Tay Yen Tu Nature Reserve, Bac Giang

Tay Yen Tu Nature Reserve – Source: http://dulichbacgiang.gov.vn/

Yen Tu is a high mountain range, located in the Northeast of Bac Giang province. This is the main mountain range of the Dong Trieu arc (from Quang Ninh through Hai Duong – Bac Giang and stopping at the left bank of the Luc Nam river).

In the Yen Tu mountain range, there are main mountain ranges such as: Loi Am, Phat Son, Am Ni, Chung Son, Thanh Mai, Bac Ma, Con Son, Huyen Dinh, Tuong Son, Kham Lang… The highest peak of the Yen Tu range is Loi Am (nearly 1,200m), Phu Lam peak of Phat Son mountain (nearly 1,000m), the remaining peaks are from 800m and below. In these mountain ranges, there are two primary vegetation types, which are multi-layered forest vegetation and dry forest vegetation.

The soil and rocks here are also not uniform, the ecosystem is also different. From the mountains, there are large water sources flowing into the ravines, creating large streams. Many ravines plunge down the cliffs, creating large waterfalls, such as: the Golden Waterfall, the Rot Waterfall (Luc Son), the Suoi Mo Waterfall, the Thum Thum Waterfall (Nghia Phuong), and the Mossy Abyss (Cam Ly) of Luc Nam district. In the savanna forests, the forests of bushes, and the grasslands mixed with drought-resistant trees, the water source is small and only moist at the foot of the ravines, so the green trees are only along the ravines and not on the mountain slopes. The land of Yen Tu, being close to the sea and blocking the sea, has created a climate here belonging to the tropical climate zone with cold northeast monsoons. Looking at the whole picture, Yen Tu is a large mountain range, a famous mountain of the Northeast region. It has an important strategic position in history and also contains many historical and cultural values.

Yen Tu is the largest concentrated natural forest in Bac Giang province and the Northeast region, located in the areas of An Lac, Thanh Son, Thanh Luan communes (Son Dong district) and Luc Son commune (Luc Nam district). This forest is distributed at an altitude of 200m to more than 1,000m above sea level and has complex steep terrain.

Yen Tu forest plays an extremely important role in protection, environment and climate regulation for the Northeast region of the province. In addition, Yen Tu forest also has a large forest resource, enough to be built into a nature reserve with an area of ​​over 17,000 hectares and a total timber reserve of nearly 1,000,000 m3. On the other hand, due to its location in a steep, rugged terrain, Yen Tu natural forest still retains relatively intact areas with a rich and diverse biological community, typical of the Northeast region of Vietnam.

According to preliminary investigation results, Yen Tu forest has up to 728 plant species, belonging to 189 genera of 86 families and 226 animal species belonging to 81 families of 24 orders, including dozens of rare species of forest animals and plants listed in the Vietnam Red Book that are in danger of extinction. Typical forest plants are: po-mu, dinh, lim, sen, mat, gu, lat hoa, agarwood, thong tre, thong nang, lim xanh, tau la nho… Rare medicinal herbs such as: amomum, winged yellow star, acanthopanax, cham bird, beard tiger, white wood flower, morinda, amomum… Forest animals include: leopard, loris, black langur, wolf, bear, golden monkey, golden deer, mountain goat, monitor lizard, large flying squirrel, money chicken, pheasant, golden turtle, king cobra…

Tay Yen Tu Nature Reserve has many rare and precious animal and plant genetic resources, typical of the Northeastern region of Vietnam, which many other nature reserves do not have.

On the Yen Tu mountain system, there are many famous historical sites that have been recorded in ancient history books, such as: Am Vai relic site; Suoi Mo – Ho Bac relic site; Huyen Son relic site; Kham Lang relic site; Hon Thap – Yen Ma relic site… These relic sites are a large complex of famous mountains and ancient relics combined. Most of the relic sites located on Yen Tu mountain range in Bac Giang province are ancient relic sites, dating back to the Ly – Tran dynasties (11th to 14th centuries). These are relics of historical and cultural significance imbued with Buddhist colors belonging to the Truc Lam Zen sect founded by King Tran Nhan Tong.

Source: Department of Natural Resources and Environment