The freshwater Lake Ba Be is the only significant natural upland lake in the North of Viet Nam. From Thai Nguyen City, capital of Bac Thai province, you drive along Highway 3 to the towns of Bac Can and Phu Thong. After another 16 km you will arrive at Ba Be Lake which is about 225 km from Hanoi. Ba Be is some 145m above sea level, 8 km long, 3 km wide and about 20-30m deep.
The lakes actually consists of three lakes called Pe Lam, Pe Lu and Pe Leng, and derives its name Ba Be (which in Vietnamese means Three Seas) from this, Lake Ba Be is surrounded by limestone mountains and thick forest, home to many species of rare birds and animals.
You can take a dugout canoe to visit the small islands of Po Ga Mai and An Ma, and Puong Grotto. The Grotto, is about 300m long, and 30-40m in height and width.
The stalagmites and stalagmites inside the grotto are beautiful and diverse in forms. Some of them look like a reclining Buddha, a sitting tiger, climbing monkeys and so on.
If you have time, you can travel one hour by boat to visit Dau Dang Fall. The 100-m, three-level waterfall makes the scenery even more magnificent
