Ea Sô Nature Reserve is located on National Highway 29, 20km from the center of Ea Kar district, with convenient transportation access. It covers a total area of 26,848.2 hectares and boasts diverse forest vegetation, including evergreen closed forests, semi-deciduous closed forests, broadleaf open forests, large tree and shrub woodlands, tropical dry tall grasses, mixed semi-deciduous forests with bamboo and rattan, and bamboo and thorny bamboo forests.
The forest contains many rare and valuable timber species such as teak, rosewood, crape myrtle, ironwood, and sandalwood… With a diverse range of wildlife, the Ea Sô Nature Reserve is home to 279 species belonging to 92 families, 29 orders, and 4 classes: mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians.
Among them are 69 rare species such as the red wolf, golden deer, large muntjac, wild buffalo, civet, gaur, and mountain goat... Regarding forest plants, there are 716 species belonging to 141 families, 47 orders in 7 classes and 5 plant divisions such as velvet vines, ferns, magnolias, and clubmoss.
Located within the Ea Sô nature reserve is the Krông H'Năng hydroelectric lake, situated at an altitude of 240m and covering an area of 1,518 hectares. It offers ideal conditions for tourism development with various water-based recreational activities, including boat racing, speedboat rides, and recreational fishing on weekends.
Bay Waterfall, located within the Ea Sô Nature Reserve, is approximately 30 meters high and has three tiers with a strong flow of water.
Visiting Ea Sô Nature Reserve means arriving at station number 9, a place with a diverse ecological forest, rich flora and fauna, and a stream that flows year-round. Rocks of all sizes line the stream, creating a beautiful, poetic, and incredibly romantic landscape.
The Ea Sô Nature Reserve boasts rare and valuable ecosystems and wildlife, coupled with a majestic and pristine landscape, creating favorable conditions for developing ecotourism combined with sightseeing, relaxation, and environmental education for the younger generation.
When the leaves of the trees in the Ea Sô Nature Reserve turn yellow, it signals the end of the old year and the approaching New Year. Tet (Lunar New Year) is a time for family reunions, a sacred moment when the old year gives way to the new. However, for the forest rangers, their work of patrolling and protecting the forest continues tirelessly.
Deep within the forests, the rangers of the Ea Sô Nature Reserve are still busy with patrols to protect the forest, trekking through the woods and crossing streams to inspect the forest, regardless of scorching sun or heavy rain.
Nguyen Dac Thinh, head of Forest Ranger Station No. 1 in the Ea So Nature Reserve, said: “In 22 years of working here, I've only had one year of leave to celebrate Tet (Lunar New Year) fully with my family. The rest of the time, I have to stay in the forest throughout Tet. In the early years of my job, having to celebrate New Year's Eve surrounded by mountains and forests without electricity or phone signal made me miss home and feel sad, but gradually I got used to it.”
Every New Year's Eve, the brothers gather around the campfire, eat some sticky rice cakes, drink a glass of wine to get into the spring atmosphere, and encourage each other, saying, "That's the nature of the job of protecting the forest; we have to accept a hard, deprived life, full of dangers, and not being able to go home to our families during holidays and Tet."
Having spent the whole year traversing hills, forests, and streams, forest rangers all long to return home to reunite with their families at the end of the year. However, due to their duties, they put aside their personal joys and remain to protect the peace of the forests.
According to Le Minh Tien, Director of the Ea So Nature Reserve: "The forest area under our management is located in the two districts of Ea Kar and Krong Nang, bordering Phu Yen and Gia Lai provinces, so forest management and protection face many difficulties."
"In particular, the Tet holiday coincides with the peak of the dry season, when forest trails and openings are dry and easy to navigate, so offenders often choose this time to encroach on forest resources. If we are negligent, the forest will be affected, so we have determined that the task of managing and protecting the forest must be prioritized. Although enjoying the Tet holiday means some sacrifice, because it is our duty, we are happy to do our job."
With a commitment to preserving the peace of the forests, for many years, whether during Tet or any other holiday, the Ea Sô Nature Reserve has maintained approximately 70% of its staff on duty.
The unit only allows a limited number of employees to take the full Tet holiday leave as stipulated, while the remaining staff at the stations and teams can only take turns taking time off to celebrate Tet with their families for a few days.
Nhuận Lê
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