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mekongexpress
vietnam
photo album
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This group of photos was taken on 27 September 2007. |
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Map section from a Vietnamese road atlas published December 2004. Note how the eastern half of 512, i.e., Plei Kan to Dak To, formerly Kon Hojao, has been renumbered Route 14. Route 40 is old 512. The Route 40 insignia is right over Ben Het. |
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| Route 14 heading out of Kontum. | |||
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| Route 14 in the vicinity of Dak La. | |||
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| Approaching Dien Binh Bridge. Rocket Ridge in the distance. | |||
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| Eastern view approaching former Kon Hojao, now called Dak To. | |||
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| Eastern view approaching former Kon Hojao, now called Dak To. This view and the one above fit together. | |||
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| Entering Dak To. | |||
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| The valley on the north side of Tan Canh. Tan Chan is directly behind me. | |||
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| The valley on the north side of Tan Canh. This view and the one above fit together. | |||
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| Huynh, my guide, on Dak To 1. Elevation 660+ meters. | |||
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| NW end of Dak To 1. | |||
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| SE end of Dak To 1. Antenna mast in the distance is at Tan Canh. | |||
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| Route 14, former 512, descends between Dak To 1 and Dak To 2. The view is SE. Rocket Ridge in the distance. | |||
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| Access road between Route 14 and Dak To 2. The airfield will come up on the right. | |||
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| The eastern end of Dak To 2. Elevation 602 meters. | |||
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| Me (Jim Michener) standing on Dak To 2. It was my first time there since December 1966. | |||
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| Route 14, former 512, on the left. Dak To 2 on the right. | |||
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| Huynh at the entrance to a footbridge over the Poko. The bridge is no more than 1 klick from the western end of Dak To 2. | |||
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| View from the middle of the bridge. View is more or less towards Ben Het, something like 4 line-of-sight miles away. | |||
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| Entering Plei Kan. Some maps call it Ngoc Hoi. Having checked several pre-75 maps, it has to be former Dak Roleang. | |||
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| Heading out of Plei Kan, here I am at the 17 kilometer road marker. 17 kilometers to the Lao border. Only a handful of kilometers remain before reaching Ben Het. | |||
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| Plei Kan is now behind me. | |||
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| Just a kilometer or two beyond the western fringe of Plei Kan lies the so-called frontier. Coming from Dak To 2, Route 14, former 512, is visible on the right. | |||
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| After taking the above picture I turned around and took this one. The sign is approximately 15 kilometers from the Lao border. | |||
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| Ben Het airstrip. Looking SW. | |||
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| Further along the airstrip. | |||
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| After taking the above picture I turned around and took this one. I lightened it up a bit. Houses in the distance are on the far side of 512, now Route 40. | |||
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| About halfway up the middle hill at Ben Het I turned around and took this photo. | |||
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| A few trees on the middle hill mark the command bunker. | |||
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| Huynh on the “ramparts.” | |||
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| The command bunker is off to my immediate left. Huynh says you can almost see Crocodile Lake from here, the highest point at Ben Het. | |||
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| View to the NW. Completely overgrown, the command bunker is now on my immediate right. | |||
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