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Sights - Ghost (Lèn Pèn) Cave
The cave goes by many names. In the ethnic Tay - “Lèn Pèn”, in Vietnamese is Hua Ma and in English either Horse Head Cave or Ghost Cave. The cave is located 6km from Ba Be Lake. As with many things in Vietnam, there is a mythical origin story for the name of the cave.
The cave itself is 30-50m high in places as well as being around 700m in length. This makes it the most significant cave in the north alongside the Tiger Cave. Even though the cave was first opened to the public in 2003, the facilities are still quite basic. To access the cave requires you climb 200 steps. Once inside the cave, then descending 200 steps.
The legend
So the story goes, once upon a time the locals of the area felt uneasy about this place and called the area the Ghost Forest because of the howling at night. One day on patrol a general passed the cave and tried to cross the Leng River, but his horses refused - as if they knew something. The general went to find some villagers to ask what the loud howling was. They told him it was the trapped souls of the people who were fighting for the royal court but were entombed by the enemy in the cave. There their souls were then trapped there ever since.
Quickly thinking the general make an offering to the gods of heaven and earth of his horses heads. After that the howling has never been heard again.
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