Your guide to trekking Tà Xùa’s peak – 2865m (Tram Tau – Yen Bai) by Doan Bach
(Note: This location is suitable for those in good health with trekking skills – having already climbed a few simple mountains)
Detailed climbing instructions
This location is suitable for those in good health with trekking skills (Photo: Doan Bach)
Day 01
This journey is suitable for teams (Photo: Doan Bach)
Our group departed from Hanoi, consisting of 13 people. The car started at 7:30 PM on the third day of Tet. Upon boarding, everyone took a few minutes at the beginning to introduce themselves and get acquainted with the other members. A few knew each other from before, having climbed together on a previous occasion, but most were still strangers to each other.
The car moved in the direction of Son Tay – Thanh Son Thu Cuc – Nghia Lo – Tram Tau (Yen Bai). The journey took about over 5 hours, and around 1 AM on the fourth day of Tet, we arrived at the central area of Tram Tau district – Yen Bai.
The whole group carried their luggage and backpacks to stay at Thao Nguyen guesthouse (located in the center of Tram Tau town – Yen Bai).
You will often encounter sea of clouds like this (Photo: Doan Bach)
Day 02
The weather is quite cold, so always keep warm (Photo: Doan Bach)
We checked into our rooms and slept until 6 AM, then the whole group woke each other up for personal hygiene and breakfast. Around 7:30 AM, the car arrived to take us to the starting point of the climb at Ban Cong commune, Tram Tau district. The weather was quite cold, with a bit of drizzle, and the temperature was estimated to be around 13-14 degrees Celsius at that time.
You can hire porters to carry your bags (Photo: Doan Bach)
Our group started the journey, walking through a long and steep slope to the porter’s house in the local community. We divided up water and snacks for the road, with each person preparing and carrying their own personal backpack…
For those who assess their strength and want to climb more leisurely, you can hire porters to carry your backpack for you throughout the trek up and down the mountain over 2 days. (Reference price is 500k for one heavy backpack/2 days).
The primal forest is quite dense (Photo: Doan Bach)
Around 9 AM that day, we started our climb. Everyone walked while enjoying the scenery along the way, pausing now and then to take photos. The stamina of each person varied; for some, this was only their second trek, while others were in good health and had experience climbing a few trails before, so our group gradually split into several smaller groups, slightly separating from each other.
Posing beside the primal forest (Photo: Doan Bach)
For me personally, this trek was my tenth mountain climb; I had climbed Tà Xùa 4 years ago. Returning this time, I had somewhat more experience than many others in the group.
I leisurely climbed, taking breaks and stopping to take many photos along the way. Around nearly 12 noon, I also reached our lunch break point at the crossroads with a large wild apple tree (commonly referred to as the Wild Apple Tree Crossroads).
Everyone stopped here to rest and have lunch. The porters gathered wood and dry branches to make a fire for warmth. We gathered around the fire, eating rice balls, sesame salt, pork, and cucumbers. The lunch was simple, but everyone found it delicious… probably because after a few hours of climbing steep slopes, we all felt tired.
The dense forest looks quite mystical (Photo: Doan Bach)
After lunch and a rest of about 40 minutes, around 1 PM, everyone continued their journey. Climbing a few more steep sections for about over 30 minutes, we arrived at the Turtle Head Rock. This spot is a popular checkpoint where many stop to take photos. If you are lucky, standing here looking down around you is a floating sea of white clouds, and on a sunny day with clear skies, taking photos here is absolutely fantastic.
That day, we stopped here to take photos for an hour without getting bored, as the sky and clouds here changed continuously. Every 5-7 minutes, the scene of the sky and clouds changed, giving you the opportunity to capture different moments of nature. While the rest of the group moved on, I leisurely walked and continued to take photos.
Honestly, I am a photography enthusiast, so the main reason for my return trip to Ta Xua this time was also mainly to capture a lot of special photos… something I couldn’t do 4 years ago. Continuing past the Turtle Head Rock, I climbed through a pine forest, then onto a bamboo forest. The view through the bamboo forest was quite open and spacious. In this section, there are almost no tall and large ancient trees. Mostly, there are clumps of dwarf bamboo growing on the mountain slopes.
The achievement of reaching the summit is absolutely fantastic (Photo: Doan Bach)
After about nearly 2 more hours, around after 4 PM, I reached the rest hut. Most of my group had already arrived at the hut, some even an hour before me. My climbing schedule was like this because I stopped to take many photos along the way. If I estimate the climbing effort as moderate, it probably would have taken less time.
Upon reaching the rest hut, I left some of my belongings there. While everyone in the group took care of personal hygiene, washing hands and feet, each person then chose a warm corner for themselves. The porters were starting a fire to grill chicken and prepare dinner for the group.
As for me, I prepared a small backpack and continued with my camera to climb up to the beginning of the Dinosaur Backbone to catch the sunset there. Since the distance from the rest hut to the start of the Dinosaur Backbone wasn’t too long, it only took about an additional 20 minutes of hiking. Therefore, reaching the hut early on the first day, that evening I could take the opportunity to climb up to the start of the Dinosaur Backbone to enjoy the view, check in, and take photos in advance.
From my mountain climbing experience, the scenery changes every day, at every moment. Good weather today doesn’t mean it will be the same tomorrow. If you have time, and the weather is nice this evening, you should take the opportunity to climb to the top of the backbone to capture the sunset, and then the next morning climb up again to capture the sunrise.
That evening, I took quite a few shots that I was satisfied with. Standing on top of the Backbone, near the swing, the wind blew fiercely, quite cold, watching the clouds roll over the ridge.
(Photo: Doan Bach)
Standing here taking photos for over half an hour, around 5:15 PM, I started to head back down to the hut to arrive before it got dark. Once down at the hut, after storing my gear and washing up, I arrived just in time for the group’s dinner. The dinner was quite cozy, as there was no electricity, and the phone signal was weak, sometimes there, sometimes not.
We had dinner in the light of flashlights and rechargeable lamps. The mountain meal included chicken, grilled pork, boiled cabbage, and potato soup with bones… everyone enjoyed a bit of wine, happily and warmly together. After dinner, everyone again chose a warm corner for themselves, with some groups playing cards, others listening to music, chatting…
(Photo: Doan Bach)
It was quite late, and the night fog started to get colder outside, so we went to sleep to ensure our strength for the next day’s climb. The sleeping hut, built by the local people, was in a place quite sheltered from the wind, but at night the temperature in the forest dropped low. Despite wearing thick clothes and being wrapped up in blankets, we still felt cold from time to time. That night, I slept fitfully, waking up every few hours.
Day 03
The next morning, at 6 AM, everyone woke each other up and we had breakfast together. Breakfast was simple with instant noodles, fried rice, and boiled eggs. After breakfast and a little rest, everyone left their belongings and backpacks at the hut, only carrying some drinking water, raincoats, and snacks for the road.
As for me, having planned in advance to take a special set of photos at the summit, I had prepared a backpack with quite a lot of personal items and clothes, including a tripod and a camera. Around 7:30 AM, we continued to climb over the dinosaur backbone.
(Photo: Doan Bach)
The initial steep section of the Dinosaur Backbone is quite dangerous, however, more than a month ago, the People’s Committee of Tram Tau District provided funding for the local people here to add a system of protective guardrail cables. Therefore, compared to before, this steep section has become much less dangerous.
Four years ago, when I climbed, there wasn’t a protective cable system, especially climbing on a day with strong whirlwinds, the feeling of danger and thrill was really intense… Coming here again reminds me of the memories, the last climb 4 years ago when facing this dangerous section, in our group there were 1-2 people who were afraid of heights. When at this section looking down, one of them started crying out of fear…
I paused at the start of the steep section to take photos, shooting down below, far away on the Dinosaur Backbone was our group, tiny like ants following each other. Some wore blue, others red, pink, orange… a whole variety of colors.
(Photo: Doan Bach)
Everyone continued to move across the Dinosaur Backbone. The clouds constantly changed, sweeping across each section of the Backbone. Sometimes the clouds rushed in, and we got to enjoy the feeling of being enveloped in clouds.
At times, it was completely foggy, with misty rain making it quite cold. Crossing this section of the Backbone would take about more than 1 hour to 1 hour and 30 minutes (depending on each person’s stamina, and also on whether the weather is good or bad). Note that often when hiking in the mountains, you might come across a fork in the road leading in two directions. Usually, following the wider, well-trodden path is the main route that most people take…
The other path is often a shortcut used by porters and locals to save time. This shortcut is quicker than the main route, but it is also more dangerous and difficult to navigate.
(Photo: Doan Bach)
That day, I tried a few times to take shortcuts, which resulted in quite a risky experience. The weather was a bit damp, making many steep sections rather slippery. My advice is whether climbing up or down, always search for and hold onto sturdy tree roots and trunks.
This method is quite safe, especially for those afraid of heights; don’t look down the mountain sides, just focus on the path and the tree roots you are holding onto. This will help reduce the fear of heights.
Crossing the Dinosaur Backbone, we continued through a primal forest full of large, moss-covered ancient trees. Our journey took us up and down various elevations, each with its unique vegetation, quite diverse. Mostly, in this section of the forest, we encountered tall bamboo and large rhododendrons. The day we went, the forest was engulfed in fog, nearly devoid of sunlight… The forest was damp, filled with hundred-year-old trees, their trunks covered in moss.
It felt like wandering deep into a mysterious fairy-tale forest that people usually only see in movies. The deeper we went, the more we discovered and admired the untouched forest. It seemed like very few people had set foot here, perhaps why this forest still retains its wild beauty.
From the time we crossed the Dinosaur Backbone and continued through that forest, it took about an additional 2 hours to reach the third peak (The third peak is the highest of the three Ta Xua peaks, at 2865m, and has a marker at the top). Because I kept stopping to take photos along the way, it wasn’t until nearly 1 PM that I reached the peak and touched the marker.
It was past noon, and everyone was hungry and tired after a long climb. We rested and had a light lunch at the peak. The meal consisted of rice balls, fried chicken, and instant sausages… After eating, our group took photos for a check-in with the Ta Xua marker. The area on the peak had a mystical forest just like in fairy tales… There were many beautiful spots for photos, making it seem like the most beautiful and unique forest I had ever seen.
The temperature at the peak was especially cold, probably only a few degrees Celsius. After everyone in the group finished taking photos, we headed back down to the hut. I stayed a bit longer to capture photos that might not be found anywhere else. I stayed near the peak in the forest for about an additional hour, and the results did not disappoint, finally capturing a set of photos I was quite proud of.
Around 2:30 PM, the leader called me on the walkie-talkie, reminding me to descend the mountain and return to the hut, as staying late and not getting down before dark would not be safe. We packed up quickly and made our way down the mountain almost without stopping for more photos. We began descending at precisely 2:45 PM, crossing through the primal forest and then back over the Dinosaur Backbone.
On this return, we encountered a bit of mist and fog over the Backbone. The path was damp and a bit slippery. There were sections now, on the way back up the slopes, that felt difficult and dangerous, incomprehensible how I managed to come down them in the morning.
(Photo: Doan Bach)
Finally, after about 3 hours of descending from the peak, at 5:45 PM, I safely returned to the rest hut. In the morning, climbing up and taking photos was quite exhausting, taking more than 5 hours to ascend. But descending only took about 3 hours. Once down, I washed my hands and feet, warmed up a bit by the fire, and just in time for dinner.
This dinner was the second meal at the hut that everyone ate together, after 2 days of traveling a long distance together, everyone became closer and understood each other more. After dinner, everyone chose their own way to relax. A group of us chose to sit around a small fire. The night weather on the mountain was quite cold, probably only about 5-7 degrees Celsius, so sitting by the warm fire was the most effective way to stay warm.
Some dried their damp clothes and shoes by the fire to dry them quickly. Imagine the scene of everyone gathered around the fire, staring at the star-filled sky, singing along to music from Bluetooth speakers… The feeling was incredible, with new friends, in a strange place without electricity, no phone signal, enjoying moments of comfort without thinking about work or life’s troubles.
It was quite late, and we told each other to go back to the hut to sleep, preparing for the next day’s journey down the mountain. That night felt even colder than the night before, with the sleeping hut engulfed in fog. The next morning, everyone discovered, looking at the tin roof on the hut, that many dewdrops had formed. They dripped down, wetting some areas of the blankets completely.
Day 04
(Photo: Doan Bach)
Since the journey down the mountain the next day wasn’t too complicated, everyone could sleep in a bit longer the next morning. At 7 AM, the leader woke everyone up, and the group had breakfast then packed up their personal belongings to prepare for the descent. Everyone gathered for a few group photos. By 8:30 AM, the group gradually started descending.
The path down this time was simpler, partly because descending doesn’t require as much effort, and partly because the trail from the hut down to the village is now wider and more beautiful than before. It took about 3 hours and 30 minutes to descend, finally reaching the starting point of the climb, where the car was waiting to take the group back to the guesthouse in Tram Tau town. The car picked us up and brought us back to the guesthouse by 1 PM.
Everyone rested, took showers, and then gathered happily around a warm hotpot for dinner. After a satisfying meal, at 4 PM, the car began the journey back to Hanoi. After more than 5 hours of travel, by 9 PM, I was back in Hanoi, ending an interesting trip. Everyone was happy to see each other, saying goodbye and promising to meet again…
Some tips for you
- This is a long and complex mountain trek, so I advise those who have never trekked before not to participate immediately. You should try some easier treks first like Lao Than, Ta Chi Nhu, Fansipan, Nhiu Co San, Bach Moc Luong Tu, etc., before considering Ta Xua. It’s better to go on a tour organized by companies that specialize in mountain trekking. This saves travel time, effort, and possibly even costs, as going on a tour means porters prepare food, leaders oversee the itinerary, and the climbing schedule is suited to everyone’s health. Currently, a few agencies organize tours to Ta Xua such as T&H Trekking and Hiking, Viet Trekking, Travel Up. I recently went on a tour with Travel Up, which was reasonably priced and quite satisfactory.
- I feel that a 3-day 2-night itinerary seems a bit excessive for those in good health. I have previously climbed Ta Xua with a 2-day 1-night itinerary. However, such a short schedule requires good health and climbing skills. For photography enthusiasts who want time for photos like me, a 3-day 2-night itinerary is reasonable.
- Ta Xua has many long steep sections, so when climbing, you should know how to regulate your breathing appropriately. Doing it right, you’ll feel less tired and conserve energy. If you get tired, you can stop to rest, drink water, and snack to recharge. But remember not to sit for too long; sitting too long in the cold mountain and forest can lower your body temperature and make you feel cold. Climbing on damp days, when trails are slippery, you need a pair of shoes with good grip. (If you can afford high-quality hiking shoes, great; if not, like me, just use military boots, those shoes have taken me to the summit 10 times already).
(Photo: Doan Bach)
- Assessing the difficulty of the Ta Xua trek: Previously, I rated Ta Xua as a trek with a high level of danger and excitement, about 8.5/10. Returning this time, I noticed some changes, so I would rate it at 7/10. The reason is that compared to before, the trail from the starting point in the village to the rest stop at the wild apple tree crossroads has been widened and improved, making it wider and easier to navigate. Furthermore, the adventurous thrill of climbing on the Dinosaur Backbone has diminished somewhat because a protective cable system has recently been added, making it much safer. Additionally, there are now sleeping huts with warm blankets at rest points, which is a significant change from the past when we only had tents to sleep in.
In general, everything follows the law of development; the earlier you go, the more you can preserve its wild and natural allure. Over time, as things are improved and changed, the trails become easier to navigate, allowing more people to access them, which also means that it becomes more challenging to preserve the untouched fairy-tale primal forest.
My article is only for reference, hoping to share some helpful information for those who are planning or will plan to trek soon.
Please remember: “Ta Xua is not to be taken lightly!
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