This is a picture from Marmaris, Turkey and the seas got a bit nasty and the Mike Boat got stranded on the beach overnight. This is the larger landing craft that is used to transport tank(s) to the beach. My memory is a bit gone on this but I seem to rememebr that there were two type of Mike boats. This one above was the small version and there was a large version which carried three tanks and was referrred to as LCM's.
I remember the large LCM's because after the special landing that we did for President John F. Kennedy in North Carolina we proceeded down to Camp Garcia in Vieques, Puerto Rico and huge peace time operation. After the exercise was over, we (Shore Party) was responsible for loading the ships up with all the rolling equipment.
The loading operation took almost the whole day and everyone was exhausted. The last load of tanks were put on this large LCM and we set off to get in the well of an LSD that would return us to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. I rememebr lying on the deck of the LCM which rides on the ocean about three feet above the water. As we headed to the LSD, the waves would come in through the opening that allowed the boat to be tied down into the well of the LSD. I was getting soaked but it was warm. After a few minutes, I gave up getting soaked and jumped on the front of the Sherman Tanks which were still running on its two large Chrysler Engines. It was so noisy and loud but I was so tired that I fell asleep laying on top of the engines in a few minutes.
Telling some "So You Served" stories related to the pictures. Enjoy,
Marty Dougherty