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As the most pristine, mysterious and fascinating mountain in Vietnam, the
legendary peak Phu Si Lung located in the
province of Lai Chau is the dream
destination of many adventurous travelers.
The Northwest region is where thousands of alpine stood for thousands of years
as walls protecting Vietnam. On the border between Vietnam – China, Phu Si Lung
peak situated at an altitude of more than 3,000 meters, the highest mountain in
between the national borders. We make the journey to conquer this peak in the
cold weather of the North.
Scheduling carefully and contacting the authorities, we bring our paper work to
the headquarters of Lai Chau border guards, and then crossing the mountain
passes, bringing the referral paper to the border post Pa Vệ Sủ, located in the
deepest part of Muong Te district, Lai Chau province.
So is the arduous cross-country journey, but we are very much bless to receive
the encouragement and help from the border posts, the welcome and the warm from
the people here. We visit the village of Sín Chải A, meet the village chief and
have an intimate New Year dinner with the La Hủ people.
Leaving the Sin Chai A, we pull up our car and go deeper into the forest,
starting a very difficult journey to the peak. In the spring, the reed’s white
blossoms cover the passes to the mountain.
Along the journey, there are many major ferocious streams with rock underneath
the water with only a simple bridge made from broken trees from the previous
flood season that we must go through to reach our destination. The cold and
slippery rocks make everyone numb their feet. You have to be very careful if you
do not want to get wet.
The night in the heart of the valley, we are surrounded by the wilderness, and
the fire is flickered in the dark, and murmuring streams are under the silvery
light of the moon and stars overhead.
Gorgeous mountain scenery with the fresh air and clouds of mist scatter around
us. Sometimes, we’re wondering if we were drift into the hills of the white
wildflowers. We step on the carpet of dried leaves or flowers and when we look
up, the sky is colored in light red of rose.
It is a very long road, up and down but we arrive finally. We cry with joy when
we see the landmark standing there on concrete floors at the top of the
mountain. The border guards check the status of the border mark, perform sacred
rituals and take photographs. Our GPS confirm the altitude is 2866m. This is one
of the highest border posts in the territory of Vietnam.
The sky turns dark, and the cold air and fog start to surround us. We know that
we have to depart quickly to our rest shack even we have to go in the dark. Our
delegation includes experienced climbers, forged in the height and the cold of
many mountains, but this journey is a very difficult challenge, yet memorable
and meaningful.
From the peak of Phu Si Lung, there is a long journey ahead. We have to follow
the guards in order not to step into the border of China. We go through the
bamboo forest to the jungle, where the atmosphere is so wet that every tree is
cover in moss.
We take out the national flag and take photos with pride when we have
successfully conquered the mountain is known as the roof of the border. |
