While everyone is excited to set out for the ripe rice season and cloud hunting season, I spend my days off exploring the dry season in the mountains and rivers of Cao Bang when winter has come.

The first stop was the Ba Quang grass hill area, Vinh Quy commune, Ha Lang district. After only 15 minutes of walking to the top of the hill, I was overwhelmed by the scenery before my eyes. The golden grass hills continued one after another on the distant mountains and hills. The color of the wild sunset in the cold weather made the hill turn into the "burnt grass color". A few groups of young people had set up tents. My companion, a boy, and I quickly set up a lovely tent and prepared firewood to make a fire to warm up.

The next morning, we arrived at Luc Khu in Ha Quang district - often considered the rocky plateau of Cao Bang. The road challenges the driver with many steep slopes and continuous curves. The houses with yin-yang tiled roofs appear and disappear among the hills. I kept looking for safe parking spots to stop the car to admire the scenery and take pictures of the hills covered with thousands of Sau Sau trees (also known as Phong Huong). Stopping at a Tay village, my son and I chatted and shared candy with the children. Their innocent eyes followed us until the car left the village.

In the afternoon, we drove to Na Tau Lake (Be Trieu Commune, Hoa An District) before it got dark. This place is famous for its poetic beauty when the leaves of the Sau Sau trees turn bright red in early winter. Although the sun had set, the red leaves on the lakeside still clearly painted the poetic scene here. Leisurely on the water surface were the scenes of fishermen casting their nets. The mountains and rivers became even more charming when the moon rose, the gentle light spreading through the quiet space. It had been a long time since I had seen the moonlight in the countryside, evoking many peaceful memories of the past.

Trung Khanh was the final destination of the journey because I wanted to spend more time enjoying the nature that was often praised here. The weak cold air that had come before made the forests start to change color. The most obvious was in the Ban Viet lake area. This is a freshwater lake of about 5 hectares, likened to a green gem in the middle of majestic mountains. Nestled by the lake are peaceful Tay and Nung villages. Ban Viet lake is quiet, the clear water reflects the white clouds floating. The most beautiful are the rows of Sau Sau trees along the lake. The red leaf season is increasingly known by many tourists and they come here to walk and admire the scenery on the trails around the lake.