Valley of three colors

      Situated along National Highway 32, which traverses the northern province of Yen Bai, Tu Le embodies the quintessence of the northern countryside: small villages and beautiful scenery.
Crop fields, terraced rice paddies and small canyons flank the highway from Nghia Lo to Tu Le and Mu Cang Chai.
The ethnic Thai communities of Tu Le Valley cultivate rice year round. In the planting season, the valley turns grey as farmers plow the mud fields. The area then turns dark green as the rice grows healthy. Then before the harvest, Tu Le turns a golden yellow as the crops ripen.
The view from Khau Pha Pass looking down on the valley is superb in the springtime: the sun shines bright over the fields, dotted with the dark roofs of houses and a few human figures with red and green blouses twinkling in the sea of rice. A twisted red-earth road roves through the valley to Lim Mong Hamlet—an ethnic Mong community. A motorbike carrying two people can hardly move on some sections of the road because of its steep slopes.
Atop Lim Mong point is the best spot for a panoramic photo of Tu Le Valley. Khau Pha Pass can be seen in the distance above the vast valley surrounded by three mountain ranges and cut by a tortuous stream.
Tu Le Town, Van Chan District, has only a few dozen houses. The two guesthouses and several restaurants here are quite good. On moon-lit nights, visitors can join Thai residents to bathe in the hot springs at a nearby hamlet.
Tu Le’s sticky rice (glutinous rice) enjoys fame for its sweet fragrance and stickiness. Visitors will never forget a breakfast of steamed rice and grilled Muong pork slices and hill chicken from Tu Le.
The valley, about 250 km from Hanoi, is most beautiful in September and October, during the sticky rice harvest.