Playing poker was another favorite recreation on site, especially for SFC Diaz and many of the Korean personnel. We would get other NCOs from various places that would come up to visit and play poker with SCF Diaz. I was having most of my pay sent home every month so I did not have enough money to risk. I saw some big jackpots being bet but I would be satisfied to just observe the guys playing cards. Sometime the games went until early morning.

The Korean climate had 2 seasons, cold or hot season! With the hot spring and even hotter summer weather there was the high humidity, monsoon rains, wind, dust and mud. It was also the time for squadrons of mosquitoes, moths and other flying insects as well as armies of spiders, frogs and rats! After eradicating hundreds of rats by poisoning we had to burn them in a 55 gal barrel by the shovel full to get rid of the carcasses. That was a terrible infestation and task to do.

Winter temperatures were cold to freezing and near arctic at times. My first winter was the coldest with zero degrees and minus 55 degrees wind chill at times on top of the mountain at Richmond Site. Weather conditions on Tacoma Site were snow, rain, frost, ice and more wind. It was difficult to keep the vehicle engine oils viscous enough to run even when we would start the engine every 15-30 min and use a blow torch to heat the crank case.    On to Hi-Res Pic (106K)