I booked the Hang Va Expedition trip with my best friend just last summer, but I only have time to write the post today. I sincerely hope you find it enjoyable.
Mr Ho Khanh, a Phong Nha villager (also known as the man who discovered Hang Son Doong, the world's largest cave), led the British Caving Expedition to Hang Va for the first time in 2012. It is located in Phong Nha, Quang Binh Province, Vietnam, in the heart of the Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park.
Despite the fact that Hang Va is not physically connected to Son Doong, it is considered part of the Phong Nha cave system because of their shared the same water flow. Some explorers claim that the stalactites and stalagmites in Hang Va are even more gorgeous than those in Son Doong cave. However, you should explore the cave and find the answer for yourself.
Our professional guide, Khoa, arrived at our hotel in Phong Nha around 7:30 a.m. to pick us up and take us to the Oxalis Headquarter Office for a tour briefing.
After packing my essentials for the Expedition and the team we rode for about 45 minutes on a bus into Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park along breathtaking Ho Chi Minh Highway where they dropped us off.
We had to pause for a few moments at the drop-off point to reorganize everything and take a group picture before heading into the jungle and getting dirty. Aside from the descent to the valley at the top, the first km of trekking was relatively easy. It took us an hour to get from the main road to the first rest stop, where we drank some water. Continue to drink water to avoid dehydration please !!!. Khoa informed us that the area where we were sitting was a dry river, but that during the rainy season, the water level could reach 5-6 meters high, and he also showed us mud and plastic bags stacked on the trees next to us.
After about 15 minutes of walking on the rocky and slippery path, we arrived at the first cave entrance, Hang Nuoc Nut. This cave was first explored in 2003 by a local named Du, who guided cave experts in mapping and photographing it. The cave is 2.2 kilometres long in total. Due to the flat terrain inside, the majority can be easily explored by tourists.
We had a lovely lunch around 12 a.m. Bread, cheese laughing cow, fresh spring rolls, banana, cold drink and sweet candy, and oreo biscuit were on the menu. We began to enter the cave's small passageway with our caving light and helmet, which had been provided by the safety team. When you went deeper into the passage where sunbeams can sometimes be seen in the small higher entrance. Khoa told us to try to avoid walking on the calcite floor, it is best to stick to the right-hand wall. There was a slope leading up to a group of large formations. There are some large stalagmites and plenty of photo opportunities here. Not allowed to go further in this path because the passage narrows and all formations are easily damaged.
We returned to the lower passage after turning around. It's a straightforward passage with a few small climbs and pools until you reach the really wide section, which is about 50m wide. Along the way, there are numerous stalactites and stalagmites to be seen. We arrived at the underground river after passing through a rocky section. We continued to follow it until it reached the watery passage. We walked down the river to see the blue lake at the cave's dead-end.
We exited the cave the same way we came in.
The trek continued through the beautiful jungle and up a very rocky hill to the valley. Before climbing on the section, we were told to put on our gloves. We turned up at the other valley around 5 p.m., where we planned to camp for the night. When we arrived at the camp, we realised that the local chef and porters were preparing dinner for us. Khoa stated that if anyone wanted to swim, we needed to put on the harness before climbing down to the Hang Va cave for safety reasons. After a long day of trekking and caving, we were all eager to get in the water. The descent took about 20 minutes to see the river passage. Swimming in the water was refreshing and made us feel much better, and it was one of the highlights of the trip for sure. We returned to camp and shared a party dinner with the rest of the team.
To be continued...
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