Ha Giang, located about 300km away from Hanoi, is a northern province of Vietnam, which is a frontier area bordering China. It is a mountainous area being well-known for its magnificent landscapes. Although Ha Giang is an ideal place for travelers who love taking adventurous trips, it is still unspoiled and yet to be so touristy due to its remote geographic location which is far away from most attractions of the country.
Ha Giang is a place where you may find yourself returning more than once. I have been there twice, and I’m planning for the third. People ask me why Ha Giang again and again, there are no other places for me to travel in Vietnam or what? I don’t know. It is just beautiful and worth-visited almost all year round.
There are several times of the year that people would love to take a trip to Ha Giang such as: Spring is the best time for peach blossoms and enjoying Tet atmosphere (Lunar New Year) of ethnic minorities; Summer is time to visit emerald-green Nho Que river; and Autumn is when those rice terraces turn golden and create breathtaking scenery. Not just that, Ha Giang’s attractions are also located in different parts of the province and require visitors to take different routes to travel. Normally, with a trip lasting for 3 to 4 days, people can only take one route. It explains why people, including me, visit Ha Giang many times for the new route and also for the new season.
Previous Ha Giang post of mine was about rice terraces in Autumn, this one will be all about Ha Giang in Summer with the following route: Ha Giang City – Quan Ba – Yen Minh Pine forest - Tham Ma pass – House of Pao - Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark – Dong Van Town - Mansion of Vuong Family – Lung Cu (National Flag Pole) – Meo Vac Village - Ma Pi Leng Pass – Nho Que River. It’s going to be a very long and detail review and comes in series. So, stay tuned!
A 3-day trip to Ha Giang to get away from the heat of Hanoi City
Ha Giang has a majestic mountain complex with an average altitude of 800 m to 1,200 m, especially some peaks rising over 2,000 m above sea level. That is the reason why the mountainous region of Ha Giang always has an average temperature of tens of degrees Celsius lower than Hanoi and other plains. Even in the midst of boiling summer days, while the temperature in Hanoi is up to 38-40 degrees Celsius, Ha Giang always remains its temperature at approx. 25-30 degrees Celsius. The fresh and cool climate of Ha Giang also draws a lot of visitors who just wish to escape the bustling city and get away from the heat. We are no exception either.
Spending a night in a sleeping bus, we arrived Ha Giang city in the early morning. This is always how a Ha Giang trip started: early arrival, renting a bike, having breakfast in the city, then heading up to the mountainous areas and letting adventures begin.
1. Quan Ba Heaven Gate
From Ha Giang city, this was our first destination. It is just about 50km only but girl driving took much longer time than usual, not because that we were not skilled drivers, but we stop by a lot of places on the way just to take photos. :D
Driving along Highway 4C about 35km, we got Bac Sum Pass which led us to Quan Ba Heaven Gate. After riding up to the top of the pass, then turning to look down at the scene below, we couldn’t help but stop and take a bunch of photos. Compared to the landscapes on the whole journey, Bac Sum pass is only a beginning, so don’t spend much time here like us.
Going straight for about 15km, we set foot on Quan Ba Heaven Gate. We left our bikes at the parking lot and climbed up to Heaven Gate’s viewpoint. It was kind of exhausted on a summer day. However, the feeling of standing on the sky gate tower, overlooking the endless range of mountains was a pay-off.
Not too far from this Heaven Gate, there was also another viewpoint for admiring a unique topographical structure of Quan Ba. It called “Núi Đôi” which was a mountain in a shape of “a pair of boobs”. We stop by outside of this place real quick, but didn’t get inside However, I think you may want to visit this fascinating site. Below is a photo of a natural pair of boobs for your ease of imagination. :D
2. Yen Minh pine forest
Located 35km from Quan Ba and also along Highway 4C, Yen Minh pine forest is also an attraction drawing a lot of visitors, especially young people. If you have visited Da Lat and fell in love with the endless pine forest of this mountainous city, you probably feel the same with Yen Minh pine forest. People call Yen Minh “a small Da Lat” for a reason.
Riding on the way from Quan Ba to Yen Minh, where pine trees were lined on the side of the narrow and winding road, was so enjoyable. No wonder people call this road is a “Happy road”.
Leaving our bikes, we strolled around the forest. We already made 2/3 way to Dong Van Town. Although there were still a lot of places to stop by on the first day (according to our schedule), we just wanted to spend a little more time in this place. it was very relaxing to get some fresh air and immerse ourselves in the quietness of the forest.
3. Tham Ma Pass
One thing we love about Ha Giang was that the mountainous scenery was satisfying at every point of the trip. There was always something interesting to behold, not only at the main attractions but also along the way.
Tham Ma Pass is not just a destination; it is a highlight of every Ha Giang trip. It shows how adventurous a Ha Giang trip could be. Tham Ma Pass is one of the legendary roads that every traveler wants to conquer when coming to Ha Giang. Although it has a rather steep slope and constant zigzag bends, if you take it slowly, it won’t be too dangerous. We actually found another road that was even more insane, which will be introduced later. Stopping by this place for a photo is a must, to evidence your conquest of one of the most famous and beautiful passes in Vietnam.
Its name “Tham Ma” has a story behind it. It is originated from an old custom of the ethnic people. At that time, horses were the only means of transportation. In order to assess and evaluate whether a horse was strong or weak, they were loaded with goods from the foot to the top of the slope. The horse that passed would be kept alive to continue to be a means of transportation, the weaker ones were mostly slaughtered. Tham Ma Pass can be basically interpreted as "A slope for horse strength assessment". Today, it is no longer a place for such purpose, but for the assessment of skilled drivers.
There were a lot of ethnic kids hanging out in this pass while still carrying baskets of flowers and corn on their backs. We were reminded by the media not to give the ethnic kids money, gifts, or even candies. As there were rising concerns that those kids (being forced by their parents) would prefer hanging out in tourist attractions to earn their living from tourists rather than going to school.
We asked the kids if it was ok to take a picture together, and they were so into it. They were shy and quiet, sometimes talked to each other in their own ethnic languages. But their smile was so bright and their eyes were so innocent. How adorable!
4. Pao’s House
We arrived Pao’s House at about 4 o’clock. At this point, we were behind the schedule. There was 25km left to get to Dong Van Town. We needed to make it there before dark as riding in the mountainous road at night was very dangerous.
We decided to pay a short visit to Pao’s House, since we considered this was not the main attraction. Located in Sung La Village, this is a place where a famous movie “Pao’s House” was filmed. Thanks to the success of the movie, this place also became a place for sightseeing when coming to Ha Giang. The house was built almost 100 years ago. Quite similar to the houses of the ethnic people, Pao's house was designed in a U-shape with the middle space being a courtyard surfaced with stone. This place was still well preserved and displayed a lot of daily necessities of the Mong community such as rice mills, knitting cloth, etc.
The photos taken here were lovely. However, for me, there was not much to see in this place. We left earlier than we expected and headed up to Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark to catch the schedule.
5. Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark
Finally, it was the last destination of the first day of Ha Giang trip, before heading up to our homestay in Dong Van Town. We thought we were behind the schedule, but no, we came right in time when the sun was about to set and the Dong Van Karst Plateau was in the most beautiful time of the day. The pristine and majestic beauty of the rocky mountain was shimmering in the afternoon light, and the golden sky was peculiarly stunning. This splendid view was definitely something that I would not forget any time soon.
Video: Tony
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