We rearranged our bags to take only what we needed to trek with for a few days. This included all of our warm layers, toiletries and a few miscellaneous items. We brought the rest of our belongings to the storage room and then waited in the hostel lobby to be picked up and taken to the night bus. A 2 minute ride in a van brought us to our bus where we hopped on and chose a "bed" for the night. The beds were reclined seats with cubbies for your feet and what ever belongings you did not store underneath in the luggage department. The bus was comfortable with free water, a clean bathroom, and even wifi. Not too long after departing we were both sound asleep. Apparently walking through busy city streets for a few days exhausted us.
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| H'Mong from Lao Chai and Y Linh Ho |
He dropped us off at a hotel and after a quick breakfast, we met our guide for the next three days to explore the Muong Hoa Valley. Our guide was a young lady from the H’Mong tribe dressed in traditional clothing which consisted of a hand made skirt and a beautiful head dress full of color. She was full of smiles, always grinning from ear to ear.
We left the hotel with a crew of fellow tourists and a handful of local women. The women all had like bright colored head dresses that represented the village and language they spoke. Most were H’Mong and came from Lao Chai and Y Linh Ho (villages we were headed to that day). Some had baskets of goods on their backs and other had the tiniest toddlers tied on with thick blankets and decretive bands. We didn’t realize how much we would need them until we saw the trail we were going down. They led us off the main road onto a path through the terraced rice fields. The path was not the familiar LNT (leave no trace) trails we usually hike on. Instead, you choose your own adventure through the slippery terraced hill sides covered in heaps of mud. Almost everyone on the trip took a spill in the mud.
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| Muddy Terraces |
A few individuals had the hardest time finding their feet through the terrane. Every time someone slipped and fell the women would laugh hysterically and so did we until we both lost our feet eventually. Our guides ran through the slippery slopes with ease. We must of looked so ridiculous to them, not even being able to manage walking through their land. Every person on the trip ended up holding the hand of these strong ladies down the slopes. Some guides got taken out by people who kept falling flat on their backs. I held the hand of my lady more then I have ever held Austin’s hand. Austin held the hand of the oldest lady on the trip who spoke little to no english. They just laughed together as they tried to communicate through sign language and pointing. By the time we reached the bottom of the hill, everyone was covered in mud! The whole experience was very entertaining for everyone involved.
At a rest stop, the guides whipped together little horse shaped figures made of reeds and gave them to the person they supported down the hill. Before we got to the the lunch spot in their small village, the guides rushed to meet the person they helped the most and pulled out all sorts of hand made goods from their baskets. How could you say no or barter to hard with an old women who held your hand and kept you upright down a mud slide! So of course we bought small hand stitched and dyed fabrics from them. After that point, we learned how much of a target we were for women with things to sell. At lunch, children and older women alike came and put goods in our laps, trying to have us buy something. Austin mastered the art of saying no but I had the hardest time handling their persistence.
After lunch, our head guide introduced us to our new guides from the Red Zao tribe. They had red head dresses and scarves around their chins. I was lucky to talk to a women who had great english. She explained that her tribe had more Chinese blood in them. She also told us about how they used the water buffalo to work the fields and never eat them unless they died on their own. We asked her where the men were because all we saw were women in the fields and hauling wood. The gender roles here are switched, where the women do the bulk of the work earning a wage and the men stay home and take care of the children and cook. When ever we asked our head guide what her husband was doing she would just laugh and say “Oh he at home. Boys are so lazy.”
Around 4pm we arrived to our stopping point were we stayed on the edge of Ta Van village in Lao Chai. We spent the time before dinner washing shoes, warming up by the fire, drinking tea, and laughing about all the falls that happened through out the day. As night fell, we all made our way around the fire and watch the family prepare our dinner in cast iron dishes over open flames. It was really neat to watch this production as they made rice, spring rolls, an assortment of meats and vegetables, and even tofu with tomatoes. Once it was all cooked, we went outside and sat around a massive table and enjoyed a family style feast. The night carried with plenty of beer and “happy water” (rice wine) over card games and conversation. The husband joined us in festivities and told us about himself, his family, and how to cheers in their villages language. By 10 pm everyone was in bed, exhausted and sore from the long trek through the mountains.
The next morning, we all enjoyed hot tea and crepes with banana before heading off again for another day of trekking. We headed through Ta Van village to a waterfall in the village of Gaing Ta Chai, home of the Red Zao People. It was a bit foggier than the day before but it was okay because their was plenty to see along the trail. We past many families carrying on with their daily lives, animals grazing, and children waving and saying hello. After the waterfall visit we headed up to lunch where we enjoyed a bowl of soup with an egg on top. Warm soup on a cold day never tasted so good. Once again ladies and children tried to sell us their hand made products as we sat and ate our meal.
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| A young girl pulling water buffalo |
Once in the valley, we walked to our homestay were we relaxed over tea, beer and happy water until dinner was ready. Being in the valley was nice for the views and warmer weather. Dinner again was amazing, endless rice with spring rolls and another assortment of meat and vegetables. I got stuck under the warmth of the heavy blankets we were given early that night while Austin stayed up playing cards with the Aussies. During the card game sounds of music filled the air, so off in the night the boys went. Austin and his new friends found the source of the music which was a home a few doors down playing karaoke. As they walked up, they were invited in for coffee, beer, and oranges. They quickly joined in with the festivities and singing. A few hours later they made their way back to the home stay where they continued to play cards late into the night.
The next day was beautiful with no fog and warmer weather. Again our morning began with another banana crape breakfast. Afterwards, we headed off to Nam Toong school to have a look and then to a water fall called “the lavie” named by the French. We crossed over a pretty sketchy bridge made of metal that had rusted away in sections, creating holes that you had to walk around carefully. After few minutes at the waterfall, we were off to lunch at the same homestay as the previous night. Once done with our meal, we collected our belongings and headed to a van parked out front which was our ticket back to Sapa. As we headed back to Sapa, we were treated with wonderful views of the mountains covered with terraces and valleys with rushing rivers. On the way, we made a quick stop to pick up a few others and drop off our guide.
Sapa was as we left it a few days earlier, cold and under a white blanket of fog. We walked around for a bit and then found a coffee shop where we enjoyed the warmth of a heater and wifi. We enjoyed another dinner at the hotel, where the whole journey began and waited for our night bus back to Hanoi. In the morning we head to Cat Ba. Two weeks a climbing here we come. Stay tune as I am sure many more adventures await us….
