This leg of my self-guided Mekong Delta trip explores pastoral lands inland from the Cambodian border, via the magnificent Tra Su cajataput forest. This is a little-known pocket of the country, but if you think of Vietnam as a curled seahorse, Chau Doc sits right at the tip of the tail.
On a bicycle, this ride should be manageable in just over half a day. That gives you some extra time to explore Ba Chuc, and/or to break your journey with a visit to Tra Su.
If you do go to Tra Su (which you really should) I’d recommend factoring in at least two hours. Shady and cool, the park is probably the ideal way to see out the hottest part of the day.
Chau Doc is a mid-sized city famous for its bustling market and popular border crossing with Cambodia.
Route info
Distance: 49km
Terrain: Flat
Highlights: Pastoral vistas, Tra Su forest and bird sanctuary
Watch out for: Midday heat; unruly traffic coming into Chau Doc.
Map
Heading out of Ba Chúc
The first few kilometres out of Ba Chúc offer pleasant if unremarkable countryside scenery.
Not far out of town, it’s nice take a quick detour through quiet mango groves for a quick the impressive Núi Cấ́m mountain. (Continuing down this road and looping back would also make a very nice ride in itself if you wanted to spend more time in the area).
Back on the main route, the landscape gradually opens up with good views across tranquil farmland onto nearby peaks.
It’s a fairly simple matter of heading north and then west on quiet rural roads until you reach the Trà Sư ecological park and bird sanctuary.
If you’re up for a longer, more challenging route, check out my map for a scenic detour that skirts around Phu Cuong Hill.
Trà Sư forest
Variously referred to as a forest or bird sanctuary, most people visit Tra Su on a day trip from Chau Doc, around 20 kilometres away.
The area, which has unique ecological value, is also around halfway between Ba Chuc and Châu Đoc, making it an ideal place to shelter from the midday sun.
Tra Su can only be described as exquisitely beautiful. In fact, the two travellers I met on the boat ride, having just travelled through Vietnam for three weeks, nominated it as their favourite destination in the country.
The photos here don’t really do the place justice, partly because it was a drizzly, overcast kind of day, partly because my camera batteries ran out (these pics were all taken on my phone).
Tourism here is done tastefully, thoughtfully and efficiently, which is great to see in a country where genuine ecotourism is in its infancy.
Tickets
Your first stop on arrival will be at a ticket office, which is located at the south-west corner of the park (see map). The site is well-staffed and there should be no issues with parking your bike or finding someone to look after your bags.
The entrance fee includes two boat trips: one leg by motorboat, then by row-boat.
If you are in a group of two or three, tickets will set you back 75K VND each. For a solo traveller, the fee will be 150K.
Once you’ve purchased a ticket from the indoor ticket office, you’ll need to show it to a staff member who will direct you on to a boat. Life vests are provided, and the boats are in good condition.
Boat trip
Even though my visit took place in light rain, there were still plenty of large waterbirds.
The boat journey takes you through verdant tunnels of vegetation that for me conjured up scenes from the Lord of the Rings – I keep expecting to see a boatful of elves heading towards us.
While the first part of the trip is by motorboat, on reaching the heart of the sanctuary you are transferred into a rowboat, allowing you to glide silently without disturbing the bird life.
Here’s some video I took on my mobile phone:
Restaurant and observation tower
On the way back you’ll be offered an optional stop at the restaurant and observation tower; and even if you aren’t stopping for food it is definitely worth checking out the view from the tower.
Of course, there’s a good chance you will want to have lunch at Trà Sư. If so, be aware that the menu is more geared towards large groups of domestic tourists, with local specialties such as crocodile, frog and river fish. It’s also all in Vietnamese, though the waiter spoke quite good English.
As always in these situations, fried rice with egg and vegetables (Cơm chiên trứng/rau) is a safe option. For 50K VND you’ll get a huge serving, probably enough for two people.
Water spinach with garlic (Rau muống tỏi) is also on the menu for 30K, and coffee is available (confusingly) from a separate vendor.
Tra Su to Chau Doc via charming canal paths
Getting to the city of Chau Doc from Tra Su Sanctuary is both easy and pleasant. After exiting the ticket area, ride along the peaceful easternmost border of the park, stopping to admire this gorgeous view at the other side.
From there, it’s a matter of cutting across to the Sông Đào canal road and following this for around 10 kilometres before turning off towards town.
Cycling along this broad canal in the late afternoon was one of the highlights of my Mekong Delta trip. It is hard to imagine a more relaxed, tranquil place to cruise along watching life going by.
If you are following my Mekong Delta cycling tour, this will be your first glimpse of a quintessential canal road, complete with barges, bridges and village life – and the experience is magical.
It helps that the path is in such good condition – a 10 kilometre line of smooth concrete. In fact, most of the canal roads in this area are very well maintained, making this an easy and fun area to explore if you want to seek an alternative way into town.
(Tip – if using Google Maps, look for canals with a path on either side – as a rule, one will be paved).
Entering Chau Doc
I’d recommend avoiding busy Đương ̣91 in favour of some smaller roads, though a little bit of extra navigation required.
Take some extra caution when cycling through Chau Doc – I found the driving fairly aggressive and erratic compared to similar-sized regional cities in Vietnam.
Jungle detour
If you’re looking to make this a longer and more challenging cycling day, consider checking out a remote jungle road skirting the Nui Phú Cương (Phu Cuong Hill).
This is a beautiful route, and if you are genuinely looking to find yourself in the ‘middle of nowhere’ it delivers in spades.
From the little hamlet of Po Thi, a short stretch passes duck farms and some great rice field views.
The road circling the hill is paved on one side, but the most scenic route involves a sandy track on the western side.
This track is better suited to mountain bike – my loaded-up flat bar road bike managed… but only just. The terrain gets a little hilly too.
A note on travelling to Châu Đoc via the canal road
It is possible to take a seemingly more direct route to Chau Doc via the QL/N1 canal road. I tried this and wouldn’t recommend it.
Parts of the route are nice, but at the time of writing, N1 is a horribly unsurfaced road with lots of stones, dust, and heavy construction vehicles.
Read also:
Guide to staying and eating in Chau Doc.
