The Greyhound and the Hare on the Ho Chi Min trail.

After leaving Dong Ha, just north of the old North-South border you have a choice turning west to follow the infamous Highway nr 9. This road runs almost parallel to the DMZ but a bit further south. There are several ex USA camps along the route if you can find them- it is best to use a guide. This area was the scene of heavy fighting during the Vietnam conflict.

Before reaching the town of Khe Sanh you cross the original Ho Chi Min trail on two occasions, one of them still looks like a track, and the other is now a road.

The HCM trail was a narrow track hacked out through the jungle and served as a secret supply route for the North Vietnamese Army

Nearby, the township of Khe Sanh was a US base on a high plain; the base had two airstrips and was a major target for the North Vietnamese Army. During the time of the "Battle of Khe Sanh the US dropped about 100.000 tons of bombs in the surrounding area and used 158.000 large capacity shells to pound the hill sides. They had an enormous arsenal of ammunition and the latest technology and fire power. The siege lasted 77 days and resulted the US had to abandon the base and give it up.

The Viet Cong had no modern technology, save some old soviet tanks, no planes and helicopters en still managed to overrun the base. They built a trail through the dense jungle, just wide enough to transport light vehicles ranging from bicycles to very light trucks, but not the wide that the trail could be seen from the air.

This trail ran all the way from North Vietnam to far in the south and followed the line of the Laos border.

In the end the US en South Vietnamese lost the war- I figured out a possibility why .

It is like a Greyhound and a hare; on average these two animals have a similar top speed. The larger Greyhound just a bit faster. But why can't the Greyhound catch the hare?

I think the reason is, that the Greyhound is running for a Meal and the hare is running for its Life! I think in The Vietnam war this was the case- The individual Viet Cong soldiers had a goal, determination, resilience and were fighting for their own country. The US soldiers? Perhaps a few had the similar feelings as the Viet Cong but I think most of them just had to go there as they were drafted and were counting the days to get home again. Not fighting on/for your own soil is very different than when you own land is invaded by a foreign force.

The Australian band Cold Chisel launched a song coalled Khe Sanh in 1978 ; The mood of the song is typified by its first verse:

I left my heart to the sappers* round Khe Sanh

And my soul was sold with my cigarettes to the black market man

I've had the Vietnam cold turkey

From the ocean to the Silver City

And it's only other vets could understand

*sapper –military soldier/engineer.

see:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTjvG4W JD_A


The Ho Chi Min Trail

What started as a supply trail called the “Ho Chi Min Trail" was widened after the war and is now one of the best roads... Ever! The road has a surface like the roads you find in Europe. The road runs through very dense jungle which is still there. Long straight sweepers run through valley and hug the rivers. At several places the Jungle encroaches the road. This goes on for hours on end. At times we are in second or even in first gear the take these mountains; the heat is oppressive but the experiences is one of exhilaration; the scenery cannot be portrayed in photographs of film. The Ho Chi Min trail became the Ho Chi Min highway.