Notorious Mountain

[Covey_Rider]

Humping in the Philippines had many challenges. Training in the actual jungle areas were particularly brutal at times with the heat and humidity. I remember seeing clear sky’s one minute then soon after it would rain very hard for then an hour latter it would be clear sky’s again. In places you could spend most of the day just going a few hundred feet because the jungle was so thick.

The monkeys were the assassins of the jungle. I despise monkeys still today. Those discussing little critters would wait in ambush for unsuspecting Marines to fall in to their trap. Once in the kill zone they would start throwing the stuff they stockpiled in the trees and when they ran out of sticks and rocks to throw at you they would start throwing their poop at you and be screaming the whole time.

There was a bat cave of tremendous proportions not far from Olongapoe (spelling?). Near nightfall if you were close enough to see them, they would all come shooting out at the same time. These are not your normal mice with wings, these were huge and they would blacken the sky’s near tat area. You never wanted to get too closet to that cave because the stench would take your breath away.

The jungles were full of other nasty insects and critters. While trying to sleep on the ground at night you would feel all kinds of things crawling over you. One night I woke up to quite a scuffle, apparently during the night someone felt someone reaching into their pack. They thought it was another Marine going for a candy bar they had stashed away. Reaching back to startle the would be candynapper the Marine felt a big hairy arm. He did indeed startle the candynapper but it wasn’t another Marine. It was a big monkey and the fight was on.

On more then one occasion a wild boar would tree a platoon of Marines. Wild boars are nothing you want to mess with in the jungle. The problem of climbing a tree is that the snakes would be in the trees as well. The Bamboo Viper is one snake in particular you didn’t want to see. It is what they call a three step snake, meaning that if you were to be bitten by it you would only be able to take three steps before you would collapse and then die soon after without very fast medical attention.

There was always a chance that you could run in to a rebel force while patrolling in the jungle as well. At the time I believe they were called the NPA for the new peoples army. They would make a conscious effort to avoid US troops but it was always a possibility. One night while in a local village we saw a NPA patrol moving on the other side of that village. They disappeared very quickly but It was a very tense moment at the time and I could hardly enjoy the beer and lumpia (like an egg roll) I had at the time LOL!

You never wanted to cross any stream or river because they were all full of very nasty parasites and other things. If you found yourself in the water for any reason you had to undergo many shots because of it.

You would thing I was crazy but all of that was worth it for the few days of liberty we would get after training in the PI (Philippines). When in port in Subic Bay we would head out in to the town of Olongapoe (spelling?).

Olongapoe was a shoestring town and the main street was masssisi drive (spelling?) which was about one mile long and was nothing but bars on both sides of the street. A night out on the town was really cheep and I mean REALLY CHEEP! Masssisi Drive was like an old west gold rush town in that it never closed down while ships were in port.

Sometime ago I heard we no longer use that port and that is truly sad. No doubt a lot of Marines came back from the PI with more then they bargained for but it is truly a crying shame that Marines today can not experience the PI that we once knew so well. There was something special about being able to walk out to town and get a haircut, massage, boot or shoe shine and eat and drink all you wanted all night long for under twenty bucks not to mention other fringe benefits (as politically correct as I can put it LOL).

I am sorry that I rambled on so long but it is hard to stop when your reminiscing about the good ole days LOL.

Simper Fi

I'll let you know if that port still exists. I'll be in the PI in October. I think I'll be near subic bay if I remember correctly. I'll be staying on Clark AF Base.

[Marine84]

There was something special about being able to walk out to town and get a haircut, massage, boot or shoe shine and eat and drink all you wanted all night long for under twenty bucks not to mention other fringe benefits (as politically correct as I can put it LOL).

Like the clap! When I was in Iwakuni - alllllll the guys in the Shop got to go to PI for a couple of weeks. Allllll of them came back with stories and the CLAP - it was funny as hell!

[marinegreen]

Like the clap! When I was in Iwakuni - alllllll the guys in the Shop got to go to PI for a couple of weeks. Allllll of them came back with stories and the CLAP - it was funny as hell!

Aaahhh the PI,2x's ( total 13 weeks) a handfull of actual working days,,lots of vitamin E, lots of San Miguel , lots of LONG TIME-SHORT TIME ! Kock on wood(head) , left the island unscathed

[rvillac2]

I'll let you know if that port still exists. I'll be in the PI in October. I think I'll be near subic bay if I remember correctly. I'll be staying on Clark AF Base.

The port exists, but we no longer have a U.S. presence there. Some investors turned the area into a resort, though.

Even Clark is not a U.S. base anymore.

[PooleeAdams 1]

A Marine staying at an AFB? I thought we just worked with the Navy and Army. Don't we have our own Pilots?

[Old Marine]

When I went through ITR it was called "Tent Camp Two" and the two hills you refer to were called "Littly Agony" and "Big Agony". I guess lots of things change during the years, mainly what the troops call things.

[SgtHMH]

Well just remember if you get hurt on Mount Mother, that the Duty Medivac will come and pick you up and take you to the Base Hospital. As a Recruit I Humped Mount Mother and as a Crew Chief on Duty Medivac, picked up a few Marines and Recruits that got hurt off those Mountains. Just remember your waders in the dirt because it is deep. Also when the helicopter comes in the dirt will get picked up in the rotor wash and you will get dust off.

Semper Fi

[Camper51]

As a recruit at the rifle range at Camp Pendleton I very much hated our little sorties out to Mt. Motherf(cker. What I really hated was that our esteemed drill instructors would have us duckwalk up and down that d*mn mountain until THEY were tired and sore...

[SlingerDun]

Yes recruits if you dont pay full respect for these hills especially on the descent and get injured...say goodbye to your platoon. Your probably gonna get recycled, and that hurts more than a busted limb or turned ankle.

--->Dave

[Old Marine]

The only hump/hike we took in Boot Camp was from MCRD, San Diego to the Rifle Range located at Camp Mathews at the time. All recruits made that hump/hike back then. From the range back to San Diego we got to ride in cattle cars. Non-quals wore their uniforms backwards and had to sit with their backside facing forward.

[Devilus Dogus]

What about "Mount Suribachi?" I am not talking about the actual mountain either. Sad to say I never got to climb up it, but I did get to go through a "Hurricane."

If you get through bootcamp, you will probably know what I mean by this.

I hear that San Diego has "The Reaper" though and at the end of it, you are awarded the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor.

[Wyoming]

The only hump/hike we took in Boot Camp was from MCRD, San Diego to the Rifle Range located at Camp Mathews at the time. All recruits made that hump/hike back then. From the range back to San Diego we got to ride in cattle cars. Non-quals wore their uniforms backwards and had to sit with their backside facing forward.

Same here on the hump/hike. Both ways, no cattle cars. Non-quals got to fill their packs with rocks and march back with them. As I remember, they also made quite a few runs around the platoon. We didn't do mountains in '65.

[JustDontDie02]

Is Mount Mother F**ker the same thing as The Reaper? That was the biggie in boot camp when I was there in Sept. 2006. It was part of the hike home on the last day of the crucible. Man that thing sucked. That whole hike sucked.

At MCT we had the microwave and the ankle breaker. The ankle breaker at parts was almost literally straigh up and down. Terrible. hah.

[JustDontDie02]

Same here on the hump/hike. Both ways, no cattle cars. Non-quals got to fill their packs with rocks and march back with them. As I remember, they also made quite a few runs around the platoon. We didn't do mountains in '65.

How long a hump was that?

[SlingerDun]

Man that thing sucked. That whole hike sucked....at MCT we had the microwave and the ankle breaker. The ankle breaker at parts was almost literally straigh up and down. Terrible. hah.

right on!you got a profile bro?