Sea Duty

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Comment by Chistopher Lee Witt on December 11, 2014 at 2:41pm

I was on Submarines for 6 years with no beer, no women, and no sunlight for the longest time, However when we did pull into port we always had a great time. I have been to Hawaii, Cuba, Spain, Italy, Israel, France, Great Britan, and even had a couple of weeks on the trains around Europe with one of my shipmates.
As far as life on board a ship or sub I thought it was the best part of my life besides my kids. Now my son is in Navy boot camp and will soon know for himself.

Comment by Bill Penrod on October 30, 2014 at 9:45am

If sea time bothers one then get a home port in Japan either Yokosuka or Sasebo.  You deploy more often but for shorter periods.  You still get to enjoy the visits to Singapore, Taiwan,   the Philippines, Hong Kong and the lucky Sailors get a trip Down Under.............I don't mean to sugar coat sea duty because there are 24/7/365 of watching, mess cooking, compartment cleaning which includes scrubbing the heads and yes bildge cleaning and mail buoy watches..........

Comment by Milton Smith on October 29, 2014 at 3:04pm

Thank you all for all the informative comments.  I now have a better insight.

Comment by Bill Penrod on October 23, 2014 at 9:20pm

Ah sea duty.............I was on the Hospital  Ship USS Sanctuary which was a non rotating ship off the coast of Vietnam we would be on line 90-120 before we made a real port call to Subic Bay.  Worked our tails off ship handling, unreps/vetreps in dry stores.   I met my wife in the Philippines and we were married in Subic City, Zambales, Philippines May 1970. Our ship had three or four off the cuff bands where Sailors started playing together and before long their were a band. No much vocals to speak but the music was good.  Most ships today offer lower level college courses so you will find things et occupy your time.  Oh yes you will work 16-18 hours a day just to occupy you so you won't be thinking of home. Work hard, play work.....................

Comment by Hello2u on October 20, 2014 at 7:41pm

well I guess its better than be stuck in a sub!

Comment by Hello2u on October 20, 2014 at 7:40pm

@curt,, wow thats awesome,, I love that ship, we visit often, yes its well organized, my kids loved the tour,, they can't wait to join the navy like big brother and my 13yr asked if he could talk to a recruiter now,,hahaha 

Comment by Curt Ritter on October 20, 2014 at 5:00pm

By the way.......I served on that "Museum Ship" that is in San Diego for 3 years while I was in.  It's the carrier USS Midway. They have done a fantastic job fixing it up and showing what life aboard a ship is like.

Comment by Curt Ritter on October 20, 2014 at 4:56pm

Here is the reality, both good and bad about the Navy, life aboard a ship and sea duty.

The bad.

Yes if you are stationed on a ship you will spend months at sea. Depending on the type of ship, job classification etc., you can expect sea time. When you make a scheduled cruise, you will normally have several work up cruises for 2-3 weeks at a time leading up to the major cruise. A major cruise is typically Mediterranean/Persian Gulf for an east coast sailor and a WESTPAC (Western Pacific)/Indian Ocean/Persian Gulf for the west coast sailors. These deployments usually last 5-6 months. You can expect 45-90 days at sea in a row before hitting a port. Sometimes a lot less depending on many factors. But once the cruise is complete you will usually not return to sea for an extended period of time, which is usually 12-18 months. There are ship rehab and dry docks, etc.

You do work 12 hour days at sea and the work is hard and sometimes monotonous. It can be boring at sea but you do have TV, computers and other things to keep you occupied.

The Good.

Your reward for being at sea for a long period of time is visiting one of the many liberty ports. For a WESTPAC sailor, that is usually going to Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, and many more.  How many other chances will a young man get to travel the world and see all those places?

You will make lifelong friendships that are of the strongest bonds. My old Navy "Brothers" still keep in touch and have reunions when we can. We truly are brothers. Your experiences will last a lifetime and nobody regrets going in. All I ever hear is "I should have joined"

Pride & Patriotism. Need I say more.........

Comment by Hello2u on October 7, 2014 at 2:47pm

and it all depends on the job he picks their on land and sea rotation,, you may want to visit a museum ship like we have out here in san diego calif,, you can get lost in there. :)

Comment by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on October 5, 2014 at 10:21pm

don't sugar coat it....shipboard life is tough....it can be 45 days between ports and then it may only be for a few hours.  They work lots of hours...and it's tough for many to be away from friends and family for 6-8 months.....but a whole lot of sailors do it and do it well.