Viet Nam Tours -
The Long Tan Trek Tour Report - 2014
This page records the October 2014 Long Tan Trek
Tour.
(Last updated 4 November 2016)
(Last updated 4 November 2016)
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Viet Nam Tours - The Long Tan Trek Tour Report - 2014 This page records the October 2014 Long Tan Trek
Tour.
(Last updated 4 November 2016) |
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q Battlefield Tours - Long Tan Trek Tours - VN Decisive Battles Tours - Europe Battlefield Tours q Site - Home Page - Feedback/Contact Dave q Dave's
WebSite q National Network
Travel's WebSite q AVVRG
WebSite
The Grand Hotel is centrally located, handy to the city centre and had recently been refurbished.
...and we ended up at the
after which it was lunch
There are efforts under way to locate the crater in which many of the NVA dead
were buried. The Aussies are working with the VN Government on this search.
There were several Powerpoint presentations thru the Tour, each on a decisive battle we'd cover the following day
One of the map/diagrams of the battle of Long Tan...
The 'Pearly Gates' - the entrance to 1ATF after the public road
had been diverted (after 1967).
On an old helipad half-way up Nui Dat ('SAS Hill'),
Dave, briefed the Tour on the layout of
the 1ATF base.
Verity shows some of the Kindy kids some modern
technology...
The Trek route took us from the Nui Dat base to the Long Tan rubber plantation. through grasslands, plantations, crops and even through the backyards of homes built since the war...
The opening shots of the battle were fired by 11 Pl Sgt Bob Buick as he crossed this road in the plantation at this spot...
On the battlefield - the younger rubber trees permit a view of
Many Tour members remarked on how small the actual battlefield was - just some
500 yards square.
A wreath was laid
Almost all meals were included: set-menu with buy-your-own drinks.
Some of the caves require a trek through the hills... ...but once there, they're worth the visit.. ...many being really only the dirt excavated from between huge boulders.
Before boarding the boats, we visited a monument dedicated to
one of the last battles of the Third Indo-Chine War - the one in 1975 which
ended in the fall of Saigon. The Vung Tau Peninsula was one of the places
of last resistance by the South of the North...
The Hydrofoil is a 90 minute trip up (or down) the Saigon River, between Saigon and Vung Tau on the Cap St Jacques Peninsula.
...once a soldier...
While this group were at the cross, the Australian Consul-General from Saigon (HCMC), John McAnulty AM and his wife, Michelle, visited the cross and were happy to join us in a group photo...
Marble Mountain -
with caves used as
secret wartime VC hospitals - now serves as a Buddhist sanctuary area.
The mountains are surrounded by marble carving factories and merchants, but the marble is now all imported.
The silk factory shows how silk is processed and turned into paintings, table linen etc.
...and the old (destroyed) bridge at Lang Co.
On the afternoon off, some visited the heritage listed
'Freedom Bridge' is the old Bailey Bridge spanning the Son Ben Hai (river) which was the actual demarcation between North and South Vietnam.
The "Rockpile", with "Razor-back" visible to right rear. Rockpile was owned by the US, Razorback by the NVA.
Khe Sanh has a great indoor and outdoor museum (seen in both photos here). They're assembling more displays at Khe Sanh - maybe to become a major tourist site?
Both Da Krong and A Shau valleys offered spectacular views of rivers between huge mountain ranges.
The streets of the Old Quarter were always crowded and busy.
But most streets have merchandise 'themes', so it's fairly easy to find whatever you're looking for.
Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum isn't open to the public in October or November...
The visit to the War Museum was interesting and included an animated diorama on Dien Bien Phu - good preparation for the trip there tomorrow...
...and the visit to the infamous 'Hanoi Hilton' capped off the day's activities.
A briefing on the current state of POW-MIA searches was given to the Tour group by the US Marine "JPAC Detachment 2" office in Hanoi.
The large Viet Minh cemetery is well tended and offers visitors a view of the human price of the First Indo-China War - thousands of names are recorded by home Province and most of the grave stones are un-named.
A second-hand tank on Hill A1 provided the opportunity for a (primarily) ex-3RAR Kodak Moment.
Vietnam's largest bronze statue sits on top of the main "Dominique" hill, overlooking Dien Bien Phu town.
The French memorial at DBP is one of only two foreign war memorials on Vietnamese soil - the other one being the ANZAC memorial cross at Long Tan. This French plinth is actually a memorial to various French units rather than to the Battle itself.
A visit to DeCastre's bunker, which has now been better protected by having a cover placed over it...
DBP now has a new Museum which is one of the better museums in Viet Nam. It is just across the road from the Hero's Cemetery and is well worth an hour or two to visit.
On the way back to the airport, we stopped for a quick look at the famous Bailey Bridge - still in daily use more than 60 years after it was put there by the French.
Spectacular and peaceful - Ha Long Bay well deserves its World Heritage listing. Only the huge limestone caves could entice us off the boats and onto dry land... ...because even the shopping was on the water !
Our thanks to:
And as we get other
Finally, a big vote of
thanks (again!) to National Network Travel's
All the best...
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Di and Dave's 2014 Long Tan Trek Tour departed Australia 11 October with 15 passengers (11 gents, 4 ladies), with ages ranging from the 20s to the 70s.
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The 2014 Tour flew Singapore Airlines from several State
capitals to Singapore, where the Tour Group assembled. From there, a
short flight to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC, but we'll call it 'Saigon').
We booked in to the Grand Hotel - the tour uses 4-star hotels where
available:
While still at the Palace, we had a group photo taken:
The city tour ended at the Ben Thanh markets, with the afternoon...
We then moved on to the site of FSB Coral, where we paid
our respects at the NVA memorial plinth and lit joss sticks for the
shrine... Then it was on to lunch in Bien Hoa, followed by a visit to the Dong Nai Museum which houses the original Long Tan cross (a replica stands in the Long Tan rubber plantation at the site of the battle). After lunch, we bussed down Route 15 to Vung Tau.
There's nothing of note remaining of the 1ALSG site. We then enjoyed a dusk cyclo ride... After an evening briefing on the Australian presence in
Viet Nam generally and on the Long Tan battle in particular... ...we bussed through the old 'Pearly Gates' to
Nui Dat, where Dave
and others explained the base
layout and the NVA's intentions for a huge
attack on the base set for the night of the 18th of August 1966. Next stop was a visit to the Nui Dat Kindy. Our
visits to the Kindy are always appreciated - not least because we always
bring long-life milk and presents for the children... After lunch,
it was on with the battlefield Trek... Along the way, Dave described what was happening in
"real time" "sitreps" - that is, since the Trek took the same time as the
battle, those on the tour "experienced" the timings of the events, the
delays and the sequences in detail - what took ten minutes in the Battle
took ten minutes for the Tour.
And those on the tour were able to ask questions and
get details along the way. At 600 and 1000 metres from the main battlefield, Dave also pointed out the places where the APC reinforcement column with A/6 aboard contacted the enemy on their way towards D/6. Very little of the topography has changed in 48 years,
tho' the slight rise that D/6 used for its final redoubt is now a slight
depression. Unfortunately, the removal of the rubber trees made the
battlefield much more "open" and "visible". It was difficult to
imagine the lack of visibility within the plantation but, on the other hand,
it was easy to imagine the lack of cover available on a flat piece of
ground! As a small but relevant diversion, here's a panoramic
photo of the battle area taken from the top of Nui Dat 2 just to the north
of the battlefield. You will see how flat the ground is. The
Long Tan cross is the tiny speck of white at the extreme left edge of the
top pic. I have overlaid a duplicate of the photo with the positions
of groups at the battle and have added some of the landmarks. You can
download a copy of this by clicking on the image... Back to the Trek... As usual, the comments were that it was the highlight of the Tour - the Long Tan battlefield looks VERY similar to the way it looked in 1966. The walk was timed to be as long as the actual battle took - some 3.5 hours. We walked to all the places where the D/6 soldiers experienced significant events during the battle - the initial contact, the first and final Company positions, the left hook by 10 Platoon, the right hook by 12 Platoon, the place the Company HeadQuarters (CHQ) took the ammo resupply and, of course, the place of the heroic stand by 11 Platoon. The Tour ended the Trek at the Cross - the site of the gallant 11 Platoon action - at 5:00pm, in time for a short ceremony and photos:
Then back to Vung Tau and the Grand. On the next day, the Tour visited an
AVVRG-supported
dental clinic at Long Tan to see further Australian charity at work.
The facility is also used for other medical purposes. On the day of
our visit, it was an immunisation day for Rubella... We then visited the Horseshoe but access to the former FSB
is no longer permitted as it is now a working quarry: A short drive through the nearby town of
Dat Do took us to a road and paddy field which
were formerly the infamous minefield - that's
the Horseshoe and the rice
paddy in the background of the pic below: After this, it was lunch at the Tropicana: ...and then to Ba Ria for a short boat ride to
Cat Lo wharf... The next day, Thu 16 Oct, was a "free day" in
Vung Tau. Some shopping, some
pub-cruising in the numerous bars (many owned and run by ANZAC expatriates),
some (like Bill) chose sight-seeing... A popular visit was to the
Worldwide Arms Museum in Vung Tau. Others (like
Warren) chose just to show
the flag and sample the local ("333" beer) produce: Next morning it was goodbye to Vung Tau as Di took the
Trek group back by hydrofoil to
Saigon... ...and thence to Cu Chi for a
riverside lunch and a tour of the tunnels.. Meanwhile, Dave had remained in Vung Tau to meet up with
the group who were going to join us on the Extension
Tour North, to take them to the Long Tan cross... After another 'Farewell Dinner'
in Saigon, at which we handed a Trek plaque to each 'Trekker', we had a
final night at the Grand, Saigon. Next day, for those not on the "Decisive Battlefields" extension tour, it was RTA (Return to Australia).
From Saigon, the "Decisive Battlefields Tour" flew to Da Nang airport. 
A quick transfer to lunch, and then to
Marble Mountain. It's a steep staircase
to climb (and to descend again later), but it's assisted now by an elevator
to about half-way up. All agree it's worth the effort...
A short trip south took us to world heritage listed
Hoi An
for two nights. On arrival, we visited a silk factory...
A cyclo ride is the best way to view the old city:
Tour Guide
Mr Dung (pronounced "Yoong" if you're curious - that's him on the bicycle)
led the way... The next day was a 'day off' - to recover from the hectic first week and prepare for the hectic week to come. A little relax and a little sightseeing, and we were ready for more. We returned to Da Nang, one of the largest
American and South Vietnamese bases
during the War. First, a visit to China Beach (a Wartime R&C
Centre)... Then it was up over the Hai Van Pass
- (that's it in the hills behind Mick and
Ian in the photo above). A
concrete pillbox on either side of the road (both seen in the pic below) were
part of the defences installed by the French, but the Pass had been defended
as far back in time as records exist: We then continued around the mountains to
Lang Co
(another huge Marines' base, mostly for river and coastal patrol boats). While there, we looked at what's left of
the original bridge and the fortifications which protected it during the
War: Then it was on to Hue, and, after lunch, a relaxing Dragon Boat cruise up the Perfume River to the
Thien Mu Pagoda... The next morning we walked the area of heaviest fighting
south of the Perfume River - concentrating on Tran Cao Van (Street), where
we had a quiet moment for the marines who died while re-taking the city...
and a group photo to remember it all by...
The photo at right was taken
In the afternoon we moved north of the River, to the Citadel, where the main Tet 1968 resistance was experienced. There's a
lot of restoration work in progress in the Citadel... The afternoon was free time for shopping and
sightseeing... The next day we bussed north to the DMZ. On the way
we stopped off at the Long Hung Catholic church (which is kept in its 1970's
condition as a war memorial to the fighting in Quang Tri),
Quang Tri Citadel, Dong Ha
(the logistics centre for the DMZ), and then to Cua Viet (the river-mouth sea port). We then visited several key locations of the long DMZ
campaign including 'Freedom Bridge',
Gio Linh, Cam Lo Bridge,
Con Thien (Hill of Angels),
Camp Carroll, Rockpile, and on to
Khe Sanh. That night, we stayed in a hotel in Lao Bao - on the
border with Laos.
First thing in the morning, after viewing the border crossing point, we then
visited the Lang Vei monument
(a Russian-made amphibious tank first used by the North in the South in the NVA victory over the
Lang Vei Special Forces
Camp)... We then
returned to Khe Sanh and the old airfield base - scene of the 77-day siege in 1968. At A Luoi, we tried for a view of "Hamburger Hill" - scene of a major US action that, with the 1968 Tet Offensive and Khe Sanh, triggered the change of US policy that ultimately ended the War. Weather conditions in the valley rarely permit a good view of this mountain massif... (see the 2011 Tour Report for a view). On return from the A Shau valley, we overnighted in
Hue and
next day bussed south to Phu Bai, Hue's airport and a huge base and
Intelligence collecting facility during the war. A short flight to
Hanoi gave us enough time to explore the Old Quarter, where we stayed. The next day we toured some of the city's sites including the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, the Army Museum (which displays the tank that breached the Saigon Palace Gates in 1975), the 'Hanoi Hilton' and lots more.
There was free time in Hanoi to take in a drink or two at one
of the leading hotels in Hanoi - the Sofitel Metropole... ...before we flew, next day, to Dien Bien Phu for a day and a night,
staying at the new Muong Thanh Hotel. That afternoon we drove into the hills to see General Giap's bunker
complex, from which he commanded the DBP battle. On the way back, we passed two wonderful monuments... The first was to
all who worked in the DBP campaign - from planning to surveying to road
construction to supply to fighting - not to forget the command elements.
The second was dedicated to the artillery crews - set on a hillside to
remind the viewers of the task the Viet Minh had to get the guns into their
positions in the hills. That's the monument at top left of the
panoramic view of the valley..... Next morning we visited the Viet Minh cemetery,
Hill A1 (Part of "Elaine"
defences), the French memorial and General
De Castre's bunker... At the end of another hectic week plus, we flew back to Hanoi and drove directly to Ha Long Bay for a spot of R&R. The World Heritage site features sheer limestone cliffs
plunging into calm green waters. A relaxing day on a boat wrapped up
what had been for all on the Tour an energetic, yet informative 9 days: From Ha Long to Hanoi and flights home. All of the hotels were either 4/5 star or the best available in the more remote areas. Most meals and all gratuities had been included, so hands only went into pockets for personal purchases or personal tipping and drinks. Along the way, documentaries, presentations and discussions covered most of the significant events or places to be visited or seen. The Tour included some "surprises" not listed in the itinerary - but each of which were very much appreciated by the Tour. members. And we met some great people along the way... The Tour was well accepted by those on it. A selection of passenger comments follow - more may be added as they are collated: *
Hi Dave and Di,
You just have to look at our group photo to see that ours was a very special group of people! Thanks for sending the photos on to all of us so fast with all the names, ( great for me as I am not so good at remembering!! ) (We) had a wonderful time, a memorable trip for us both, thank-you again... We have some special photos, and memories, which we can share with family and friends. All the best for the remainder of the Tour, and safe traveling. Requested Anonymous * Hi Dave and Di, Luke especially enjoyed himself,
interacting with everyone, He loved chatting to you Dave, Thank you Dave for sharing your
very personal experience We are also, all of us, very
fortunate to be able to experience this Also, thank-you Tina, love your
cute smile, Thank you too, to Judi, National
Network Travel Melbourne Australia, Thanks again Dave and Di, * Thank you again for all your dedicated work. Verity L * Thank you Dave and Di... Simon T * Dave, Di and Dave, * Hi Dave and Di. Your selection of hotels was excellent. Dave's battlefield briefings on the evenings prior to
visiting the various sites The free day in Hanoi was very welcome. The final two days of R&R at Halong Bay was a delight. I have often remarked how quickly people bond and make
friends Thank you, Dave and Di and Judi. Jim F * Greetings Dave and Di, Thank you to Dave, Di and our local
Guides Just terrific to see some square -
gaiting again, My thanks also to Judi for all her
assistance pre tour. * Thank you Di for the great read in the fab notes that you
made. I have had a lovely email from Michael R, * My wife and I joined both the 2014
Long Tan Trek Thanks again for a great trip Dave &
Di - * The ANNUAL Tours - the Long Tan Trek and the Decisive
Battlefields Tour - have been planned with very much the same content and
sequence as these 2014 Tours. In the south, we've added an extra night
in Vung Tau giving a free day to revisit old haunts, and retained the Cu Chi
visit. And in the north, we includes a two-night stay at Hoi An and
two nights in Ha Long Bay - BOTH World Heritage listed locations. (...keep going - there's more below...) |
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*** The Group Photo taken at the Saigon Opera House, Oct, 2012... ***
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*** The Group Photo taken at the Reunification
Palace, Saigon, Oct, 2012... ***
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*** The Group Photo taken at the Long Tan Cross, Oct, 2012... ***
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*** The Group Photo taken at the War Museum, Hanoi, Oct, 2012... ***
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*** The Group Photo taken at The Marines JPAC Det 2 Office, Hanoi, Oct, 2012... ***
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*** The Group Photo taken at General Giap's HQ,
Dien Bien Phu , Oct, 2012... ***
(who has a photo of the group at Giap's HQ?)
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----- =====THE OUT-TAKES ===== -----
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"How much for a ride back to the hotel?"
Is texting on a motorcycle
Wombat tells Verity and
Bill about
...until Luke told them of HIS
Mr Nguyen was hoping that no cars
Di was sprung at the Medallion
One day I'm gonna grow up...
Streetside pedicure and manicure
Teddy Bear's wedding...
The Saigon Police Department decide
Paul M proves that life imitates art...
Jim - that's the pot
Desperate Dave steals a kiss
Not quite sure what Luke and
Wombat
The brochure for the
...and the other brochure
Michael H makes a personal fitting
MOST of the meals were
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Got a pic and a caption? There's room for more - your photo next..?
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----- =====DI's FAVOURITE PIX ===== -----
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Di's favourite shots: |
next..?
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