Greetings Family and Friends,
Nowadays, just a bit up the Saginaw River off of Saginaw Bay on Lake Huron in Bay City, Michigan resides the “Grey Ghost of the Vietnamese Coast”. The USS Edson (DD-946) is a Forrest Sherman class destroyer of Vietnam War vintage. The ship was commissioned in 1958 and served for some 30 years with 10 deployments to Vietnam. She has a length of 418 ft and a beam of 45 ft. Her main battery is three single 5 in gun turrets with one being forward and the other two aft.
In 1967 while supporting the Third Marine Division, she took damage from enemy fire. Making smoke, the USS Edson retired to make repairs to her forward mast. Due to the smoke screen, the North Vietnamese did not see her depart and thus presumed that the ship had been sunk. When she reappeared weeks later, they came to believe that they were seeing a ghost ship and hence the “Grey Ghost of the Vietnamese Coast” moniker.
Lots of space compared to a submarine. Comparable to that found in the Coast Guard icebreaker described in an earlier post. Also, one notices the more modern, relatively speaking, systems, equipment, and personal items in comparison to that found on World War II vessels. Very much enjoyed making my way through the various decks and spaces that are open to the public. Check out the photos of the USS Edson in the gallery below.
Out on the lakeshore of Lake Huron on the outskirts of Bay City one finds the Bay City State Park. Took a few pictures of the beach, lagoon, and park areas. At this time of year, it is fairly deserted but my understanding is that prior to Labor Day it is a different story. In addition, as I like to do, captured some photos of the architecture in the downtown area of Bay City.
On heading out of town, made a southwesterly detour to Lansing to grab a few pics of the state capitol building. Traditional looking yes, but with a distinctly narrower dome than usual for a capitol building. Also, one lone skyscraper and three church spires clustered nearby. The churches are United Methodist, Christ Community, and Roman Catholic. You know where to find the photos.
That’s it for now. As always, feel free to share this link with anyone who expresses an interest. Next stop is on Lake Erie.
Until later,
Papi