For shore patrol, I walked a beat down 'Pirate's Alley', about a block off the base. I mustered at 17:00, was on the street by 19:00, and got secured at 03:00. It was interesting at first, but it gets old after a while. The beat was 2 blocks (about 200 yds), and doesn't take long to walk. It would have been alright, except for the rain. It rained, and rained all night and I didn't have a coat. Just a sweatshirt under my black shirt. I wasn't cold until about 24:00, by then I was soaked through."
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When the Kitty Hawk made a foreign port call, one of the considerations for the duty roster was the assignment of Petty Officers to 'Shore Patrol'. This was done in liberty ports where it was judged prudent to have a presence among the sailors roaming the waterfront 'recreational facilities'.
So, while the rest of your shipmates were carousing, you would have to trail along and be the butt of their humor while keeping an eye out for trouble. Not always an easy thing to do amongst the brothels & watering holes. The good news was, the next night you may very well be wandering the same port without the SP on your arm.
So, while the rest of your shipmates were carousing, you would have to trail along and be the butt of their humor while keeping an eye out for trouble. Not always an easy thing to do amongst the brothels & watering holes. The good news was, the next night you may very well be wandering the same port without the SP on your arm.
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