Hanoi to Ninh Binh

I arrived in Hanoi in the afternoon and took a taxi to Thu Giang guesthouse. I had called there yesterday and booked a room to avoid any hassles of getting a hotel but when I got the hotel they told me they were full. They said they don't book rooms by phone because sometimes people don't show up. Well they didn't tell me this on the phone. They said they didn't tell me because they could help me find another room. I didn't need help to find a room, there were 3 hotels alone in the same alleyway, so I checked them out. I ended up staying Manh Dung guesthouse, just across the street, for $10. For Hanoi, that was a good price for a decent room that would have cost a few dollars cheaper somewhere else. The staff was super friendly and accommodating.

The next morning I took a taxi to the airport to meet Thip. We took another taxi to the bus station. Since she was only visiting for a few days, we didn't want to waste any time in Hanoi. We took a bus to Ninh Binh, 2 hours south. We came to Ninh Binh to visit Tam Coc, an small place packed with limestone mountains best visited by canoe and on a bike. We stayed one night in Ninh Binh.

Phong Nha Cave to Vinh to Hanoi

I arrive in Dong Hoi and get a really nice room at Nam Long Hotel. I came here to visit Phong Nha Cave. The next morning I hired a motorbike and driver to take me to the caves. The owner of the hotel tried to convince me to hire my own bike but it was only another dollar to have a driver. This way I don't have to worry about the drive or the way there. I can sit back and appreciate the scenery. Soon after we left the city there was very little traffic on the road and it was a smooth road. Karst mountains soon dominated the landscape. The sign for Phong Nha National park was in huge letters on the side of a mountain like the Hollywood sign. There was no missing this park!

The driver parked the bike and I went to pay for my ticket. I had to take a boat to the cave entrance, 5km upstream. It was a bit expensive so I waited around for some other people to share the cost. I only had to wait a few minutes before a German family arrived. We shared the boat to the cave.

Before going to Phong Nha cave, I visited Tien Son cave, up 330 steps in the mountainside above Phong Nha cave. This cave was used as a hospital and ammunition depot during the Vietnam war. It was a touristy cave with a cement pathway through it and lights. I still liked it though as it has some old and impressive formations. After that the German family and I took our boat into Phong Nha cave. Once inside the cave, the boatman killed the engine and paddled us into the depths of the cave. Phong Nha cave is an astonishing 55km long but only the first km is open to visitors. We stopped at a huge side branch of the cave where certain formations were lit up for the benefit of visitors. Then the boat dropped us off and we walked back to the entrance. I really enjoyed this cave. We took the boat back to the visitors centre and then took the moto back to Dong Hoi.

While I was in Dong Hoi, I got an email from Thip, my friend from Thailand I met in Laos in the beginning of January. She had some time off now and would be meeting me in Hanoi in 2 days for a short trip together. I had to make my way to Hanoi. I was no rush to get there before I had to, so the next day I took a train to Vinh, about 6 hours away.

I don't know why I haven't been taking the train more often. I guess I thought it would be very busy and full because of the Tet holiday but it wasn't. I really enjoy travelling by train. It's more comfortable than the bus and there's no hassle over the price. It might be a bit slower but I don't mind. The train went right through karst mountains, literrally! It was great scenery up to Vinh. I stayed in Vinh for one night. I didn't like it there much. It's not touristy at all and I found it a bit hard to find decent food but for only day it didn't matter too much. The next day I decided to take the train to Hanoi.

Vinh Moc Tunnels

I arrived in Dong Ha and found an ok room at Thuy Dien hotel for $6. It didn't take me long to find a motorcycle driver to take me to the tunnels, actually, he found me! I bargained him down to a reasonable price and after I ate lunch we were on our way. He took a backroad which followed along the coast. It took a little less than an hour to get there.

Almost 90% of the Vietnamese population wears a facemask, for various reasons. These include blocking their face from the sun, protection against air pollution and trying to keep their potential sick germs to themselves. I've seen this in some other countries but the Vietnamese certainly wear the most masks I've ever seen. They can be bought for about 25 cents and up. I bought one as a souvenir but thought I would wear it today on the moto ride to the tunnels. It actually felt good wearing it to protect from the wind in my face and the sun. I got some strange looks! I really felt Vietnamese now!

We arrive at the tunnels and there is hardly anyone around except for some vendors. My moto driver waits for me as I walk to the museum and tunnel entrance. The museum was small but has some good info and good pictures of the history of the tunnels. I entered the tunnels in one of the 12 entrances around the site. I'm no war or history buff by any means but I really wanted to see these tunnels. I guess I just like anything that resembles a cave, even if it's man made. I was not disappointed by the tunnels. There were some lights in the tunnels meant for visitors to follow them so they don't get lost. They gave me a flashlight when I bought my ticket. I stuck to the lit pathway but often took turns down unlit dark hallways just to see more of the tunnels. It was really spooky. I was in there all by myself. I couldn't hear anyone else. The tunnels were high enough so I could stand upright but most of the time I was slightly hunched over. The tunnels were in their original state and had not been enlarged like some of the tunnels around Ho Chi Minh city in the south.

There were 3 levels of tunnels, the deepest 23m underground! All along the hallways were little rooms carved into the side for families, child birthing, washing and meetings. They even showed movies in the tunnels and sang for entertainment. Some of these little rooms had bats in them, other had mannaquins showing what the room was used for. I must admit walking down the dimly lit halls and then coming unexpectedly across a plastic family startled me a few times!

Since this area was in the heart of the DMZ (demilitarized zone), the villages on the surface had the shit bombed out of it daily and that drove the villagers underground. People lived in these tunnels for 8 years! Everyday between 1965 -72 the sound of bombs and artillery was never silent. More than half a million tons of bombs were dropped on the 820 km sq. Vinh Linh area. There were 114 village tunnels with a total length of 40km. There were more than 60 babies born in the tunnels.

As I explored the halls I came across a bomb shelter sign pointing down a dark tunnel. I wanted to see the bomb shelter and carefully worked my way down the unlit slippery slope. I was doing fine until I got right near the bottom, I slipped and fell. I wasn't hurt but my arms were coated in a thick dark and heavy clay soil. As I got to the bottom I noticed the tunnel to the bomb shelter became very small and I would have had to crawl my way into it. I didn't want to do that so I climbed back up to the main hall. I found an exit that came out facing the ocean. There was no water around so I grabbed a few leaves to try and wipe off some of the dirt on my arms. I explored the tunnels for almost an hour. I really liked in there.

Just as I came out of the tunnels, a big group of tourists arrived. Perfect timing for me to leave! We took the same scenic route back to Dong Ha. I only came to Dong Ha to see the tunnels. There is nothing else of interest around. Though there are many war sites nearby, I was only interested in seeing the tunnels. The next day I took a bus to Dong Hoi, about one hour north of Dong Ha.

Hue to Dong Ha

I got a bus from the main road near Bach Ma national park to Hue, one hour away. Hue is the sister city to Hoi An. It was spared some bombing during the war and has lots of character and old buildings. It's much bigger than Hoi An though and I didn't like it as much. I was only here basically to get an extension on my visa. It would expire in a few days but I wasn't sure when I would have a few days to try and get it somewhere else. I arrived late thursday and was hoping I wouldn't have to wait the weekend to get it taken care of. I went to a travel agent and they said it could be done in one day. I went back late friday afternoon and it was all finished. I had another month in Vietnam, even though I only needed 2 more weeks. With that business finished, I left Hue saturday morning to go to Dong Ha. I would base myself in Dong Ha for the night while I visited the Vinh Moc tunnels from the war. Dong Ha was only about one hour from Hue.

Bach Ma National Park Day 3

The next trail, the rhododendron trail, began 12km uphill from the visitors centre. This would talk me a while to walk to, then hike the trail there and then hike down. Fortunately Joe had a motorbike and was allowed to officially ferry his parents there one by one. He was not supposed to give anyone else a ride. It took Joe 30 minutes each way to drive to the trail. He took his mother first while his dad and I starting walking to lessen the distance between pickups. His dad was next and I just kept walking. I had passed the entrance to the pheasant trail from yesterday and kept going. As I walked I glanced to the side of the road along a concrete barrier. I thought I was looking at a stick but as I followed the black stick, I came to it's head! It was a 1.5m snake! Often when I'm hiking in the forest, sticks can appear to be snakes at a quick glance, so I was really surprised when this stick turned out be to a huge snake! I was nearly beside the snake when I finally saw it. I think it was staying still and hoping I would just walk by. When I stopped to get out my camera the snake knew that he had been seen. He paused for a second and then made a fast retreat over the concrete and into the forest. I never did get a photo but I was happy to see a large snake. After walking over 8km all uphill, it was finally my turn for Joe to pick me up. The road was pretty hairy and bumpy in spots. The weather at the base of the mountain was gloomy and overcast but as we got higher we climbed above the clouds. At the start of the trial, the sun was shining, it was warm and breezy. There were great views too above the clouds.
The trail needed some maintaince. There was a lot of pieces of dead bamboo and branches. The trail led to the top of the rhododendron falls. We stopped here. Joe's mom stayed at the top while Joe, his dad and I descended the 689 steps to the base of the 300m high waterfall. I must admit it only took me about 5 minutes to go down quickly. It felt like much less than 689 steps but I wasn't counting. Now when I hear about a 300m high waterfall, I picture a 300m uninterrupted drop of water. This falls wasn't that at all. It was more like just steep rocks with the water hardly plunging away from them at all. There was single 300m drop. It was still impressive though and we hung out at the bottom for a while. Going up was a bit tougher. The steps are very high and space far apart, not good for climbing up. I was feeling it in my upper thighs, especially since I had walked almost 9km before even attempting them.
Joe had to ferry us all back down to the visitors centre and I knew I would be last. It was the middle of the afternoon and it would take hours for us all to get down. I started walking ahead of everyone. As I got closer to the road, an orange,black and white animal fleed from my presence in the trees. I didn't see it really clearly but I saw the colors. It was a buff cheeked gibbon, a rare primate living in the park. Minutes later I saw another smaller snake. This snake stayed still for a while and I was able to get some decent photos of it. It had been a great day, 2 snakes and a gibbon. I walked a few km down the hill and moved aside for a huge dumptruck to pass me. He stopped and gave me a free ride down to the base. This was great, this would save Joe a lot of time having to come back up to get me. I arrived at the canteen the same time Joe arrived with his dad.

The next day Joe and his family and I walked to a nearby river. We spent most of the day swimming and walking around. It was a beautifully warm and sunny day. It was a relaxing last day in the park. The next day I caught a bus to Hue.

Bach Ma National Park Day 2

Bach Ma was a French era hill station built to escape the heat of the lowlands in comfort. The peak of Bach Ma reaches a height of 1450m, just 18km from the coast. The French started building villas here in 1930. The area saw heavy fighting though in the 1950's and later in the Vietnam war. It's important to stick to the trails here as there could still be some UXO (unexploded ordinance) lying about. The forest here is very important as it protects a large area of the Annamite mountains stretching from the coast all the way to Laos. This forest was the home of newly discovered large mammals in the 1990's. The Annamite mountains were the place I wanted to visit the most in Vietnam, unfortunately access and the terrain are very difficult. If I had a lot more money, I would love to launch an expedition deep into the forest here.
A typhoon hit the park hard last november, destroying the road to the summit. They are rebuilding it but won't (officially) let anyone up to the summit. Really, the summit is the park. From the entrance, it was 16km to the summit where most of the trails are. The first trail starts 5km from the entrance. I visited this, the pheasant trail, my second day in the park. The day was very cloudly and overcast but very warm and very humid. As I walked to the trail I was drenched in sweat. I think humidity hovered around 90%. At night in my tent, condensation gathered under the fly. It was 22C with 96% humidity! It was much warmer than I thought it was going to be. I slept well here.
I took a few photos on the way to the trail and it took me an hour to reach it. The forest is very dense here. There are plenty of spiders and webs and it seemed like every minute I was brushing a web away from my face. I'm not sure where the spiders went when I crashed through one of their webs. The trail led to a rocky river. I hung out here for a while before going back down. As I walked back down, thick fog was covering the mountain. It had a very strange and eerie feel. It felt like it was hard to focus my eyes. Everything seemed blurry. I really liked the atmosphere it created though. I ended up being on the mountain for almost 6 hours before I got back to the visitors centre. Joe and his family had just got back visiting a lake. I joined them for a late lunch. After Joe's parents went to bed we would watch movies on his laptop. It was great, hiking in the forest in the day and watching movies at night.

Bach Ma National Park

I left Hoi An for Bach Ma national park. It took almost 4 hours to get there, which was a bit longer than I expected. We passed through a 6km long tunnel, opened in 2005. This shaved an hour off driving time between Danang and Hue. It bypassed the Hai Van pass, which I wanted to see because it was supposed to have great views but it would have been much more difficult to get transport to use the pass instead of the tunnel.
I arrived at the junction to the park at 5pm. It was a 3km walk from here to the park entrance. I would have taken a moto but no one was giving me a fair price, so I just walked it. At the park entrance I was expecting to find a campsite but the places I was shown to pitch my tent sucked. They were both along the road and beside a parking lot. No privacy or quiet at either one. I wanted to find a better site. I finally found a guy who spoke some english and he pointed me towards the guesthouse, back from the road. I set up my tent here. It was a much better spot, awaying from staring eyes. Staying at the guesthouse was Joe, a 19 year old volunteer from England. He said there was no real campsite here, my guidebook was wrong again. He helped me set up my tent and let me use his hot shower my entire stay here. He also let me use his washing machine. My clothes haven't seen a machine since I left Canada over 3 months ago. I'm a die hard hand washer and don't like to pay to have my clothes washed unless they're super filthy. I gave Joe all my clothes to wash.
Joe had been at Bach Ma for 3 months. His parents arrived to visit him just an hour after I did. They were really nice and all of us ended up spending a lot of time together. They bought my dinner the first night and beers every night. They also brought Joe a lot of high quality chocolate. It seemed like I arrived just in time!