Edisto (AGB 2) - Naval Cruise Book

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Pallfllllil fresh waters of Gatun Lake and swim call was ordered for all hands. The styles of swim-suits - ranging from the near-naked to dungree trousers rolled above the knees - were as varied as the diving forms while a frustrated OOD on the quarterdeck was splashed, mauled, and otherwise hindered in his duty of checking off the aquamen. The ship too received her swim call and the deck hands washed down all her weather decks and bulkheads with fresh water. EDISTO then sailed through a narrow channel down Gaillard Cut toward the Pedro Miguel Locks. For many of us this was perhaps the most beautiful country we were to see during the cruise. On either side of the channel a living jungle unfolded itself before us. Wild animals, birds, parrots, and reptiles scurried behind the trees, saluting us as we invaded their rainforests. The sur- rounding country was incredibly lush, giving most of us a close-up look of the tropics for the first time in our lives. Arriving at the Pedro Miguel locks we prepared to be lowered through a single stage 31 feet to the level of Miraflores Lake. Continuing along this channel for about a mile we entered our last set of locks, the Miraflores, and were dropped' once again, this time in two successive stages a total of 54 feet to the level of the Pacific Ocean. Our goal had been to travel to the west- ward and now, through a geographic fact so difficult to grasp that it appeared an illusion, we found ourselves 27 miles east of our starting point on the Atlantic. We had done in 10 hours time something which sailors in the past had taken many weeks and much risk to do. And we had, done it solely through the availability of one of the most magnificent engineering feats in the world's history, one which, in our own time, had divided the western world. At 2030 local time we moored starboard side to Pier 1 at Rodman Naval Station just outside the city of Panama. We now pre- pared for the rigorous hours of liberty which lay ahead just over the quarterdeck. It was rumored before reaching Panama that we would be greeted with something less than a warm reception because of troubles which the United States had been having in that area. Happily we found not a grain of truth in this. Throughout our stay in Panama we were constantly impressed with the cooperation and freely offered friendship of the natives. We had originally planned to remain only two days but, because of mechanical diffi- culties, found ourselves facing an indefinite stay in Panama. That first night, with liberty expiring shortly, the price of stand- bys skyrocketed. Everywhere they went the lucky men of the liberty sections were be- sieged with tearful pleadings for duty switches. We observed one disconsolate fellow leaning against a bulkhead, quietly sobbing to himself, holding a black address book in one hand. As it turned out, he would have plenty of time to explore the delights of its contents. As the days passed by and we sought and found the attractions Panama City offered for sightseeing, shopping, and other

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On November 5 EDISTO passed inside the breakwater of Limon Bay and anchored awaiting clearance to proceed with her transit of the Panama Canal. It was not going to be, as some of us thought merely a matter of steaming straight through the locks. Before allowing our ship to pass, it was necessary to embark an official boarding party from the Panama Canal Company who would check our papers and receive vital information regarding our draft, displacement, and cargo. In addition to the normal round of paperwork we welcomed aboard several students and instructors from various South American military academies. Shortly after the arrival of the latter, LTJG Richardson, our bi-lingual Operations Officer, could be observed on the starboard side of the boat deck, Spanish-English dictionary in one hand and in the other a stick with which he was scratching meaningless circles on the deck. However, the President's people-to-people program eventually recovered. After the formalities had been concluded we hoisted anchor and steamed down Limon Bay to Gatun Locks. In three successive stages we were raised a total of 85 feet to the level of Gatun Lake. Thekchamber doors moved slowly under the power of a small engine with an incredible gear ratio of over 1200 to one. Within the locks we were moved forward by small electric donkey engines running on tracks paralleling our advance. We thus arrived in the kms b0Zl7Zfjl bound westward ff for zz rendelvozzs with mimi and marlon bmmio

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things, we began to settle into its lazy, leisurely mode of living. When our ID folders were empty of Yankee greenbacks we found that the Rodman EM club, with fifteen-cent ponies and shuffleboard for the more athletically inclined, offered suitable solace to us sailors until payday -- with almost all of the advantages of downtown bistros. After we had been in Panama about a week EDISTO received news that a Panamanian mother had been brought to Gorgas Hospital after hemor- rhaging seriously in childbirth and officials had sent out an urgent call for blood donors. Thirty-one of our men responded to the call and under the motherly wing of our Dixie Doctor were transported to the Hospital. More than enough blood was sup- plied for the emergency and the new mother survived. The surfeit was used in transfusions for accident patients hurt in a recent bridge collapse.