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How is winter where you live? I have lived and worked in Da Nang for more than 10 years, but the feeling of the cold and humid air of winter here sometimes makes me think that I want to experience winter somewhere else. And because my family hasn't had a long trip together in the past 2 years due to the pandemic, we decided to go along the central provinces of Vietnam to experience a new feeling. And one of the unique destinations that I would like to introduce to you is Rai Cave in Ninh Thuan.
Where is Hang Rai?
Rai cave is located in Vinh Hai commune, Ninh Hai district, Ninh Thuan province. This place has a quite convenient location when it is only about 35km from Phan Rang city, 40km from Cam Ranh and 90km from Nha Trang. Our car moved from the direction of Nha Trang up, so this was the first destination we visited. It welcomes us with warm sunny weather and cool breezes. I forgot that just 2 days ago, I was wearing thick coats and socks to keep me warm. 😃
Rai Cave is located in the complex of Nui Chua National Park. Because we arrived quite late (5pm), we only chose to explore Rai cave instead of the whole Nui Chua national park area.
The road to Hang Rai is a wonderfully beautiful road. We moved from Nha Trang direction and explored the sea route of Phan Rang - Ninh Chu - Vinh Hy bay. This is known as the most beautiful sea route in Vietnam.
Why is it called Hang Rai?
Surely the first time you hear the name of this place, you will wonder why it has such a special name? According to locals, the name Hang Rai comes from the fact that in the past there were many species of otters (Rai) living in the caves here, so people always called it Hang Rai.
What does Hang Rai have?
Rock populations
The first impression when coming to Rai cave is the rock populations of all shapes and sizes stacked on top of each other. In Hang Rai, there are also small caves that can only fit one person through. This is where the sea otters choose to hide.
Explore a circle of rocks and you will admire the majesty of the sea and mountains. Seeing the rocks with many diverse shapes stacked on top of each other in a "perfect" way from nature is an extremely wonderful experience that should not be missed.
Ancient coral shelf
From a distance, the ancient coral shelf looks like a slice of a "giant" tree trunk.
Ancient coral reefs are highly appreciated by scientists for their geological and historical value. According to records, about 18000 years ago, the sea level at that time was about 20m higher than now. 6000 years later, during the period of sea retreat, the sea receded, revealing the shape of the ancient coral shelf today.
Walking around, I also picked up beautiful colorful coral pieces.
Salt rock
Located next to the ancient coral shelf to the north, the waves carry seawater to fill the surface, and in the heat of the sun, the seawater evaporates leaving salt crystals. Many people call this amazing phenomenon "waterfall in the sea". Rai Cave is a unique place with this phenomenon.
After 1 hour of exploring, we ended the journey to discover Hang Rai. There are many things we have not explored here such as experiencing Nui Chua National Park, or the sea turtle conservation area (currently closed for maintenance), and also the famous Thai An vineyard in Ninh Thuan ( January is not the right time to visit the vineyard because the grapes are not in season yet). We will definitely visit here again.
Nature has given us many wonderful things. If you have the opportunity to visit Ninh Thuan, you should experience Hang Rai with your own eyes.
Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I wish you a good day!