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Situated on the south-west
side of
Ha Long Bay, Ba Ham Lake is found on Dau Be
Island (Calf Head Island) in
Lan Ha Bay. This island is
part of the range of islands at the farthest end of Ha
Long 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 25 km from the shore, it has long been
considered an ideal tourism zone. The entrance is a open
semi-circular hole in the flat stone wall on the
north-west side of the island, 4 to 5 m 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 100
m 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 Ha Long Bay.
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