ASEAN Protected Areas

Ha Long Bay

 

ASEAN Heritage Park & World Heritage Site, Vietnam

Location

Situated near the port of Haiphong in the north of Vietnam, the bay forms an archipelago of small limestone islets. This is a submerged karst landscape. Legend claims that the bay was created when an immense dragon plunged to Earth here. Its mighty tail carved the great stone seabed violently before the creature flew away once more. True or false, the fable helps explain the thousands of limestone outcroppings, which look like so many blades thrust deep into the mist from below the sea. Many are barren, weathered and rocky. Others are cloaked in vegetation so dense that it is impossible to see the stone beneath. At dusk, they all take on mysterious shades of gray, mauve and olive.

Habitats

Most of the area is shallow sea but the feature of greatest interest is the thousand or more islets. Some of these are tiny, others are many hectares in size and sport a limestone forest vegetation with Dracaena a dominant element. The largest island Cat Ba is a National Park in its own right and contains a small inland lake and an endemic species of white-headed leaf monkey. Cat Ba even has a fringe of stunted mangrove forest on its western end and a trapped freshwater lake at its centre.

Wildlife

Rhesus macaques are common on many islets. White-headed monkeys are now found only on Cat Ba. There are a variety of coastal and forest birds.

Other interests

Visitors can dive in the sea where some small northern coral gardens are found but also many wrecked ships may be seen both from the Vietnam war and much earlier periods. Moth-winged junks still ply these waters creating picturesque seascapes frequently reproduced in paintings and mother of pearl marquetry in Hanoi souvenir shops. Many poems and songs propound the beauty and mystery of the bay.

In the middle of Ha Long Bay is Cat Ba Island, the 15,000 ha park designates both islands and coral reefs (some of the most northerly in the world) and can only be accessed by boat or on foot from Cat Ba town. Its an extremely popular place to stay while visiting this World Heritage Park.

Several of the larger islands have extensive caves, which are open to visitors for about a dollar. Although they are poorly lit and have slippery pathways, they offer a little adventure to liven up a long, lazy day of boating. One cave on Cat Ba was used as a military post, safe from US bombs during the Vietnam War.

The water is warm, clean and clear, so swimming is always a pleasure here.

Visiting

One of the great natural wonders of Asia, Halong Bay is the single most popular side trip from Hanoi. The beauty of the bay and its 3000 islands is so awesome that an excursion there should be considered an essential part of any visit to Northern Vietnam. Travel agencies in Hanoi offer an overnight trip, including all transportation, two days of sailing on the bay, accommodations in a modest hotel and four good meals, all for under $25. If you have an extra day, you can add a night the wildlife sanctuary on nearby Cat Ba Island.

After five hours on a terrible road (which is slowly being repaved), the visitor is rewarded with some of the most spectacular and memorable sightseeing of your trip. Hire a boat in Halong City or Hong Gai to take you as far from shore as possible, and simply meander among the islands and inlets. There is plenty to explore in the 4000 sq km body of water, and it is easy to find peaceful places to swim, fish, or just relax without seeing another soul, yet surrounded by majestic scenery.

Conservation Programmes

Ha Long Bay itself is managed primarily from tourism and the interst is to protect the site’s unique features, whilst developing suitable tourist facilities.

Cat Ba island, however, is managed as a National Park and managed for a combination of objectives including nature conservation. Protection of the endemic white-headed monkeys is a high priority. Cat Ba has been assisted by a number of FAO and WWF projects in the development of a management plan and basic development. FFI have undertaken surveys of the monkeys.

Threats

The corals have been damaged from siltation caused by the increasing pollution and siltation coming from the mouth of the Red River. Formerly, this discharge was filtered by extensive mangrove forests but the river outlets have been channelised to speed drainange and avoid flooding, which has affected the water quality in the Bay. Corals still survive on most sheltered coasts.

There is a military camp on Cat Ba Island which poses a threat both in the form of hunting and collecting firewood within the park.