Exploring Thailand's wild west: Kanchanaburi and the Death Railway

NZ Herald

21-04-2025

The bridge over the River Kwai in Kanchanaburi is something of an anticlimax — it's a bit like any other metal bridge — though due to the huge popularity of the 1957 movie (The Bridge on the River Kwai), it's a popular spot for selfies. To get a sense of what happened here in the 1940s, take an eye-opening visit to the Thailand-Burma Railway Centre and the adjacent Don Rak War Cemetery, both just a block away from the train station. The museum gives a clear overview of the construction of the railway, and the chilling memorial slabs in the cemetery reveal most men laid to rest here were under 25 years old.
In their rush to conquer southeast Asia during the Second World War, the Japanese desperately needed a rail link between Bangkok and Rangoon, so they forced bot
h Asian and Allied prisoners of war to work around the clock, laying tracks in the malaria-infested jungle.
To get a closer look at the conditions faced by these prisoners, hop on a two-hour train ride from Kanchanaburi to Nam Tok, which passes through deep rock cuttings and over a precarious viaduct at Wang Pho, where nearly every man working on the railway died. In fact, it's thought one man died for every sleeper laid along this track. Though the line originally stretched over 400km, it now ends at Nam Tok, just 130km from Kanchanaburi.
Perhaps the most moving place along the entire route of the Death Railway is Hellfire Pass, about 20km north of Nam Tok. The pass is so-called because of the scary torches the prisoners had to carry to work through the night, hacking at the rock with primitive tools.
These days, the pass is the location of the excellent Hellfire Pass Memorial Museum, with POW memorabilia, photos and informative display boards, while a walk through the deep cutting of the pass itself, now silent rather than echoing with the clang of metal on rock, is a sobering experience.
On Anzac Day (April 25), a Dawn Service is held here, starting at 5am, to honour the thousands of Australian, New Zealand, British and Dutch soldiers who died here, followed by a gunfire breakfast (coffee with rum). Anzac stands for 'Australian and New Zealand Army Corps', and Anzac Day marks the anniversary of the landing of Australian and New Zealand troops at Gallipoli in 1915, and it is commemorated in various locations internationally.
Having come this far into Thailand's wild west, it would be foolish to turn back without visiting Sangkhlaburi, the last Thai town of any size before the border with Myanmar. Its setting beside the huge Khao Laem Reservoir, with the view of the 400m wooden bridge connecting nearby Ban Waeng Ka, is extremely picturesque, and adventurers who arrive here are immediately drawn into the slow-life ambience of the place.
The old town of 'Sangkhla', as it's known to locals, was lost when the reservoir was created, but there is still an interesting temple called Wat Saam Prasob, partly submerged, which can be visited by boat and makes for interesting photos.
Sangkhla is only 24km from the border, so it's tempting to complete this exploration of Thailand's wild west by heading up to the Three Pagodas Pass. Apparently, the pagodas or stupas were erected to acknowledge a peace pact by Thai and Burmese kings in the 18th century, but if their minuscule size is anything to go by, the pact was not entered into with any great verve.
To balance the serious tone of the Death Railway trip, when back in Kanchanaburi, head out for a day of fun with rescued elephants at Elephants' World, or cool off at the Erawan Falls in the Erawan National Park or the Mae Khamin Falls in the Srinakarind National Park, a bit further afield.
Both falls have seven levels, but being nearer to Kanchanaburi, the Erewan Falls, with their milky, turquoise waters, are much more popular. The Mae Khamin Falls offer a less crowded and more contemplative experience, and the crystal-clear waters streaming over caramel-coloured ledges make a stellar backdrop for selfies.