Drone shots by photographer Vu Phi Long capture Lao Cai Province's golden rice terraces at the end of September as they await harvest. 

Terraced rice fields in A Lu, a commune in Bat Xat District of Lao Cai in northern Vietnam. Amidst the ripe rice are the ancient houses of the Ha Nhi ethnic people.

Ripened rice crop in Bat Xat District's Ngai Thau Commune. Visitors can turn any place in Ngai Thau during the harvest season into a stunning picture of the mountain landscape.

Vu Phi Long, who lives in the neighboring Son La Province, titled this photo 'When the buffalo came back'.

Schools and houses are hidden under clouds on the hills and mountains of Sang Ma Sao Commune in the western part of Bat Xat District. 

In the Mong ethnic group's language, Sang Ma Sao means Chicken Comb Mountains. This is also the name of a Mong village located at the foot of the mountain.

"During the rice ripening season, Sang Ma Sao is charming with a valley of terraced fields cascading like the steps to heaven," the photographer said.

Most residents in Sang Ma Sao belong to the Giay, Dao, Mong, and other ethnic minority groups, who have been growing rice on terraced fields for generations.

Some of Ngai Thau Commune's fields have been harvested.

"Depending on one's schedule, there are various routes one can take to Lao Cai during the harvest season. For me, no matter which route I took, the beauty here fascinates me to the point it can make me forget my way back home," Long said.