Battlefield Tourist

Saturday, October 30th 2004

Ever since I found out that the "Bedford Boys" were heading to Afghanistan, I new I was going to do everything my imagination would allow, to find a good excuse to visit with them. Afterall, Charlie Company is made of of many people from where I hail, Roanoke, Virginia.
So I finally got through the elections and slowed things down a bit so I could heal a wrteched back and wait out an embassy alert warning of a plot by terrorists to kidnap journalists, specifically Americans. Their plan was a promise to provide insurrgent video proving attack claims on American troops is underreported by the military. Since I have been in touch with such a contact I thought it would be prudent to lay low for a bit. Continuing the trend, the time off went through the election process with no problems with Karzai getting the outright victory and 55% of the historic vote. That discounts the need
for a runoff. So with everything simmering down, I decided to head down to Ghazni to see what the local guys were up to.
Once down there I was welcomed with open arms and was quickly given an empty room from one of the guys on leave. I wasn't there long though as I was punched out to Wardak Province to hook up with Charlie Company. That involved a 45 minute ride back toward Kabul where Charlie was encamped at a National Directorate of Security HQ.
The compound is a good sized walled compound that had all the scars of war: Pock marked walls, ammunition littering the ground, bunkers and worst of all, human crap. See, the Afghans have very little concept of sanitation. Their idea of a field bathroom is to piss on the nearest wall, and crap behind the nearest burned out vehicle. It is a constant reminder of just how dirty this country really is. No wonder I get sick some much.
Most of the guys were sleeping in one-man tents around the compound, usually gravitating around a fire. Most of the upper NCO's and officers were inside an unheated concrete building where they used portable cots and stretchers as beds. Once there I was hooked up with second platoon which had come back from the field to pick me up and we headed back into the lunar landscape of Parwan Province.
We travelled toward an area that the unit had been operating in before. Bravo was still out here and in fact had engaged in a small firefight a few nights before. The hill we picked to camp for the night was rocky and barren. Actually, everything on a hill or mountain is barren, but we had a good view of the valley below, excellent fields of fire with and no exposure to any type of ground fire except for mortars.
We joined an Afghan Army (ANA) unit which was camped 50 meters down the hill in a slightly more exposed position. The four humvee guntrucks we came with circled up and we set our camp for the night. Many of the guys slept in the hummers where they would ofteen turn them on to start the heater. The tradeoff was leg cramps. Each truck gunner kept an eye out through night vision with his machine gun trained downrange. I decided to sleep in a small "ranger grave" that one of the guys had cleared out earlier.
We didn't do much that night, but it gave me a chance to get to know some of the guys as well as get some tea with the Afghans. Turns out many of the guys are Virginia Tech students yanked out of school in mid-year to go to Afghanistan. A lot were guys from other states that joined the guard just to get in-state tuition, only to be sent overseas. The rest were state troopers, fireman and postal workers. Good group of guys that I was really able to relate with because, a. They speak English and b. They're from my side of town.
The Americans, following light dicipline, sat on the top of the hill in the dark and cold, keeping an eye out for any sign of trouble. Below the Afghans had a couple of fires going in a small depression on the hillside. As the norm, I joined them for a cup of tea and to talk about how things were going in their army. I always try to get a unit's pulse. I figure out of all the ANA units I've had chi (tea) with this year, I have a good sample.
Just after the first cup of tea, the ANA guys started to quickly mobilize after we got word that Bravo Company was again in contact with ACM. Getting an excellent chance to escape the conversation, I head up the hill where the Americans are looking over the valley at the firefight across the valley and beyond a mountain. Of course while I was getting tea, all of this was happening, so the best I saw was a tracer or three skip up and over the mountain into the valley below.
Bravo was apparently camped near a school in the valley when ACM (anti coalition militants) started firing from the mountain above. Bravo responded with small arms, a couple of AT-4 rockets and 60mm mortar fire, all of which was lit up by flares. I'd later find out from Bravo soldier that was watching the fight through thermals that a mortar round hit within 15 meters of the ACM position, scattering them up and over the hill. When they got there, they found blankets, shoes and a tea kettle with hot tea. "I drank some." he said with a smile.
I don't know for sure, but I believe the contact this week is the first two direct contact fighhts 3/116 has had. Earlier this summer, not long after getting to Ghazni, two soldiers and an Afghan terp were killed by an IED. Those soldiers came from Alpha Co. which is mostly based around Winchester, Va. Regardless, I'm sure the fireworks on Halloween got the guys thinking. Just about everyone I talked to wants to get at these guys and are frustrated they are so elusive. It also show that the days of the Taliban have certainly grinded to a halt.
To cap off Halloween 2004, we got the call that a B-1 was coming. Sweet... maybe they'll light up the mountain? I really didn't think it woas going to happen because of the civillians and the fact that there weren't that many ACM, but who knows.
After about 20 minutes, you could hear it coming in a low roar/screech time noise. They came in relatively low, right across the valley. As it passed us, it kicked on the after burners which I'm sure woke up the province. If that doesn't send a message. Satisfied the fight was over and wanting to concentrate on trying to sleep, I climbed into my hole with my haji blankets and did my best to sleep.

Sunday, October 31st 2004 0500 Parwan Province, Afghanistan

I woke up in pretty good shape. The night was cold and uneventful. I'd describe it best as "restless". No matter. It didn't take long to decide what we were going to do, so after shaving, brushing of the fangs and burning the trash, we headed out toward where Bravo was.
After getting turned around a couple of times, we finally got moving in the right direction. As is usually the case, the kids were very receptive, most the men just stared and the women virtually non-existiant. I'm sure between the fact the U.S. Army with ANA soldiers was convoying through the area and our misdirection, we provided plenty of talk and gawk for the locals.
Eventually we made our way through the pass taking us into an extension of the valley that was home to maybe several thousand people. Once again, we drove up on rocky hill overlooking the valley. This time however, we were in a spot that could easily get lit up. It really isn't too much of a worry because at this point, Charlie is looking for a fight. Not only that, but the chances of encountering an element of Taliban that has any size to it is relatively remote. So from here we hung around a bit waiting on the word to dig in, which we finally got. Everyone dug small sleeping holes and ringed them with rocks. Some soldiers used heavy rocks for protective purposes, others, like me, used a wimpy pile to deflect the wind, not neccesarily bullets. I had still a ways to go on my position (which is on the line, unarmed, yipeee) when a QRF (Quick Reaction Force) was assembled. Bravo was in contact again. I ran down the hill toward the ANA 5-ton, jumped in the back and we were off.