Vietnam’s Kissing Rocks at risk of collapse in Ha Long Bay

Vietnam's Kissing Rocks - Cock and Hen island - are at risk of falling into Ha Long Bay. Photo / Slaza Sándor Laza, CC

Ha Long Bay’s recognisable “Kissing Rocks” are at risk of collapse, according to a new report on the stone stacks.

The coastal region of north Vietnam is home to 2000 rock islands, which give its name meaning the “dragon’s back”. The Quang Ninh province attracts up to 4 million tourists a year, who come to see the spectacular Karst sea rocks.

Sadly one of the most famous, and romantically named formations is now at risk. The “kissing rocks” - which appear to lean together for a cheeky kiss - are a tourist favourite.

Now geologists warn that, at 14 metres above the water, the top heavy rocks are being worn away from the base. A recent study identified several fractures running through the tilted structures.

Vietnam’s Institute of Geosciences and Mineral Resources now warns that they are at risk of rising sea levels and seismic events.

The rock stacks could be further threatened even by the wake of tour boats, said Ho Tien Chung, head of the institute.

A panorama of Ha Long bay in Vietnam on a summer's day.

“Tourists can see the rocks that are precarious at low tide. The water level then is low, exposing the supporting foot of the rocks which are gradually being eroded, causing a risk of collapse if no measures are taken to protect and reinforce them soon,” he told the Asia News Network in Vietnam.

They suggested if local authorities do not make efforts to reinforce the stones, they may lose the complex natural structures which took 20 million years to form.

Unregulated tourism and illegal fishing in the Unesco world heritage region had further hastened erosion of the rock stacks.

In 2016 the head of the Thien Nga “Swan Neck” formation broke off into the sea.

Tourists are not permitted to approach or climb the stacks but they are still affected by the chop of increased water traffic.

Although called by their Vietnamese name Hon Trong Mai “Rooster and Hen” or “Fighting Cocks”, they became more widely known in the 1990s, after English-speaking tourists decided the stones were after a pash, rather than a peck.