Rural tourism: Forest bathing in Na Hang to cure mental wounds

Bathing in the great thousand years old forest

“Hello friends, how long has it been since you last walked in a forest so stunningly beautiful that you had to pause to enjoy? And how often did you not notice the budding spring shoots, or look closely at the yellowing leaf signalling that summer is ending?

Instead, how much time did you spend looking at the screen, how much time spent on the phone, how much time online, checking in and all sorts of activities on social networks. Modern life with the advancement of technology devices or skyscrapers, stressful work is what drains your energy and joy every day.

It will be necessary to occasionally shed your work clothes, change to the most comfortable ones and go offline, temporarily away from the phone and computer. To step into the natural world, to immerse in the endless green of trees or the seductive scent of herbs, the sounds of all species.

Or as the Japanese say, you need to practice Shinrin-yoku, which is forest bathing. Take time everyday to connect with nature, which helps to improve your mood and increase vitality, feeling energized and full of life. Forest bathing therapy also helps you to purify the air inside your lungs…

With forest bathing practices such as walking in the forest, deep breathing, hugging trees, meditation lying down, sitting and soaking your feet in cool water, listening to the sound of running water and the environment, natural sounds in the forest. Breathe deeply and immerse yourself in nature, discarding all worries… Forest bathing also strengthens the immune system, improves physical strength, increases a sense of relaxation, reduces stress... In addition, forest bathing also has an impact strong enough to improve your mood, making you less grumpy in every way”…

Meditating under a big tree about 5-6 people wide, in the middle of a thousand-year-old forest in Na Hang (Tuyen Quang), the sound from a bluetooth speaker gently resounded and brought us to areas of gentle emotions like the sound of a leaf falling, as still as the surface of a small lake in the calm wind season. Khong Hong Dao - our tour guide for the Na Hang tour, an artistic man with long hair, told us to straighten our back, close our eyes, take a deep breath in through our nose, and then exhale through oue mouth evenly, softly.

“The shortest way to the universe is through a wild forest and I couldn't agree more. Forest bathing is a simple yet effective way to connect with yourself in the natural environment. It is based on a unique idea that the ancient people used to do, in a good forest. Practicing forest bathing is very simple, all you need is a quiet place and focus on the present.

And then we walk with the feeling of every step. As you walk, let your senses open up, listen to the exciting, buzzing sounds of the woods, notice the gentle breeze and the birdsong all around or the trees playing with the light.

As you continue walking, you can encounter stunning scenes with huge old trees, you should stop and hug that big tree for a while, feel the scent from the bark, the freshness from from the trunk At this moment, you can fully feel the intense vitality of the tree…”.

The artificial sound from the speaker finally turned off, we were immersed in the harmony of the wind blowing through the canopy of leaves, the sound of forest cicadas, the chirping of wild birds, the buzzing sound of forest insects. Gently touching a tree, inhaling a scent, touching a water droplet on a leaf, all the familiar senses suddenly become fresh.

Mr. Khong Van Quang - Director of Na Hang Special-use Forest Management Board - a member of the group told us about the wood spirits, which are perennial trees that accumulated a lot of spiritual energy over the years, which is difficult to explain with scientific logic: “Once, in a residential group of Na Hang town, a family came here to cut a tree to build a house. Later, the person who directly chopped it off would wander the streets to pick up leaves, and his children, although handsome and beautiful, had a hard time getting married, if they get married, they were short-lived. The villagers said it was because he dared to commit a crime on a wood spirit.

Or during the time to build the Na Hang hydropower reservoir, a family in Bac Ninh went to buy three flooded trees. They uprooted the first tree, brought it back to the ship. For some reason, along the way, the ship sank. They had to go to Pac Ta temple to pray, ask and donate money to building a new gate, and they did not dare to uproot the remaining two trees. But later that person still went bankrupt and had to go to prison.”

After the meditation session, we stretched out our arms to embrace the thousand-year-old root, as if touching the soul of the sacred forest, asking Mother Nature to give us strength and courage to continue in the struggling human realm. Walking in the deep jungle, I suddenly felt conencted with my ancestors from thousands of years ago, when they still lived in caves, holes. The burden on my shoulders seemed to be lifted, my body felt lightened and the soul suddenly relaxed and at peace. In their free time, the two girls in the group opened their books to read in the middle of a giant tree hole. Perhaps the biggest lesson that the jungle teaches them is to love everything starting from the little grass.  

The term “Shinrin-yoku” comes from Japanese, which means “immersed in the jungle atmosphere”. This method started in 1982 when the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture encouraged people to use nature as a form of emotional therapy, healing spiritual wounds. According to the Japanese journal on Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, researchers conducted field experiments in 24 different forests across the country with the participation of 280 people with controls. People who spend time in the woods have lower cortisol levels, lower blood pressure, lower heart rate and less stress. Ever since then, this method began to spread to several other countries.

Forest bathing on a boat in the middle of a hydroelectric lake

By chance, we met a group from the treasury of Kon Tum province and invited them to experience a meditation session right on the bed of the Na Hang hydroelectric lake.

Amidst the beautiful scenery like a watercolor painting of mountains and rivers, with the sound of waves crashing on the side of the boat, Nguyen Thi Cam Ly - Director of Son Nu Cam Sanh Cooperative, living in Na Hang town, Tuyen Quang province shared: “Previously, I thought depression only existed on TV, no one in my family would have it, but it turned out to be very close to me. It is from the daily accumulation of frustration, from stress that this disease became quite common.

In my family, my mother also suffered from postpartum depression because of stress about the baby's weight and worries in her life made it more difficult for her to sleep. At the time, she had graduated from school and started a business, but had to take care of her depressed mother in Bach Mai Hospital, and her father's eye surgery at the Eye Hospital.

When my parents recovered, I myself got stressed. An older sister took me to Truc Lam Zen Monastery, to follow Buddhism, to listen to the explanations of the monks, to resolve challenges and problems, to return to a normal life and to be with my parents, overcome adversity and rise up in your career.

Daily stress relief, mental relaxation, mind detox is really important. If each person, each day, spends 15-20 minutes to meditate, there will be no stress accumulation, no regrettable things will happen". Ly was talking but tears suddenly welled up in her eyes, painful memories that seemed to be buried deep in her heart suddenly rose up because of sympathy.

Using her hand to wipe away the tears, Ly continued: "In Japan, there are many people who commit suicide as well as in many other countries too, depression and stress are affecting our lives a lot. Forest bathing or Shinrin-yoku is a Japanese concept. I practiced forest bathing while at Truc Lam Zen Monastery, but never actually experienced it in my hometown of Na Hang.

Recently, thanks to Dr. Ngo Kieu Oanh - a consultant on rural tourism, I had my first experience and this is my second trip. It gave me the idea of ​​developing a new type of experiential tourism, increasing livelihoods for local people and income for officials in this ecosystem. The potential is great because tourists go to Na Hang on weekends regularly”.

Truong Thi Thuy Vy, 32 years old, treasury officer of Kon Tum province, expressed her feelings: “I am very surprised because I did not think I would have such a special experience today. I have a friend who teaches life skills, a group of friends to discuss meditation, sometimes I go on youtube to learn a little more on how to calm my mind, but bathing in the forest like this is the first time for me. The life of city people is prone to pressure and stress about family and work, so forest bathing is an opportunity to relax and calm down. Although in a short time like this 20 minutes session, you may not see much of an impact, but if it lasts longer, more often, it is probably very beneficial".

Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong Ngan, 63, a pensioner living in Phu Ly city, Ha Nam province, said: “I have not gone deep into meditation and only occasionally follow others, this is the first time I had real meditation practice in the midst of this natural scene. There is a clean, cool atmosphere here and with a free, relaxing mind, I feel much more comfortable and lighter inside”.

Even the two guides who followed the group to experience from meditating in the forest to meditating on the hydroelectric lake also expressed their impressions. Nguyen Thi Khiet, a freelance tour guide at Na Hang, shared: "I'm a guide myself, but I have only been to the forest twice, now I know this special activity of forest bathing. Normally, when I bring tourists to the lakebed area, they also want to visit the forest, but the obstacle is that they are not allowed, must have protective gear and the entrances are not available with no signposts, no information on trees in the forest…”.

Mr. Khong Hong Dao said that Na Hang tour's unit is exploiting the tourism experience specializing in lakebeds, photo tours, exploring waterfalls, forests and agricultural life, one trip usually lasts 2-3 days: "In the chaotic city life, to return to Na Hang, just sitting on the boat, you will feel relaxed because you can hear the birds singing, feel the cool breeze blowing. But few people are allowed to enter the forest to experience because this is a special-use forest, only functional forces are allowed to enter while civilians are forbidden, if they want to enter, they need to ask permission from the forest ranger or the forest management board. In my opinion, tours to the forest to meditate like this in the future will be very developed, because when returning to nature, guests will feel more relaxed and old trees often create positive energies for human".

Forest bathing must be very thoughtfully prepared in terms of logistics as well as educating visitors about protecting the ecosystem, such as not carving names on trees, smoking, littering, how to travel and leave only footprints in the forest.

Opening up a path

Bac Vang ranger station is built on a floating raft, about 1 hour by boat from the forest of thousand years. Na Hang district has 2 stations and 3 forest rangers stationed on rafts, in the middle of a hydroelectric lake. Lunch was eaten quickly on the raft, but delicious, surprisingly, only with the "homegrown" chef, Mr. Thang, with ingredients such as salmon raised on the raft, grilled, cooked in soup, along with some herbs and water spinach grown in foam containers.   

After eating, Mr. Khong Van Quang - Director of the Na Hang Special-use Forest Management Board and Deputy Head of the district ranger said that although the Board has a seal and an account, we are not yet the owner of the forest because we have not been granted the land, so we are working to propose to the province and resolve the issue. The unit's management forest area includes 33,000 ha, of which 21,000 ha are special-use forests and 6,000 protection forests. The forest rangers force comprises of 51 people and 55 forest patrol officers, with 8 stations and 25 posts. For each post, the station arrange 3 people including 1 ranger and 2 forest patrol officers, the station call the officers and rangers to a briefing once a month, in locations like Mu Man, a walk takes 8 hours without rest, and when the officers arrived, they would not want to return. And vice versa.

“When we officially become the forest owner with a source of money to pay for the forest environment of nearly 10 billion, the first thing the unit will do is to support contracts for forest patrol officers because their salary is only 3.5 million VND and they have to work 25 days a month, followed by investment in infrastructure and equipment for posts and stations. We have an idea to develop forest tourism. We have identified 8 routes including Bung, Nam Trang, Tat Ke-Khau Tinh, Lung Vai, Bac Vang, Pu Pao villages... Each site will arrange a staff specializing in eco-tourism to guide visitors to the forest as well as to arrange meals and accomodation for them.

When you have tourism, you will be more attached to the forest because you can take care of your family and people living nearby also have more income from tourists experiencing, establishing a homestay or growing medicinal herbs right under the forest canopy, harvesting leaves for bathing and drinking. The forest here is still primeval in many places with precious woods such as ginkgo, rose-wood, nail, cypress, eucalyptus, green cypress, the most characteristic of which is ginkgo, with the largest tree having a circumference of 8m, several thousand years in age, most of ginkgo have a circumference of 3-4m, thousands of years old, even like bundles of chopsticks, countless.

For special-use forests, all acts, including tourism, are prohibited without permission from a competent authority such as the Provincial People's Committee if the forest belongs to the province, or the Central Government if the forest belongs to that level. I'm going on this tour with suggestions from the District People's Committee, and then permission from the ranger station, otherwise as soon as I touch the forest's entrance, I will be punished immediately. Therefore, the potential of forest tourism is still left open. Once the tour and route has been determined, planning is needed to set out regulations for management, especially to reduce cumbersome procedures for visitors to the forest.

Bearing the worries of Na Hang - Lam Binh, the forest was preserved very well but the local people are still very poor, early the next day, I talked with Mr. To Viet Hiep - Chairman of Na Hang district People's Committee, a 8X generation leader: “Na Hang's poverty rate is now over  50%, but we must see not only difficulties but also advantages, it's just a matter of specific steps and investments. Na Hang's topography is mainly forest and mountains, but in terms of biodiversity, it is necessary to investigate and re-survey to know exactly what we have, previous surveys were conducted a very long time ago.

If the economic structure is agricultural, it is impossible to escape poverty, so the goal of the district is to transition to services first, by each cluster of communes, by each priority area. There are two things investors always worry about when coming to Na Hang: the cost of accessing land and the cost of transportation due to the long and difficult road, previously this problem was left without an answer, but after 2020 we have resolved it following the Law on Land, the Law on Forestry, and regarding traffic, the central and provincial governments took care of it.

For the tourism industry, we firstly determine a homestay style to introduce people to and develop the household economy, then high-class services such as projects with a reasonable land size, streets within the forest. We aim at new products such as the "forest bathing" activity that you experienced yesterday, eco-tourism in the lakebed, homestay tourism and especially develop the economy by night so that guests can visit by day and at night, there will still be places to experience.

As for forest tourism activities, the Law on Forestry stipulates that it is forbidden to affect or encroach on the forest. Visitors go to the forest to enjoy the fresh air and see the trees, but they cannot do anything to cause negative impacts, only resonate and increase the value of the forest. To accomplish that task, the province needs to make a plan for sustainable forestry development, clearly distinguishing zones, what will each region specialize in, who will be responsible. This is the key to solving all types of forests, ensuring overall harmonious development”.