A study of the topography and climate of Vietnam is not only interesting, but is a critical component to any unit because of its influence on the war.

Located just above the equator in Southeast Asia, Vietnam is a long narrow S shaped country.  It stretches 1,030 miles from north to south and is just 50 miles wide at its narrowest point.  Vietnam has a largely rural population of 77 million people and is about the size of New Mexico.  China is its northern neighbor, while Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand are located to its west.  Two major bodies of water are to the east of Vietnam, the Gulf of Tonkin and the South China Sea.  The Gulf of Thailand is to the south and west of Vietnam. The Philippines are to the east, while Malaysia is to the southeast. The southern tip of Vietnam is just eight degrees north of the equator, while the northern edge is very near the Tropic of Cancer.

A subtropical region, Vietnam is a mixture of heavily forested mountains, small hills and plains, wide jungle-like regions, coastal plains, and river deltas.  The Red River Delta in the north and the Mekong River Delta in the south provide fertile soil and are excellent for growing the country’s main crop, rice. The country’s main farming area is in the south, along the Mekong Delta, which is one of the richest farming regions in the world.  Clearly, the North Vietnamese were driven by a desire for independence, however, life in North Vietnam would be even more difficult than it is today if they weren’t receiving the food and financial yield of the Mekong Delta region.  For the most part, our men and women were located in South Vietnam. Some of the main features of the topography of South Vietnam are:

: The Highlands Area: A thin line of thickly-forested jungle covered mountains
   called the Annamites -- covers much of Vietnam.

: The Plateau Montagnards: A sparsely populated, malaria ridden mixture of dense
   forest and wide open plains -- extends over much of central South Vietnam.

: The Piedmont Area: Located just north of the Mekong Delta. Is an area of small hills
  and plains.  This area was home to many Viet Cong sanctuaries and the scene of
  many battles.  We were able to use armored vehicles in this area, which was
  beneficial to our style of fighting.

: Coastal Plains: Along the eastern edge of South Vietnam -- featured sandy beaches,
  flat river valleys, and rice fields.  Heavily populated, these areas became the
  locations of many U.S. headquarters, and as such were the targets of attacks.
 
 

: The Mekong Delta Region: In southern Vietnam, this is a very flat low-lying area of
  extensive rice paddies. In most areas it is impassable for vehicles and hard going
  on foot.  Booby-trapped dikes, deep ditches, countless leeches and insects, and
  extreme heat made life difficult for our troops.

Average temperatures in Vietnam are 74 degrees Fahrenheit in the north and 81 degrees Fahrenheit in the south.  While northern provinces have a cool season from December to March where temperatures range from 56 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit, temperature in the southern regions remains relatively constant.  In April and May, however, the southern average high temperature is 95 while the low is 76 degrees Fahrenheit.

Most parts of Vietnam receive about 80 inches of rainfall per year, with some areas receiving up to 130 inches.  Monsoons, which are seasonal, rain-bearing heavy winds travel the northeast for half of the year and the southwest for the other half.  During the monsoon season visibility is poor, cross country movement is difficult, flying conditions are bad, health hazards increase, and resupply problems developed.   During the monsoon season, Communists would decrease their military activity.

In sports, teams fight for “home field advantage.”  One reason they fight for this advantage is their comfort level with their surroundings.  With no pun intended,  Vietnam was foreign to our men and women in many ways.  Not only were the Vietnamese more comfortable in their subtropical setting, but they knew how to move around, where to go, places to avoid, where to hide, where to dig tunnels, what to wear, what to eat and not eat, and sadly, how to booby trap virtually every traveled area.

The longer our men and women were in Vietnam, the more familiar they became with the topography and the problems associated with it.  However, due to the cycling approach of service, those most familiar with how to get around left.  And they were glad they did.