Readers Tran Tuan shared his journey through 3 majestic caves located deep in the core zone of Phong Nha Ke Bang.
Pygmy (Quang Binh) is recognized by the British Royal Cave Association (BCRA) as the 4th largest cave in the world. Located in the system of Tiger Cave (Tiger Cave), this is a beautiful trekking route for those who love to explore and conquer adventure.
The majestic cave contains a primeval forest inside. Photo: Dang Thuy Duong.
The journey to discover the full length of Tiger Cave, Over Cave and Pygmy Cave is currently not conquered by many tourists. These caves are considered masterpieces of nature, with wild and magnificent landscapes.
Below is a 3 day 2 night schedule of readers Tran Tuan.
Journeys:
Mountain climbing: 20 km
Cave discovery: 5.5 km
Swimming pool: 300 m (optional)
Minimum age to participate: 12 years old
Cost:
Tour price does not include air tickets: 7.7 million VND (with 20% discount)
Homestay 2 nights: 700,000 VND
2-way airport shuttle: 1.2 million VND
Schedule:
I flew at 18:00 from Tan Son Nhat (Ho Chi Minh City), about 20 o’clock then landed at Dong Hoi airport (Quang Binh), boarded a transfer to the homestay to rest to prepare for the journey the next day.
The first day
At 7:00 am, the group gathered for breakfast, then listened to the tour guide introduce briefly about the schedule and some safety regulations during the trip.
8:00 am, the group starts to move to the starting point. 9am start to go through the forest, the first move is quite easy, the group will stop for lunch and rest in the middle of the forest for about 1 hour.
Members will receive an overview of the trip before commencing.
After lunch break, you will continue moving, at 15:00 the group will approach Pygmy cave, the campsite will be right at the mouth of the cave.
After more than half a day walking through the forest, the members were quite tired, so after arranging the furniture and dividing the tents for each person, the group went to the pool to bathe. Dinner at 5:00 pm, the group exchange and chat until 9pm, ending the first day.
The scene appeared majestic, overwhelming.
Monday
After breakfast, the porters (porters) will assist people wearing climbing protective equipment to proceed deep inside Pygmy cave. Yesterday to the cave entrance was overwhelmed by the beautiful scenery. This is the time when the whole group is quite tired.
Inside the cave, after climbing for about 10 m, it will cross the dinosaur’s spine, continue to follow the seat belts along the cliffs to the back door.
The members entered the Pygmy cave later.
After leaving Pygmy cave, you will continue to move the forest path for about 30 minutes to reach the mouth of Over cave. Preparing the safety equipment, the members of the delegation began to move through the cave, about 3.2 km long and about 1.5 hours of traveling.
The inside of the cave has absolutely no light. Flashlight is both a tool to observe the road as well as to watch giant stalactites with different shapes.
Continue the journey to explore Hang Over. Photo: Dang Thuy Duong.
This unique stalactite system was formed hundreds of millions of years ago. The highlight in the cave is a huge 125 m deep hole called “Massive Attack” containing dry limestone wells and cave pearls of varying sizes and shapes.
Beautiful moving gems.
Leaving Over cave, the group will rest for lunch. Then continue across the forest to reach the mouth of the Tiger cave.
The group will leave the luggage on the bank and start swimming through the underground river in the cave (about 150 m), the water in the river is clear and cool. At the end of the underground river is a beautiful view, the stone steps covered with green grass, the stalactite platform above has water pouring down like a shower.
Then the group moved to another way inside the Tiger cave, swimming about 500 meters through the Kong Collapse sinkhole. This section, the baggage will be loaded onto the buoy. At 4:00, the group arrives at Kong Collapse, which is the camping ground for the second night. The landscape at Kong Collapse, according to Tuan, is the most beautiful in the whole trip.
The third day
On the morning of the third day, the group will swing on the cliffs of Kong Collapse to take pictures. After breakfast, you will swim about 300 meters to reach the exit (this move you can choose to take a float boat, because going through a long physical journey sometimes not feeling well).
At the exit, after changing clothes and bringing their luggage, the group will go to the forest to return to the gathering point.
14:00 will arrive at the gathering point, and take the shuttle bus back to the tour office at 15:00, ending the journey.
I stayed at the homestay for one night and took a morning flight from Dong Hoi to Tan Son Nhat at 10:00 am the next morning.
The whole group ended the journey impressively.
Some note:
- Should use backpacks with support belts at the hips and chest to reduce pressure on the shoulders
Must use trekking shoes, wearing regular sneakers will cause more difficulties, and if the shoes have drainage ditches and dry as quickly as possible.
Clothing should be cool and light
Should bring a small towel to wet wipe the body, effervescent tablets, energy bars, patches, muscle pain relievers, flashlight, knee protector thick or covered with metal pad, gloves with good grip, dry shampoo
No need to carry too many backup chargers because in the condition of loss of signal, the phone can be maintained for quite a long time
This trip does not require too much fitness, but if you have training for the trip, it’s still better.
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