'Fairy tale' waterfall on the way to conquer Lung Cung mountain peak

Located about 300km from Hanoi , Lung Cung mountain peak is known as the roof of Mu Cang Chai, and has recently become a new destination for young people.

Những thác nước hùng vĩ cùng vạt rừng nguyên sinh là — *Majestic waterfalls and primeval forests are "specialties" when conquering Lung Cung - Photo: HONG QUANG*

In mid-October, the weather was cool at the end of autumn, we decided to conquer Lung Cung mountain peak - the roof of Mu Cang Chai ( Yen Bai ) - with an altitude of 2,913m, to freely admire the green picture of the Northwest before entering the dry, cold winter months.

Located about 300km from Hanoi, Nam Co is the most remote highland commune of Mu Cang Chai. Not only known for its terraced fields or winter days with white clouds, this place is also famous for its fairy-tale-like primeval forests or wild, majestic waterfalls.

Recently, Lung Cung mountain peak (the 10th highest in Vietnam) has become a new destination for young people to conquer after being "bored" with Fansipan, Lao Than, Ta Chi Nhu...

Majestic waterfalls in the middle of Mu Cang Chai

After nearly 6 hours of traveling via Noi Bai - Lao Cai highway and national highway 32, we arrived at Tu Le town ( Mu Cang Chai district, Yen Bai). The morning in the highland town was still covered in mist, we enjoyed a gift considered a specialty of this land, sticky rice. The Northwest people have a saying "Tu Le sticky rice, Muong Lo plain rice" to indicate the best quality of rice grown here.

After breakfast, local motorbike taxis were waiting to pick up the group. The starting point of the climb is 20km from the center of Tu Le town, in Tu San village.

We will start our journey by motorbike taxi through the most remote villages of Mu Cang Chai. The road to this place is so difficult that only manual motorbikes and the most “hard” drivers are brave enough to set off.

In the eyes of tourists, the road to Lung Cung is like a picture with the combination of natural creation and the hands of human reclaiming for generations. Among the immense rice fields arranged in steps that seem to reach the clouds are waterfalls with white foam. In the distance are the early morning smoke from wooden houses mixed with mist and clouds.

The road up to the climbing point challenges even the toughest drivers in the area - Photo: HONG QUANG

Waterfalls splashing white foam along the way - Photo: HONG QUANG

After about 1 hour of climbing, Hau Chua La waterfall appears in the middle of the primeval forest - Photo: HONG QUANG

The waterfall is a place that makes a strong impression on tourists, even foreigners - Photo: HONG QUANG

Crossing the fairy forest to conquer the roof of Mu Cang Chai

From the starting point at an altitude of about 1,800m above sea level in Tu San village, the group began to climb uphill to conquer Lung Cung.

The higher up you go, the more diverse the vegetation on the mountain becomes. The primeval forests are covered with moss, and the ancient trees are so big that 3-4 people can't hug them. Each purple mua flower blooming on the mountainside still has morning dew on it, occasionally shaking when the wind blows. Occasionally, monkeys and squirrels run past, making a big commotion in the forest.

According to the route, the group will climb about 5km to the resting hut at an altitude of more than 2,500m above sea level. We will spend the night here with enough blankets, mosquito nets, and food. At 4am, we set off to conquer the remaining 3km to reach the top of Lung Cung before sunrise.

During the winter months (November to February), this place is a cloud hunting paradise with endless seas of clouds. During the remaining months, the chance of seeing clouds is lower. Even though we didn’t see any clouds, we still took the opportunity to breathe in the cool, fresh air and take photos to remember the trip.