Son Doong Cave is famous all over the world and is an attractive destination for tourists who love exploring nature and adventure travel. Besides the majestic and wildness of the world's largest cave, the story of the person who discovered Son Doong is also very interesting.
The first person to discover Son Doong Cave was Mr. Ho Khanh (born in 1969), residing in Son Trach commune (now Phong Nha town), Bo Trach district, Quang Binh province. Mr. Khanh used to be a forest worker, and is now the owner of a tourist facility on the banks of the Son River.
Mr. Khanh lost his father at the age of 13. His family was poor and had many siblings, so he only finished 6th grade. At the age of 18, along with many other young people in the poor countryside, Mr. Khanh started going to the forest, searching for agarwood, wandering to make a living in all areas of Phong Nha - Ke Bang.
According to Mr. Khanh, during long trips through the forest, caves are the most suitable shelter for forest workers, this is also the reason why he knows many caves in Phong Nha - Ke Bang.
Mr. Khanh’s arrival at the world’s largest cave was also a matter of chance. During a trip to find agarwood in late 1990, Mr. Khanh encountered a heavy rain and sought shelter in a cave arch.
"This cave is quite large, I intended to go inside to take shelter from the rain, but when I reached the cave entrance, I encountered a strong wind blowing continuously from inside, which scared me. I did not dare to go in, but just hid by the cliff, waited for the rain to stop and then continued. This was the first time I set foot in this cave and did not pay much attention, but continued my journey to make a living," Mr. Ho Khanh recalled.
In 1993, when Phong Nha - Ke Bang became a nature reserve, thanks to the State's propaganda and mobilization, many people in Son Trach commune, including Mr. Ho Khanh, gradually gave up their forest-going jobs.
However, with their experience in the forest, people like Mr. Khanh are very familiar with and know many mysteries from the Phong Nha - Ke Bang mountains and forests, thanks to which they have helped a lot in the exploration and research work of cave experts.
As for the expedition team of the British Royal Caving Association, many times they went to Vietnam and conducted expeditions in Phong Nha - Ke Bang, they always asked Mr. Khanh to guide them.
With the selfless and dedicated help of local people, including Mr. Khanh, cave experts have achieved a lot of success, finding and discovering many new caves.
During his time assisting experts, Mr. Khanh mentioned the story of the mysterious cave where he had taken shelter from the rain many times. However, in the middle of the vast mountains and forests, he could not remember the exact location of this cave.
In 2007, the British Royal Cave Association expedition conducted a new search in Phong Nha - Ke Bang. Experts with the support of Mr. Ho Khanh tried to find the mysterious cave he mentioned, but with no results.
At that time, when observing the natural phenomena in the surrounding area, Mr. Howard Limbert, Head of the expedition of the British Royal Cave Association, also confirmed to Mr. Ho Khanh that this area must have a large cave.
Before returning home, Mr. Howard Limbert told Mr. Ho Khanh to try to remember and find that mysterious cave. Having been trusted, in mid-2008, Mr. Khanh packed his bags and went into the forest alone. The efforts of the former forest worker were rewarded after a day and a night of wandering in the deep forest, Mr. Ho Khanh found the mysterious cave again with overwhelming joy.
"After the exploration experts explained that the wind blowing from inside the cave was a natural phenomenon, I was no longer as scared as before. I quickly followed the cave entrance and entered, but I could not go deep. I observed and marked very carefully before returning so that I could find my way back," said Mr. Ho Khanh.
In early 2009, experts from the British Royal Cave Association returned to Vietnam. Mr. Ho Khanh happily announced the news to the cave experts. Everyone was excited and wanted to leave immediately.
With the support of Mr. Ho Khanh, experts from the UK formed a team, coordinated with the University of Natural Sciences - Vietnam National University, Hanoi, and the Management Board of Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park to conduct an expedition into the mysterious cave.
On April 7, 2009, the group entered the cave. This was also the first time Mr. Ho Khanh went deep inside because there was no safety equipment before, while the way down to the cave entrance had a steep slope of up to 50m.
During this expedition, along with the results of laser measurements, the explorers determined that this was the largest natural cave in the world. Mr. Ho Khanh and the expedition members discussed and named the cave Son Doong (Son is mountain, Doong is the name of the valley where Rao Thuong stream flows through).
April 2009 was also the first time Son Doong Cave was announced to the press by the British Royal Cave Association Expedition in Quang Binh. Mr. Howard Limbert affirmed that Son Doong is the largest cave in the world, with a width of up to 250m and a height of over 150m in some places.
By 2013, the adventure tour to explore Son Doong Cave was put into operation. Mr. Ho Khanh became a porter, taking groups of tourists, film crews, and foreign news agencies to explore the world's largest cave.
Currently, Mr. Ho Khanh is the team leader, managing a porter team of 125 people for a tourism company, all of whom are locals. Every year, he also spends 1-2 times with the British Royal Cave Association expedition team to explore and search for new caves.
With his dedication and contributions to cave exploration for the World Natural Heritage Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park, Mr. Ho Khanh was twice awarded a Certificate of Merit by the People's Committee of Quang Binh Province. In particular, he and cave explorer Howard Limbert were awarded the Third Class Labor Medal by the President.
Mr. Howard Limbert, Head of the British Royal Cave Association's expedition team, emphasized that since 1990, local people like Mr. Ho Khanh have helped cave experts a lot.
Without local people, experts would have encountered many difficulties in exploring and searching for new caves, especially the miracle of finding Son Doong Cave by Mr. Ho Khanh.
It is the enthusiasm and tireless support of local people that motivates cave experts to continue trekking through forests, wading through streams, overcoming difficulties and dangers to search for new wonders, adding value to the Phong Nha - Ke Bang heritage.
Talking to Dan Tri reporter, Mr. Hoang Hai Van, Deputy Director of Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park Management Board also said that the discovery of Son Doong Cave is truly a very important event, in which we cannot fail to mention Mr. Ho Khanh, the first person to discover it and then contributed with the British Royal Cave Association and Oxalis Company to bring this cave to the world.
"Phong Nha - Ke Bang is world-famous for its unique cave system. To date, more than 400 caves have been found through surveys and explorations. This is a prerequisite for a series of regional and international tourism products to be born, such as exploring En Cave, Va Cave, Tiger-Over-Pygmy Cave, Kong Sinkhole, ... especially the tourism product Conquering Son Doong, the world's largest cave," Mr. Van emphasized.
Content: Tien Thanh
Photo: Oxalis
Design: Do Diep
Dantri.com.vn
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