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DMZ At first glance dong ha, the capital of Quang Tri Province, appears to be little more than another drab roadside town, and during the rainy season it could almost be mistaken for the most miserable place on earth. However, once you get off the main road and go wandering it is quite enchanting, and you can return very quickly to the attractive life of rural Vietnam. Dong ha is the most central town to the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) and the tunnels of Vinh Moc, and because of this, during the Vietnam War the UIS built many military bases around the town.
From 1954 until the defeat of the Americans in 1975, the Ben Hai river marked the division of Vietnam. Five lm either side of the river was declared a DMZ - a stark contrast to what really took place in this region. In fact, the surrounding region experienced some of the heaviest fighting during the Vietnam War. Some areas, such as Vinh Moc were termed Free Fire Zones, allowing a virtual free for all without fear of future repercussions and everything was designated a target. As a result of this heavy fighting, there is still heaps live ordnance lying around. There have been many casualties since the war as unexploded bombs are disturbed by farmers working their land and foragers seeking a few extra dollars collecting scrap metal. Khe Sanh, in particular, was immortalised during and after the conflict. Now when you catch the train or bus form anywhere south of Dong Hoi to the DMZ, bomb damage and craters are still evident in paddies, beside the railway tracks and beside the roads and bridges. As you get closer to Dong ha you will notice huge eucalyptus groves, themselves a legacy of the war. These areas were completely devastated either by relentless shelling or defoliation during the war and were eventually replanted with eucalyptus trees, chosen for their durability and speedy maturity. Back to top
In between hue and Dong ha is a dilapidated Catholic Church that was the site of a fierce and bloody battle between American troops and the Viet Cong. The Americans had sought refugee within the church walls, but this was to no avail. The Church has been left standing in its bullet ridden state as a reminder of the wa4r, and to this day retains an eerie feeling within the sanctuary.
The Ben Hai River was the original demarcation point between north and South Vietnam from 1954 to 1975 and is crossed by the Hien Luong Bridge. The bridge was once symbolically painted in red on the north side and yellow on the southern end, but this ended with the destruction of the bridge during the Vietnam War. In 1973 two flagpoles were constructed, one at each side of the bridge, but the southern one fell over during a storm and was never repaired. On the north side of the Ben Hai rover there is a memorial and an awful lot of water buffaloes, along with a scenic view down the Ben Hai river.
The cemetery is situated 17 km south of the Ben Hai River and is so large it can only be described as impressive. Not so impressive is the deaths that created a need of such a place. The endless rows of white tombstones are a memorial to the tens of thousands of NVA soldiers and other military personnel killed in and around the Truong Son Mountains. Back to top
The Vinh Moc tunnels are situated 19 km north of the Ben Hai river. Faced with incessant bombing by US and ARVN forces, in what was termed a free fire zone, the villagers at Vinh Moc were faced with three options. One was to leave their homes and livelihood, two was to stay in their homes and probably be killed, or three was to start digging. They took the third option and embarked on an excavation project, taking 18 months to complete, that would eventually relocate the entire village underground. Similar tunnels were attempted at nearby villages, who were also in the free fire zone, however they were not of the same standard. At Vinh Quang, as a result of bombing by US forces, the tunnels collapsed, killing all inside. The US forces were never able to replicated their efforts at Vinh Moc with only one of the most feared drilling bombs hitting the target without exploding. These bombs drill into the earth until they hit a pocket of air making them explode. The resourceful villagers used the hole created by the bomb as an air vent. Unlike the tunnels at Cu Chi that were made for fighting in, these tunnels were designed to be lived in. This, the tunnels are considerably larger, though a foreigner will still find some of the corners quite tight and the roof low in places. There are three levels of tunnels with the lowest going to a depth of thirty metres, twelve entrances with seven opening up to the ocean, and in total the tunnels cover over 2 km. The living quarters often consisted of a family having to squeeze into a chamber with dimensions around two by one and a half meters dug out form the main corridor. Some of the chambers are reasonably spacious such as the meeting widens slightly allowing a considerable number of people to congregate to hold meetings or listen to concerts. During the war time, most of the children, women and elderly never saw daylight, only rarely being allowed to leave the tunnels under the cover of night and 17 children were born underground. The tunnels you will be taken through have been partially restored and reinforced so do not worry about them collapsing, though spare a thought for those who sat in these tunnels as the bombs rained down. It was the very claylike consistency of the soil in the area of Vinh Moc which allowed these tunnels to be made, so do not try it at home. In periods of heavy rain, the lower tunnels may be flooded with the higher tunnels filling with puddles and the stairs getting slippery. Make sure you take a torch with you. Next to the tunnels is a museum with an emotional display of memerabilia. Take special note of the before and after photos of Vinh Moc and the stories about the Suicide Squads. These volunteers were responsible for ferrying supplies out to the offshore Con Co islands whilst under the constant risk of being spotted and killed by US helicopters specially stationed to sever those supply lines. Back to top
The Rockpile is the name of a 230 m high rocky hill that was used as a US marine listening post fueing the Vitnam War. Situated within view of route 9, this base was only accessible by helicopter making it a perfect location to watch out for NVA movemment in the surrounding area as well as to fire long range artillery. One of the ongoing mysteries of Vietnam, however, is to why everyone is foreced out of the bus to look at what is now just a rock mountain.
This bridge crosses the Dakrong River and was completed in 1976 with Cuban assistance. You are not permitted to take photos of the ‘bribes officers’ here who often extort money from incoming truck drivers form Laos, but you can from the other side of teh girdge!! The road on the far side of teh gridge, in part, used to be a section of teh Ho Chi minh Trail.
The Ho Chi Minh Trail was the artery of life feeding the Viet Cong fighting in the South with much needed food, ammunition, weapons and medicine. Parts of teh trail existed before the war but it was extended to massive proportions Originally only porters on foot and bicycles were used, but in the later stafes of teh war, teh trail virtually became a highway facilitating massive truck traffic. The trail that became known as Hanoi’s road to victory, stretched 16,000 km in total and consisted of main roads, smaller arteries and numerous detours. It was all extremely well camouflaged and always in a constant fury of development with new construction and rebyuilding of sections that had been damaged. The trail not only ran through Vietnam But eextended into Laos and Cambodia to avoid American bombing. The US forces only managed to inconsistently destroy parts of the trail, however they never successfully cut the supply trail evern after the constant dofoliation of the area and extensive bombing using infra red detection dives and laser guided systems. Back to top
Lining in the region from the Dakrong Bridge to the Ashau Valley is the dominant minority Paco Tribe. They were the only tribe in this area to support the NVA in the Vietnam War. Theyu are so in love with Uncle Ho that the entire tribe uses Ho as their srname. There are two other minority groups in the area of the DMZ. Aroudn Khe Sanh Town there are the Van Kieu Tribe and aroudn Lao Bao ther is the Ko Ho Tribe. All three tribes are of Cambodian origin and are patrilineal and ruled by the oldest wise man of the village. They also use stilted houses and they use the spance under their hoses for storing wood and keeping livestock, and old tradition to keep the animals safe from tigers. There are no more tigers here, but the tradition has stuck. The DMZ tours from Hue take tourists to a small village just by the Dakrong Bridge that was an embarrassment and where the villager are so apathetic about seeing foreigners that it is ridiculous.
This old Amercian base is the site of one the most important battles (or diversions) of the vietnam war. All that remains at khe Sanh now is an eroded pock-marked dust bowl with a memorial near the airstrip and an awful lot of scrap hunters still searching for leftovers from the war. There are numerous large bomb craters and an denless number of hotels and mounds of dirt surrounding the area created by the locals trying to add a few more dollars to their income. Khe Sanh became a sizeable marine base in late 1966 with a view to training the furrounding hilltribe people and stopping Viet cong insursion into the atea. By late 1967, American intelligence detected huge movements of Viet Cong in the area and n January 1968 the siege of Khe Sanh began. It was not until 75 days later, with hundreds of US dead and unnumerable Viet Cong killed, that the siege was finally lifted. Only then was it discovered by the US leaders that Khe Sanh had been little more than a onumental diversion for the Te Offensive which itslf proved to be a rurning point of the awar. When the US forces finally pulled out of Khe Sanh in mid 1968 everything that could have been used by the Viet Cong was blown up, bombed from their or buried. Thus ended another bloody and seemingly pointless chpter of the Vietnam War. Rumour has it thath the Vietnamese are planning to regould Khe sanh combat Base as a tourist attraction. Warning: In the area of Khe Sanh Combat Base there is still a lot of ordnance sitting around. These are not souvenirs. They have been left by the scrap hunters who believe them too unstable even for them to attempt to disarm. The ordnance includes landmines, bullets and bombs of all types and descriptions. They are left so that either temperature fluctuations explode them or an unfortunate cow steps on them. You are not a cow, do not touch any ordnance you see laying around. Too many people have already died during and since the war, so do not add yourself to the statistics books. Back to top
Aluoi is situated near the Ashau Valley, and is the site known as the infamous Hamburger Hill battle during the Vietnam War. During this week long battle in May 1969, 245 American soldiers died. It is located on the inland road between hue and the DMZ. The road to get there used to be part of the ho Chi zminh Trail and extends up to the Dkrong Bridge. The scenery is quite beautiful as the road runs parallel to the Dakrong River and passes some primary jungle. However this road is in terrible condition and you would be pushed for time to see the sights of the DMZ if you were taken to this road. It is 20 km to get to aluoi from the Ashau Valley and another 92 km to the Dakrong Bridge.
Lao Bao marks the only Vietnam-Laos border crossing that is open to foreign travellers, located around 18 km west of Khe Sanh Town. From here to Savannakhet on the Laos-Thailand border it is 250 km. Reports about the ease of crossing here do tend to fluctuate, with more hassles on the Laotian side where travellers have been turned back for no particular reason. As long as you have Lao Bao marked as your exit or entry point, you should not encounter too many hassles with the Vietnamese Officials. |
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