Ngang Pass
Encyclopedia
The Ngang Pass is a mountain pass on the border of the two provinces
Provinces of Vietnam
Vietnam is divided into 58 provinces and five centrally governed cities existing at the same level as provinces ....

 of Quang Binh and Ha Tinh
Ha Tinh
Hà Tĩnh is a city in Vietnam. It is the capital of the Ha Tinh province, in Vietnam's north central coast....

, on the North Central Coast
Bac Trung Bo
Bắc Trung Bộ is one of the regions of Vietnam. It consists of six provinces: Thanh Hóa, Nghệ An, Hà Tĩnh, Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị, Thừa Thiên-Huế...

 of Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...

. It is situated on the National Road 1A, traversing the Hoanh Son, a side-spur of the larger Annamite Range
Annamite Range
The Annamite Range or the Annamese Mountains is a mountain range of eastern Indochina, which extends approximately through Laos, Vietnam, and a small area in northeast Cambodia. It is known in Vietnamese as Dãy Trường Sơn, in Lao as Xai Phou Luang , and in French as the Chaîne Annamitique...

. The pass is 2,560 m long with the peak at 250 m (750 ft).

From the summit, the views encompass the sandy beaches below, the forested slopes and the cultivated fields farther afield. At the peak is Hoanh Son Quan (lit. Transverse Mountain Gate), a was gateway built during the Nguyễn Dynasty to control traffic on the mountain. The pass was once known to be a major hindrance to land transportation with its winding and steep grade. A modern tunnel has since bypassed the climb, shortening the driving time through the pass as well as making it safer for drivers. The serpentine road ascending the pass is now restricted to sightseers only. The Ngang Pass is well known in Vietnamese literature
Vietnamese literature
Vietnamese literature is literature, both oral and written, created largely by Vietnamese-speaking people, although Francophone Vietnamese and English-speaking Vietnamese authors in Australia and the United States are counted by many critics as part of the national tradition...

 through a famous poem by Bà Huyện Thanh Quan.
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