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    Travels in Ha Giang and Ba Be Lake

    / Last updated 07 Jan 2013

    Introduction

    It's safe to say that Ha Giang province is the most spectacular in all of Vietnam - and that's a big call. And at least for now, travellers are few and far between. In this gallery, we take a look at Ha Giang and Ba Be Lake.
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • ©Photo: Mark Bowyer
    • We broke up the journey from Hanoi to Ha Giang stopping around half way at Vu Linh, where there are some pretty minority villages and Thac Ba Lake.
    • Thac Ba Lake is Vietnam's largest. It was formed in the 70s by a hydroelectric dam.
    • With great views across the lake, the basic but charming La Vie Vu Linh was our home for the night.
    • One of the more bizarre sightings of the trip was this Rolls Royce in Ha Giang Town. Ha Giang is one of the country's most remote and poorest provinces. Communist Vietnam seem to have bought into "trickle down" economics with even more enthusiasm than its erstwhile US enemy. It's an even more modest trickle too.
    • From Ha Giang, to Dong Van town, the views become ever more spectacular.
    • En route to Dong Van.
    • Ethnic Hmong woman making tofu.
    • Food is a delight. This is goat hotpot - a local favourite.
    • Raw goat blood jelly is a local specialty. Some of our party tried it. I politely declined.
    • Bear bile, which I am reliably advised is banned, is advertised with seeming impunity in many restaurants in the far north.
    • The twin mountain peaks at Quan Ba outside Ha Giang.
    • Near Quan Ba, Ha Giang
    • The area is dotted with picturesque minority villages - many of which (such as this) offer great little homestays for travellers. Like elsewhere in Vietnam, the people are incredibly friendly and welcoming.
    • Ha Giang homestay
    • Ha Giang province enroute to Dong Van
    • Ethnic minorities, Ha Giang, VIetnam
    • Ha Giang town to Dong Van, Ha Giang Province
    • Popular Motel - another homestay in a cute village.
    • Hmong village, Ha Giang
    • Ha Giang, Vietnam
    • Ha Giang, Vietnam
    • The family vehicle - Ha Giang style - with six aboard.
    • Travel in the far north is a fairly carnivorous experience. There are veges but vegetarians may struggle.
    • And while it washes down well with a Hanoi beer, the locals prefer you share a rice wine. You'll struggle to refuse the constant invitations.
    • Local embroidery, Ha Giang.
    • Vuong Palace - the French built early twentieth century palace of the local Hmong ruler.
    • Vuong Hmong Palace, Ha Giang
    • The last Hmong King of the area. He judiciously teamed up with Uncle Ho's men.
    • Descendant of the former Hmong King, Ha Giang
    • Ha Giang town to Dong Van, Ha Giang Province
    • We hiked an easy circuit of around 15kms from Dong Van town. Even in the mist, it was spectacular.
    • Old stone walls around a minority village near Dong Van.
    • The border belt with China.
    • We stumbled across a mini-forest of magnificent old trees.
    • The ethnic minority kids are doing away with traditional dress.
    • A Hmong wedding, Dong Van, Ha Giang
    • The locals invited me to join the festivity.
    • Dong Van town still has a great collection of original houses.
    • The short drive from Dong Van to Meo Vac. The finest road trip in Vietnam - even in our less than perfect conditions. Road improvements in recent years mean that it's more easily and safely negotiated.
    • Dong Van to Meo Vac
    • Sunday market at Meo Vac near the Chinese border is a definite highlight of the trip.
    • Sunday market at Meo Vac.
    • Sunday market at Meo Vac.
    • Sunday market at Meo Vac.
    • Sunday market at Meo Vac.
    • Sunday market at Meo Vac. With dogs and squealing pigs, the livestock section isn't for everyone.
    • Sunday market at Meo Vac.
    • Noodles lined up for hungry marketeers - Meo Vac.
    • Ga den - black chicken. Meo Vac
    • From Meo Vac, we commence the long journey to Ba Be Lake - the spectacle continues.
    • Even in these remote parts, the landscape is dotted with cemeteries remembering fallen communist soldiers. The tribute on the left reads - "the generations remember the contributution of the martyrs". And on the right side, Ho Chi Minh's most oft quoted words "Nothing is more precious than independence and freedom".
    • Bonding with the manager of the road building team enroute to Ba Be Lake.
    • Ba Be Lake, Vietnam
    • Homestays in these stilt houses are the best places to stay on Ba Be Lake.
    • Ba Be Lake is Vietnam's largest naturally occurring lake. It's dotted with islands and protruding land masses disguising its vastness. It feels more like a river in many places.
    • Ba Be Lake.
    • Ba Be Lake sits in the middle of a National Park rich in birdlife and local fauna.
    • Late harvest on the shore of Ba Be Lake.
    • Big thanks to Dave Mannix and his team from Intrepid Travel in Hanoi. I travelled with them as part of their exploratory trip at my own expense.
    Quicklink - Introduction - Ha Giang