Tham Khao Wong

Before 1985 Luang Pho Sanong Katapunyo of Wat Sangkhathan, Nonthaburi, stayed at the cave hill with his monks. In 1985 his disciple Luang Pho Bunsong Piyadhammo founded a meditation centre there; around 1987 the monks moved down onto land donated by Thong Lekhayan. Work on the teak and makha hall began in 1993–94 and it has since been restored three times. The temple was formally established on 19 December 2005.

The temple is known for its four-storey Thai-style hall of teak and makha wood beside a reflecting pond, with a limestone cliff behind. The ground floor holds shops and open space, the second floor a vihara with a replica Buddha footprint, the third the Ho Ariya Bucha meditation hall, and the fourth the ordination hall with long views. There are also relics, wax figures of revered monks.

On 30 August 2025 the temple held the eye-opening ceremony for Phra Phuttha Uthai Thammaphinit, a 21 m brass reclining Buddha in the pose of subduing Asurindarahu, with a Sukhothai-style face on a lotus base set with 16 celestial flowers, designed and cast by the Fine Arts Department's traditional craftsmen, at a ceremony chaired by Nopadon Ponsen. Behind the temple, steps and a path of about 400 m lead to seven or eight caves — some kept for monks' meditation and closed to visitors — a large Buddha at a cave mouth, a small stream and waterfall, and a hilltop viewpoint.

The forest park was set up on 9 December 2001 and covers about 8,125–9,000 rai (sources differ) of the Huai Tha Kuai and Huai Krawen reserved forests, part of the Western Forest Complex bordering Phu Toei National Park in Suphan Buri, and the source of several Ban Rai streams. A ministerial announcement published in the Royal Gazette (vol. 137, special part 290 Ng) on 14 December 2020 designated the area as a forest park. Surrounding peaks reach about 637–700 m.

Tham Phu Wai is a through-cave about 300 m long, with ceilings over 15 m high, more than 2 rai of floor and three levels. Its named formations include the Million-Year Pillar, the Crown, a Guan Yin face, a flowstone 'rock waterfall' and a deity's seat; there are several golden Buddhas and at least nine bat species, plus cave crickets and spiders. It was a filming location for the TV drama Nakee, aired in 2016. Behind it is the smaller, deeper Thep Mali or Naga cave. A guided visit takes about 40–60 minutes.

The temple is open about 08:00–17:00 and is free; the forest park opens 08:30–16:30, also free. Headlamps rented for about 25 baht in 2020, and the guide is tipped at your discretion; the few-hundred-baht fees on some sites likely confuse it with Phu Toei National Park. From Uthai Thani town take Highway 333 to Ban Rai, then Route 3011 toward Phu Bon — Ban Rai is 80 km from the provincial seat per the provincial health office, so the temple is about 92 km and the cave about 95 km from town, roughly 1 h 30 min. From the temple entrance it is about 3 km more to the cave car park, then a steep 200 m climb.