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A Shau Valley looking south.   Photo © Tom Pilsch Click on image for larger view.   Click here for the location of the A Shau Valley within South Vietnam Images of the A Shau Valley The A Shau Valley was one of the strategic focal points of the war in Vietnam.   Located in western Thua Thien province, the narrow 25-mile long valley was an arm of the Ho Chi Minh Trail funneling troops and supplies toward Hué and Danang.   Ho Chi Minh Trail through A Shau Valley Click on image for a map of the entire Ho Chi Minh Trail At the north end of the valley was the major North Vietnamese Army (NVA) staging area known as Base Area 611.   Because of its importance to the North Vietnamese plan for victory, the A Shau became a major battle ground from the earliest days of the American involvement in South Vietnam.   The links below highlight some of those actions. Click here for a map of the A Shau Valley showing major battle areas.   Links to pages on battles and bases in the A Shau Valley: The Fall of the A Shau Special Forces Camp (March 1966) Operation Delaware (April-May 1968) Source: Lt. Gen. Willard Pearson, War in the Northern Provinces, 1966-68 Operation Dewey Canyon (Base Area 611, February-March 1969) Click here for a detailed map of Base Area 611 (1:50,000) 101st Airborne Div. Operations in A Shau Valley 1 May - 31 July 1969    [PDF, 7.2 MB] Operation Apache Snow (Hamburger Hill, May 1969) Operation Apache Snow After-Action Report    [PDF, 3.2 MB] Map of Fire Support Bases in the A Shau Valley, 1969 Source: USAF Project CHECO Report: A Shau Valley Campaign, Dec 68 - May 69 Return to Top