"War isn't a good life, but it's life." - Captain James T. Kirk
Given the fact that my Battalion is spread all over northern Iraq, it becomes necessary for me to travel. Otherwise I can't see first hand the good work all of my Soldiers perform. Not only are they out running convoys of every configuration over thousands of miles of hostile roads, they are also operating key logistical areas of various bases. In essence, they are the facilitators of sustainment and retrograde. It is amazing to see them work in concert. Every person has a role that, ultimately, contributes to the safe delivery of thousands of tons of equipment and supplies. But it isn't easy - especially now that temperatures are soaring above 120 every day. And no matter how simple it may sound, traveling from one FOB to another is never easy. My CSM and I were reminded of this on our latest travel. We had our Operations manifest us on a helicopter ride from COB Speicher up to FOB Marez. I was looking forward to the trip. Marez is a place I visited frequently on my previous deployment. Nestled in the primarily Kurdish city of Mosul, Marez is a popular FOB for those who live and work there. Getting there turned out to be no cakewalk.On the day of the flight we checked in at the Speicher pax terminal. Our flight had changed from a direct flight to a multi-stop flight. However, we didn't notice that on the 
mission board. We had hoped to be at Marez by around 1400. That's what we were still expecting when we were called out to the flightline and our inbound Blackhawks. One of the passengers on our flight would be SFC "Butch" from the Speicher Behavioral Health clinic. Butch is a black labrador who wears a distinctive ACU vest that has his rank, name, and multiple patches from grateful units. His handler, a Specialist, had fitted him with earmuffs for hearing protection. Butch lifts morale for everyone and this super hot day was no exception. CSM and I both posed for photos and gave Butch a loving scritch in appreciation. He was quite the well-behaved and patient K-9. The Blackhawks swooped in and we loaded up. In just a few minutes we were watching Speicher from the air as we zoomed off on our trip. As the hot air blasted across my face I figured an hour ride won't be so bad. I should have paid attention to the mission board.
mission board. We had hoped to be at Marez by around 1400. That's what we were still expecting when we were called out to the flightline and our inbound Blackhawks. One of the passengers on our flight would be SFC "Butch" from the Speicher Behavioral Health clinic. Butch is a black labrador who wears a distinctive ACU vest that has his rank, name, and multiple patches from grateful units. His handler, a Specialist, had fitted him with earmuffs for hearing protection. Butch lifts morale for everyone and this super hot day was no exception. CSM and I both posed for photos and gave Butch a loving scritch in appreciation. He was quite the well-behaved and patient K-9. The Blackhawks swooped in and we loaded up. In just a few minutes we were watching Speicher from the air as we zoomed off on our trip. As the hot air blasted across my face I figured an hour ride won't be so bad. I should have paid attention to the mission board.As we made our way I watched the terrain below and kept noticing that it appeared we were following the Tigris.
That was confusing to me. Soon it added up. A FOB came into view - a very trashy one at that. I immediately recognized it as Camp Taji. How could that be? We were going in the wrong direction! Camp Taji is south of Speicher while Marez is north. We not only stopped at Taji, we made refuel visit at the FARP. With no shade to be found and temperatures over 130, we piled out of the Blackhawk and waited as the refueling took place. It had already been well over an hour after we departed Speicher and we were now farther away from Marez. We loaded back up after refuel ops and continued on our way. We weren't in the air lo
ng before I noticed another familiar FOB approaching - Joint Base Balad (aka LSA Anaconda). Fortunately there was no refuel stop this time and we weren't there long. The pilots then, thankfully, gained altitude to around 5,000 feet in an effort to find cooler air. It also afforded us a spectacular view of the Iraqi terrain below. I knew that we were now traveling north because the terrain was becoming more rugged and hilly. I also began to see the refineries that are abundant in the north. Yet, I still knew we weren't headed to Marez. My hunch proved correct. Another FOB came into view that I immediately recognized from memory. This time it was Warrior in Kirkuk. Once again, our stop included a trip to the FARP and the hot wait that it included. By now it was 1600. So much for our appointments in Marez. We were still headed there anyway.
That was confusing to me. Soon it added up. A FOB came into view - a very trashy one at that. I immediately recognized it as Camp Taji. How could that be? We were going in the wrong direction! Camp Taji is south of Speicher while Marez is north. We not only stopped at Taji, we made refuel visit at the FARP. With no shade to be found and temperatures over 130, we piled out of the Blackhawk and waited as the refueling took place. It had already been well over an hour after we departed Speicher and we were now farther away from Marez. We loaded back up after refuel ops and continued on our way. We weren't in the air lo
ng before I noticed another familiar FOB approaching - Joint Base Balad (aka LSA Anaconda). Fortunately there was no refuel stop this time and we weren't there long. The pilots then, thankfully, gained altitude to around 5,000 feet in an effort to find cooler air. It also afforded us a spectacular view of the Iraqi terrain below. I knew that we were now traveling north because the terrain was becoming more rugged and hilly. I also began to see the refineries that are abundant in the north. Yet, I still knew we weren't headed to Marez. My hunch proved correct. Another FOB came into view that I immediately recognized from memory. This time it was Warrior in Kirkuk. Once again, our stop included a trip to the FARP and the hot wait that it included. By now it was 1600. So much for our appointments in Marez. We were still headed there anyway.At 1730 we touched do
wn at FOB Marez. We had been in the Blackhawks for over four hours. SFC Butch made the entire trip and looked quite happy to exit the aircraft for the last time. CSM and I were just tired and very sweaty. I didn't recognize where we had landed. It wasn't the main pax terminal. There was no ride there to pick us up. But I knew for certain we were at Marez, as I began to recognize the landmarks. We started walking. Fortunately for us, an angel pulled up in the form of a SFC who just happened to see us walking in full gear and felt compassionate. She asked where we were headed and then happily gave us a ride. Thanks to her kind gesture, we finally found our Soldiers and began our visit with them at 1800 - a full four hours late. Travel is never easy here. This day had been an exceptional reminder of that fact. No matter how well you plan it is almost assured that getting from point A to point B will take much longer than expected (if the weather even allows it). Our actual work took less time than our travel. But, fortunately, we accomplished everything we came to do and still had time for a cigar out by the Marez Mart. For those who remember from my previous deployment, the "7-11" sign is still displayed but there are still no Slurpees - only "Haji" movies.
wn at FOB Marez. We had been in the Blackhawks for over four hours. SFC Butch made the entire trip and looked quite happy to exit the aircraft for the last time. CSM and I were just tired and very sweaty. I didn't recognize where we had landed. It wasn't the main pax terminal. There was no ride there to pick us up. But I knew for certain we were at Marez, as I began to recognize the landmarks. We started walking. Fortunately for us, an angel pulled up in the form of a SFC who just happened to see us walking in full gear and felt compassionate. She asked where we were headed and then happily gave us a ride. Thanks to her kind gesture, we finally found our Soldiers and began our visit with them at 1800 - a full four hours late. Travel is never easy here. This day had been an exceptional reminder of that fact. No matter how well you plan it is almost assured that getting from point A to point B will take much longer than expected (if the weather even allows it). Our actual work took less time than our travel. But, fortunately, we accomplished everything we came to do and still had time for a cigar out by the Marez Mart. For those who remember from my previous deployment, the "7-11" sign is still displayed but there are still no Slurpees - only "Haji" movies.Once our work was completed we began the journey back to Speicher. Our original plan was rotary wing but weather at Speicher caused the flight to be cancelled. Fortunately, a C130 was headed to Speicher via Balad. There were seats available. We seized the moment. By 1130 on the day we departed we were landing in Balad, which was another old stom
ping ground of mine. That's when the waiting began once again. The weather in Tikrit was extremely low visibility due to sand storms. We waited on the plane, which continued to taxi around as though they were conducting driver training. I stretched out on the cargo netting after unstrapping my body armor. That was a good call, as we ended up in Balad for about three hours. Finally, the pilot announced they had been cleared to take off. We geared back up and strapped ourselves back to the cargo net seats. The weather held off just long enough to get back to Speicher. At 1600 a tired, sweaty, dirty and smelly Battalion Commander walked back into his office to check back in with the unit. I say it like that because by then I was so crusty I didn't even recognize myself. There are many more trips to take this summer. None of them will be easy. That's just life here.
ping ground of mine. That's when the waiting began once again. The weather in Tikrit was extremely low visibility due to sand storms. We waited on the plane, which continued to taxi around as though they were conducting driver training. I stretched out on the cargo netting after unstrapping my body armor. That was a good call, as we ended up in Balad for about three hours. Finally, the pilot announced they had been cleared to take off. We geared back up and strapped ourselves back to the cargo net seats. The weather held off just long enough to get back to Speicher. At 1600 a tired, sweaty, dirty and smelly Battalion Commander walked back into his office to check back in with the unit. I say it like that because by then I was so crusty I didn't even recognize myself. There are many more trips to take this summer. None of them will be easy. That's just life here.
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