A few days in the eco-tourism town of Phong Nha offered a much needed chance to relax after a couple of weeks on the road, more importantly to cycle a stunning loop through the national park.
Phong Nha remains one of my favourite places in Vietnam.
The town has built itself up around tourism, which isn’t always a good thing, but the people here genuinely care about the landscape and it’s not all that long ago that locals were living a subsistence lifestyle.
On a beautiful day the riverside area is simply stunning, with deck chairs to match, and there are some charming restaurants and guesthouses at the western end of the town.
It was an absolute pleasure on this trip to return a second time to the Phong Nha Friendly Home, where Mr Viet showered me with hospitality.
A former chef, Viet looked after me when I arrived freezing and bedraggled in a pouring rainstorm, then cooked a truly delicious family meal which we all ate together.
A visit to this area a wouldn’t be complete without a ride around the famous “Phong Nha loop”, a 60-km circuit usually completed on hired motorbikes with stopovers at the excellent and huge Paradise Cave (Dark Cave is also on this route though I’ve never been there).
Independent cycling the Phong Nha loop
So it was to my immense delight that the weather, so stormy and miserable the day, did a massive 360 degree turn, the next day presenting a beautiful clear sunny day bringing sharp contrast to the colours and shapes of the landscape.
Apart from a few steep hills, the riding conditions couldn’t have been better, with smooth tarmac and very few drivers out and about.
Just to add to the sense of occasion, a friendly guard waved me through an archway marking the start of the national park zone, just out of Phong Nha town.
From there the road started to climb steadily towards beguiling mountains in the distance.
After a steep section of climbing just past the Botannic Gardens site, the road winds around through dense jungle. There are some steep twists and turns and I’ve been warned the road here gets extremely slippery.
Since this type of landscape is so often obscured by mist In the clear light, I drink in the sight of these majestic pink-tinged limestone cliffs.
After cycling through dense jungle, a crossroads intersection with the Ho Chi Minh Highway opens everything up with a dramatic piece of open space. I loved these colourful red and white crash barriers for a photo.
Hills mostly behind, the route winds around to meet the Con River, which in the rainy season turns from its usual turquoise blue into a dramatic shade of red-brown. At this point there’s a quick turn off to Paradise Cave, which is a major visitor attraction for very good reason.
Past Dark Cave the road leaves the national park behind, but jungled hills are a constant presence to the left, with the river and farmland to the right, and eateries also popping up. In some places ancestral tombs are tucked in to he base of the hillside.
While the full 60km ‘Phong Nha Loop’ goes all the way up to the intersection of Highway 15 and 16, I was keen to explore the less-travelled back roads cutting back across the river and through the tiny village of Bau Sen. A new steel suspension bridge (Cau Treo Than Sen) is the star attraction.
More tombs sit mysteriously amongst the limestone karsts just outside the pretty village of Bau Sen, where I continue along this path until realising it unmaintained and unrideable.
Luckily it is easy enough to circle back and find a smooth and pretty road linking through to the main highway.
My nifty shortcut made for a shorter loop (around 42km) allowing for an afternoon of relaxing by the river, finding kayaks for hire (from Carambola guesthouse) and enjoying the best smoothie of all time (purple dragonfruit and banana) at the Phong Nha Vegan restaurant.
