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Ba Ham Lake
Location:
Situated on the south side of Halong
Bay, Ba Ham Lake is found on Dau Be
Island (Calf Head Island) in Lan Ha
Bay.
Characteristics:
This Island is
part of the range of islands at the
farthest end of Halong Bay,
bordering the immense zone Long Chau
Sea. |
Ba Ham Lake is situated
in the middle of a narrow,
rectangular area, with the all four
sides enclosed by vertical cliffs.
The lake is a system comprising
three wide and round pits, linked
together by a narrow and meandering
tunnel. Stalactites hang from the
ceiling in a myriad of strange,
coloured forms. The silence is
disturbed only by the sounds of the
boat’s oars. On the island are many
species of plants such as orchids,
benjamin figs, banyans and cycads,
which blossom throughout the year.
It is also the home of yellow-haired
monkeys, birds, flying squirrels and
bats. Under the deep blue surface of
the water are the animated lives of
shrimp and fish.
Although 25km from the shore it has
long been considered an ideal
tourism zone, the entrance is an
open semi-circular hole in the flat
stone wall on the north-west side of
the island, 4 to 5m above the sea.
Starting from the entrance, tourists
enter the first tunnel, which boasts
a forest of stalactites and
stalagmites in different shapes and
various colours. They fall down the
water surface like the roots of
banyan or ficus trees. The deeper
one pushes into the tunnel, the
darker it becomes. The river is deep
yet so clear that one can see shoals
of fish swimming. Some 100m from the
entrance one finds a shaft of light
coming from the roof of the tunnel,
which reveals different kinds of
orchids clinging to the cliff,
cycads growing here and there, truc
duoi ga (a kind of reed with cock’s
tail-liked yellow leaves)
flourishing in clumps. In the
southeast cliff of the second tunnel
there grows an old carambola tree,
which bears fruits all year round.
Tourists can find groups of monkeys,
flying squirrels, or silver-headed
parrots gathering in its branches.
Lying one cliff away from the second
one, the third tunnel is home to
various species of bats and
butterflies.
Amidst the tranquil atmosphere, you
feel like boating in an abyssal well
walled by mountains. Ba Ham Lake is
one of the beauty spots of Halong
Bay. |
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