Khao Phanom Bencha

This a view of the mountain Khao Phanom Bencha from our front yard. Its the highest point in the providence at 1,305 meters. Today you can see the top but somedays clouds obscure it. I've been looking at it since we arrive about six weeks ago and just figured out what it was. It sits in the middle of a 50 square mile National Park of the same name and is one of the biggest attractions of the area. There are several beautiful waterfalls in the park and all sorts of wildlife, so naturally we are planning on visiting it soon, like Sunday for my birthday. As for the wildlife, I had no idea some of the animals that are found there where so close to us. We are only about 10 kilometers away! Below is a write-up I found in the Lonely Planet's guidebook on Thailand about the park. Imagine ... tigers, leopards and bears, oh my!

Clouded leopards, black panthers, tigers, Asiatic black bears, barking deer, serow, Malayan tapirs, leaf monkeys, gibbons and various tropical birds – including the helmeted hornbill, argus pheasant and extremely rare Gurney’s pitta – make their home here.