Heading to the basalt reef of Ganh Da Dia I brave the blaring horns of Highway One for a brief coastal stretch before plunging back into the haven of Phu Yen’s green rolling countryside.
First it is necessary to tear myself away from the lapping waves of the white sands beach on the Tu Nham peninsula, where I spend a leisurely morning swinging in a hammock.
It’s a task made easier by the clouds rolling in and smoke drifting over from a nearby agricultural burn off, reminders that weather (and life) in Vietnam never stands still.
Back tracking along the peninsula road I jolt and splash over badly surfaced, flooded roads. For all its natural beauty this area could do with some love and care from local authorities.
Still, Tu Nham has definitely filled my craving for beach time and its good to see it before the developers do.
Cycling the Phu Yen coastline… the journey continues
Back on the main route, I take Highway One, a road I’ve taken great pains to avoid. Here it is the only option threading its way through a narrow section of coastline hemmed in by hills.
Trucks roar past with their fumes. It isn’t great cycling but feels safe enough with the wide shoulder and relatively light traffic. Plus, cycling on the highway is kind of badass, a bit rock’n’roll.
Lunch in Song Cau
My first stop for the day is at the seaside town of Song Cau. A strong fishy smell on the edge of town lessens when I reach the centre and I pull over at a street food stall for a late lunch.
By pure luck I’ve chanced upon one of the most delightful street food experiences of my trip. A gaudy Cao Dai structure overlooks a quiet, leafy crossroads.
A gentle hospitable older couple bring me a much needed iced coffee. Soon, a bowl brimming with crispy spring rolls salad appears, topped with fresh peanuts. It’s delicious. (Location link here)
Harbour views at hilltop cafes
Leaving Song Cau there are two choices: Stick with Highway One or take a smaller but nicer road up a very steep hill.
The steep route comes with the reward of breathtaking views over the harbour. To see them you’ll need to pop in to one of the hilltop cafes, such as Café Gio Bien. There, rows of hammocks line the balcony and a charismatic owner urges me to tell all my friends about his amazing cafe. You’re welcome.
Another ten kilometres’ of highway follows before I turn turn off on to a quiet and smooth road (DH31) leading towards Ganh Da Dia and its famous basalt reef.
Joining throngs of locals enjoying after school snacks stop off at a riverside barbecue stall. A dizzying array of snacks on skewers are available – just point at what you want and wait for it to come to your table.
Mang Lang church
The Mang Lang Catholic church, built in 1892 is a local landmark and well worth a quick stop. A series of rolling hills follows before a cluster of village streets close to the coast.
ROUTE TIP: A narrow wooden bridge (map link here) offers a tempting short cut on paper. The creaky toll bridge is a popular photo opportunity for locals. By all means check it out! I’ve ridden this route twice – on one occasion the roads on the far side were so terrible I had to turn back. On the other occasion the bridge was closed due to flood damage.
Back roads to Ganh Da Dia
I continue through a maze of narrow lanes to find my destination, the trendy Da Dia Farmstay, only to be met with a locked gate and a small paper sign. The place is closed for the rainy season, and I hadn’t called ahead. Oops.
As always these things are what you make of them, and hurrying now in the fading light I find a cheaper and perfectly acceptable (if extremely small) room at the Luc Thanh homestay and restaurant.
For the second time that day I’m smothered with three generations of kind family hospitality and huge, cheap portions of delicious food. An earnest young man speaks to me in very capable English, which he’s learnt through songs and movies. Amazing stuff.
“Of course you will wake up at 5.30am to visit the rocks,” he says, in a tone that brokered no argument.
Ummm, I was not EXACTLY planning to get up that early but if that was the thing to do here, I was up for the challenge!
Dawn at the Da Dia reef
So, bright and early, the next morning I hit up the walking paths of Ganh Da Dia, a reef made up of hundreds of interlocking basalt columns.
Dull, heavily overcast skies overrode any chances of a sunrise, however it was a peaceful time to be there and I enjoyed walking the short paths around the cliff and the views down the coastline. The rock formations are kind of funky and I like the shapes and layers of colour.
Ganh Da Dia is a popular local tourist stopover and I can imagine the site would be a far less pleasant place to be when overrun with visitors. But I’m glad I’ve seen it and looking forward to cycling this green and attractive coast down to Tuy Hoa city.
