Saturday, May 26, 2012

The USS Iowa passes underneath the Golden Gate Bridge as the battleship embarks on a final trip to SoCal, on May 26, 2012.
Paul Chinn / San Francisco Chronicle

The Iowa is finally headed to SoCal... At 11 AM, Pacific Daylight Time today, the retired battleship USS Iowa was finally towed from her refurbishing site in the San Francisco Bay to begin her three to four day journey to San Pedro in Southern California. The Iowa headed out to open sea after passing underneath the Golden Gate Bridge just before 3 PM, PDT. Iowa was originally supposed to head to SoCal last Sunday, but a storm system off the coast of California caused the trip to be delayed.

The USS Iowa is surrounded by sailboats and other vessels as the battleship embarks on a final trip to SoCal, on May 26, 2012.
Photo courtesy of Dean Lauerman - Facebook.com

After Iowa arrives in SoCal next week, preparations will be made to turn her into a naval museum. July 7 is currently the date when the 887-foot long, 45,000-ton vessel will open to the public. I'm looking forward to driving down to San Pedro this summer to see the "Battleship of Presidents" (the Iowa was FDR's favorite naval transport during World War II) in person. Hope it won't be too crowded at the waterfront (I'm sure it will). That is all.

The USS Iowa is surrounded by a flotilla of sailboats and yachts as the battleship embarks on a final trip to SoCal, on May 26, 2012.
Photo courtesy of Sky1Ron - Twitpic.com

The USS Iowa passes the island of Alcatraz as the battleship embarks on a final trip to SoCal, on May 26, 2012.
Photo courtesy of Sky1Ron - Twitpic.com

The USS Iowa passes through San Francisco Bay as the battleship embarks on a final trip to SoCal, on May 26, 2012.
Photo courtesy of WebMarin.com

The USS Iowa approaches the Golden Gate Bridge as the battleship embarks on a final trip to SoCal, on May 26, 2012.
Photo courtesy of Sky1Ron - Twitpic.com

The USS Iowa passes underneath the Golden Gate Bridge as the battleship embarks on a final trip to SoCal, on May 26, 2012.
Photo courtesy of Terry Ash - Twitpic.com

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