ScrEglPhotosC

M. Bradshaw at LZ Sally in
its very early days. Note the
old unused RR tracks
which were later removed.
Also note the old coin made
into a necklace. This was
instrumental in my
acquiring the nickname
"MadMonk" (see the story in
From the Eagle's Beak)

Another photo taken at LZ Sally in
its very early days. I estimate that
it's early March 1968 judging by
the size and style of the fighting
positions. No, I'm not sewing.
Everyone else is writing letters and
since I had already gotten the
dreaded "Dear John" letter I
decided to scribble on my fatigue
shirt.

Now this is a month or two later at
LZ Sally. The Engineers have built
wooden buildings commonly called
"hootches" and we were most likely
given a "break" from the bush to
come in and fill sandbags or relieve
the poor over-worked "REMFS" on
perimeter/bunker guard (about the
only time we were able to finagle
some decent fatigues and such).

This is a photo of my best friend
Charles R. Pyle. He hailed from
Colleyville, TX and was probably the
most well liked person in the entire
Recon Platoon. That's a puppy he
saved from some Vietnamese
celebrational feast and a monkey we
caught one day raiding the mess
tent (he's feeding them some bread I
believe).

Charlie Pyle was killed in an
ambush we foolishly walked into in
a small hamlet called Ap Lai Xa' in
Thua Thien Province on 22 March
1968. He had become 19 years old
just 17 days prior. I miss him very
much to this day.

Recon Platoon quite often was assigned as support on the Navy's
Mark II patrol boats as they patrolled the various waterways
throughout the I Corps area. Here we are on the Perfume River
(which runs through the old imperial city of Hue) rounding up
and checking out suspicious looking sampans. This is about
April or May of 1968 I believe.

When Recon received orders to proceed to a village located on
an island/peninsula that ran along the coastal side of the
rather large bay east of Hue and advised that there was no
transportation readily available we commandeered some native
water transport (much to the chagrin of Papa-san) and formed
our own "Brown Water Navy".