Real WestPac Sailors- question

swdw · 10-01-07, 03:18 PM

My patrols were in the Atlantic so I have a question for you WestPac guys.

Is the water at sea as transparent as it is in SH4? Even on swim call in the Carribean, it wasn't as clear as the water in SH4 and ROW, is that the way it is in the big pond?

The Pearl water seems way too clear compared to Atlantic ports, but then again, is that a difference between the 2 oceans?

AVGWarhawk · 10-01-07, 03:27 PM

Well, lets look a few things. I never went to the Pacific but I would suspect that waters were not as polluted and did infact looked that clear. Search the net for pictures. The Caribean waters are very clear and very much like the waters and Pacific. Even the waters in the nasty Inner Harbor of Baltimore where the Torsk is berthed I can see at least 6-10 inches down unless there is a floater (dead body) in the way

. That water is a nasty as it can be in that harbor. Fish flee that place

Anyway, I believe salinity plays a factor on what type of life that floads in the water can live in either location. So high salinity produces more of these floating living creaters that obscure the water. Just a thought here on that. Because you Maine lobster is very different than the lobster you find in the south.

JREX53 · 10-01-07, 03:45 PM

I was stationed in Pearl Harbor, on the Bonefish (S582) and the Abraham Lincoln (SSBN602) Gold. The harbor is probably as polluted as any other harbor. When you actually get out on the ocean it is pretty clean for the most part, but you could still only see about 10 to 20 feet down during the best of times. The clearest water I ever saw was around Guam.

Jim IC1(SS)

MONOLITH · 10-01-07, 04:32 PM

swdw..you were on the USS Permit?

Sailor Steve · 10-01-07, 05:06 PM

Sailing out of Subic Bay in the spring of '70, I was off duty and on the signal bridge of our destroyer. The water was clear enough that we could see rocks and plants on the bottom, and the dolphins swimming back and forth under the ship. I don't know the exact depth, but it had to be deep enough for the biggest carriers to pass.

DeepIron · 10-01-07, 05:14 PM

I was stationed on Guam and did a few WestPacs in the mid-late 70's... The water was indeed almost crystal clear in places. I remember scuba diving off the reef outside of Agana on Guam and looking for what must of have literally a few hundred feet down the reef until it was lost in the darkness...

Torpex752 · 10-01-07, 05:15 PM

I agree with Jim, Guam was crystal clear. Although PH did clean up its act and in 1996-1999 it was pretty clean. In my opinion though SH4 is too clear compared to what I saw.

sunvalleyslim · 10-02-07, 01:08 AM

swdw,
The harbors in any port are never clear. But I can tell you the rest of the Pacific during the sixties was pristine. We stopped and had a few swim calls during my WestPac in '69. believe me it was that clear. I was a diver and torpedoman on the USS Segundo SS-398, and you could be on the surface, look underwater and see the keel of the boat.................It was awesome.....

TarJak · 10-02-07, 01:40 AM

Like anything environmental it depends on where you are and the conditions at the time. There are some fantastically clear waters in WPac and there are some very cloudy/polluted waters. Anytime there is any kind of disturbance the water gets cloudier. Clearest water I've seen is in the Whitsunday's off Queensland at the southern end of the Gt Barrier Reef. Some days though you get very cloudy water or bad conditions due to poor light.

10-01-07, 03:18 PM	#1
swdw Grey Wolf Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 921 Downloads: 75 Uploads: 0	Real WestPac Sailors- question My patrols were in the Atlantic so I have a question for you WestPac guys. Is the water at sea as transparent as it is in SH4? Even on swim call in the Carribean, it wasn't as clear as the water in SH4 and ROW, is that the way it is in the big pond? The Pearl water seems way too clear compared to Atlantic ports, but then again, is that a difference between the 2 oceans? __________________ "There are only two types of ships- submarines...... and targets" Unknown "you wouldn't catch me on a ship that deliberately sinks itself"- comment to me from a surface sailor. System: AMD 6300 3.5 GHz \| 32GB DDR3 \| SATA 300 320GB HD, SATA III 1TB HD, SATA III 1.TB HD \| ASUS Sonar DS sound card NVIDIA 1660 Super OC \| Windows 10

10-01-07, 03:27 PM	#2
AVGWarhawk Lucky Jack Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: In a 1954 Buick. Posts: 28,254 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	Well, lets look a few things. I never went to the Pacific but I would suspect that waters were not as polluted and did infact looked that clear. Search the net for pictures. The Caribean waters are very clear and very much like the waters and Pacific. Even the waters in the nasty Inner Harbor of Baltimore where the Torsk is berthed I can see at least 6-10 inches down unless there is a floater (dead body) in the way . That water is a nasty as it can be in that harbor. Fish flee that place Anyway, I believe salinity plays a factor on what type of life that floads in the water can live in either location. So high salinity produces more of these floating living creaters that obscure the water. Just a thought here on that. Because you Maine lobster is very different than the lobster you find in the south. __________________ “You're painfully alive in a drugged and dying culture.” ― Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road

10-01-07, 04:32 PM	#4
MONOLITH Grey Wolf Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 997 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	swdw..you were on the USS Permit? __________________

10-01-07, 05:06 PM	#5
Sailor Steve Eternal Patrol Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: High in the mountains of Utah Posts: 50,369 Downloads: 745 Uploads: 249	Sailing out of Subic Bay in the spring of '70, I was off duty and on the signal bridge of our destroyer. The water was clear enough that we could see rocks and plants on the bottom, and the dolphins swimming back and forth under the ship. I don't know the exact depth, but it had to be deep enough for the biggest carriers to pass. __________________ “Never do anything you can't take back.” —Rocky Russo

10-01-07, 05:14 PM	#6
DeepIron Sea Lord Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Too far from the Pacific right now... Posts: 1,634 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I was stationed on Guam and did a few WestPacs in the mid-late 70's... The water was indeed almost crystal clear in places. I remember scuba diving off the reef outside of Agana on Guam and looking for what must of have literally a few hundred feet down the reef until it was lost in the darkness... __________________ RFB / RSRDC Beta Tester RFB / RSRDC Modding Forum: http://forum.kickinbak.com/index.php RFB Top Post link: http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=125529 RFB Loadout: RFB_V1.52_102408: RFB_V1.52_Patch_111608: RSRDC_RFBv15_V396

10-01-07, 03:45 PM	#3
JREX53 Frogman Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 300 Downloads: 353 Uploads: 13	I was stationed in Pearl Harbor, on the Bonefish (S582) and the Abraham Lincoln (SSBN602) Gold. The harbor is probably as polluted as any other harbor. When you actually get out on the ocean it is pretty clean for the most part, but you could still only see about 10 to 20 feet down during the best of times. The clearest water I ever saw was around Guam. Jim IC1(SS)

10-01-07, 05:15 PM	#7
Torpex752 Lieutenant Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Deep River, CT Posts: 255 Downloads: 1 Uploads: 0	I agree with Jim, Guam was crystal clear. Although PH did clean up its act and in 1996-1999 it was pretty clean. In my opinion though SH4 is too clear compared to what I saw.

10-02-07, 01:08 AM	#8
sunvalleyslim Ace of the Deep Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Los Angeles, Ca Posts: 1,142 Downloads: 267 Uploads: 0	swdw, The harbors in any port are never clear. But I can tell you the rest of the Pacific during the sixties was pristine. We stopped and had a few swim calls during my WestPac in '69. believe me it was that clear. I was a diver and torpedoman on the USS Segundo SS-398, and you could be on the surface, look underwater and see the keel of the boat.................It was awesome..... __________________ Crew member/ decommission member TM2(SS)(SD) 3/68-7/70 DIESEL BOATS FOREVER USS SEGUNDO (SS398)

10-02-07, 01:40 AM	#9
TarJak Fleet Admiral Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 17,052 Downloads: 150 Uploads: 8	Like anything environmental it depends on where you are and the conditions at the time. There are some fantastically clear waters in WPac and there are some very cloudy/polluted waters. Anytime there is any kind of disturbance the water gets cloudier. Clearest water I've seen is in the Whitsunday's off Queensland at the southern end of the Gt Barrier Reef. Some days though you get very cloudy water or bad conditions due to poor light.

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