VIETNAM 2003

This tour to Vietnam sampled the best that Vietnam has to offer the visiting birder. Sufficient time was allowed in most areas to get a feel for the birds of each region and to maximise opportunities for seeing a wide variety of species. We started off in Saigon and quickly moved to Nam Bai Cat Tien National Park (or simply, Cat Tien), in the lowlands a few hours north of Saigon. We birded a variety of riverine areas and forest trails including a trek out to Crocodile Lake, but due to excessively wet track conditions were unable to get the jeep to take us beyond Dac Lua to Bau Beo to have a chance at seeing White-shouldered Ibis. Nevertheless we encountered some great birds, highlights including Germain's Peacock Pheasant, Bar-bellied Pitta, Violet Cuckoo, Black-and-Red Broadbill and Blue-bearded Bee-eater. A boat trip along the Dong Na River enabled us to get great views of a number of kingfishers including the simply magnificent Pied and the brilliant Black-capped.

Departing Cat Tien, we made our way to Da Lat, a pleasant town with many French colonial influences. Here we stayed in the luxurious Novotel from where we made forays to the remnant habitats of the Plateau. On the first afternoon we tried for the Grey-crowned Crocias at Ta Nung Valley, but birds here proved rather difficult to find and we had to be satisfied with a fine Black-browed Barbet in the telescope. We experienced great weather for our trip to Ho Tuyen Lam and saw a number of fine species, including Red Crossbill, Mrs Gould's Sunbird, Black-hooded Laughingthrush, Red-billed Scimitar-babbler, the endemic race of Cutia and Bay Woodpecker. The following day at Mt Lang Bian was a little disappointing with high winds and misty conditions making birds hard to find. We did however manage to see the Collared Laughing-thrush and Pygmy Wren-babbler before leaving the mountain.

After our flight to Hanoi from Ho Chi Minh City we were excited to encounter a whole new batch of birds in north Vietnam. We got our first looks at Japanese Thrush and Blue Rock Thrush in Hanoi and things got even better after that. Cuc Phuong National Park, Vietnam's oldest, is situated in a range of limestone mountains a couple of hours from Hanoi, and it proved to be the best forest birding of the tour. Here we had ample time to dig out some of the specialties. We birded two main areas - around the Headquarters and around Bong substation including Limestone Ridge trail, Valley trail and "the grid". Highlights included Pied Falconet, White-winged Magpie, Bar-bellied Pitta, Limestone Wren-babbler, Fujian Niltava, Black-breasted Thrush, Maroon Oriole, Orange-flanked Bush Robins and of course a resplendent male Silver Pheasant accompanied by two females.

Leaving Cuc Phuong somewhat reluctantly, the minibus took us to Nam Dinh, about halfway between Hanoi and the coast in the Red River delta. Here we shared our hotel with international sports teams competing in the 22^nd South East Asia Games (SEA games) - volleyball and beach volleyball teams staged matches in the stadium visible from the hotel. We were kept busy by a 3 a.m. start for our eventful day trip to Xuan Thuy at the mouth of the Red River. Stopped in our tracks about 7 km short of the headquarters by a big pile of sand and gravel blocking the road, there was no option other than to keep going on foot. We finally made it to HQ and then a further 2 km to the boat after having lost about 2 hours. Despite the day's birding being cut short we all managed to see a few great birds including Slaty-breasted Rail and rarities like Black-faced Spoonbill, Saunders's Gull and probably the highlight of the tour, a Spoon-billed Sandpiper.

Driving to Tam Dao we once again saw a few interesting roadside birds on the way but Tam Dao itself proved rather unexciting and evidence of ongoing hunting was rather depressing. We eventually saw a few good birds with perhaps White-browed Piculet the highlight and Red-billed Blue Magpies in the pines on the way out compensated somewhat.

After returning to Hanoi we boarded the train to Lao Cai close to the Chinese border, and transferred by minibus to Sa Pa. Situated high in the hills, it was foggy and cold almost the whole time we spent there. There was a real winter feel to this place! Brief respites in the fog allowed us to catch up with some special birds not found elsewhere in Vietnam, of which Golden-breasted Fulvetta, White-capped Water Redstart and Little Forktail were some of our favourites, while some had great looks at the male Siberian Rubythroat.

Regrettably we had to return to Hanoi but Pam and Des were keen to keep birding and it was pleasing for them to see a new bird every day of the tour including some Grey-capped Greenfinches in a park in Hanoi on the final full day.

With so many highlights it was hard to pick out the best moments, but we all enjoyed the atmosphere of Sa Pa despite the weather making birding difficult and we were unanimous in saying that the food at Cuc Phuong (and indeed, most other places) was simply excellent. Several of the key Indochinese endemics were seen, we witnessed some fine scenery and sampled some mouth-watering cuisine in this friendly country. All in all another successful Birding Worldwide tour to Vietnam.

2001

This year’s tour of Vietnam was again designed to cover a variety of habitats thus allowing us to observe a range of the Indochinese/South East Asian avifauna and other wildlife. This year we were a bit unlucky to encounter a very cold spell of weather during our stay in the north. This was due to the tail end of a monsoon situated over the China Sea to the east of the country. Nevertheless, we still enjoyed some wonderful birds, mammals, food, scenery and other attractions that this amazing country has to offer.

As usual we started off at Nam Bai Cat Tien National Park, a few hours north of Saigon. This superb park again provided some fascinating birding during our stay. Our long walk to Crocodile Lake was rewarded with some nice birds in the forest including Wreathed Hornbill, Large Woodshrike, Scaly-crowned Babbler and Black-naped Monarch and then by the spectacular scenery of this beautiful lake populated by a wealth of waterbirds. A boat trip on the Dong Na River took us to the Bau Sau wetlands where we encountered a wealth of waders and other waterbirds such as Common Snipe, Cinnamon Bittern and Purple Heron as well as Pied Kingfisher and White-breasted Waterhen. Lastly, a trip by jeep to an area in the north of the park known as Dac Lua turned up some very exciting birds. Of special note were Siamese Fireback, Woolly-necked Stork, Asian Emerald Cuckoo and Crimson Sunbird.

This year we broke our trip to Da Lat with an overnight stop at Bao Loc in order to spend the afternoon birding at the Di Linh Pass in the foothills of the Annamese mountains. The plan paid off as we enjoyed a couple of hours of truly wonderful birding. A huge and varied mixed flock kept us very busy as we delighted in some of the montane species such as Golden-throated Barbet, Speckled Piculet, Maroon Oriole, Streaked Spiderhunter, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Black-hooded Laughing-thrush and the gorgeous Little Pied Flycatcher.

Our next destination was the delightful highland town of Da Lat where we enjoyed wonderful accommodation at the Novotel Hotel – a beautiful old building left over from the French colonial era. During our stay here we visited the Ho Tuyen Lam Lake where we found the scrubby vegetation to be pretty hard going! Notwithstanding we did see some interesting birds such as Mountain Imperial Pigeon, Chestnut-vented Nuthatch and Hill Prinia. Another jeep trip to the upper reaches of Mount Lang Bian allowed us to walk back down the mountain birding along the way. Birding highlights here were many and included the resplendent Mrs Gould’s Sunbird, Long-tailed Minivet, Long-tailed Shrike, Green-backed Tit and the stunning Large Niltava amongst others.

A brief trip to the Datanla Waterfall saw a flurry of bird activity in the form of Black-browed Barbet, Mountain Tailorbird, White-cheeked Laughingthrush, White-browed Scimitar-Babbler, a juvenile White-throated Rock-Thrush and a stunning Blue Whistling-Thrush.

After an overnight stay in Saigon we caught our flight to Hanoi in the north of the country. We overnighted here before departing for Cuc Phuong, Vietnam’s oldest national park. This is where we were unfortunately hit by a spell of exceptionally cold weather as the tail end of a monsoon hit the north of the country. (Interestingly, this weather had a significant effect on birdlife in the entire region with a number of vagrants and new records being recorded in Malaysia!) Soldiering on we were rewarded by sightings of Silver Pheasant, the diminutive Pied Falconet, Green-billed Malkoha, Red-headed Trogon, Red-vented Barbet, Grey-capped Woodpecker, Green Magpie, the gem-like Fork-tailed Sunbird and everyone’s favourite the Fujian Niltava, to name but a few. Braving the cold wind at a nearby reservoir we turned up some interesting waterfowl including Gadwall, Spot-billed Duck and a single Ferruginous Pochard as well as a very cooperative Eurasion Kestrel.

Our next destination was the town of Nam Dinh in the Red River Delta. This was to be the stepping off point for our visit to Xuan Thuy. Unfortunately, the cold weather was a bit too much for everyone and most opted for a day in this seldom-visited town. By all accounts, a taste of life in a typical North Vietnamese town was very agreeable and interesting.

From here we struck north for our final destination – Tam Dao. This former French hill station lies north of the capital at an altitude of 930 metres. Again we had to make the most of some rather inclement weather as we were basically buried in a cloud for the next two days! But we were not to be deterred and our persistence was rewarded with some wonderful birding moments. Of particular note were a couple of super White-browed Piculets, a stunning Orange-bellied Leafbird, the usually elusive Grey Laughingthrushes that put on a beaut show for us, a rare and shy Coral-billed Scimitar-Babbler and stunning close views of Golden and Spot-necked Babblers.

Despite a bad run of luck with the weather, I think it is safe to say that we enjoyed another successful trip to this remarkable country. Not only did we encounter a wealth of fascinating Southeast Asian birds; we also delighted in the marvellous Vietnamese cuisine, the superb scenery and culture and lastly enjoyed the memorable hospitality of the remarkable Vietnamese people.

We started off at Cat Tien National Park; a few hours drive from Saigon. This large area (80,000 ha) of southern lowland rainforest provided some fascinating birding during our three day stay. Highlights here included a boat trip on the Dong Na River and exploration of the Bau Sau wetlands where we were treated to excellent views of Lesser Adjutant, Woolly-necked Stork, Changeable Hawk-Eagle, Pied Kingfisher and Lanceolated Warbler. An afternoon visit to Dac Lua, north of the park headquarters was well rewarded with brilliant views of the endangered Green Peafowl as well as Ruddy-breasted Crake and Collared Scops-Owls on the return trip. A full day walk to Crocodile Lake was not only very pleasant but we saw some more great birds. Excellent views of Scaly-breasted Partridge were obtained as well as a beautiful female Banded Kingfisher, Oriental Pied Hornbills were quite common but not easy to see, a Heart-spotted Woodpecker was a real treat and we had plenty of looks at the near-endemic Grey-faced Tit-Babbler. Once at the lake we enjoyed a relaxing lunch and wonderful scenery augmented by Bronze-winged Jacanas, Purple Swamphens and Plain Prinias. There were many other highlights in this fabulous park; please see the list for more details.

Our next destination was the delightful highland town of Da Lat where we enjoyed sumptuous accommodation, which unfortunately didn’t really make up for the very average weather. Very bad luck – being rained out by a typhoon running three months late! Despite this misfortune there were a number of memorable moments here. A very wet and strenuous walk up Mount Lang Bian was worth the effort for super views of a family of Wreathed Hornbills flying almost at eye level along the valley below us, many looks at the delightful Long-tailed Minivet, a number of Chestnut-vented Nuthatch, a Blue Rock-Thrush and a wide range of flycatchers. Making up for our disappointment at being rained out on our first attempt, we had a great final morning at Ho Tuyen Lam, catching up with Greater Flameback, Maroon Oriole, Burmese Shrike, the glorious Gould’s Sunbird, the endemic Yellow-billed Nuthatch, Ashy Bulbul, Black-hooded Laughing-thrush (also an endemic), Eyebrowed Wren-Babbler and finally nothing less than brilliant views of the endemic subspecies of Lesser Shortwing.

After an enjoyable free morning in Saigon (mainly involving eating and shopping) we caught our flight with Ho to Hanoi. Despite our late arrival at the charming Hoa Binh Hotel we departed early the next morning for the drive to Cuc Phuong, Vietnam’s oldest national park. Located in the Red River Delta, the park protects a 22,200 ha area of limestone peaks and evergreen tropical rainforest. Our explorations of the park included a walk to the Big Tree through a semi-cleared valley, a longer walk to the 1000 Year Old Tree (Terminalia myriocarpa) through many limestone crags and exploration of the numerous trails around the headquarters. Simply birding along the park road proved to be most rewarding, however. We again had slightly bad luck with weather but still racked up a good number of excellent sightings. Of special note were superb and prolonged views of Pied Falconet, scope views of Asian Barred Owlet, the endemic Red-vented Barbet, Green-eared Barbet, Bar-bellied Pitta, twenty-plus Silver-breasted Broadbills, amazing views of White-winged Magpie, the rather odd looking Ratchet-tailed Treepie, Fork-tailed Sunbird, Crimson Sunbirds in the headquarters’ gardens, a rather recalcitrant Large Scimitar-Babbler, Sultan Tits and some super White-tailed Flycatchers.

Xuan Thuy at the mouth of the Red River was one of the high points of our trip, making up for the arduous drive to get there. Notwithstanding our failure to find our main target, the Spoonbilled Sandpiper, we had an outstanding day exploring this remarkable RAMSAR area. Wading knee-deep through muddy water did nothing to dampen our spirits as we climbed on to our trusty vessel in order to begin our trip. Heading out to mud banks at the river mouth we soon encountered large flocks of waders including good numbers of Kentish Plover, Broadbilled Sandpiper and Dunlin amongst others. Later on we enjoyed scope views of a flock of over 40 endangered Black-faced Spoonbills. During the course of the day we also had looks at Gadwall, Spot-billed Duck, Pied Harrier, Water Rail and Red-billed Starling. Additionally we gained an insight into the remarkable way of life of the people living and working in this environment.

From Nam Dinh, our base for Xuan Thuy, we struck out north on the long drive to Sa Pa in Vietnam’s far north west. We broke our trip by overnighting in Ba Bia, where some saw a few good birds notably Blyth’s Leaf Warbler. (However, I believe a washing machine and dryer were clearly the highlight of our stay at this very pleasant spot). The long but fascinating drive to Sa Pa was rarely interrupted by birds but an afternoon visit to the Ham Rong Gardens soon had us back on track with great looks at Little Bunting, Brown-breasted Bulbul and White-browed Laughing-thrush. Outside our accommodation we were treated to super views of Daurian Redstart and Brownish-flanked Bush-Warbler before heading up to Mount Fan Si Pan, Vietnam’s highest peak. Camping overnight in the Hoang Lien Son Forest Reserve enabled us to thoroughly explore this remnant forest. During our stay here we caught up with some wonderful birds including Grey-bellied Tesia, Black-faced Warbler, Red-tailed Minla, Golden-breasted Fulvetta, Stripe-throated Yuhina, White-capped Water Redstart and a delightful female Plumbeous Redstart.

As mentioned above, apart from the terrific birding, I think it is safe to say that other highlights of our trip included the wonderful and varied scenery, the never-ending enterprise that we observed as we sped around the countryside, the sheer variety and deliciousness of Vietnamese beer and wine, the superb food and above all, the Vietnamese themselves – who are endlessly accommodating and friendly and made our visit such a pleasure.