Ma Pi Leng Pass is majestic in the eyes of international tourists.

Ma Pi Leng Pass is a treacherous mountain pass approximately 20 km long, traversing three communes in Meo Vac district, Ha Giang province. The summit of Ma Pi Leng, at an altitude of 1,200 meters, is located on the Dong Van plateau, along the "Happiness Road" connecting Ha Giang city with Dong Van and Meo Vac districts. This road was constructed in the 1960s.

The Happiness Road project was built by tens of thousands of volunteer youth from 16 ethnic groups across 8 provinces in northern Vietnam over six years, from 1959 to 1965. In particular, the section crossing the Ma Pi Leng pass was constructed by young men in a suicide squad who hung themselves on the cliff face, inch by inch, over 11 months.

From the summit of Ma Pi Leng Pass, the majestic mountain scenery unfolds with sheer cliffs on one side and the deep gorge of the Nho Que River with its emerald green waters on the other. To the north and northeast, thousands of barren, gray rocky mountains stretch as far as the eye can see, making many tourists want to return to admire this place at least once more in their lifetime.

On November 16, 2009, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism decided to classify the Ma Pi Leng area as a National Scenic Landscape Monument. Accordingly, the Ma Pi Leng scenic area includes: the Ma Pi Leng Pass, considered a unique geological and landscape heritage area; the pass summit, considered one of the most beautiful panoramic viewpoints in Vietnam; and the Nho Que River gorge, one of the most unique tectonic valleys in Vietnam.

Let's admire Ma Pi Leng Pass through the lens of a foreign tourist.

My Tong