News Detail - Quang Tri Portal

The main drag of Phong Nha is just a single road, with a lot of backpacker hostels and a few hotels. A few general stores and scooter mechanics nestle in the pockets between grand, shiny new accommodation. This was pretty much the CBD of the town, and all the businesses seemed to be built around accommodation. What kind of tourism could create a town where almost every commercial building revolves around putting up tourists? Eco-tourism, it turns out. The district around Phong Nha contains roughly 300 caves- so far, at least. New caves are still being discovered by intrepid explorers. It was not until 1991 that a local Vietnamese man discovered Son Doong Cave in this region- the largest cave in the world. It wasn’t until 2009 that the cave was opened up to tourism. Oxalis can take you through the cave for a price that I can’t even recall because it makes my head spin just to think about it. Do not try to sneak in here, either. The cave has a surging river that makes crossing certain sections extremely difficult, and just getting in the front door requires abseiling equipment.

But fear not, just because you can’t easily do the biggest cave doesn’t mean you can’t see some mind blowing caves. Paradise Cave, Dark Cave, Phong Nha Cave, The Lady Cave… these are some of the most accessible caves in the region, and none of these will disappoint, unless you are easily frustrated by large flocks of tourists. With the right guide and support, it is possible to see some of the lesser known and nearly undeveloped caves too. Each one that I visited offered a swathe of new stalactites, stalgamites, rivers, pools and caverns so big you’d swear you were on a beach, if it weren’t for the cave ceiling a hundred metres above.

Those not content with simply sightseeing might prefer a side of adrenaline served with their cave feast. The Dark Cave offers something of the sort. Get harnessed into a zipline, fly along a river, get to the cave entrance, swim up a river, scramble barefoot over muddy boulders and get to a mud pool. Then, let the battle begin as mud flinging backpackers get rowdy and learn quickly that buoyancy in mud pools is a totally different experience to treading water. Muddy waters literally push you up to the surface. Weird stuff. The mud  is meant to be good for your skin, apparently.

The Phong Nha Botanical Gardens should probably be callled the Phong Nha National Park, but that name is already taken by the region in which the Dark and Paradise Caves sit. The Botanical Gardens were so good I went back twice, riding a scooter on the unsealed gravel roads of Highway 20. The Gardens feature two lovely waterfalls, and if you get there early you might be lucky enough to have the waterfall pool all to yourself. Well, almost to yourself. You know those little fish that you sometimes see in spa resorts that nibble at your feet to ‘cleanse’ them? Well, they live in the wilds of Phong Nha waterfalls too, and they get bigger. Expect regular love taps from those little tackers on your behind. Fish aside, the park offers a great hike around Vietnamese wilderness. Expect to sweat, grunt and scramble through rugged tracks that are so steep that at some points that they have permanently tethered ropes to brace your descent. Maybe bring your hiking shoes here.

OK, that’s most of the countryside and nature bases covered. That’s not all there was to this town for me though, and I managed to knock over the most popular natural landmarks here in 3-4 days. If you’re on an express tour, I’d recommend staying 3-5 nights in this town, at least- especially if you are an outdoors type, or enjoy a good motorbike ride.

But if you like it, there’s a lot more to do. Sunsets at farmstay villas, specialty foods and the option to slaughter, butcher and cook your own farm grown chicken are a few of the activities offered by the tourism operators around these parts.

Farmstay sunset

The music was what held me in Phong Nha, after the caves and natural beauty of the region lured me in. I was playing a lot of guitar after I purchased my Indonesian baby in Da Nang, and one thing lead to another- after a few rousing choruses of Hallelujah out the back of the Easy Tiger hostel, the staff offered me the opportunity to play gigs at both their hostel and their sister accommodation which turned out to be one of the most heart-meltingly gorgeous spots I stayed at. A week and bit of shows later and I’d honed my skills as a performer as well as having the privilege of showing my craft to a lot of interesting people. That, and I’d realised that it’s hard to get a sound system louder than a packed hostel at 9pm when all anyone really wants is a rendition of Wonderwall.

I was also lucky enough to play the cajon drum with a group of hard working Phillipino musicians who’d travelled through many parts of South East Asia playing shows to all sorts of people, in loads of crazy places. Sure, my love for the Backstreets Boys is kinda waning these days, but belting that wooden drum to the tune of some soulful voices and rhythmic acoustic guitar felt pretty rewarding when it got the whole crowd on their feet, dancing, singing and laughing.

A sneaky cover at the Phong Nha Farmstay

The next and final destination for me in Vietnam was Hanoi, where I was to fly out to Singapore from. Maybe it was just because I’d had a month’s worth of experience since HCMC, but I felt very relaxed most of the time in Hanoi- it is a pretty city in many places. The only time things got a bit intense was at a local restaurant with a group of very excitable and friendly local gents who must not have seen many whities walk in to their local watering hole. It turns out that someone offering you a few (mushy) peanuts from a bowl can be understood as that person selling you a bowl of peanuts. After politely refusing, and enjoying some excellent food, we backed out and navigated the bustling streets, back to the life of pedestrians sharing with scooters and cars just to walk from A to B. Excellent restaurants, beautifully crafted souvenirs, egg coffee, and North Face on the cheap are a few of the reasons Hanoi stood out. After a few days the feeling of JAFC (Just Another… City) set in, and I was pretty stoked to get on the plane to Singapore. More on that adventure soon.

Source: trekkingtodd