phetra Islands National Park is 60 kilometres. The cost for standard bus is 33 Baht and 50 Baht for
taxis.