Tà Xùa's Enchanted Paradise

The rugged Tà Xùa mountains in Bắc Yên, Sơn La, with their vast sea of clouds, are truly an enchanted paradise on earth. This place has become a rendezvous for adventurers and photographers who share a passion for hunting mountain clouds in the Northwestern sky land.

Tà Xùa's Enchanted Paradise

To reach the highland commune of Tà Xùa, from Hanoi, we had to travel over 200km on National Highway 32 through Sơn Tây - Hà Trung - Thu Cúc, then start turning onto National Highway 37 with steep and dangerous slopes. Especially the 15km stretch from the center of Bắc Yên district to Tà Xùa commune, everyone had to conquer a continuous series of hairpin turns. The road to Tà Xùa commune is quite narrow, occasionally some sections are still eroded after heavy rains. On days with fog, the challenge of conquering the high road to Tà Xùa will truly test the driving skills of each adventurer.

Arriving at Tà Xùa, tourists are at an altitude of 1,500 - 1,700m above sea level. On misty days, with fog and dew, standing on the high peaks of Tà Xùa, tourists will feel the land and the sky are closest to each other. On sunny days, Tà Xùa appears as a magnificent landscape painting, with the deep green color of the mountains, along with white clouds floating on the blue sky.

Tà Xùa has famous landmarks for adventurers and photographers when it comes to cloud hunting and scenic views. These include Wind Peak (about 2km from Tà Xùa intersection towards Xím Vàng commune, Bắc Yên district, Sơn La) and the protruding mountain range with the name Living Dinosaur Spine (about 12km from Tà Xùa intersection towards Háng Đồng commune, Bắc Yên district, Sơn La).

Tà Xùa's climate is cool all year round, making it ideal for exploration and photography trips. At an altitude of over 1,500m, summer temperatures never exceed 28°C during the day and drop to as low as 17-18°C at night. In winter, temperatures drop even lower compared to the plains, ranging from 5-7°C, with prolonged cold spells bringing temperatures below 0°C and the appearance of frost and ice.

At ideal viewpoints, photographers can witness the most impressive sunrise of their lives. The sun rises with a reddish glow like a slowly rising fireball from behind the vast expanse of white, fluffy clouds. The valleys in Tà Xùa are surrounded by high mountain ranges. Clouds drift into the valleys, intertwining and remaining suspended, giving the area a surreal, floating appearance.

We have visited Tà Xùa several times to capture and admire the clouds. The clouds in Tà Xùa are different from those in Y Ty, Sapa, Sin Ho, Tam Dao, as they linger for a long time. People can take photos and admire them freely from early morning until 11-12 noon. Rain and high humidity differences between day and night are the best times to see the most clouds in Tà Xùa. By 6-7 am, standing on high points, the entire valley can turn into a gigantic sea of clouds, indescribably beautiful.

Living in remote highland areas surrounded by drifting clouds are the large families of the Hmong ethnic group. According to local government statistics, over 90% of the population in Tà Xùa are Hmong people. For centuries, the characteristic of the Hmong people in the Northwestern mountains of our country has been their preference for settling in high, less populated mountainous areas. The Hmong in Tà Xùa often build houses with wooden columns and earth walls against treacherous mountain cliffs. Their houses are usually very low, with an area of 20-30m², and a corrugated iron roof. The front of their houses overlook the sea of clouds, allowing them to enjoy the fresh air every day.

Apart from farming on terraced fields, there are currently around 500 ancient tea trees in Tà Xùa. These are natural tea trees that are hundreds of years old. Hmong girls often go to pick tea to sell. Tea is picked from high mountains, and after brewing, it has a golden color, is not bitter, and has a rich, sweet taste. A very unique feature that the locals told us about is the traditional tea picking skills that the Hmong only pass on to their daughters.

Although the material life of the Hmong people in Tà Xùa is still difficult and lacking, they remain optimistic, cheerful, and still retain their traditional cultural characteristics. Hmong girls still proudly display their most glamorous dresses on the high mountain peaks or in the local markets. In Tà Xùa, there is also a limestone mountain peak, with a path through the grass squeezing along the mountain slope, called the 'love meeting point.' This is a dating spot for young Hmong boys and girls.

Families often go together to clear land and cultivate on the steep mountain slopes, with one side facing the mystical sea of clouds. Innocent children walk along narrow paths amidst the clouds to reach schools and learn to read and write...

According to Saigon Businessman

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Reference: Travel Handbook Mytour