Calling this area remote is not only stating the obvious — it’s an understatement.
The temple collects alms from tiny villages 5–10 kilometers away, crossing mountains and paddy fields in the process. At a minimum, you are about 8 kilometers and 20 minutes from the highway (and as far as I can tell, the only named / marked road around). It’s about here where you might begin to see the need to keep horses beyond mere companionship.
And they love their horses. There’s several other statues around as well.
One of several horses around the area — coming in the afternoon with few monks around, they seemed just fine and relatively in-shape. According to some other websites, the monks ride out to collect alms in the morning
Something you don’t expect to see at a Buddhist temple — “Building Character Through Sports” goes the slogan. Like many things in Thailand, there’s a story (legend?) not told on-site. His name was Samerchai — also called Phra Kru Ba Neua Chai. Born to farmers in Chiang Rai, Samerchai went to Ramkhamhaeng University and joined the Army. He became a storied fighter, only losing three fights in 15 years, but abruptly turned his back on his fighting career. He escaped to the caves of Mae Sai in northern Thailand, sat in meditation and seeking enlightenment. He eventually had a vision — go to the Golden Horse Shrine.
After weeks of travel, he reached the long-abandoned shrine, which was rumored to be haunted. After fighting off a drug-trading kingpin and gaining some following monks courtesy of the Army, he was given a donation of a horse from a lottery winner. Suddenly, horses bound for slaughter were donated to Samerchai to help him guard the area from the drug kingpin. Samerchai also started recruiting orphans whose parents were killed by the kingpin, teaching them how to ride horses and defend themselves. (Thanks to the Chiang Rai Times for the story.)
The condition of the temple and the boxing ring, however, makes me wonder how old this story is. (The Chiang Rai Times story dates from December 2013, but the same text appears in 2011 and as a quote from 2004 on another site). The monks still ride (presumably), and the area is otherwise quite quiet. It will take some time to reach from the Golden Triangle or Chiang Rai, so think of it as getting way off the beaten path.
Name: Wat Tham Pa Are Cha Tong, also spelled Wat Tham Pa Archa Thong (วัดถ้ำป่าอาชาทอง — AKA the horse temple)
Address: Down an unnamed road in Tambon Sri Amphoe Mae Chan (also spelled Kham), Chang Wat Chiang Rai 57240 (GPS: 20.226956,99.806884)
Directions: Your best bet will be to click the GPS link above and use Google Maps to find your way. If that’s impossible, this will be more difficult to reach. Start by heading south from Mae Sai (closer) or north from Chiang Rai (farther) — the first place to reach is the place to turn off the highway (GPS: 20.237446,99.855958). Head west (right from Mae Sai, left from Chiang Rai), bear right when this road joins another, and keep going. As the road bends to the left, bear right — you’ll see an old phone booth and bus stop here as well. The road bends to the left, then looks it ends in a T. Head left. Stay on this for awhile, then be looking for a left turn immediately after a yellow ‘left turn’ road sign and a yellow ‘Y’ road sign (you might see a faded blue sign at the left turn itself). The road itself begins to narrow, and you might see the large stacks of hay that look like houses. Eventually, you’ll see a side road that cuts back to the right — take this right instead of bearing left. This road then runs along the Luang river, before crossing the Mae Kham. Climb up the hills and you’ll come across the temple along the road. From where you exited the highway, expect to spend about 20 minutes and 8 kilometers getting to the temple.
Hours: None posted
Admission: none
Phone: none
Website: www.prakeema.com (Thai only)
