Australian photographer John Spies, 59, spent a week capturing the most beautiful images of the natural wonders in the Son Doong cave system (Bo Trach district, Quang Binh province). John has lived in Thailand since 1977 and is the owner of the famous Cave Lodge hotel here.
“The trip left me with an indescribable feeling, I did something unlike anything else I could have done in my life,” he shared when asked about his feelings when taking photos and exploring the cave system in Son Doong.
Hang Son Doong, with a width of 200 m, a height of more than 150 m and a length of 5 km, is the largest cave in the world to date. It was found by a local named Ho Khanh in 1991 and explored by British Royal explorers in 2006.
Scientists have studied the geology and concluded that the cave was formed about 2-5 million years ago by river water eroding the limestone layer at the foot of the mountain. This cave was put into operation in early August 2013. The entrance to the cave is quite small, with mist escaping from the cold air inside meeting the high temperature outside. Visitors must climb down an 80m steep wall with the necessary climbing equipment to go deep into the cave. The large temperature difference creates small clouds that move lazily, especially near the entrance area when viewed from the inside.
The cave is like a magnificent painting, so beautiful that it is mesmerizing with strangely shaped stalactites. The limestone layer gradually weakened and collapsed, creating the large skylights we see today. Through the cave entrance, light poured into the cave like a large waterfall. The light penetrated into the cave, making the stalactites shine like jade.
At a collapsed section of Son Doong cave, trees grew lushly, creating a majestic forest right in the middle of the cave. Explorers named this place “Garden of Eden”.
John said, it was amazing that 3-4 km inside the cave you could still see sunlight. The size of the cave was also amazing allowing us to camp here for 5 nights.
