Much has been written about the the Vam Sat Ecological Tourist Center (VSETC) in the Can Gio Biosphere Reserve (Vietnam) ... the bats, the crabs, the monkeys, the crocs but nothing much about the birds (at Vam Sat Bird Sanctuary) for the poor birders. I'm one of the poor birders poring over the internet to find out more about the bird sanctuary - is it worth a trip? Nothing much could be found except for some standard information rehashed over several websites. So finally, I decided to do the birding community a favour and check out the sanctuary from a birder's perspective. So this will be a blog entry covering mainly how to get there, what's there (meaning the birds) and a little side tracking to the other parts of the VSETC - be forewarned, it's a long-winded post ... could even be called an essay!
INTRODUCTION
Can Gio District is some 50km from HCMC. Can Gio forest covers about 75,000ha with its salt-marsh forest covering some 35,000ha. It is recognised as a biosphere reserve of the world by UNESCO.
Vam Sat in Can Gio lies between the rivers Vam Sat and Long Tau. During the Vietnam/American war, Vam Sat was destroyed by bombs and defoliants. Despite the odds, the reforestation efforts/programme from 1996 has raised it to the status of an international biosphere of mangrove forest - an impressive feat indeed.
But birders are only interested in the 100ha natural bird sanctuary so I'll blog mainly on that. I read that special bird food was used to induced the birds to roost in the bird sanctuary in the early days.
THE PLANNING
I dug out whatever I could find on the internet on the various ways to get there. I decided that I'll be adventurous and bike there on my own. Of course there are various other ways - you could follow a day tour, or get yourself a personal tour guide, or take a boat tour, or take the public buses-and-then-boat. For these, the internet has lots of advice - please look up on your own. TripAdvisor has a lot of info.
I planned my route on Google Maps (See my map here) and it looked rather manageable. Interestingly, I was able to locate some places on Google Maps which I couldn't find on my search in the internet. I even planned for a ride to the beach ... "planned"! The wee bit worrying part was the ferry crossing at Binh Khanh.
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| Ferries at Binh Khanh |
TIMINGS
First the timings. I'm a poor and slow rider but this road trip took me a good more-than-3-hours each way when most people said they reached in about 2+ hours. I'll dwell on the reasons later.
0610h Depart from Cong Hoa Street in Tan Binh
0710h Reach ferry terminal (22km)
0810h Reach turn-off at Rung Sac-Ly Nhon Road T-junction (35km)
0935h Reach Vam Sat Bird Sanctuary (56km from the start)
1150h Head back
1330h Reach ferry terminal
1455h Reach Cong Hoa
THE ROAD TRIP
It was smooth sailing from Cong Hoa to the ferry terminal, apart from the congestion that I marked out on Google Maps. There was a heavy downpour the night before and the roads were still wet. But the long road Huynh Tan Phat in District Nha Be was not good with various parts still slightly flooded on the sides. But surprisingly, traffic was rather smooth.
My worries about the Binh Khanh ferry crossing were just that. It was a breeze in the early morning. Monkey see, monkey do. I just followed where the VN bikers were going, paid 4,500vnd for the fare, waited with the rest for the ferry, and then rode onto the ferry just like everyone else. It was a very short sail, less than 10 minutes in all. Then again this monkey just followed the rest to disembark and I was on my way.
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| Going there - 100m from ferry terminal on Huynh Tan Phat Street |
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| Just follow the local bikes to the ticketing entrance on the right |
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| Waiting to embark after paying ferry fare of 4,500vnd |
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| Waiting to disembark |
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| Going back - 100m before the ferry terminal on Rung Sac Street |
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| All kinds of vehicles onboard the ferry |
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| Passengers can sit above |
Just after the ferry terminal is a little town centre (if you can call that a town) with some shops and food/drinks on both sides of the street. You can top up your supplies here if you like. Along the way, there are another 2 or 3 small little village centres where you can do that too. Someone warned about petrol - don't be fooled. There are ample petrol stations - I counted 2 along Rung Sac and 2 along Ly Nhon, so petrol is not a problem. There's also a bike repair shop along Ly Nhon should you need one.
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| Petrol station along Rung Sac Street |
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| Turn off from Rung Sac to Ly Nhon |
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| Streets clearly marked |
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| Bridge along Ly Nhon |
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| Petrol station along Ly Nhon |
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| There are a few direction signs along the way. |
The air is so fresh and clean in Can Gio after the town centre that I had no need for my mask the rest of the trip in Can Gio. Very few cars and buses, and few bikes by Saigon standard. But an unexpected problem cropped up ... the roads were bad, as in every bone of mine shook and rattled all the way to the sanctuary and back. I didn't dare go fast as my scooter is already 8 years old and might break down anytime like good "old" me. The residents were different - I think they probably had super-suspensions as they zoomed at double my speed. At times, I was down to 20km/h. And the pot holes ... there are too many to count. This probably accounted for a major part of my long-timing. Perhaps it was the rain that did much damage to the roads.
The other time-gobbling activity was to stop and look at/for birds from time to time ... which was the main reason for my going there in the first place. So I stopped to smell the flowers and see the birds. It's the journey and not the destination that's important, right?. There were also some interesting sites to stop and marvel, and that's the reason why I went alone. So I could stop anytime and anywhere I wanted without feeling obliged.
Rung Sac is a big road (3 lanes each side) but the road condition was bad. Ly Nhon is a smaller 2-way street and the condition was worse. I don't see how it could get any worse.
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| Rung Sac Street |
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| Ly Nhon Street & its pock-marked road |
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| Take the left turn to Vam Sat; road condition still bad but it's still a road |
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| No, no, no! You gotta be kidding me. Where's the road? |
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| Gotta go in-between two water bodies |
And from here, it was a good 2.6km on the gravel-that-will-turn-to-dirt track to reach VSETC!
VAM SAT BIRD SANCTUARY
So yes, you can get there by bike, car, bus or boat (for boat, disembark at VSETC and walk to sanctuary). I read so many accounts of visitors arriving at the VSETC/sanctuary by boat that I wondered whether it was on an island. So it isn't. It's about 200m before the VSETC entrance. There's an arch that says "Bird Sanctuary" (Khu Bao Ton Tram Chim). Walk through it and there's a shelter with information on the right, some boats on the left and a single track.
(Note : There's no proper place to park your bike here. What I did was just parked at the side and locked up my bike with a bike lock - not that it's of much use if someone is intent on stealing the bike. So remember your bike lock. Or you could park at the shelter and chain your bike to the concrete seat or the beam - much safer. Otherwise, you could park at the ranger station at VSETC - safest option - and take a short walk here.)
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| And finally, the Vam Sat Bird Sanctuary!! |
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| The signboard is barely visible, hidden in the shadows ... I almost missed it |
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| The shelter just after the entrance above (on the right). I didn't park my bike here. |
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| There are some boats after the entrance above (on the left). Must be for some paid boat tour but no one was there. |
Walk/drive down the track for about 200m until you see a "Do Not Enter" sign (which leads to someone's house ... don't ask how I know ... lol). There's a small wooden bridge on your left. That's the entrance to Bird Heaven.
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| Do not Enter means just that! Believe me, that track is treacherous for foreigners on bikes! |
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| This "doorway" on the left is the entrance to Bird Heaven. I parked my bike here - lucky I brought a bike lock. |
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| After the doorway is this rickety bridge to Bird Heaven. Bridge leads to Bird Observation Tower. |
A single narrow footpath leads you to the Bird Observation Tower. You'll hear all the bird sounds at ground level but it's difficult to spot the birds.
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| This is the stairway to Bird Heaven...the Bird Observation Tower |
On climbing the tower to above tree top level, my jaws dropped. All the birds were sitting on the tree tops 360 degree with many swooping around!!! It was indeed a sight to behold for an amateur birder ... even though there are only a few species. The photos tell a better story. I spent the better part of an hour at the top but damn, damn ... had to run as the rain was coming. I would have loved to walk beyond the tower to see what else was in store.
A short video here but apologies for the poor quality ...
I'm into bird photography and as you can see, the birds are rather far away. You'll need a good camera with good zoom lens if you want to get decent photos. Mine's a G85 with 100-300mm lens (not much good) and an aging P600 (which was better with x65 zoom).
Actually one can either pay for a boat and guide, or put on hired boots & guide to explore the birding scene in the marshes, so I read. That way, you'll be able to get real close to the birds and their nests. And supposedly, birds flying back at dusk will drive birders wild with "birdal" estacy, and make for lovely bird photography. I guess for that, it will have to be an overnight trip. That'll be on my wish list if I ever return.
HOW'S THE BIRDING?
It was a bit disappointing for me. There weren't many different birds to "shoot" in the first place. I was so excited to see my first Collared Kingfisher in Vietnam (after the ferry terminal), only to find that they're a dime a dozen in Can Gio. The bird sanctuary only had the following as far as I can tell:
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| Black-crowned Night Heron |
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| Little Cormorant |
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| Little Egret |
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| Laced Woodpecker (just happened to catch one flying around) |
I caught sight of a Greater Coucal at the sanctuary but couldn't get my camera up on time. Got a very blur shot of what I thought was a Racket-tailed Treepie - I saw quite a few of them flying around along the way but couldn't get a shot in again ... damn! These were some of the birds I shot on the way there :
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| Is this a Racket-tailed Treepie? It's got blue eyes, and long, fan-like tail feathers. |
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| Collared Kingfisher (shot from tower at VSETC) |
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| The best I could do for this pix of what looks like a Japanese or Oriental White-eye |
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| Need ID for this birdie! |
Here's an impressive list of birds that you can find in Can Gio. Based on this list, sure looks like it's worth going. But the reality may be quite different.
Would I visit again? Not on bike, that's for sure. I might consider the boat trip if it's just to see the birds, and trekking through the marshes to catch the birds up close sounds interesting ... but I'll think twice about a second trip there. Will probably go Dalat but that's an essay for another day.
Note : I read that the bird-watching season in the sanctuary is from May to October. If you're visiting, please do check that again to ensure that you won't be disappointed. You don't want to come here and see only tree tops!
Vietnamtourism.info
Vietnamnet
List of birds in Can Gio
VSETC (VAM SAT ECOLOGICAL TOURIST CENTER)
Decided to come here to seek shelter from the rain and see what the place is about (please see the photos). The rain stopped when I reach here ... damn again! Anyway, the tours, if you book them, involves more than just this place. You'll have boat rides along the rivers and streams to the other eco-destinations to see the bats, monkets, crabs etc. This is like the main center to start off from. Thought I'd walk the track to the crocodile enclosure to see if there were any birds along the way. It's 850m from the ranger station where I had to park my bike (it's free parking!). Nothing much there except for some tourists trying to feed the poor crocs with miserable bits of chicken meat/innards. There's a tram that brings paid tourists to the croc enclosure and back though. I climbed the tower that was there and had a lovely view of the place. Other than that, I didn't explore the other parts as I wasn't interested. And so I headed back to HCMC as I had an engagement in the evening.
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| Signboard shows the various activities available at VSETC |
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| Map of VSETC |
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| End of the track is the jetty below |
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| The jetty where tourists taking boat tours disembark |
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| The Tower at VSETC |
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| The pretty decent-looking restaurant |
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| Signages tell you where to go. WC is the most important. |
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| The road running through the main part of VSETC |
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| View of the river from the Tower. The river tours will be along here. |
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| Bird's eye view of VSETC |
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| Crocs waiting to be baited |
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| Even the monkeys are bored! |
SIGHTS ALONG THE WAY
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| This reminded me of a similar scene in Lake Tikapo, New Zealand |
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| The concrete swift house is meant for swifts to build nests so that locals can harvest the expensive bird nest delicacy |
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| A lovely local kindergarten with no students ... sad! |
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| Really like these thatched houses ... so unique |
There are some other interesting places to check out as can be seen on my Google Map. I decided to give them a miss because of the road condition and some time-constraint on my part. So if you want to see both VSETC (and take the tours) as well as check out the 30/4 beach and surrounding areas, the I would suggest a 2D1N stay if you have the time. Otherwise, it would be a very rushed tour.
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