A rainforest adventure to yourself: discover Vietnam’s wild side during rainy season
- Cat Tien National Park in South Vietnam supports a rich ecosystem that you can enjoy in almost perfect solitude if you visit during rainy season
- The park includes simple accommodation, as well as a small sanctuary for mammals including bears and gibbons
Though we are barely 300 metres (1,000 feet) from shore, there is a real sense of adventure as my son and I, with guide Dinh Ki Dat, paddle slowly in a wooden canoe across the calm brown waters of a lake in South Vietnam’s Cat Tien National Park. There are no other boats out; around us, the grassy shores are backed by dense green rainforest.
Scanning the shoreline, there’s surprisingly not even a glimpse of birds such as storks and herons, nor water buffalo. Perhaps it is because of the lake’s namesake – called Crocodile Lake, it is inhabited by a number of Siamese crocodiles. These relatively small crocodiles, which rarely grow to over three metres long, could easily be lurking nearby.
Dinh is concerned by the freshening breeze, and we find the way back to a park rangers’ station has been blocked by a drifting raft of water hyacinths, which he slowly pulls us through.
The rangers’ station consists of a rather rickety-looking wooden building, two storeys high, with benches by wide openings, where visitors can sit and watch for wildlife. Earlier, we had seen a crocodile from here – it was mostly submerged, leaving only its head visible. But now, our attention is drawn to an approaching rainstorm, which blots out the far shore of the lake. It advances towards us, bringing a torrential downpour.
The deluge is no surprise, given we are visiting a rainforest at the peak of the rainy season. The abundant rain plus tropical warmth and sunshine spur the growth of lush forest that supports a rich diversity of wildlife, and is protected by the Cat Tien National Park.
