With its wild beauty of mountains, rivers and streams, Ha Giang has recently become a popular destination for both domestic and international tourists. That's the reason I chose Ha Giang as my destination on my last trip in the North of Vietnam before flying to Australia. Normally, I would choose to backpack by motorbike with a companion, but on that trip, because we both didn't have much time, my friend chose to book the tour from a start-up travel agency called Phớn Toọc tourist and it was such a great experience that if any of my friends want to go to Ha Giang, I will not hesitate to recommend them that travel agency. The tour guide of my group that day was a 19-year-old Hmong boy who had just graduated from high school. Young and energetic, he has a great love of his native land. By telling us many fascinating stories about the local area, he made our 4 days 3 nights trip even more interesting.
There are many beautiful scenes and interesting things to discover in Ha Giang, but in this post, I'd like to highlight the enchanting beauty of Nho Que River, a gorgeous river that winds gently around the foot of a blue mountain. Originating in the mountains of Nghiem Son - Yunnan (China) with an altitude of 1500m, flowing in the direction of Northwest - Southeast, Nho Que River has a poetic and mysterious beauty like a mysterious blue threads. Virtually hidden among the wild and dangerous Northeast mountains. With extremely rugged terrain, Nho Que river valley is considered one of the deepest canyons in Southeast Asia. Previously, Nho Que River was only considered a place for fishing purposes of Ha Giang people. This is also the place to supply domestic water for the ethnic people here, an important source of water for most of the terraced fields of the people living around this area. At the time I came to visit more than 2 years ago, Nho Que was well known by tourists all over the country but not yet developed much in terms of tourism. The car took us to the area of Ma Pi Leng pass, then drove a difficult distance to the walkable area down the Nho Que river to prepare for a scenic boat trip. There are 2 wharfs, one is in Ta Lang village, Pai Lung, another is in Xin Cai commune area, on the other side of Ma Pi Leng pass towards Meo Vac. The car dropped us at the Xin Cai wharf and it took us about 45 minutes to walk down to the riverbank with some quite slippery sections. The road is difficult, almost all members of my group were very tired. But the closer we got to the riverbank, the more beautiful the scenery appears with the characteristic turquoise river.
Most of the boats here are family-owned and operated. Our boat driver on that day was a young and friendly guy. Visiting Nho Que River by boat brought us a completely different experience than watching it from above. Sitting on the boat and watching the cliffs stand up to the blue sky, feel the cool atmosphere and the transformation of the natural scenes, that cool experience, I will never forget. The downhill road was hard to go, making everyone in our group quite tired, but the moment we were immersed in nature and the beautiful beauty of the river along with the cool air, all fatigue seemed to disappear.
Tu San Canyon is one of the features not to be missed when visiting Nho Que River. To take a boat trip on Nho Que river you can also choose to take a motorboat or kayak. However, to go through Tu San Canyon, you should take a motorboat.
We finished the sightseeing tour by boat at another wharf in Ta Lang village, Pai Lung. After taking a break to have a snack and buy some local products here, all of us agreed not to walk uphill, but rent motorbikes from local people. The way up is very winding and steep, requiring the driver to be very steady on the handlebars. I sat in the back and was nervous as if I could slip out of the saddle at any time. But at the moment standing on the top of the slope and looking down, the beautiful scenery made all of the fears disappear.
Nho Que River is an attractive tourist destination that you should spend time experiencing when coming to Ha Giang. Sitting on the boat to feel the cool atmosphere or standing from above to watch the green river are all really interesting experiences.