We Be Caving
Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park is home to the largest cave in the world, Sơn Đoòng, which features a chamber that is 5 km (3.1 miles) long, 200m (600 ft) tall, and 150m wide! That's so large that you could fit the Empire State building inside. We didn't go to that cave since was only discovered two years ago and is not open to the public, but we did visit the second largest cave in Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, Paradise Cave. Discovered in 2005 and only open to the public in 2009, Paradise Cave is the largest dry cave in SE Asia.
The cave is over 30 km long and the first kilometer is publicly accessible via a wooden boardwalk. However, we did even better by signing up for a 7 km adventure tour that goes beyond the initial kilometer. Yes, we went out of bounds, armed only with our head lamps as we followed our guide into the darkness.
Inside the cave, it was pitch black except for the light from our headlamps. We had no idea there were so many different types of stalactites and stalagmites. We saw up close how they are formed and spotted the formations in different phases of growth. At the end of the 7 km trek, we entered an opening that featured an incredible skylight view. No longer stuck in utter darkness, we enjoyed sunlight streaming down from an opening 300 feet above.
