Day 6: Nậm Cang to Sa Pa
Index
| Day 1 | Departure Oslo |
| Day 2 | To Hanoi |
| Day 3 | Hanoi sightseeing and night train to Lào Cai |
| Day 4 | Sa Pa, Mường Hoa Valley – Sín Chải A |
| Day 5 | Sín Chải A to Nậm Cang |
| Day 6 | Nậm Cang to Sa Pa |
| Day 7 | Fansipan climbing rest stop/station at 2800m |
| Day 8 | Mt. Fansipan – Bắc Hà |
| Day 9 | Bắc Hà |
| Day 10 | Bắc Hà to Hoàng Su Phì |
| Day 11 | Hà Giang |
| Day 12 | Back to Hanoi |
| Day 13 | Departure Hanoi |
From to Nậm Cang to Thanh Phú
Thursday: Roll call at Homestay Tả Mẩy in Nậm Cang 7am. Some slept better than others.
Some didn’t sleep a lot.
But there was no point in dwelling on the past night as we were facing yet another beautiful day in the Mường Hoa Valley, and today we would be hiking back to Cần Ngài Homestay, where we had lunch two days earlier. From there, we would be brought by bus back to Sa Pa.
Pancakes with banana and honey now seemed to be a recurring feature of our homestay breakfasts. We later learned that this was part of a much wider Southeast Asian backpacking tradition, which even gave rise to the expression ‘Banana Pancake Trail’.
Sapaadventure.com: “For breakfast, pancakes and bananas have become very poplular amongst the trekkers and homestays, although if you wish to have a traditional Dao breakfast that can be arranged. It is ususlaly rice, and an egg and some vegetables”
At 9am, it was time to leave the homestay and get back on the road…
We said farewell to the owners, and thanked them for their hospitality. They had put on their traditional costumes in our honour.
A 10,5km walk was now awaiting.
We hadn’t gone far before Kong had something to show us. We were encouraged to taste the stem of an aromatic plant, which had a very distinct taste. I simply cannot remember what it was, so until others in the group remind me, I conclude that this was probably cinnamon.
During our first day of hiking, Anne-Kristin had to enforce an important rule – she would set the group’s pace (walk slow, get far). Our guide was walking too fast and when he stopped and started to talk about something, only the leading part of the group could hear what he said.
It was a good decision and the group was now moving more like one entity. However, as the “unofficial photographer” in the group, I was given some leeway.
Today’s route went lower in the Mường Hoa Valley, somewhat parallel to the route from Sín Chải, the day before.
Then, in order to connect to a different road, we had to go a little bit off-trail…
Feeling like the official weather guy in the group (after predicting the rain the day before), I concluded that today would be a dry and sunny day…
Kong had more plants to talk about, and I was too far away to hear what he said. But based on the picture below, the elephant ear-resembling leaf and the long stems led me to Taro (Colocasia esculenta).
If this is the Taro, it is grown for its underground corms, which are cooked and eaten much like potatoes. But mistaking a raw taro stem for cardamom could be a painful experience and can make it feel like you’ve swallowed a mouthful of broken glass, followed by burning, itching and swelling in the mouth and throat.
A mushroom caught my attention. It resembled a parasol mushroom. Its pale, almost flat cap is decorated with small brown scales surrounding a darker central disc.
One possibility is Chlorophyllum molybdites, commonly known as the false parasol or green-spored parasol. It is a poisonous species and its appearance can be remarkably similar to that of other parasol mushrooms.
Another candidate is Macrolepiota clelandii, the slender parasol, which has a similarly patterned cap. However, this species is primarily known from Australia and New Zealand.
We were now on a distinct path, which got more and more slippery as it descended.
We followed a narrow trail through dense vegetation, with what appeared to be bamboo forming a canopy above our heads..
The locals did pay attention to us, but had more important tasks at hand…
Eventually, we joined the road…
The amount of rice fields and terraces was just astounding…
Life in Mường Hoa Valley revolves largely around farming, and rice is by far the most important crop. We passed several small wooden buildings scattered among the rice terraces, apparently used for storing crops, tools and farming equipment.
At one of them, a woman was busy working with the freshly harvested rice, which had been spread out on a large tarpaulin to dry in the sun. A traditional bamboo tray was probably used to separate the grain from the lighter husks and other debris.
Much of the work here is still done by hand, and during the harvest season, entire families may be involved in bringing in the crops. It was a fascinating little glimpse into everyday life in the valley, where farming traditions remain an important part of the local way of life.
We moved on…
It felt like we were on the lowest part of the valley, but we weren’t. We didn’t even see the Nậm Cang river.
More produce was in the drying stages. Someone seems to have played a game of cards here, losing the king of spades…
Then we reached the Nậm Than stream. I may earlier have called it a river, but stream is probably a more fitting term.
The Nậm Than Stream Bridge, was built in 2016 with support from the Danish travel company Topas.
The company has been involved in trekking tourism in the Sa Pa region since the early 1990s and has contributed to several local infrastructure projects.
My mental picture of people working the rice fields must have come from Vietnam war movies. But here they were…
We passed one farmer’s hut after the other…
It was all a bit surreal…
… and picturesque!
Next, we arrived at a hut that stood out from the rest.
Not all the little farm buildings were purely functional. This one even had a covered terrace with a table and benches, offering a fine place to relax and enjoy the views across the rice fields. Corn was hanging from the roof to dry, making good use of the available space. And with the Vietnamese flag proudly displayed, the place had a certain charm of its own.
I hope the owner didn’t mind us dropping by…
The view wasn’t half bad!
We kept on moving along…
Imagine the number of hours put into the rice fields, in this region alone. Mind-boggling…
Eventually, we reached a creek where we would be turning southwest, aiming for the bigger road close to the Nậm Cang river.
The local ducks didn’t expect company today and took off in a slightly chaotic manner.
We came across an interesting tree. Possibly the world’s largest ginger root.
Most likely, this is an Elephant apple (Dillenia indica). The leaves are quite distinct, but without fruits or flowers, it’s difficult to say for sure. It could also be an Indian chestnut tree (Castanopsis indica). The leaves are remarkably similar.
I went on a research mission to say for sure, but I realized it would take a degree in Botany to get to the bottom of it…
So, moving on. Literally…
Finally, we could overlook the Nậm Cang river. The Nậm Sài Hydropower Plant was just around the corner.
A beautiful waterfall cascading down a steep rock face caught our attention.
I have done my best to find out if this waterfall has a name but came up empty.
The road kept providing attractions.
This is the remains of a black-and-yellow banded snake, possibly a krait or one of the harmless wolf snakes that resemble it. Without an intact head, it is difficult to say for sure.
Next, on to something entirely different…
Our guide demonstrated a remarkable little trick with a plant, most likely the Bubble bush (Jatropha curcas). He broke a leaf stalk, brought the two ends together and blew through it, producing a stream of soap-like bubbles.
Apparently, children in parts of Asia have been entertaining themselves with this trick for generations. No soap required!
Curious about this botanical party trick, I later looked up (ref.: plants.jstor.org) the plant and discovered that making bubbles was apparently the least of its talents. Traditionally, it has been used to make soap, clean teeth, treat wounds, soothe insect stings and help teething babies. Its seeds have even been used to produce biodiesel.
At this point, I began to wonder if there was anything this plant couldn’t do. Unfortunately, it is also poisonous, which rather takes the shine off its impressive résumé. And while many of its medicinal uses are traditional rather than scientifically proven, the list is extraordinary.
We moved on. I kept a safe distance from roosters with an unfriendly look…
We were now approaching the village Nậm Sài.
Throughout our three-day trek, the beautiful peak close to our starting point, was a constant landmark. I tried to find its name on several maps, but without success. I found height – 1565m, but the map is old and “made in Soviet”…
Vietnam has so many spectacular mountains and waterfalls that places which would probably be major attractions in Norway barely get a mention on the maps here. Of course, the mountain may well have a local name that has never made it onto an international map.
We were now approaching the Nậm Sài school. It was scary to see kids on motorbikes, with their eyes glued to the cell phones…
We then came across what looked like an entire kindergarten class of ducklings out for a walk. Mostly yellow, with a few black ones scattered among the crowd.
They appeared to be travelling together, although nobody seemed particularly sure where they were going. At one point, the entire group gathered at the roadside, where a considerable amount of pushing, shoving and general confusion followed. Perhaps they were planning to cross the road, but reaching a collective decision seemed to be proving difficult.
There was no mother duck or human supervisor in sight. Just dozens of fluffy little creatures, apparently convinced that somebody else knew the way.
They were absolutely adorable…
I noticed a purple pair of flowers, most likely Ipomoea cairica, a species of morning glory.
One of the flowers had attracted a visitor. A small bee was busy crawling into the flower, presumably looking for nectar and helping with pollination in the process.
Nothing really surprised me anymore…
Obtaining eye contact proved to be difficult…
The final leg was back to the Thanh Phú village, where we had lunch two days earlier.
The landmark peak was very helpful in understand in which direction we were heading, at any given time.
I got a much better impression of the village, coming this way…
The village looked exactly the same as when we left it.
The three-day trek was almost at its end.
4h:13m after leaving the homestay Tả Mẩy in Nậm Cang, we reached Cần Ngài Homestay, where had lunch two days earlier.
We had lunch here. This plate of rice – with various ingredients – was the best lunch I had throughout the Vietnam trip. I fell in love with this type of dish in Bali and has always loved it since.
Trip statistics: 10,5km, 190 vertical meters, 3h:43m
Sa Pa
After lunch, our bus took us back to Sa Pa, where we checked into the Relax Hotel & Spa and got reunited with the gear we left behind.
In terms of quality and comfort, this hotel was clearly an upgrade from the countryside Homestays. The only problem was that I already missed the countryside.
There was a lot of noise from the street, although not from the traffic. Below the hotel was a big gathering of children. Probably neither a school nor a Kindergarten, so I was wondering what was going on down there.
We had a couple of hours with “R&R” before dinner, and the group was spreading out.
I didn’t feel for doing anything in particular, and after a short walk, I returned to the hotel. I haven’t been blessed with the shopping gene…
When we gathered, our guide (Kong) asked what we wanted to have for dinner. We were given two options: a) pizza (short walk) and b) barbecue (10-minute walk), and the majority went for the barbecue option.
We had learned by know that any time estimates from Kong should be treated as an approximation rather than actual figures.
Kong was now leading us into his neighbourhood in Sa Pa, and he wasn’t happy about the dirt on the road…
We had witnessed life in the countryside earlier in the day, and now the urban life presented itself, albeit not exclusively with charm…
The walk took us past Kong’s house. I can only imagine the view from that “penthouse”…
We even got to meet his dog…
Twenty minutes after leaving the hotel (!), we arrived at Phansi Coffee, a restaurant overlooking the mountains and valleys surrounding Sa Pa.
The restaurant had a rather unusual design. From the ground, it was not immediately obvious, but aerial photographs revealed that the entire structure resembled the deck of a ship. This was apparently no coincidence. According to a Vietnamese article, the restaurant was deliberately designed to resemble a yacht, an unexpected sight in the mountains of northern Vietnam.
There was another interesting detail. Kong seemed remarkably at home here, and we got the impression that he might have been one of the owners. Which – turned out to be the case. I found it admirable that he let us make the choice of restaurant without knowing this connection.
The barbecue was prepared at the tables, on a grill that seemed better suited for two people than five. Consequently, dinner became a rather leisurely affair, with plenty of time for conversation between servings.
Kong was the masterchef! We could just sit back and enjoy…
This restaurant stop (and the incredible food!) was the perfect bridge between our trek in the Mường Hoa Valley and our upcoming hike to Fansipan, Vietnam’s highest point.
On the program for the next day, was the trek towards Fansipan – the country high point. Anne-Kristin walked us through the most important details.
Kong had promised to take us back to the main road in a golf cart. But as the cart wasn’t functioning properly, the majority started walking. But they had a plan B and some of the ladies got a backseat ride on scooters up to the main road.
Back at the hotel, in bed – I was thinking about the hike to Fansipan. I was a bit worried about the sleepover at 2800m. Would I once again get the incapacitating headache I know so very well, or could I get a pass for once?
Continued on day 7 (soon)…
