Railfan Trip to Pasak Chonlasit Reservoir

DESTINATION:Buddha Chai Tunnel, Pha Sadet, and Pasak Chonlasit Reservoir
DATE OF TRIP: 10th December 2022

I belong to a Facebook group called ชมรมคนรักรถดีเซลราง which translates as Diesel Railcar Lovers Club. They organise their own railfan trips by renting a two-carriage Daewoo railcar. From what I understand, it costs them around 90,000 baht. If they sell all 128 seats for 700-800 Baht then that covers costs. They can then go where they like and stop where they like. Well, within reason. The trip has to be approved.

The main destination for this trip is Pasak Chonlasit Reservoir. They will in fact go there twice. Once at mid-day and then again at the end of the day at sunset. In both cases, the train will stop on the viaduct for us to get out and take pictures.

The weekend excursion to Pasak Chonlasit goes there via Ayutthaya and then turns off at Kaeng Khoi Junction for the branch line. However, we will head to Chachoengsao and then take a branch line between Khlong Sip Kao Junction and Kaeng Khoi Junction. What is interesting for me is that this is normally only used by cargo trains. So another line for me to tick off my list. Incidentally, it would be nice for scheduled passenger trains to be able to use this bypass to go from Pattaya to Khorat or Nong Khai without having to go to Bangkok first. On this line we will make a stop at Buddha Chai Tunnel (map).

At Kaeng Khoi Junction, we won’t be taking the branch line to Pasak Chonlasit straight away. Instead we will do a side-trip to Pha Sadet (map) first to see a rock that overhangs close to the railway tracks. This is a historical site as King Rama V visited this place in 1895 when he came to open the Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima railway line. He carved his royal emblem in the rock.

After this we will go back to Kaeng Khoi Junction and take the branch line to Pasak Chonlasit Dam. We will stop on the viaduct at KM 171. Then go back to the dam where we have several hours to rest and explore. Then before sunset we will go back out on the viaduct but this time to KM 177 where we will again stop to take pictures of the view as the sun is setting. The weekend excursion only crosses three of these viaducts. We will cross all five of them across the reservoir.

We will then head back to Bangkok.

 

RETURN TO: My Trip Notes