5 beautiful cloud hunting spots in Sapa
Sapa has many suitable spots for hunting clouds such as Fansipan peak, Ham Rong mountain, Hang Da village…
Referring to Lao Cai, people will immediately think of the foggy city of Sapa, the town of Muong Hoa or the rustic and peaceful land of Y Ty. And considered the roof of Y Ty - Lao Than mountain is the ideal cloud hunting spot with majestic, wild and poetic scenery. Let's experience climbing Lao Than mountain 2 days 1 night below.
1. Where is Lao Than Mountain?
- Location: Phin Ho village, Y Ty commune, Bat Xat district, Lao Cai province
- Coordinates: 22.610420◦, 103.686535◦
- Altitude: 2,862m
- Difficulty: Medium
- Time by: 2 days 1 night
Lao Than Mountain, the roof of Y Ty's house, perfectly blends wild, majestic natural mountains and forests and the fantasy and brilliance of clouds and sky. Although not as majestic as Fansipan and not as dangerous as climbing Ba Den mountain, Lao Than is famous for being the ideal hunting spot for clouds in the Northwest mountains.
As the 11th highest peak in Vietnam, this mountain Lao Than Y Ty is considered medium difficult but offers a wonderful natural experience. The foothills of the mountain are mainly low grass hills; the terrain is simple, and there will be thorny trees and bushes near the top. In addition, along the way, there will be stops to rest and explore.
2. In which season should you climb Lao Than mountain?
Suppose anyone has ever been to the land of Y Ty. In that case, it is impossible to forget the dazzling golden terraced fields and unique villages. All of them bring strange and peaceful features to this Northwest land. Coming to Lao Than Y Ty mountain, too, the land you can experience all the beauty only in this land.
However, the ideal time to explore Lao Than is from October to December and March to May next year. Because the weather is not raining at this time, ensuring safety and is the ideal time for you to discover all the beauty of the "roof of Y Ty". And each time has its characteristics:
- March-May: the ideal time to hunt clouds.
- November - February: Hunt for clouds and the forest of burning grass.
- September - November: experience the dazzling golden terraces.
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3. How to get to Lao Than Mountain?
To come to Lao Than mountain to experience this Northwest land's peace, wildness, and poetry, you can move from Hanoi to My Dinh or Giap Bat bus station.
You can choose from reputable and quality Hanoi - Lao Cai bus companies such as Ha Son Garage, Sao Viet Garage, Green Bus, and Sapa Express bus, with ticket prices of 220,000 - 350,000 VND. The travel time usually takes about 5-6 hours, so you can choose the bus from the night at about 10-11 o'clock to reach the land of Lao Cai tomorrow morning.
When you arrive, you can rent a motorbike or catch a taxi to get to Y Ty commune. It will take you about 4 hours to move through Ban Xeo, Den Sang. From Y Ty center, go toward DT158 to Phin Ho village.
4. What to prepare for climbing Lao Than mountain?
Although Lao Than is considered relatively easy, the road is mainly low grass hills, but you will encounter difficulties during the climb. Therefore, you need to prepare the following necessary equipment for backpacking Lao Than:
Travel backpack: It is recommended to use a large backpack with many compartments to carry many necessary items.
Trekking shoes: An indispensable item in any climbing journey. It will help if you choose comfortable shoes with a good grip.
Tent camping: Climbing Lao Than mountain usually takes at least 2 days, 1 night or 3 days 2 nights, so use a camping tent to avoid fog and rain of the weather.
Sleeping bag: The higher you go, the lower the temperature, so prepare a sleeping bag to keep your body warm and get a better night's sleep.
Drinks and food: You should bring enough drinking water, food to organize a water party and fast food (chocolate, cakes, instant sausages... to replenish when exhausted).
Clothing: Bring warm, sun, and comfortable clothes to make trekking Lao Than mountain easier.
Medicines: Should prepare pain relievers, headache medicines and insect sprays.
Electronic devices like phones and cameras ensure communication and save the best moments.
5. What's attractive about Lao Than Mountain?
Not only attracts backpackers with weed roads, bare, dry trees on the empty hill, hunting clouds full of dreams, or "unique" experiences only in the Northwest region. Let's explore it with us below.
5.1. Hunting clouds, watching the sunrise on Lao Than
Hunting clouds and watching the sunrise on top of Lao Than is a feature that creates a "brand" for this Northwest region. Climbing to the top of the mountain at an altitude of 2,862m at 6 am, you will experience the wild, majestic, but equally dreamy here.
It is each layer of closed clouds, densely planted on top of each other, covering the whole mountain. And when the sun rises, each ray of sunlight gradually penetrates those dense clouds and shines down on each dew-drenched leaf. All blend to create a picture of dawn on the mountains of the Northwest that is both beautiful, wild and majestic, poetic and magical. This dispelled all the fatigue when climbing from the shack to the top with high slopes.
5.2. Ideal virtual shooting angles
After a tiring climbing journey, you certainly cannot ignore the extremely quality and unique virtual live angles here to add to your "virtual living" experience:
The road of dry trees on an empty hill
Starting the journey to conquer Lao Than, you will immediately meet the road of dry trees in the middle of an empty hill, where the afternoon sun rays shine, creating extremely beautiful and wild pictures and bringing nature's magic. Therefore, remember to stop here to take beautiful photos.
Virtual tree in A Ho shack
At A Ho's resting shack, you will encounter a very cool virtual tree trunk when facing out. You can take extremely beautiful photos here with just a few simple steps. However, it would help if you were careful to balance on a good tree trunk for safety.
Fishing rock
Besides the virtual living tree trunk at the shack, the fishing cliff is considered a check-in place that is very popular with backpackers. With a faraway view, the sun is slowly setting at the foot of Nhiu Co San mountain, with floating clouds and wild and majestic cliffs. All created a beautiful frame.
However, this place has quite slippery and dangerous terrain, so you need to be careful when climbing.
5.3. Camping in the mountains
Stopping the shack and starting camping, grilling is an unforgettable experience for those who want to "refresh themselves" after a tiring working day.
Leaving behind the fatigue, immersing in nature together, enjoying peaceful wildlife, dancing and singing, watching the stars, and listening to the stories of Porter's experiences. This is the most unforgettable experience of the whole trip.
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5.4. Experience Phin Ho market
After experiencing all the beauty of Lao Than mountain, remember to visit Phin Ho market every Sunday when you return. This place has bold features of the highland ethnic people with Lao Cai specialties and bustling markets with buyers and sellers.
You can immerse yourself in the flow of people in the market, buy gifts and enjoy the specialties here. Therefore, you should take it.
6. Itinerary for trekking Lao Than mountain in 2 days 1 night
To explore and experience all the beauty of the "roof of Y Ty" of this Northwest Mountain, you should schedule a 2-day 1, night departure from Sapa town. Here is the detailed schedule for your reference:
Day 1: Sapa - Muong Khum - Phin Ho - Lao Than shack
When coming to Sapa, you should choose the bus from 10-11 am the night before to sleep and come to Sapa around 4-5 am. Suitable for a new journey of discovery. The specific schedule for the first day is as follows:
6h: Start from Sapa to Muong Khum - Phin Ho (Y Ty).
10:30: Arrive at Phin Ho, rest, and have lunch.
12h: Meet Porter and send things to start the journey
1:30: Start climbing Lao Than Mountain.
17h30: Arrive at the shack, set up a tent, and prepare dinner.
Day 2: Shack – mountain top – Phin Ho
The road from the foot of the mountain to the top is only about 8km (up and down, about 16km). However, to ensure health, you should climb for 2 days and 1 night to rest and experience the natural space here. The second day of conquering the roof of Y Ty begins:
5 am: Wake up, clean up and have breakfast
6h: Arrive at the top of Lao Than Mountain. At this time, you can experience cloud hunting and watch the sunrise during the day.
8:00 am: Start moving down to the shack
9h30: Clean up tents and equipment in the shack to move down the mountain.
14h: Down to the foot of Lao Than mountain, rest, eat.
16h: Experience the bustling market of the Northwest mountains.
20h: Move back to Hanoi
7. The cost of climbing Lao Than mountain
Not as expensive as traveling to Da Lat or Da Nang, but coming to this unspoiled and peaceful Northwest land, you will experience "away from the city's smog", blending in with the nature of the mountains. And the cost of traveling to Lao Than is also extremely cheap, here are the necessary expenses for the trip that you can refer to:
- Bus fare from Hanoi - Lao Cai: 500,000/person (round trip ticket)
- Motorbike rental: 300,000/2 people/car
- Porter rental: 500,000/person porter
- Meal fee: 400,000/person (including lunch, snacks and accommodation at the shack)
- Money generated: 100,000 VND
=> Total reference cost is аbout: 1,200,000 - 1,500,000 VND depending on the number of people.
Indeed, the experience of climbing Lao Than mountain and conquering the roof of Y Ty is an interesting experience of this dreamy, peaceful, but also very wild land. The above mountain climbing experiences will help you have a great discovery trip.
