Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park

About 500 kilometers south of Hanoi , you would find Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park , a national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Phong Nha-ke National Park is known for its proximity to its Laotian counterpart, Him Namno Nature Park. In fact, Phong Nha-Ke National Park is located in 200,000 acres of area in Vietnam bordering another 200,000 with the Him Namno Nature Park.

About 300 caves and grottoes form two large karst regions here. Karst is a topography made of soluble bedrock; on most occasions carbonate rock or limestone rock. The 300 caves and grottoes make up for about 70 kilometers of area in the Phong Nha-Ke National Park . Longest river running underground and Largest passageways – these are couple of milestones of Phong Nha-Ke. In fact, these milestones hold world records for what they are now!

The most beautiful of the 300 caves in this locality is known as Phong Nha-Ke, thus giving name to the National Park.

Territories located in – Tan Trach, Thuong Trach, Phuc Trach, Xuan Trach; all in Bo Trach district of the Quang Binh province.

How to reach Phong Nha-Ke National Park – Drive from Hanoi for 500 kilometers and you would reach Phong Nha-Ke national park. Remember, the roads are a bit rough and it would take you 12-14 hours to reach the place. Alternatively, you could drive down from Da Nang . The easiest way to reach Phong Nha-Ke is by rail. This place is just 28 kilometers west of the Saigon-Hanoi rail link.

Climate – Phong Nha-ke boasts of a tropical climate round the year with temperatures at a median of 23-25 degree Celsius. It can get really hot in the summer with the maximum temperature touching high 40s and really cold in winter with the temperature shooting down single digits. Be sure to be adequately covered for either season, and by the way it rains hard during monsoon season too!

Mounts and Summits – You just cannot skip seeing the dozen plus peaks that you will find in Phong Nha-Ke. Most of these peaks are karstic in nature, with Co Rilata the tallest amongst all the peaks.

Rivers – Phong Nha-ke is known to have the longest running underground river. Visiting Phong Nha-ke, do not miss out on seeing the Son and Chay rivers. These rivers are responsible for forming the structure of most caves and grottoes you would see in Phong Nha-ke.

Caves and grottoes – What else is this place all about? With 300 caves dotting the topography of Phong Nha-ke National Park , expect to stumble on to one or the other cave every 5 minutes. There is no way though that you can miss out on the Phong Nha cave, the most beautiful cave in this place that has given this place its name.

The Tien Son Cave is another of the places that can be visited by people on expeditions. This place is not safe for tourists, with the way the cave opens up underground. Expeditionists though have reported top-quality stalactites and stalagmites in this cave.

96% of Phong Nha-Ke is made up of forests. Approximately 75% of this forest area is a tropical rain forest area with the forests on top of the limestone rocks. In Phong Nha-Ke National Park , you would find evergreen trees with a liberal scattering of deciduous trees. Truly, it is a botanic' delight to be in Phong Nha-Ke National Park.

The Phong Nha-Ke National Park is also a place where you could find rare species of vertebrates and generas, apart from it being home to 256 genera and 381 species of vertebrates. Expect to find Francois Langur in a herd here, along with their Hatinh and Black counterparts. In addition to them, you would also find the Asiatic Black Bear and Sunda Pangolins, two species that are considered endangered.

Expect to find a lot of birds chirping around in the wet forests of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park . A recent World Wildlife report suggested that you could find more than 200 species of butterflies here.

Discover the caves and grottoes on a boat – Speak to a local travel agency and arrange for a boat to take you to the 300 caves and grottoes you would find in Phong Nha-Ke.

Mountain climbing – There are many mountains in Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park that you could afford climbing. These peaks are all of 1000 meters tall, so climbing them should not be a problem for an expert mountaineer.

Adventure boating on the Chay River – Visitors who want to have an adrenaline pump can get boating on the Chay river and move upwards to the primitive forests of Tro Mong. This route is especially ‘rocky' what with a lot of waterfalls and whirlpools greeting you, as you ride by.

Phong Nha-Ke Bang is a place that offers something to everyone. If you are adventure minded, and like exploring stalactites and stalagmites, this is the place to be!