Phnom Kulen
More of a flat-topped, sandstone plateau than mountain, Phnom Kulen lies approximately 50 kilometres north of Siem Reap Town, stretching northwest-southeast for a distance of some 30 kilometres. To the north a narrow valley, today filled by highway 66/67 (depending upon which map you refer to), separates the plateau from Kbal Spean its sister mountain while the district town of Svay Leu lies at it’s southeastern foot.
Much of the plateau is today included in so-called Phnom Kulen National Park which also features waterfalls, historic temples, the famous River of 1000 Lingas and last but not least the ruins of an entire ancient city. (We say so-called, as the ‘park’ was formerly the personal domain of a Khmer general with a $20 entrance fee for foreign guests going into his pocket rather than the Ministry of Environment or Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries as is usually the case. Apparently he now only retains partial control with additional management provided by the Ministry of Culture and the Apsara Authority.)
Phnom Kulen on the horizon Much of the northwestern part of the plateau retains extensive forest cover which includes the wild lychee trees, (kulen), which give the site its name, while the southeastern section includes villages and farmland. (Wild lychee fruit are small and dark purple in colour with a delightful, tangy, sweet and sour taste.) Historically, the mountain was called Mahedraparvarta, ‘Mountain of the Great Indra’, and was the site of King Jayavarman II’s late 8th, early 9th century, capital but more on that later.
In more recent times Phnom Kulen was notorious as one of the last strongholds of the Khmer Rouge with sheer-sided escarpments forming a natural and impenetrable fortress. Unable to dislodge them, the Cambodian government could only offer an amnesty during the 90s and so today many villagers on Kulen are ex Khmer Rouge fighters and their families. Needless to say much of the plateau was heavily mined and remained off limits even after the fighting ceased. While many mines and unexploded ordinance remain in remoter areas the key tourist sites have been cleared and the site has become a very popular weekend picnic spot for locals while an increasing number of foreign visitors are now making their way up the mountain. Where once a single lane dirt track provided the only vehicle access, a new sealed road now traverses the plateau from Svay Leu Town at its eastern foot. (Great for locals but it did regrettably involve clearing a lot of old growth forest.)
Formerly ubiquitous, plenty of warning mines signs still remain Note that, despite many areas being cleared, a lot of mines remain up there so even in the more frequented parts, do not under any circumstances wander off the tracks. In areas marked as ‘cleared by..’, no one can guarantee that every single mine was located while, unbelievably, we have heard of idiots thinking that the warning signs make good souvenirs to take home!
We’ll run through Kulen’s varied features and sites one-by-one and it’s then up to you to decided if it’s worth the trip and if so how long to allow.
Just a few of the lingas lining the bed of Kulen’s Russei River The River of a Thousand Lingas
In our opinion, this is one of the mountain’s most impressive sites. We would say unique although there are two of them, one on Kulen and a second on the adjacent Kbal Spean. The Kbal Spean River and Kulen’s Russei River form the two main headwaters of the Siem Reap River which subsequently flows through Angkor Thom, supplying many of the moats and reservoirs before versing into the Tonle Sap Lake. Passing water, or indeed any liquid, over a linga, (the phallic symbol of the god Shiva), purifies it so by filling the sandstone riverbeds with carved lingas the temples and barays of Angkor had an unlimited supply of sacred water.
Presumably carved over a series of dry seasons, the two respective river beds are now covered from bank to bank with, perhaps not literally a thousand, but certainly hundreds of small linga carvings. With the stone river bed offering clear, shallow water, this makes for a very impressive sight. (Larger boulders feature more complex carvings of Vishnu, Brahma and so-on.) Note, in order to conserve the ancient carvings – they are thought to have been created during the early 11th century reign of Udayadityavarman I – the river itself is now off-limits although that doesn’t seem to stop dozens of Khmer kids at weekends.
This was 20 years ago and is now, sensibly, prohibited Kbal Spean
We’d better include the other River of a Thousand Lingas at this point and while it is a separate mountain to Phnom Kulen, it is adjacent and often combined in one visit. Slightly different style carvings suggest a slightly different date although once again it consists of a carved river bed with more elaborate reliefs on larger, adjacent boulders. Although a protected site, Kbal Spean is not part of the National Park and falling under the management of the Apsara Authority, is considered part of the Angkor Historical Park and thus an Angkor pass is required. A short walk from the carpark area to river is involved.
While the river is arguably more impressive than that of its neighbour, Kbal Spean overall lacks the range of additional attractions of Kulen so being less popular with picnicking locals is a good choice if your main goal is the lingas and your intended visit falls on a weekend.
Looking across the valley from Kulen to Kbal Spean The waterfall and Prasat Krol Romeas
There are several smaller falls and cascades scattered across the mountain but the largest is conveniently located a short walk from the River. This walk does involve passing a host of souvenir stalls and cafes from where you can descend to the foot of the falls, (this used to be a very rickety ladder but we believe it’s since been upgraded), or turn right to reach the top of the waterfall. Note, before toppling over the low cliff, the river actually passes through an Angkor-period temple, the walls of which enclose some of the food and drink stalls. The main structures of the sanctuary, Prasat Krol Romeas, lie on the far bank. The temple is thought to date to the late 12th century but is today in poor condition and lacks decorative elements.
The, as far as we know, unnamed waterfall It is very pretty but can get seriously crowded on a hot weekend as well as seriously grubby by Monday morning before the cleaning staff have arrived.
Preah Ang Thom
Also a short walk from the main Thousand Lingas parking area, this active Buddhist temple squeezed amid a collection of large sandstone boulders is home to both a sacred spring and a prestigious, 16th century, reclining Buddha figure. The upper half of one of these said boulders was carved into the form of what is said to be Cambodia’s largest reclining Buddha. While the vast majority of such frequently seen figures have Buddha reclining on his left side, Preah Ang Thom sees him on his right. This apparent anomaly interestingly thus likely represents a dying, rather than simply sleeping Buddha.
Reclining Buddha at Wat Preah Ang Thom The Pilgrim’s Trail and Wat Preah Ang Choub
The original access to the mountain’s summit was by way of a laterite staircase situated around the central point of its southwestern face. The stairs still exist but are in very poor condition so a new set of concrete and stone steps, located slightly south of the old staircase, is now the main route for those who choose to walk up. A sanctuary of recent date, Wat Preah Ang Choub, contains a scared spring and is situated close to the halfway mark. It’s a short. albeit steep, climb but once the clifftop is attained a very pleasant and easy track leads off through the forest to emerge close to the River of a Thousand Lingas. (Incidentally, our local guide, a former Khmer Rouge boy soldier from one of Kulen’s villages and not usually prone to practical jokes, claims to have spotted ‘upright walking, hair-covered primates’ in this area on no less than two occasions so keep your eyes peeled for a Cambodian Sasquatch!)
A natural rock ‘road’ leads to remote Wat Preah Kral Wat Preah Kral
This remote but active Buddhist monastery, constructed close to the mountain’s highest point, provides the destination for an interesting hike across the plateau from Wat Ang Thom. This section of the plateau features large expanses of bare rock as well as curiously shaped sandstone outcrops and so no, or very little, soil cover results in marshy, grassy areas and stunted trees and shrubs instead of the lush forest towards the north and cultivated fields in the southern reaches. Look out for the carnivorous sundew plants, abundant at certain times of the year.
The wat itself, renowned as a natural healing centre, also offers some spectacular viewpoints and on a clear day you can even see Angkor Wat! We used to camp overnight in the monastery although the abbot’s constant obsession with adding new shrines, features and statues meant the wat had unfortunately become something of a permanent construction site. (At last count the monastery was also home to over 100 cats and after dark in particular, you had to be very careful of the black kittens.)
Sundew flowers capture insects with their sticky pollen Sra Damrei
One of the most impressive of Phnom Kulen sights for us is the collection of carved boulders depicting life-sized animals located close to the southwestern escarpment of the plateau at a site known as Sra Damrei or Pond of the Elephants. Carvings include a pair of lions, a turtle and a bull, in addition to the eponymous elephant. The vicinity is now officially free of mines but is only accessible by motorbike or a long hike on foot. You would definitely need a guide as the site is both remote and well hidden and the last thing you want to do on Kulen is wander off the beaten track. Paying a villager form nearby Phum Thmei to take you on the back of his bike is probably the best bet.
The seriously remote Sra Damrei or Pond of the Elephants Mahendrapura – the Ancient City
You won’t see any spectacular city walls and surrounding moat like Angkor Thom and Jayavarman II’s ancient capital today consists of a number of brick towers in various states of repair scattered mainly across the south and southwestern sector of the plateau. A big fuss was recently made in the media about discovering a lost city atop Phnom Kulen but it was never really ‘lost’ – the temples were always visible – and it was more a case of their famous Lidar surveys uncovering the previously unknown extent and additional unknown structures of the ancient capital.
Many sites were hard to access due to lack of roads and omnipresent mines and many were in pitiful states although today most of the better preserved, and/or better restored, sites are accessible to visitors in the vicinity of Anlong Thom Village. Prasat Rong Chen and Prasat Damrei Krap are two of the most significant and readily accessible among dozens of scattered ruins.
One of the most impressive temples, Prasat Tech Tlak, is actually a later, 12th century, addition and not part of the 8th century city Kulen Elephant Forest
This relatively recently established elephant sanctuary was established to take care of some of the elephants that formerly gave rides to tourists at Angkor – a practice that happily ended in 2020. It’s not on the plateau itself but lies just southwest of the southern tip of Phnom Kulen, not far from the new Angkor International Airport. A variety of tours are on offer and while this isn’t the cheapest elephant sanctuary to visit, it is well-run and for a great cause so makes a good addition to a morning spent on Kulen, or even a visit to nearby Beng Melea Temple.
Our list is by no means exhaustive and apart from plenty more ancient temples there are other hikes and other points of interest in the area while Anlong Thom Village offers some interesting looking community tourism schemes.
Rock formations on Phnom Kulen It depends upon your time frame as, factoring in a 1 hour trip each way, whatever your programme for Kulen is, you’ll need to count the best part of a day. If you just want to see a moderately picturesque waterfall then it probably isn’t worth the drive and $20 while getting to the remoter sites such as Sra Damrei and some of the temples of Mahendrapura requires time and effort. With a relatively early start, a hike up the Pilgrim’s Way and visit to the River of 1000 Lingas plus Preah Ang Thom and the waterfall is just about doable in a morning which would leave the afternoon for the elephant sanctuary or Beng Melea. Either way, the aforementioned popular sites are definitely worth avoiding during a weekend or public holiday.
