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In November, as the highland weather begins to turn chilly, we set off again for Da Lat – the city of mist, of rolling hills covered in whispering pine trees, and of vibrant yellow wild sunflowers.
Wild sunflowers blanket the hills in Duc Trong commune, Lam Dong province, about 10 km from Da Lat, in yellow.
This flower brings a golden hue to the autumn in the highlands.
Wild sunflowers, also known as mountain sunflowers or wild daisies, belong to the daisy family. These flowers grow wild, requiring no cultivation, yet they are resilient and bloom profusely as soon as the rainy season ends. Typically, the first buds open in late October and continue until the end of November, signaling the start of the dry season on the plateau.
For locals, it's a familiar sign of the changing seasons. But for tourists like us, the wild sunflower season is a sweet signal that Da Lat is entering its most beautiful time of year – "golden autumn." Wild sunflowers don't grow individually but in large clusters, reaching 2-3 meters in height. The flowers, as big as a hand, are a striking deep yellow against the dark green leaves, and the autumn sunlight makes the entire mountain landscape seem gilded.
The wild sunflower bushes were taller than a person's head.
Flower-lined roads leading to Da Lat
From Ho Chi Minh City, following National Highway 20 towards Da Lat, as soon as the car reaches Di Linh town, clusters of wild sunflowers begin to appear. Initially, there were only a few scattered blossoms along the fences of people's houses, then gradually they covered more densely, a vibrant yellow blanket on both sides of the road. Amidst the coffee plantations laden with fruit, the wild sunflowers continued to bloom profusely, brightening up a corner of the highland sky.
Along National Highway 20, there are stretches of road where wild sunflowers bloom densely and extend for long distances.
The further we went from the residential area, the denser, taller, and more vibrant the flowers became. In some stretches, the bushes extended for hundreds of meters, their blossoms reaching above head height, basking in the sun and wind, swaying as if inviting us in. Along the way, we occasionally turned onto small, less-traveled dirt roads. On the outer edges, the flowers bloomed sparsely, but the deeper we went, the more densely the yellow blossoms covered both sides of the road. The entire path was deserted, only the sound of the wind and our exclamations of wonder filled the air, as if we were lost in a scene from an autumnal cartoon, where everything was golden, tranquil, and breathtakingly beautiful.
The roads are lined with vibrant yellow wildflowers on both sides.
The hill is covered with vibrant yellow wildflowers in the autumn sun.
As we approached Duc Trong, we came across a hillside completely covered in wild sunflowers. The dirt road led us through lush vegetable fields, winding along the hillside, flanked by rows of sunflowers blooming in the sun. The flowers here were taller than a person's head, with larger and denser blooms compared to those in the city center. Notably, because it's a lesser-known spot, it retains its pristine, tranquil beauty amidst the autumnal afternoon on the plateau.
Beneath the verdant pine trees, we stood in stunned silence, gazing at the golden carpet of wildflowers basking in the afternoon sun, covering an entire hillside. Amidst this scene, one could clearly feel the vibrant life of the wild sunflowers – small but resilient flowers, intertwined and blooming densely, as if wanting to dominate the entire late autumn season. For us, that moment was the most beautiful time of autumn on the Lam Dong plateau: when the brilliant yellow of the wild sunflowers spread, standing out against the deep green of the pine forest, illuminating the landscape with warmth.
Wild sunflower hill in Duc Trong commune
We stopped the car and followed a small path through the flower patch to reach a high rock nestled in the middle of the hill. From there, all we could see were flowers and sunshine, as if the whole world were enveloped in a warm, gentle yellow. As dusk fell, the last rays of sunlight poured down on the carpet of flowers, so brilliant that it seemed as if the wildflowers were glowing.
Golden-hued streets in the heart of the city
Once we arrived in Da Lat, wild sunflowers continued to accompany us everywhere. From Palace 3 to Tuyen Lam Lake, the Clay Tunnel, or the stretch from the city center to Cau Dat - where tourists can combine flower viewing, visiting tea hills and chasing early morning clouds - the golden color of wild sunflowers could be found everywhere.
Compared to the outskirts, the number of wild sunflowers in the center of Da Lat is smaller, and the flowers are also smaller.
Roads like Prenn Pass, Ta Nung Pass, the road to Cam Ly Waterfall, and Van Thanh flower village are all ablaze with flowers. In some sections, wild sunflowers bloom densely, reaching onto the road itself, as if trying to hold back passersby. The golden hues blend with the sunlight, making every bend and every slope in Da Lat seem gentler and more romantic than ever.
Tourists can admire the sight of wild sunflowers along the mountain passes leading to Da Lat this November and December.
At the end of the journey, when the car stopped on a small hillside overlooking the sea of clouds in the valley, we could only fall silent. Da Lat in November is not only the land of mist, but also the city of wild sunflowers – a wild flower that possesses enduring vitality, brilliance, pride, and warmth, creating the "golden autumn" of the highlands.
