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HokieMacDaddy
Joined: 12/05/2004
Posts: 14,823
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Visited Pearl Harbor recently

When I was a kid I read everything I could get my hands on about the attack. It was surreal to be standing in the very places it occurred, seeing evidence still there 85 years later, and learning stories I'd never heard. I thought of my grandfathers, who both served here before, during ,and after the war. It was particularly fascinating to see within a few hundred yards of each other the remains of the USS Arizona, which was destroyed on day 1 of the war, and the retired USS Missouri, on whose decks the war ended in Tokyo Bay. The Pearl Harbor National Memorial (on the eastern shore of the harbor) is small but does a great job giving both macro and micro views of the attack and the war. The Arizona memorial (a short ferry ride away) is exceptionally humbling. You can also catch a bus over to Ford Island to visit the Mighty Mo and the aviation museum, which is well worth a visit.
Posted: 03/16/2026 at 10:24 AM ET

Thread Replies (16)

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Visited Pearl Harbor recently
HokieMacDaddy 03/16/26 10:24 AM ET
Truly a moving experience. Go up in the Ford Island Tower if you can.**
GobblerCE 03/16/26 08:58 PM ET
yups... extremely moving place; very. : (**
bourbonstreet 03/16/26 01:57 PM ET
Was the Arizona still leaking oil? It was when I was there in 2000-ish**
Tuckahokie 03/16/26 12:08 PM ET
Yes, 2-9 qts/day. It could go on for as much as 500 years**
MAHokie69 03/16/26 01:15 PM ET
that's what they say but I didn't notice**
HokieMacDaddy 03/16/26 01:07 PM ET
been a while but yes, you can see small oil slicks...
`lag 03/16/26 01:52 PM ET
I remember seeing it in the late 90s. I've got a pic somewhere.
reestuart 03/16/26 02:36 PM ET
Very humbling to visit. Grandfather was on the USS California**
HwoodHokie 03/16/26 12:04 PM ET
I’ve seen my uncle’s name on the survivor wall.
Chesapeake_Hokie 03/16/26 11:33 AM ET
what got me was how many of the survivors elected to be interred there
HokieMacDaddy 03/16/26 01:08 PM ET
I had a flag flown for my WWII/Korean War Vet Grandfather there
AirborneHokie96 03/16/26 11:39 AM ET
I did not know about the WVa mast, that's very symbolic
Chesapeake_Hokie 03/16/26 01:33 PM ET
Govt was going to scrap the USS West Virginia so the Student Body paid
AirborneHokie96 03/16/26 02:39 PM ET
Posts like this are what make the lounge great. Some people should take
Coach McGuirk 03/16/26 11:00 AM ET
Yuck, why ruin a great thread with this?**
BG Hokie 03/16/26 07:05 PM ET
A big Johnson rules the day too **
AirborneHokie96 03/16/26 11:28 AM ET