Khone Phapheng Falls


The Khone Falls and Pha Pheng Falls together form a waterfall located in Champasak Province on the Mekong River in southern Laos, near the border with Cambodia. At wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
The Khone Falls are the largest in southeast Asia, and are the main reason that the Mekong is not fully navigable into China. The falls are characterised by thousands of islands and countless waterways, giving the area its name Si Phan Don or 'the 4,000 islands'.
The highest falls reach to ; the succession of rapids stretch of the river's length. The average discharge of the cataract is nearly, with the highest flow on record at over.

Navigable efforts

The Khone Falls is the prime reason why the Mekong river is not fully navigable into China. In the late 19th century French colonialists made repeated attempts to navigate the falls but their efforts failed. This difficulty led to the construction of the Don Det – Don Khon narrow gauge railway on Don Det and Don Khon islands.

Wildlife

Hillstream loach Hemimyzon khonensis is known from a single specimen collected in the Mekong at the Khone Falls. The falls are home to the plabuck, an endangered species of catfish said to be the largest freshwater fish in the world. The plabuck is alleged to reach lengths of and weights of up to 646 pounds.

See Also