Hellfire Pass is a stretch of the infamous Death Railway where slave workers cut a massive trench into ground to allow the railway to pass through. The Death Railway was built by the Japanese durring World War II to link Thailand with Burma where an estimated 80,000 Asian slaves and 12,000 prisoners of war died in forced labor. The Hellfire Path cutting was over 17 meters deep and 110 meters long, making it the longest and most difficult section of the railway to build. It was nicknamed "Hellfire Pass" by the prisoners of war for the way the pass looked at night when light up by torchlight. In 1987 the Australian government cleared a 7 km stretch of the railway (including the Hellfire Pass) transforming the area into a memorial honoring those that lost their lives in the construction of the railway. This area is located a few kilometers beyond Nam Tok, where the railway is closed and the tracks have been lifted. Visitors can walk along the 7 km of cleared tracks, and cross a 120 meter timber bridge to view the site from the Kwae Noi Look-out giving a spectacular view of the Kwae Noi valley. More recently, a museum has been built a few hundred metters from the entrance of Hellfire Pass.

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The Hellfire Pass Museum is located a few kilometers past Nam Tok, and about 80 kilometers from Kanchanaburi. Visitors can take the train from Kanchanaburi to Nam Tok, then take a bus to the memorial, or simply take a bus from Kanchanaburi.

Last edited on Nov 8, 09 12:49 PM.
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Douglas B.

Sep 21, 2009

The Hellfire Pass Memorial is dedicated to allied prisoners of war and the Asian forced laborers who suffered and died while building the Burma-Thailand railway during World War II. It is estimated that up to 90,000 civilian laborers and 12,399 Allied POWs died during the construction of the railway.

Built on location (Konyu Cutting/Hellfire Pass), approximately 80 kilometers from Kanchanaburi, the memorial is deep in the Thai Jungle. The site consists of a modern museum, and a well built walking trail (almost 4 kilometers long) along the infamous Burma-Thailand Railway.

I visited this site in January 2008 and found it to be a truly moving experience. The museum was tremendously interesting and informative and the trail walk was poignant and stirring. Allocate at least a half day to visit. I highly recommend this experience.

Good journeys!

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Andrea J.

Oct 22, 2008

Its well worth the drive to the museum which is really well set up and informative.It certainly sets the mood for the walk through the Pass. If you manage to time it when there's no one else around, you can actually sense some of the atrocities and pain inflicted, but also the sense of never giving up and looking out for your mates.

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