Doi Inthanon National Park has filed a police complaint against a group of around ten tourists who wandered off the Ang Ka nature trail to get their photos with “khao tok reusi,” sphagnum moss known locally as “hermit’s popped rice” for its texture, and in the process trampled it flat.
Park staff said another visitor tipped them off on September 13, describing tourists who’d walked past the marked signs and barriers around the Ang Ka trail to reach the moss’s growing area. A follow-up inspection turned up multiple patches of crushed vegetation. Officials note that sphagnum moss here is unusually fragile and slow to recover, if it recovers at all; some damaged patches may take years to grow back, others may simply be gone for good. Given how rarely it’s found, and only in pristine conditions above 2,000 metres, park officials aren’t treating this as a minor thing.
Staff pulled together evidence, including photos from the person who reported it and park CCTV footage, and have now filed a complaint with Chom Thong police, arguing the group’s actions violated the National Park Act of 2019 by ignoring officer instructions and carrying out a recreational activity (in this case, photography) outside the zones where it’s permitted.
The park is once again asking visitors to stick to marked trails, stay off the plant life, and take barriers and warning signs at face value rather than as suggestions.
