Bach Hac Confluence

Three of the great rivers of the north run together at one spot. They are the Red River, the Lô River and the Đà River. Their meeting place is the Bạch Hạc confluence. It lies in the ward of the same name, in the city of Việt Trì, in Phú Thọ province.

Each of the three has its own source and its own color of water through the seasons. Here they pour into one another.

The meeting of the rivers gave the place its name, the Hạc confluence. The Phú Thọ tourism portal says Bạch Hạc is an old land that once guarded the east of the capital of Văn Lang, in the time of the Hùng Kings. These were the Hùng Kings, whom Vietnamese people honor as their ancestors.

But Bạch Hạc is not only river scenery. It is a community that has lived with the river for a very long time. Life in the ward is tied to shipping, fishing, boat repair and services along the banks. Looking at the water here, a person sees more than water. It is a river economy at work.

On May 8, 2023, Phú Thọ province formally recognized Bạch Hạc ward as a community cultural tourism site. The area covers 4.5 square kilometers. It takes in the whole ward, not just the temple grounds but also the lanes, the river landings and the houses along the confluence.

Bạch Hạc has six clusters of historic and cultural sites. One is ranked as a national site. The other five are ranked at the provincial or city level. The most important is the Tam Giang Temple and Đại Bi Pagoda complex, on the left bank, right where the three rivers meet.

Tam Giang Temple is said to have begun as Thông Thánh Quán. That was during the Vĩnh Huy reign period, from about 650 to 655. Later it was changed into a temple.

The temple is tied to the legend of Thổ Lệnh and Thạch Khanh. They are two deities who have long been worshiped at Bạch Hạc.

A second piece of local culture is the Bạch Hạc boat race. The festival is now tied to the 10th day of the third lunar month, within the death anniversary of the Hùng Kings. The Nhân Dân newspaper describes the race as a cultural and sporting event held for that anniversary since long ago.

In festival season, Bạch Hạc is a different place. The racing boats, called chải, shoot across the water where the three rivers join. Drums beat the pace of the paddles and the sound carries over the river. Spectators fill both banks. It is the river festival of a living community.

About 200 meters from the meeting point of the rivers stands Chi Cát Temple, in Tiên Cát ward. It is another place of worship in this old land.

Bạch Hạc draws no crowds in the modern tourist sense. Yet it is one of the few places in Vietnam where a person can stand and watch three great rivers meet. Here one can feel that this land has long been a crossing for streams of people, goods and culture.