Daytrip to the Cuc Phuong National Park

Another gray morning at the Chez Beo Homestay. But it looked like it will stay dray today. Decided to go for a ride to the Cuc Phuong National Park to look for the 1000 year old tree.
I gave the girl from Google Maps all the freedom and she did choose a really nice road all the way!
If only the sky…

First stop on the way: Hang Mua Temple – or lets say down at the temple. To get there you pass some ducks!

Baby Ducks in the water

Baby Ducks on the land

Grave in the rice field. It does look nice but the more graves you put the less rice is there for the rest…

Hang Mua Temple in the mist. Would be super nice to go up and enjoy the view – if there would be one!
Ok let’s get back to the road. The Google woman is complaining as well…

Mountains in the mist

Ducks – again!
Finally I did reach the park, did pay entrance and continued to the parking lot further inside. After pay for bike parking (why is that not covered in the entrance fee??) I did start the hike to the tree. If you ever been in a forest in Asia this is nothing special. It was quite warm and humid so after 30 minutes you are wet – a lot! And finally you reach the tree.

The sign is prove: I present you the 1000 year old tree

Not a lot left but it is an old tree – and nothing more. Since I did see really old trees in California I was not to impressed by this one and continued the walk back to the parking lot. They made it into a wide circle so you see new green stuff and not the same that you saw on the way to the tree.
Back at the bike my shirt was so wet I had to put it under the seat in the “trunk”. Told the Google woman that we go back to Chez Beo. She was super happy to guide me again and off we went.

Following Google Maps does lead you to all sorts of roads in Vietnam. Sometimes I was not sure about the girl. She thinks I have a car – that is why she want me to go on the highway when she finds one but you are not allowed with a bike. And sometimes she thinks I have a 4 x 4 or a dirt bike when she sends me to roads like this one. Girl – you have to learn a few things! But I have to say – most of the times she does a god job.