QUANG NINH – Coming to Binh Lieu in November, visitors will admire the white reeds blooming on the hillsides on the border patrol route, and watch the sunset and the sea of clouds on the “dinosaur’s spine”.
Nearly 300 km from Hanoi, Binh Lieu is a mountainous district located in the Northeast of Quang Ninh province, with cool, pleasant weather all year round, considered a “miniature Sa Pa” in the middle of a mining land.
Binh Lieu has nearly 50 km of border with China with a number of border markers 1300, 1302, 1305 and 1327, attracting many tourists to take photos, especially during the reed season.
In the last days of October and early November, the white color of reed grass covers the hillsides on the border patrol road located at an altitude of 700 m above sea level. On the way to conquer the milestones, visitors can take in the view of rolling mountains and hills, white reed fields swaying in the autumn wind.
“Reed grass paradise” Binh Lieu was the destination of Nguyen Tri Thanh, 25 years old, in Hanoi, on his trip on November 9. From Hanoi, Thanh traveled by motorbike about 270 km, taking more than 5 hours to reach the grass paradise in Binh Lieu.
There is now a highway from Hanoi to Van Don about 200 km long, visitors can easily get to Binh Lieu in a shorter time if using a car or bus. If staying in Binh Lieu town, visitors should rent a motorbike to experience the border patrol route with a daily rental price ranging from 200,000 – 300,000 VND per motorbike.
The most famous landmark in Binh Lieu is 1305 with a road called “dinosaur spine” running about 2 km on the mountain ridge, with cliffs on both sides. The winding road forms a wall separating the territories of Vietnam and China.
On the dinosaur’s back, reeds have bloomed but not much, clustered in corners. In return, when looking far away, visitors will admire the majestic natural panorama, winding trails between mountains and forests and “the feeling of freedom and generosity under the open sky”, Thanh Hoa said. said.
From Vo Ngai commune, Binh Lieu district, Thanh moved to Bac Xa commune, Dinh Lap district, Lang Son province, to conquer milestone 1297. “This is the real reed grass paradise,” he shared. The road to milestone 1297, both going and returning, is about 1.5 km, relatively easy to go.
The reed grass blooms more here than on the road to milestone 1305. The white color of the reed grass stands out among the green of the trees, mountains and forests, brightening up every corner.
Last year, Thanh also came to milestone 1297 during the reed grass season, but due to bad weather and lots of clouds, he could not admire all the beauty of this place.
The reed grass here has sections that are taller than people’s heads, blooming at such a high density that it feels like the scene is covered with a layer of white snow when viewed from afar, Thanh said.
Although there are a few locations around Hanoi with reed grass, nowhere has reed grass fields as “huge” and blooming as thickly as in Binh Lieu, Thanh commented.
According to Thanh, the best time to take photos of reed grass is at sunset. The waning afternoon sunlight darkens the background of the mountains and hills, highlighting each slender line of the reed.
In addition to checking in with reed grasslands, border markers or watching the sunset, visitors can also admire the sea of white clouds flying across the mountain top.
When newly bloomed, the reed flower is pure white and grows in clusters. Before fading, the flowers gradually turn yellow and fall, flying with the wind.
According to local people, reed grass blooms best in the middle and near the end of November before falling completely in early December.
Because it is a border area, when checking in at landmarks, visitors need to declare personal information to border guards.
Conquering milestone 1305 is quite physically demanding because although the path has stairs, there are many long, sharp and continuous slopes, the total time to go and return is more than 3 hours. Thanh advises tourists to bring water and food to stay energized on the way. If you want to check in all the landmarks on the border patrol route, you should arrange the trip for two days and one night.