Journey into the legendary Hua Ma

Visitors to Hua Ma cave.

We arrived at Hua Ma on an autumn morning, when white clouds were still hovering around the top of Lonely Mountain. On the journey to Hua Ma, we heard Ms. Truong Thi Trung, a tour guide of Ba Be National Park, introduce Hua Ma as if it were a dream, yet a reality.

Hua Ma in the Tay language means Horse Head. The story goes that, in ancient times, when the enemy army invaded, the whole village ran into the mountains to hide. When the enemy discovered them, they immediately sealed the cave entrance, burying the villagers in darkness, and then the mournful cries echoed endlessly.

Many years later, a general rode his horse across the Cho Leng River. When he reached the foot of the mountain, the horse suddenly neighed unusually long. The general was surprised and set up camp on the riverbank. That night, he heard wailing sounds coming from the mountain. He asked the locals and learned the story. He sacrificed the horse and used its head as an offering in front of the cave. Strangely, after the offering, the wailing sounds suddenly stopped. From then on, the cave was called Hua Ma, as a way to remember and tell the story to future generations.

Ms. Trung’s story made us even more eager to explore the world of “Horse Head” cave. After climbing over 300 stone steps and weaving through the primeval forest canopy, we arrived at the cave entrance. Standing at the cave entrance, looking down, we saw the gentle Cho Leng River reflecting the majestic mountains and forests. In the distance, the village was huddled together, next to the terraced fields in the golden rice season, as beautiful as a painting.

Right from the entrance, a cool breeze rushed out, like the deep breath of heaven and earth. The light outside gradually receded behind, opening before our eyes a deep darkness. Just a few steps, the familiar world seemed to be left behind, giving way to a magical and primitive realm.

Hua Ma Cave is over 700 meters long, with a ceiling height of over 50 meters and a width of 30 to 50 meters. Inside is a "forest" of stalactites and stalagmites of various shapes, some sparkling white like newly formed crystals, some with a dark, somber color... evidence of thousands of years of formation.

Many stalactites were formed over thousands of years with many shapes.

The stalactites inside the cave are very beautiful with many different shapes.

The deeper into the cave, the more stalactites there are, with a myriad of rich shapes, allowing viewers to imagine many different images, such as: Buddha statues meditating, mothers holding their children, pen towers reaching straight up to the sky, stone guitars... Some blocks are curved like arches leading to heaven, some look like the Ruyi scepter of the character Sun Wukong in the movie Journey to the West... In the middle of the cave is a spacious open space, standing here you can see the whole cave.

Hua Ma was only surveyed for tourism in 2004. Previously, the road to the cave entrance was quite difficult to travel. Now, the path has been created with steps for visitors to walk conveniently and safely. The cave is also equipped with a lighting system, the light shines on the stalactites, creating a shimmering, magical scene.

Hua Ma is not only beautiful in its stalactite shapes, standing in the cave you can hear the echoes from the high ceiling. The melodious, high-pitched sounds make the space more mysterious.

Located in the Ba Be National Park, Hua Ma is not noisy and shows off, but quietly with a special attraction. Every year, thousands of tourists come to the locality to experience and learn about the indigenous culture, the people and the mountains of the Northeast in general, and to explore Hua Ma in particular.

Choi In Jun, a Korean tourist, said: This is my first time coming to Hua Ma, what impressed me the most are the beautiful stalactites in the heart of the mountain. The beauty here is wild, giving a completely different feeling from the places I have been. I hope I will have the opportunity to come back with my Korean friends.

Leaving Hua Ma, I could still hear the sound of the wind blowing through the cave, the echoes resounding like a farewell. This place not only showed me the beauty of geology and nature, but also gave us an experience of a journey that crossed the boundary of reality to touch the place where nature and humans together write the story of the mountains and forests of the Northeast...

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/van-hoa/202508/hanh-trinh-vao-coi-huyen-thoai-hua-ma-dbb5a10/