When morning came we were still off the coast of California in a
Navy amphibious ship waiting for the next day’s task force to form up. It’s the kind of ship that partially sinks at
the stern in order to flood the well deck for the launching of Amtraks. Our field packs were staged with a gear guard
away from the helicopters in the photo. A
Cobra and Sea Stallion are parked near sailors who are milling about
smartly. Most of my time was spent
exploring the ship or sleeping in rope coils.
I was too tall to sleep in those sardine-can troop racks. At night I slept on a sick bay’s operating table
with my feet hanging over its edge. Not
all is peaceful. General Quarters was
called one time and the order was given to “dog the hatches.” That means locking the hatches in case of
sinking situations. It was a little
claustrophobic.
Below deck I found an open hatch with a ladder a few feet above
the water where the “Squids” (sailors) were fishing for the sharks that were
circling. In the meantime I counted nine
ships that joined us including several destroyers, two cruisers, and an
oiler. The next day the Amtracks were
launched and I was assigned to haul the company’s safe aboard one of many Chinooks
that circled at steep angles before heading inland. Staring almost straight down at the ocean
with only a safety belt holding me was a first, but I enjoyed it. Trucks and jeeps followed the first
wave. The photo shows how dusty and dry
Camp Pendleton is during the summer.
Some of these vehicles were swamped and I know one fellow who floated in
on his sea bag. An L.A. TV news crew
interviewed me and Private Bercera, but they quickly turned off the camera when
we said we enjoyed being in the Marine Corps.
Since the buildup and landing was a MAB or Marine Amphibious
Brigade exercise, setting up the tents for the command post for Headquarters
Co. 24th Marines (Regiment) was a priority.
It was the first among many for me that lasted many more years, but I
didn’t know it at the time that I was to make a career out of the Marine Corps
and Navy Reserves. The camp’s site
overlooks the Pacific Ocean about 9:00 AM when the fog begins to lift. In the photo are many of the Marines who I
began my career with: Sgt. Peak, on the
truck; Sgt. Williams and Private Becerra near the tent and poles;
Msgt. Vance; Corporal Frankfurther; and GSgt. Sumpter. It’s like it happened yesterday.
