Hidden Earth 2025

The Pig Palace and Temple Caves of Southern Thailand

45 minute Lecture|Andy Goddard

Abstract

Join Shepton Mallett Caving Club on a 3,000km reconnaissance journey down the southern peninsular of Thailand, surveying over six kilometres of often highly adorned Buddhist temple caves. The journey will culminate in the first recorded exploration by western cavers of 'Pig Palace Cave', an ancient phreatic cave with a large active river.

The presentation will also a provide an update on recent discoveries in northern Thailand in 2024, typical cave fauna encountered in Thai caves, and a previously unrecorded species of cave gecko.