The strange "clean water stream" at the foot of Hoang Mai mountain.

These days, the section of National Highway 48D passing through Chuong Pass leading to Dong Hoi Port (Quynh Lap commune) is always crowded with people waiting to collect clean water from the mountain spring.

With just a plastic hose about 2 meters long inserted into the mountain, people can collect hundreds of bottles of clean water for daily use. However, to access the water source, people have to queue in turn, sometimes even enduring the midday sun.

People in Hoang Mai town gather at the rocky mountain to wait for water. Photo: Viet Hung.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong from Quynh Loc commune said that this water source has existed for decades. For about the last 3 years, she has had to wait for more than an hour each day to fill 5 water containers to take home for use.

"People continuously collect water from this spring, even at night; on hot days, they have to wait 2-3 hours to get any. Although the wait is long, because it's a natural water source and tastes very sweet, everyone is willing to wait to get some," said Ms. Huong.

According to Mr. Hoang Van Minh, a resident of Quynh Lap commune, the spring at the foot of this mountain has long been called "Mr. Crane's Spring" by the locals. This name originates from a legend that tells of a man who, long ago, went up the mountain to trap cranes and discovered this spring. Thanks to this, for many years, hundreds of households in the coastal area of ​​Hoang Mai have had access to clean water during the hot season.

The spring water flowing from the rocky mountains is very clean and clear, and can be drunk directly. Photo: Viet Hung.

Observations show that the water flowing from the rocky mountain is very slow, taking about 10-15 minutes to fill a 20-liter plastic container. What's special is that this water flows continuously, is clear, and tastes very sweet; it can be stored for several days. Therefore, every day, people from all over Quynh Loc, Quynh Lap, Quynh Thien, etc., come to collect 2,000-3,500 liters to use during the hot weather.

At the foot of the mountain, locals have installed a plastic hose over 2 meters long to supply water to the villagers. Photo: Viet Hung.

It's not just households lacking clean water that come to get clean water from Mr. Co's stream; even families with rainwater, drilled wells, and water filters at home have been lining up for years to get clean water at the foot of Hoang Mai mountain.

Ms. Ho Thi Hoa, a resident of Quynh Lap commune, said, "The water here is very sweet and lasts a long time, so I take advantage of the evening when there are fewer people to collect water for use, which also saves me the cost of buying clean water."

Every day, locals come here to collect thousands of liters of water to take home for use. Photo: Viet Hung.

Mr. Le Ba Van, Chairman of the People's Committee of Quynh Lap commune (Hoang Mai town), said that the locality is a coastal commune, so many villages and hamlets lack access to clean water for daily use. Households living near this water source have proactively brought plastic containers to collect water for use. Previously, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Hoang Mai town coordinated with relevant agencies to collect water samples for testing, and the results showed that this is a clean water source that people can use safely.