3: Possible Death Crossing the Atlantic Ocean in a German Coal Freighter

Two lifelong friends decided in high school to go to Europe after their 2nd year of college, come hell or high water! 

Little did they know the dangers of working their way for passage on a 9,000-ton German Coal Freighter in January. The Atlantic Ocean stormed 14 of the 17 days. Some days we never made headway against the giant waves and the horrific head winds that would cover part of the ship! 

In rough weather, the captain was on the deck both day and night, watching for the largest waves coming. He would steer the ship to change course and put the bow straight into the wave to avoid rolling the ship on its side, causing the coal to shift. The captain, as we docked in Bremerhaven, Germany, was quoted as saying that in his 40 years of being Captain of small ocean-going freighters, this trip we were on was the “most dangerous” in any crossing. (A crossing that on the average was only 10 days!) We heard some of the crew members were quitting because of the rough voyage! 

The Captain further stated, “The problem was that if the waves ‘caused a shift’ in the coal cargo, the ship would crack like an eggshell and sink in less than 3 minutes.” WOW!

Ed's Journal Log:

• Read 11 books crossing on the freighter
• Visited the U.S. Senate and met Vice President Johnson before boarding
• First stop of significance was the White House, showing the Blue, Red, and Green rooms
• Next stop was the Smithsonian museum
• Last stop was to see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights
• German coal freighter was named the Linzertor
• There were 25 ships waiting in the harbor, our ship was #13 waiting to come in
• Never thought at the time of being #13 in line to be loaded with coal
• Met passengers in the captain's quarters: Mary, Nancy (University of Oregon), Karen (German), Kathy (New York), Lynn (Philadelphia), Pat Heinty (Long Beach, California returning to Germany), myself, and my best friend, Dave Moore
• Breakfast was at the Captain's table every morning with an adjustment to eating raw meat
• Every Saturday, we had dances and played games with the crew
• I was the best shot with a power BB-gun. I took 1st place and Dave took 1st and 2nd place in darts. We won cigarettes, orange juice, and beer, so we sold them back to the crew before we got off. They were all sore losers and didn't like us very much. 

The crossing of the Atlantic was usually 10 days. With the storms and horrific headwinds, it took 17 days! We were on the coal freighter two Saturdays. They had dances and played games with the crew. Dave and I hit it off with the two girls, Mary and Nancy, from the University of Oregon, and us from Oregon State University. The dance floor was up and down and back and forth, making dancing difficult. It turned out the older girls were too advanced for us two Mormon boys! (Use your own imagination.) We used the rough seas to go and do what we did the best: shoot and play darts. We were the best shots with darts and won cases of cigarettes, orange juice, and beer, which the German crew did not like! We sold everything back to them. :) 

Our first job upon landing in Hamburg, Germany was for Dave to buy a used VolksWagon to take back with him. He got it for a great price. We headed out through Germany, Paris, France into Northern Italy. I wrecked his VW. It took a month to repair, so we hitchhiked all over Rome, Italy. I had to write to Jeanie for the money I had put in the bank for a ring! We drove through the countries that make up central Europe. Checked into an American Embassy and declared ourselves as Destitute Americans. They wired our parents for $200, kept $100 for fare on the next troop ship to New York. 

When we got to New York, I donated a pint of blood ($70) and was anxious to see Jeanie, but Dave stayed behind to get his VW a week later. I then left Dave and hitchhiked to Provo, Utah in 3 days, 17 rides, and 2,500 miles. I went a bit over the top and went to see Jeanie and asked her to marry me – she said yes! At the end of her freshman year BYU, she went home and worked for four months before she returned in September to meet me. I transferred from OSU to BYU and worked on driving a 40 ton P&H Crane 4 for months, 12-14 hours a day. What a great year being engaged and both going to school together!!! We were married June 5th, 1964.