Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Pickens leaves Colon and begins her final voyage

Did the USS Pickens have a feeling that this would be her last voyage as she steamed away from Colon toward New Port News and Norfolk that morning in March, 1945?  We members of the crew, who had done service only  in the South Pacific, were excited about entering the  Atlantic and visiting the east coast.  But we were most excited that this would be our last voyage before gaining enough points for discharge and re-entering civilian life.  The war officially ended September 2, 1945, so we had put in our "duration and six months."

As we steamed across the Gulf of Mexico and past Louisiana, I remember thinking that this was the nearest to home I had been since I enlisted in the navy.  I had not received  any leave time, not after boot camp or radar school or when we were in San Francisco.  As we sailed around Florida the voice of Eddy Arnold came over our radio, singing one of his country songs.  On we went, expecting nothing but good and happy things to come.

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