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We couldn’t have asked for a nicer day for our SoCalASL Field Trip to the USS Iowa. And what a turn-out! We mustered 14 members and 6 guests for a tour of that great symbol of American naval power.
We boarded the ship at about 12:15 and got some up close views of the 16″ guns and 5″ secondary armaments. The ship hasn't been open to the public for very long, so there's still a lot of restoration work to be done. They've not yet opened any gun turrents for public viewing. But there was still a lot to see. The self-guided tour takes you through three stages. First is the bow and original 16″ and 5″ armament. Then a portion of the interior, including the officer's wardroom, and the Captain's quarters where FDR lived and worked while aboard, as well as the bridge area. Then out toward the stern, where the modern armament is concentrated (Tomahawk and Harpoon missiles.) Plenty of docents and volunteers were available to answer any questions we had. In all we spent about 3 hours on board. We then adjourned for an early dinner at Acapulco Restaurant, just down the street for an excellent and reasonably priced Mexican dinner. We hit the road around 5:00 PM.
Personally, I'm definately planning to return when they have more of the ship open, particularly the gun turrets. I want to thank Dave Rosner for suggesting (ok, advocating) the event, and Eric Visnowski (who was ill and unable to attend) for helping with the research and planning. Most of all I want to thank everyone who came out and/or brought guests. It was a ton of fun.
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