Trip to Mobile

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Geo: 30.4195, -87.2217

We headed back to Mobile to visit the USS Alabama which is a battleship which has been decommissioned and is now open to the public. The ship is very large and we were to go below decks as well as up into the tower. The largest projectile for the 16 inch guns can way up to 2700 pounds. The ship fought in several battles in the south Pacific.

There was also a hangar housing a number of aircraft including the A 12 which flew higher and faster than the SR 71 spy plane. This plane at its time flew at an altitude of 23 miles and actually flew faster than a bullet from an M1. The spy planes were secret at the time and operated under the CIA. The presidents between Eisenhower and Bush Sr did not know about the existence of the program. It is amazing to think this plane did not have any on board computers. It was also the source of many UFO stories when randomly sighted.

There was a replica of a confederate submarine. The original blew up because it was too close to the charge that it deployed.

There is also a submarine being restored which also was open above and below decks.

On the way back we followed the marine coastal highway and stopped at a restaurant in Magnolia Springs. The restaurant even delivers takeout to dockside for boaters. The residents along the river also get their mail delivered to the dock.

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