A typical coconut grove today (below) looks slightly dif-
ferent because of modern cultivation. In 1942, heavy
Traveling with a military tour group, I tropical downpours all but flood Henderson Field and a
was grateful for the opportunity to explore Gua- Marine Corps camp near the field (bottom).
dalcanal. My fi rst impression was amazement at
how big the island is. Located 1,200 miles from
Australia and just north of the equator, it is about
30 miles wide by 90 miles long. The island has
some of the world’s most inhospitable terrain:
plains, foothills, and mountains up to 8,000 feet,
and a rain forest canopy that turns day into night,
complete with deadly spiders and snakes, croco-
diles, and swarms of malarious mosquitoes. Sur-
rounded by water and drenched with monsoons
in the spring and thunderstorms in the fall, Gua-
dalcanal is hot, humid, and always wet. This, to
me, is worse than the jungle in Vietnam.
5 0 M I L I T A R Y O F F I C E R J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 7 PHOTOS: ABOVE, U.S. NATIONAL ARCHIVES;
TOP, MAJ. DALE ROBINSON, USMC-RET.
Apr_guadalcanal.indd 50 3/11/09 4:14:01 PM
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