Reconnecting

Embarrassed to notice that I haven't used this blog in over a year.

I was fortunate to be able to travel back to Cat Tien National Park in January 2106, thanks to the Mansfield Center at the University of Montana, and to staff at Cat Tien National Park (here I am with Dr. Khanh Pham, looking for elephants, with Mr Dat, Mr Quang and another Forest Ranger in the back row.

My colleague and friend Carla Abrams (also from Missoula) was living at the Dong Nai Culture and Nature Reserve at the time. We connected and put together some trial itineraries in DNCNR and CTNP, working together with the staff from each agency.

The result was really good. DNCNR currently serves thousands of domestic tourists each year, who primarily visit to see the War Relics, learn about the military history of the area, and pay respects.  Not many foreign tourists looking for nature experiences find their way to DNCNR.  There is so much NATURE to see, and it is so close to Ho Chi Minh City, and it seems natural to have some nature tours available. Carla worked in advance with Mr Ha, Ms Huong and others in the very capable tourism department, and put together an outstanding educational itinerary. More on that later.

Then we went "next door" to Cat Tien National Park. Remember that the Dong Nai Culture and Nature Reserve shares a border with Cat Tien, and both areas are part of the Dong Nai Biosphere Reserve.  However they are quite different.  DNCNR has people living inside of it, but the Park doesn't. They are managed by separate agencies. Cat Tien sees a lot of foreign visitors and offers several well known nature tours.

What I've noticed during my previous visits to CTNP is that it is a little hard to plan a multi-day trip. Well, it hasn't been hard for me because my colleagues at the Park are incredibly gracious hosts and have shown me every inch of the place (and it is wonderful. I miss them).  But talking with many foreign visitors, I can tell that tourists struggle to find the best way to see the park once, once you go on the Gibbon Trek and the Night Safari, but don't want to head back to highway yet.

So I've written a brief Activity Guide for Cat Tien, and I am going to post it here. Let me know if it is helpful for you.