Dawn on the largest artificial lake in Vietnam

If anyone ever visits Thac Ba Lake, they will surely not forget the rustic, charming and quite natural beauty of a man-made lake.

 

Thac Ba is the largest artificial lake in Vietnam with a capacity of 2.9 billion m3 of water. Photo: wiki Thac Ba Lake is also referred to as Ha Long Bay in the Northwest region. Photo: wordpress Life is idyllic, peaceful for the people who live around the lake. Photo: lavievulinh

Thac Ba Lake is located on the territory of the two districts of Luc Yen and Yen Binh in Yen Bai province, 180 km from Hanoi to the west.

Like Hoa Binh reservoir, Thac Ba was formed when the Chay River was blocked to build a hydropower plant. With an area of 240 km2, stretching 80 km long, Thac Ba is recognized as the largest artificial lake in Vietnam.

Before the dam was built to form the lake, there existed two continuous waterfalls here, named Mr. and Mrs. Waterfalls. After the dam was built in 1971, they named Thac Ba (Mrs. Waterfall) and Thac Ong (Mr. Waterfall) to the lake and a nearby bridge.

To explore the lake, there is no way better than sitting on a boat and making a stroll around the islands in the lake. As an artificial lake, Thac Ba has more than 1,300 islands.

Visiting the lake, the first place that you should stop is the dam, which is hundreds of meters high, standing imposingly amid the forest to be proud of the power of human hands and minds.

Climbing up stone steps to the top of the dam, you will reach the Thac Ba temple, which is located on the Hoang Thi Mountain. From here, you can see the panorama of the dam and a vast airspace.

To have a broader view, you should climb up the Cao Bien Mountain, the highest mountain in the region. Standing on the cloudy mountain peak to look at the vast lake, you will see a shimmering, magical watercolor painting.

After that, you can hire a boat to explore Thac Ba Lake and its islands and caves which are located deep in the limestone mountains. The most prominent cave is Thuy Tien, with beautiful stalactites.

Climbing up to the peak of the cave, you can see the Chay River which winds the mountainside like a soft silk strip. In the distance are thriving villages with lush rice fields and houses-on-stilts of ethnic minority people. The awfully peaceful scenes will easy your mind.

You should spend one night in Thac Ba to take the moments to admire the pristine beauty and the unique cultural identity of the community the Tay, Nung, Cao Lan, Dao … people.

With charming landscapes, Thac Ba is ideal for those who love the wild look of the northwestern region.

Dawn on the largest artificial lake in Vietnam