#23 of 2017
I've visited the Arizona Memorial many times. I enjoy it. I've stepped aboard Mighty Mo but have never seen the whole ship in one day. I've gone below the Avenger, USS Bowfin marveling at its power. Visiting the Aviation Museum on Ford Island is another marvel. I thought my Tour of Duty was over until I heard about the Admiral's Boat.
How does one get on the tour? Military; active, retired or reserved are qualified along with DOD personnel and their families with CAC cards. This is a rare treat. If you have the privilege or opportunity to go I would not hesitate.
It's a little tricky to get to the boat house. You go past the Arizona Memorial, past Restaurant 604, past the en-fenced dry dock on your right and past the MWR Community Services on your left. There you will find the Admiral's Boat House. You can park there. I, however, had secured a nice shady parking spot under a tree by Restaurant 604 I was not giving up. Our plans were to hit Happy Hour there anyway after our Tour of Duty.
There are 2 boats tied up. We got ourselves checked in. Guest passes were handed out to be placed somewhere on our clothing. Place is pristine and spotless. All the chrome were shiny as can be. Same as the brass too. It was time to board.
We circled Ford island guided by a young sailor noting points of interest. The cushioned seats were a welcome to the hard seats used on the regular tour. The brig was pointed out as a 3 star hotel. Our guide informed us the driver of the boat just got released from there this morning. How ominous. We circled Ford Island counter clockwise. Now our tour really began. We saw the Moth Ball fleet where ships, decommissioned and stripped, sit waiting for another chance to serve. Where the first wave of attack came from targeting battleship row. The 2nd wave targeting Wheeler and Hickam planes plus anything left in the harbor. The channel the USS Nevada used in an attempt to escape to open water. Badly damaged her captain smart enough to beach her keeping the channel open. The USS Utah whose side still visible where she lay after getting hit by 2 torpedoes. She took on water quickly, rolled over and sank. The area where USS California sank to the bottom. Badly damaged from torpedoes and bombs having no other recourse.
Continuing on we cruised by USS Missouri, nick named Might Mo. On her port side you could see the patched hole where a kamikaze pilot crashed. Mighty Mo's captain made the decision to bury the enemy pilot with his country's flag ordering crewmen to dig up references and make the Japanese flag. It caused quite a stir on board but the captain stuck to his belief we were not at a war with the man but his country. He served his country well to his death and should be honored in death.
On this visit to the USS Arizona, I found it to be more somber than other visits. We were the only ones there. It felt empty enhancing the solitude of the men buried below the waters. It was nice to get clean pictures, with no one in them, to capture the moment. Finally got a clean shot of the wall of remembrance with all the names. 7 windows on each side and above, symbolizing the 21 gun salute allows the cool breeze in. It adds no comfort but hope for the winds of change for a better world.
The tour, for us, continued back in the boat house. We were brought to a small room with many pictures of the Attack on Pearl Harbor. There were good accurate models of the Arizona, Missouri and Bowfin. Much better than the Rexell models I built in my youth. Here, we were given additional interesting information. One picture does stand out. Arizona Senator (R) John McCain III's grandfather, 4 star Admiral John S. McCain Sr., standing as part of the entourage at the signing of Japan's surrender. He had asked not to attend the ceremony because he was very sick but was denied due to the significance of the event. He died 4 days later.
I love hearing the stories. Being there, seeing where it took place, standing, touching brings all the stories closer to believable because it is unbelievable. It is unbelievable what transpired. It is unbelievable of the heroics carried out that day. It is unbelievable Japan delivered the most devastating blow to the U.S. Naval forces in the history of the United States.
Special thanks to Jan and Russ for putting this together. I am honored to have been part of this grand tour and would gladly go again. Hint. Hint. Hint. read more