The Man Who Quietly Keeps Seven-Color Stone Beach Clean

A familiar figure on the beach

Chin Tuc is a familiar name in Binh Thanh Hamlet, Lam Dong province. Locals know him as the small, tough, soft-spoken man who appears each morning with a makeshift container, steadily collecting waste along the beach.

Seven-Color Stone Beach, also known as Ca Duoc Beach, is one of the most visited scenic spots in the commune. Yet amid its natural beauty and steady stream of visitors, one image has come to define the site for many: an older man silently pulling a foam box full of trash along the shore.

“I live here, so I have to love my home and make it better,” he says. “The hard work does not matter.”

The beach itself is a rare geological wonder. Formed over hundreds of years, it stretches nearly 1.5 kilometers along the coastline and covers about 10 hectares. Tide, currents and waves have gradually lifted layers of colorful stones to the surface, creating a natural mosaic unlike any other.

Recognized as a provincial scenic relic, the site has also been honored by the Vietnam Record Association as the beach with the most diverse shapes and colors in the country. Together with the nearby Co Thach moss beach and the open sea, it draws both locals and tourists for swimming, photography and sightseeing.

A daily routine built on love for the sea

As visitor numbers have increased, so too has the amount of waste. Alongside litter left behind by tourists, trash washed in by the tide has made the beach increasingly difficult to keep clean.

Chin Tuc knows the sea well. He understands when trash tends to wash up, and where it usually gathers. Born and raised by the coast, he has spent most of his life tied to this place.

Every day, from around 4 to 5 a.m., he spends nearly two hours collecting waste. After clearing the stone beach, he continues down to the shoreline to pick up bottles, plastic containers and fishing gear washed in by the tide. Only then does he return to his work and family life.

His tools are simple: a headlamp, a sack and a foam box tied around his waist. On some days, the box holds nearly 60 kilograms of trash.

Those first mornings were not easy. His body ached, his hands blistered, and the work seemed endless. But he kept going.

“There are days when I clean it up in the morning and come back the next day to find it full again,” he says. “The sea brings in the trash as fast as I remove it. But I still do it, because this place needs it, and because I love it.”

When a small act becomes widely known

For almost two years, his work went quietly unnoticed by many. Some who saw him thought he was strange. Others simply did not understand why he kept doing it. But over time, his persistence began to earn admiration.

At first, he did not even tell his family. He would say he was going to swim. Later, when he kept heading to the beach every day, even in cold winds or rough weather, the truth became clear. Photos and videos shared on social media also brought his story to his wife and children.

Fortunately, his family supports him. They only remind him to stay healthy and not overwork himself. And sometimes, other beachgoers join him in collecting trash.

Locals now see him as part of the beach itself. Le Thi Thanh Hoa, a resident of Binh Thanh Hamlet, says his presence has become familiar to everyone in the area. Many people help when they can, but Chin Tuc remains the most consistent.

An example for visitors and the community

According to the Binh Thanh Tourism Management Board, the site has taken several steps to protect the area, including preventing stone theft, ensuring beach safety and improving sanitation. Trash bins have been installed so visitors can dispose of waste properly.

Still, a large amount of rubbish continues to drift in from the ocean. When trash piles up, the management board must hire workers to help clean it, yet even then the job is often difficult to keep up with.

That is what makes Chin Tuc’s work stand out. Ho Cong Tien, head of the Binh Thanh Tourism Management Board, describes him as a model of environmental responsibility.

“Every day, before sunrise, he is already there, collecting trash along the beach,” he says.

His quiet, steady routine is expected to inspire both residents and visitors to care more deeply about the environment.

For Chin Tuc, it is only a small act. But to the people who know him—and to the beach he protects—it means far more.

“Our sea is beautiful, and this stone beach is rare and unique,” he says. “I have lived here almost my whole life. I cannot stand by and let all this beauty be hidden under garbage.”

From that simple love for his homeland, he has helped turn an ordinary morning ritual into something much larger: a lesson in responsibility, dignity and care for the place we call home.