On My Mind - Royal Canadian Navy
"Why would anyone want to be a member of the Merchant Marine?"
While in Ottawa in 2010 I purchased two books that I thought would inform me of some matters related to my father's role in the Navy during World War II. One of the books I had spotted - outside a used book store on Rideau Drive during hot PM traffic - from my motorcycle as I entered Ottawa for the first time.
That first book - U-Boat Wars, by a German writer/photographer - captivated me. It had been used as the basis of a movie I had watched years earlier, so I read it thoroughly, and at the end of it I wondered why anyone, including my father, would sign up for duties on freighters - sunk in great numbers by German submarines. (A few months later I would discover he was not a member of the Merchant Marine. But that's another story, and it is upcoming).
That being said, while in Ottawa I visited the War Museum and my father's role as a merchant mariner was on my mind. My growing interest can be seen in the following pictures.
Photos from along the way:
The War Museum is an impressive, sturdy bulwark of a building
This is the first photo I took inside the building. Something from a cave wall?
Canadian troops landing from Landing Craft Infantry (Large) or LCI (L)s
during D-Day France, June 1944. Was my father involved? I did not know.
I suspected Dad had been involved aboard freighters on the Atlantic
I suspected Dad might have been involved aboard corvettes as well
"Why would anyone want to be a member of the Merchant Marine?"
A small replica of the impressive memorial in Ottawa
A lad wants to be with his father who is marching off to war
"On the way to Dieppe": I am not certain that I took this picture
because I felt my father had survived Dieppe. But I later learned he
wrote about losing his first mates at Dieppe.
According to my photo files, the War Museum was the last place of significance that I visited while in Ottawa. The next day I left for Fenelon Falls, to visit my wife, and son and his family - for Fathers Day.
Final Photos: Fenelon Falls, then to London:
I grabbed my backpack and took one last look out the jail window
I snapped the photo, then walked over to my bike (and jacket, on ground)
On Highway 7, heading west toward Peterborough
Ella and Anna, now 10, going for a splash in Fenelon Falls
I am now heading toward London. Home, sweet home.
I stop in Drayton, north of Stratford, for an ice cream cone
"Life is a Highway"
My motorcycle stops for birdhouses
Last stop... my front sidewalk
Hmmm... I think the grass needs a trim!
Bike is tarped and I'm tired. I walk into Wortley Village w Pat and Ollie
With enough energy to sit on a bench and smile for the camera
Ollie and I connected when I departed and when I returned
I think he was glad to see me but more interested in exploring
Over and out!
Within a couple of months my wife and I visited Ottawa together. Though she was not as impressed as I was with our lodgings in the local jail, she certainly enjoyed a few walk-abouts and lengthy visits to the National Art Gallery and Canadian War Museum.
Her grand-father (on her father's side) had written a significant book after his WWI experiences (The Horse in War: And Famous Canadian War Horses by David Sobey Tamblyn) and she was happy to see the Museum had a copy on file.
More details will be shared when I create a story line about that trip and include many of the photos taken during our time at the Gallery and Museum and more.
Please link to We (Yamaha and I) Land in Ottawa Safely (18C)
Photos GH
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