Gunston Hall (LSD 5) - Naval Cruise Book

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BUT WE HAD OUR HAPPY HOURS 31

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THE BLUE PACIFIC WAS NOT SO BLUE Towards the end of the second day at sea, old timers nodded toward the thin, grey bank of clouds that stretched across the western hor- izon and predicted rough weather ahead. And they were right. The following morning brought rain, lashing wind, and green seas. Almost immediately the ship began to roll. In the galley, pots and pans clattered, cooks slipped, and milk and coffee flowed freely from one end of the compartment to the other. Elswhere men toppled from their bunks, clung frantically to ladders, leaped for falling pic- tures and ink bottles, despondently munched crackers, and swore. And each time we were certain the last roll had been the biggest roll yet. Somewhere about six days out of Yokosuka, the wind subsided, the sea flattened out, and everyone settled down to normal eating and learning to walk again without the aid of a hand rail. However, we soon discovered how unpredictable the Pacific can be. We entered a storm area two days later that surpassed in ev- ery way our first encounter with heavy seas. Some still insist the clinometer registered 43 de- grees on one roll and few of us will bother to deny it. When the GUNSTON HALL finally steamed into the calm, protecting waters of Yokosuka Harbor, and the anchor settled firmly on the bottom of the bay, it was a great relief to all hands. It had been a long journey. And as ample reward most of us turned in for some good sleep. 30

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K The quarterdeck swarmed with bob- bing white hats. The whitest hats in the fleet. This was the first night of liberty in Japan, and some hundred or more sailors were determined to make it a memorable one. Of course, some had seen it all before, and for these old timers it was like com- ing home again. They were surround- ed eagerly by the first-nighters who prodded them continually with questions about the best places to visit, the prices, the souvenirs, the girlsans, and do they serve beer? After what seemed hours of waiting, the OOD finally loaded the waiting boat, the bowhook threw off the line, and the first load headed towards shore. Minutes later the GUNSTON HALL announced her arrival in Japan. No one knew it then, but the crew off the LSD-5 were destined to leave their own little mark on the Far East.