Cycling the Mekong Delta

Our ride descriptions give an account of the ride that we completed. As part of the description we also provide links to Wikiloc or Google maps and elevation profiles based on mapping data available through the internet. The ride profiles are smoothed to give what in our opinion is a more beneficial view of the profile. We use paper maps, GPS and on line data to plan and conduct our rides. We are happy for you to use our descriptions, but be aware that we do not guarantee the accuracy of the information provided as situations surrounding any ride change over time.

• Distance   52km 
  

Before cycling through the Mekong delta, we had decided to visit the holiday island of Phu Quoc. The car ferry left from a quay just over the river from the guesthouse at 8.20am. The riverside market was colourful and busy at 7am and we brought bananas and oranges for breakfast.

After 3km and a puncture repair we breasted the top of a gentle hill and the road in front just disappeared, bisected by a deep canyon, washed out by a storm. As we stood there looking forlornly over the gorge, a motorcycle approached on the other side. He pointed to the left and there was a track through the trees.

Over the deep sand they had built a wooden causeway consisting of narrow tree branches nailed across two side rails. This descended steeply to the bottom of the valley, formed a bridge over the water, and ascended equally steeply on the far bank. This was repeated for the next six valleys before widening back into a normal dirt road. Having only had fruit for breakfast and now 2pm we were ravenous but everywhere we asked they had none. At last there was a sign pointing to a small house on the beach 'Food and Drink'. Sitting in the shade of the palm trees on the beach we had green coconut juice and fried noodles.

We were woken at 6am by loud piped music coming from the dining area which went on till 7.30am. The included breakfast was a choice of three Vietnamese noodle dishes but one of them was not available. We had coffee but were then asked to pay extra for this which we refused. After a walk down the beach we found a small resort called Paris where we booked a bungalow for the next four nights.

Except for regular swims,  walks along the beach and lying on the sun bed with our adopted pussy, we did absolutely nothing. The resort is listed with Trip Advisor and Lonely Planet and was full most of the time, mainly with European backpackers and Silver Surfers like us. The best thing was the restaurant, right at the water's edge, with some delicious food, Viet and Western so we ate lots.

• Distance    22km

Today we were heading back to the Mekong. Not fancying the idea of cycling back to the car ferry port we looked into alternatives. There was a passenger ferry from Ham Ninh to Rach Gia on the south coast of the Mekong, which left at 8.30am. This meant a 6.30am departure to return to Ham Ninh along the rough, pot-holed road. It was somewhat quieter at 7am.

After buying tickets we rode down the long jetty to the ferry. The bikes were lifted onto the roof and lashed to the life raft canisters.

Overnight a stiff easterly wind had started and the sea was quite rough. All of the westerners were looking a little apprehensive and clutching their vomit bags. To make it worse the windows were high above the seats so it was impossible to see out of them. We both sat and concentrated on the Jackie Chan film on the TV and despite some serious cork screwing and bouncing survived the 2 hour journey, as did the bikes.

• Distance    40km

We reviewed our map of the Mekong and before leaving town we breakfasted on the market by the river - tasty deep fried sticky rice and shrimp cakes and pancakes filled with vegetables. The road east follows the coast at first, passing fishing hamlets where the fish is landed and sold at the beach side. The road is shady with plenty of palms but the beaches suffer terribly from plastic pollution as all non-recyclable waste is dumped on there. There are many prawn and shellfish farms but little other agriculture.

The traffic was quiet, just a few buses and the usual motorbikes.  At Kien Lurong we turned right to go to Hon Chong, a place recommended to us by a British    ex-pat in Ha-Tien. The road passes through some amazing karst outcrops, sculpted centuries ago by the sea. Unfortunately their monetary value is greater than their aesthetic value and they are being blasted to pieces to feed the cement and building material demands.

The small resort of Hon Chong is on a karst headland with some pretty yellow sand beaches lined with palms. It is all very low key and local and as it is low season, very quiet.

There is a tourist market next to the Hang Pagoda and cave temple but otherwise it is just traditional food shacks and local houses with just a few hotels and guesthouses.

The swankiest place was a big resort where we got a room with breakfast for $40 a night. The only other guests were a few business men so we  had the swimming pool completely to ourselves with comfortable  sun-loungers and fluffy pool towels. The restaurant was at the top of a small hill overlooking the sea with views of the amazing sunset.

• Distance    90km

It was 16km back to the main road at Kien Lurong where we start our ride into the Mekong delta. From here the road runs parallel with one of the multitude of man-made waterways making up the Mekong in this part of Vietnam. The canal was just as busy as the road, with barges carrying cement, sand and bricks as well as fishing boats. Most of the canal bank had houses and small businesses fabricating wood and metal. On the opposite side of the road were some larger factories and manufacturing industries.

• Distance   75km

Along the way we came across a funeral procession with brass band accompaniment. The people in the van in front throw imitation bank notes onto the road. the hearse follows with loud, traditional Vietnamese music.

• Distance    45km

Just along the Mekong river bank was an Italian/Vietnamese restaurant serving very authentic pasta dishes and pizzas, a treat after weeks of rice. While we ate we noticed that most of the ladies here pedal their bikes sitting on the rear rack, instead of the nice soft seat. Maybe their legs are too short or the seats too high.

There is a large night market here with food stalls along the riverside and clothes, jewellery and shoes on the side streets. The problem is that the locals all come and do their shopping on their motorbikes. They drive right up to the stalls to make their purchases. It is quite difficult to enjoy walking around having to be constantly watching for vehicles.

• Distance    12km

Having reached our destination according to the sat nav there was no sign of the place so we continued down the canal, asking at intervals but no-one understood. A large group of helpers gathered and eventually a critical mass was reached so that one guy actually knew where we needed to be. He smelt slightly drunk and set off at speed on his motorbike, back the way we had come, with us following breathlessly behind. After about a km he stopped and pointed across to the other side of the canal where there was a row of thatched houses.

Day off or not we had to be up at 5.30am to go on a morning Mekong river boat trip. We had breakfast on the boat and arrived at the Cai Rang floating market on the Mekong.

This is a wholesale market with boats travelling from up to 100km away to sell mostly fruit and vegetables.

It was a hectic place with selling  boats laden with water melons, pineapples, vegetables, garlic and rice and buyers transferring cargoes to their own boats, small boats selling drinks and refreshments, and masses of tourist boats weaving in between.

After that we spent the rest of the morning cruising along the network of canals that interlink the main rivers of the Mekong, visiting a rice processing factory, a rice noodle factory, a plant nursery and a water melon farm.

Hung was a good tour guide, passionate about his homeland, explaining the problems faced by the very poor people who live there.

• Distance    57km

Now we knew about the motorbike tracks along banks of the the canals  we decided to try to ride on them as much as possible today. Using the Google maps and satellite images we tracked a route from Thuong Thang to the main road and then along the side of the canal running parallel to the road all the way to Soc Trang.

It was wonderful, riding along past all the local houses, watching the locals fishing and driving their boats. Everyone was surprised to see two westerners riding bikes but very welcoming. After about 7km we passed some building works. It was a new and very grand looking temple with a dragon rail staircase leading up to a big Buddha statue. As we paused to get a better look, one of the builders came out and invited us inside. Round the back was a small Buddhist monastery with five monks and a couple of sisters.

We were invited to take tea and fruit with them and then given a tour of the new temple. Upstairs were two men making  intricate clay mouldings for decorating the ceilings.

The canal side tracks varied between smooth concrete and rough unsurfaced tracks and we spent about half of the distance on the 1A road  which was fairly quiet and very well surfaced. Halfway was a place called Nga Bay where we decided to turn off the ring road and see the centre of the old town. On the Mekong riverside was the usual market heaving with sellers and buyers. A lady on a bicycle caused chaos as the catfish she had just purchased decided to make a bid for freedom and jumped out of the carrier bag on her handlebars onto the road. People were leaping off their motorbikes to retrieve the flapping creatures and ensure the family got their tea.

• Distance    58km

The ride took us along quiet roads to  Tra Vinh. After a few kilometers there was a group of motorbikes coming towards us, all carrying flags and wearing uniforms. They were followed by several other groups of motorbikes and a convoy of vehicles. Then another motorcyclist gestured to us to get off the road and suddenly there was a sprinting pack of road cyclists racing  towards us. It took quite a while for all the competitors and the melee of support vehicles to pass before we could continue. It was a surprise to realise that Viet drivers could be controlled sufficiently to allow this sort of a race.

The road continued through rice fields to the town of Dai Ngai on the banks of one of the major Mekong delta channels. Stopping at a cafe on the edge of the market we were immediately approached by yet another lottery ticket saleswoman. Despite our refusal to purchase, she sat down at our table and conversed with us in sign language. She was fascinated by Steve's 'big' nose and hairy arms.

On the Mekong river bank we found the small ferry jetty and waited in the queue for the ferry to arrive. It was difficult to know whether it was the ferry we wanted but several people assured us it went to An Thon, the small island in the middle of the river. It was just a small boat, carrying passengers, some freight and motorbikes. It didn't leave until every square inch of the deck was filled with people, bags, boxes and motorbikes. but then the engine wouldn't start. We had visions of being carried down the river with no means of steering. One of the crew, with difficulty, cleared enough space to open the hatch in the deck over the engine and tweaked a few bits to get it going.

Tra Vinh is a bustling city on the side of the Mekong with few Western tourists. We booked into a hotel near the market and went off in search of beer. There are many cafes but none of them are licensed. The only places with alcohol are restaurants and although we found many street food places we just couldn't find a restaurant although we walked for miles. In desperation we sought out the only white face in town, a young lady on a motorbike and asked her. Following her directions we walked another 2 km to a place with good food but no English menu so we had to take pot luck. Beer is the same in any language so no problem getting that.

• Distance    58km

After 20km we had to catch another ferry, a large vehicle one this time, crossing one of the wider arms of the Mekong. The loading and unloading here was very slick with about five ferries constantly filling and emptying their cargoes on each side. The road on the other side of the Mekong was sheltered and had some shade and we completed the next 40km in two more hours, arriving in Ben Tre for lunch.

After a tasty lunch of Pho (noodles) on the market we checked into the  to the best hotel in town, called' Viet UC' on the Mekong riverbank. It cost 100,000 dong a night but even with a full days food we were still well below our 1,500,000 dong daily budget and it was the quietest, cleanest best appointed room yet with by far the comfiest bed.

• Distance    30km

Approaching My Tho we could see the massive new bridge over the Mekong. From a distance it looked like a small mountain of ascent. After crossing the first river channel we turned off to look at Thoi Son, a river island, riding along the first bit of peaceful road for several days . Winding through orchards, palms and a small village it ended at a little ferry.

At the house we met his parents, grandmother and brother and shared a lovely meal with them before continuing into My Tho.

This is a popular tourist place, being close to Ho Chi Minh, with hundreds of boats taking tourists round the river islands. The Mekong river bank was a long line of parked buses. The accommodation prices reflected its popularity but we had to try four places before we found a decent one that didn't smell of cigarettes or mildew. Even then to keep the price reasonable we had to go for a room with no window.

• Distance    40km

• Distance    75km

On the far bank we had a further 20 km to get to the second ferry, turning down a quiet back road with very little traffic to Tan Tep.  This took us through an area where the main industry is making incense sticks, and we were invited into one of them to see how it is done.

We arrived at a jetty with no signs or other indications that this was the right place. There were numerous boats moored there, all traditional fishing boat types. We weren't quite sure which of boats was the ferry so sat in the little cafe with a can of Coke to spy it out. Some  motorbikes arrived and were loaded onto one of  the boats.

Deciding this must be the ferry we pushed the  bikes on and sat with the few other passengers. The boat set off and started going up the Mekong, not across it. After a few minutes of anxiety that we were on the wrong boat we realised it was just going to pick up another passenger on a ship moored upstream.

Arriving at Vam Sat on the other side at lunchtime we were hungry, but this was just a little village with no food and nothing for the next 10km. At the junction there was a cafe but it only had crisps and drinks.

From here it was 22km to the resort along a massive six lane highway with hardly any traffic.It could have been a nice ride but the headwind was stronger than ever and the road long and straight, through mangrove forest with no views and the only excitement the regular bridges over the many tributaries of the Mekong.

At the end of the peninsular the mangrove forest ends and there is a brown sand beach with a few resorts. It is still low season so very few tourists around. We booked a room at the 'Can Gio Resort' and had the place almost to ourselves, including the large swimming pool.

Further along the road towards Can Thanh there was a large war cemetery and memorial. As we wandered round the grounds we saw a beautiful 1 meter long golden snake and innocently pointed it out to the two gardeners who were working there. Within seconds they had grabbed a spade to kill it for their tea.

• Distance    53km