Sound Off!!!

[LeonardLawrence]

The Denver and the Belleau Wood


The floor sure was wet. I swear if I spent one more day in the top rack I was going to KILL the card players below....

[kaboom1371]

spent a few weeks on the USS Juneau from Oki to Korea. took a round about way and did a few circles. was more like a real cheap cruise ship. we had no jobs to do on ship. so we just ran around. I'm sure I saw every inch of that ship atleast 4 times. nothing like PT on the Helo deck in rough waters though. It took about every bit of balance to not go over board.

[jerryd6818]

Went to Spain for Operation Steel Pike in the Fall of '64 on the MSTS General R.M.Blatchford. We partied our a$$ off the night before we left, then laid around on the dock all day waiting to disembark. I caught mess duty on the way over and started getting a little queasy on the serving line the first morning at sea. Someone said eat soda crackers so I did. Everything was fine for the rest of the trip (except for that part about mess duty).

We were supposed to catch liberty in Rota before we left Spain but a storm came up and they couldn't get the liberty boats alongside. The alternate plan was much better. We steamed down to the Canary Islands and had three or four days liberty in Las Palmas over Marine Corps Birthday. Woo Hoo baby.

I had head duty on the way back. The Blatchford was a rust bucket, we were told was taken out of mothballs for the operation. The heads were BAD. We hit a storm so bad, water was breaking over the bow of the ship and we were restricted to below decks. The ship was pitching and rolling but I slept like a baby.

Loved every minute of it in spite of mess duty and head duty. I especially enjoyed tying off the swabs and pitching them over the fantail, dragging them behind the ship to clean them. That trip planted an unrequited love affair with the sea in my heart that I wasn't able to consummate again until we took a cruise a few years ago.

The Few. The Proud.
Jerry D.

[jetdoc]

USS Midway, Indian Ocean Cruise, 1980, I was on the Midway when this accident occured:

USS MIDWAY collides with the Panamian freighter CACTUS while transiting the passage between Palawan Island and the coast of Northern Borneo 450 nautical miles off Subic Bay en route to Singapore. The MIDWAY, the Navy says, sustained no serious damage although two US sailors were killed, three were injured, and three F-4 Phantom aircraft parked on the flight deck were damaged.

The damage aboard USS MIDWAY can be seen on the photos below.






Also spent a week on the USS Niagra Falls, a supply ship. I do know they had some good azz chow.

[SgtHopperUSMC]

Uss San Bernardino LST 1189 in 1987/88 from Oki to Japan.
Uss St Louis LKA 116 1988 from Oki to Korea lst1189_4_t.jpg

lka116_3_t.jpga with a stop at Iwo Jima.

[ernestdcuellar]

USS Okinawa LPH 3 H&Sco 2nd BN 7th Marine Amphibious Brigade 72'. WESPAC .I had the top rack stacked four high 16 in one corner the size of a ****te## . Sick as dog!! First meal after leaving Long Beach Calif. tried to pull my seat forward to reach the table ,would,t budge looked down chair,table everything bolted to the deck!! Remember the request permission to come aboard ? Salute the captain , turn and salute the colors, ahh can almost still smell the sea breeze!!

[ttracker65]

Lets see
USS Fort Fisher LSD 40 Camp Pendleton 12-31-1979
USS Peoria LST 1183 07-03-1980 BLT 3/5
USS Peoria LST 1183 / USS Fresno LST 1182 10-03-1980 West Pac 1981
USS Peoria LST 1183 / USS Tarawa LHA 1 11-01-1981 West Pac 1982
USS Debuque LPD 8 10-02-1982 OP Col. Potlatch 2
as with all LST's they are flat bottemed and rock and roll, Punched a hole in the side of the Peoria when a causway broke loose out side of China had to limp into port.
Peoria got beached in Mindero had to be tugged off.
allways on water rationing on the Peoria.
Tarawa was a fly in Big ship easy to get lost.
Fort Fisher,Debuque and Tarawa are easy platforms to launch from but the LST's are a bear to board with only inch's of room on each side of the Ramp
Peoria's turn table sucked too.
Cpl B
P.s. Shellbacks Rule Wogs Drool

[ttracker65]

I can not believe it! They used her for a target and sank her!!! Squids hmph.
I was adding my self to the ships crew list and found out that the Navy showing their respect for a ship that has such a long career decided that she would be a fun target.
Cpl B

[Native Warrior]

USS Guadalcanal 1983 - to and from Beirut, Lebanon
USS Guam 1983-1984 - to and from Grenada and Beirut 2nd tour

[Quijano32ICO]

Did 6 months on the USS Austin (she's decom-ed now) for a MEU and 6 months on the USS Ashland for a UNITAS..

[E5NAMKROW]

belleau wood
juneau
major storm off australias coast, great sleeping weather. rocked me to sleep. of course i was belted in

[Eddo36]

I'm so glad I never served on a ship lol. Congrats to those who have though. I don't mind lugging 100 lbs of gear up mountains, but when it comes to waters, I get sea sick easy.

[Snake0311]

Did 6 months on the USS Essex (June '98 - Dec '98) WestPac

[SGT7477]

I never did any ship duty, carrying 204 lb. arty rounds, Marine Artillery One Shot 12 Kills,OOHRAH.

[Old Marine]

USS GORDON MSTS, 1953, nice trip to Korea with the 38th draft.