The not-so beaten track...

Most people read about Phong Nha National Park and caves in the trusty lonely planet and after reading it on the train it sparked an interest, but a Manc we met in Saigon said that this was a highlight of his trip in Vietnam, so we had to do it.

Phong Nha National Park and caves are a relatively new addition to the traveller's route in Vietnam (compared to some of our other destinations) and Phong Nha Farmstay is even newer - having only opened in 2010. It is a little off the main coastal travel route, as we needed to get a pickup from Dong Hoi train station, a less well known town on the coast. We got a soft seat train from Danang, which was full of Vietnamese but was pleasant enough and between Danang and Hue the track was literally on the side of a mountain overlooking the sea below, with some stunning views from the window. You can get to the farmstay by bus, but there are various warnings against it because it involves 'local' transport!

On arrival, we were greeted by Pawel and the Australian owner Ben and shown to our dorm beds. There's a main building that acts as the hub for everything including meals, tours, the bar and generally hanging out with other travellers - the only other residents, and it was immediately clear that this place had a great feel to it.

Our first night in bunks was fine - thankfully no snorers and quite civilised, and we were up early for a tour of the Phong Nha Ke-Ba National park. Travelling down the Ho Chi Minh trail in a 1968 US military jeep, having the bomb craters being pointed out to us, was quite surreal, and this was to set the tone for the day. We visited the 8 martyrs/8 ladies cave and war memorial, then Paradise Cave, the biggest cave either of us have ever been in (and the longest dry cave in the world) it was so well lit, we really got to appreciate the sheer scale and beauty of the thing.

We then trekked a short way down the Nuoc Mooc Eco trail (built by ze Germans), using bamboo bridges to cross the rampant waters, and got in to our swimmers for a jolly in the river - luckily for Fiz there were ropes to guide us through the strong currents which were coming from an underwater spring that had formed a large cave further up the mountain. The mist hanging low over the flowing water only added to the film-worthy special effects - this was one of those scenes you don't forget for a long time, it was awesome.

But it got better still, at least for me anyway! A short jeep ride down the road we got in to Kayaks and headed for another cave - the Dark Cave. We were told to take nothing we didn't want to get wet, and as we walked in to the cave with headlamps and life jackets, we started to see why - the only way to get through was to swim in the freezing water... and the only light was coming from our headlamps. But this place also has a large amount of Basalt in the cave walls, which amongst all the many many millions of tons of Limestone, contributes to the cave's name.

So once we'd come back out of the cave, and after another beer whilst drying down, we were on our way back, stopping to take photos of the villages along the water on the way.

There's not a lot else that is 'recommended' to do at night in the town of Cu Nam, the 'town of enemies', where we're staying (in the main town we saw a fight between locals, one of them swinging a meat clever at the other - so we didn't argue about not leaving after dark) but we had a great meal and watched the live acoustic set by a Thai woman back at the Farmstay to fill our evening.

Yesterday (Wednesday) our hopes of a cycling trip and a boat trip to another cave looked to be dashed by sporadic heavy rain, but with little else to do, 5 of us decided to chance it anyway. Cycling through the rice paddies was great had it not been for the rain which quickly became a torrent. And because of the rain, the water level was too high and we weren't allowed to go on the boat to yet another cave. So 2 of the semi-permanent Aussie residents came on their motorbikes and took us for a Vietnamese coffee and deep fried quail (whole) at a local 'eatery', which was really just a tin shed with some more really small plastic chairs. We just about made it back to the Farmstay - through thunder and lightening, and most of the roads were a couple of inches under water as most of the rice paddies had overflowed. We were thoroughly soaked and welcomed the warm shower. And because we were back earlier than expected, the owner decided to take us all on a trip to see the damage caused by the unseasonal (heavy rain doesn't normally come until October) weather - in the back of the local policeman's dirt truck! Unfortunately a lot of the locals grow rice to eat throughout the year, so the floods the rain causes can wipe out their food supply and many go starving for months. We couldn't cross the river where we wanted to due to flooding, so we settled in the Pepper House - a 'pub' of sorts - for a couple of cold Huda beers (Hu - from Hue in Vietnam, Da - made with Danish brewing technology) - rivals Saigon beer for taste, but is only available in central Vietnam.

We spent the rest of the evening relaxing at the Farmstay chatting to the other travellers. This has been another incredible stop and another eye opener - its easy to see why so many people recommend it. Today (Thursday) we woke up on the train on the way to Hanoi - a completely opposite experience to the last couple of days. We've checked in to our hotel for the night and got our first free upgrade - its been a long time coming! We're just digging in to the cake for lunch as we write this!