Vietnam Highlight - Cu Chi Tunnels

One of the highlights of the trip to Vietnam was definitely the Cu Chi tunnels just outside of Saigon (Ho Chi Min). In a word – amazing, and in my mind a true testament to the power of determination and ingenuity. This network of tunnels was used by the North Vietnamese (VC) to battle the French initially in the 40s, but also proved invaluable during the fight against the Americans. You could just imagine what it would have been like to be an American soldier settled in safely for the night within the secure perimeter of your base….only moments later to have been awoken by bullets rippling through your tent. The tunnels were not only long (up to 250km in some cases), they were also multi-leveled, and built up from the river. As such, the VC could approach by the river and work their way up to the American camps, and then disappear again without leaving a trace. The tunnels were incredibly small; even the hollowed up tourist areas of the tunnels were too small for this tourist to comfortably get through.


Perhaps the most amazing thing about the tunnels was the fact that their entrances could be concealed so easily. I kid you not, that I watched as the person pictured in this photo popped out of the tunnel, the tunnel cover was put in place, and a few leaves were kicked over top of it. Within seconds, I couldn’t have told you where the entrance was.

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  At the tunnels, I also saw a host of amazing innovations the VC used during battle:
  
  The cook houses used to prepare meals for the soldiers were designed so that the vented heat from the cooked meals was carried away via vents to emerge some several metres or more away. In this way, any aerial attacks would be less likely to strike military personal congregated in one place.
  
• The tunnels required venting, and these vents often appeared as small slits at the base of natural looking mounds of earth – somewhat like oversized ant hills. As the war progressed, the American dogs used to scent for the enemy were able to detect the tunnels existence on the basis of the air exhausted from these vents. In response, the VC simply stole American uniforms and strategically placed them near the exhaust points. In this way, the dog would think the scent was “friendly”.


• The shoes pictured here are truly brilliant. Firstly, from a durability point of view, they are made of sliced up tire, but more impressively, they are intentionally designed to be worn backward. From the soldier’s point of view, this was of little consequence functionally, but to the enemy trying to track them via their footprints, they would conclude they had come from the opposite direction. See the attached photo, and see if you can get what I am driving at.

The Cu Chi people were also masters of improvised traps. Typically simple in design, you can certainly see how these devices would inflict significant and brutal damage to anyone who might fall prey to them. Pictured below is teh See Saw Trap. In brief, this unit would be hidden in ground foliage, and when an unsuspecting person would step on it edge, the entire unit would rotate around its centre axis (in either direction), leading to a series of metal spears penetrating the victims limbs. Although not necessarily visible in this image, all spears are barbed for added measure!