Wat Tham Sua, Krabi

Climbing Tiger Temple

Far off on the other side of the river, rising through the eastern horizon's evening haze, is a mountain whose peak glows with golden fire in the sunset.

I've watched this a few times from our guesthouse here in Krabi, and can only surmise that there's a seriously large golden something crowning that peak. It proves too distant to resolve with the unaided eye, but enquiry reveals that the mountain in question rises above Wat Tham Sua (Tiger Cave Temple) and does indeed provide a seat for a large gilded Buddha.

We read a bit about it and decide it'll make a good start to our next day. Our guesthouse staff advise an early departure, as the staircase is around 1240 steps and much better done in the cool of the day...

They weren't kidding. Some of the sections of the staircase are more like a ladder than a flight of stairs. The climb convinces us that we really will quit smoking. This impulse is driven deep by the guys we see using the climb as their morning work out. One of these men overtakes us when we're a third of the way up, then passes us on his way down. Before we've even made it three quarters of the way up. Sheesh...

As usual, I'm making lots of stops to take pictures. What's unusual is that Amber isn't far ahead of me. By the time we reach the peak it's almost eleven, the sun is blazing and we have no water left. The monks have it covered. At the top of the stairs is a water purifier that dispenses pure, cold water! A blessing indeed!

The view is incredible. The heat and glare also. The Buddha is serene and blissfully unaware. The heat radiates from both above and below as the glossy tiles of the paved mountain-top reflect the sun's rays back to the sky.

One of the highest outcrops of the peak's raw stone bears a gilded depression in the shape of the Buddha's footprint. The sanctuary surrounding it is an eyrie and the row of devotional bells call to be rung. In the calm and blazing silence of this place, the bell I gently strike rings loudly...

There are very few other visitors. A heatstruck girl lies in the shade of the gallery beneath the Buddha's floor as her friends swiftly check the temple precinct. It's polite to remove your shoes before entering and the hot tiles seem a limiting factor - as is the relentless midday sun. A quick look, a few photos and they're gone, heading back down to the shade.

I guess I'm crazy. Or at least a little obsessed.

As the sound of the bells fade into silence, clouds begin to form above the karst spires of the surrounding landscape.

A short while later, cool shade is laid upon the mountain top.

From up here, it doesn't take long for your prayers to rise to heaven...