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Living life in the Korengal valley

  • Published
  • By Sgt. Matthew Moeller
  • 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment
KORENGAL VALLEY, Afghanistan --  As bullets stated to rain down on Baker Company's position, a Soldier sighed, and said, annoyingly, "Well here we go."

Over the next twenty minutes the servicemembers fired everything from bullets to curse words at the invisible enemy attacking from the surrounding hills.

"Just once I'd like to come out here and not get shot at," said an exasperated Army Sgt. Graham Mullins, of Columbia, Mo., using a four-foot stone wall for cover. "Just once."

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Joel McPherson, a native of Knoxville, Tenn., called in an airstrike on the insurgent positions in the steep hills. McPherson, a joint terminal attack controller, is attached to the Soldiers of Company B, 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division. In the end, two Air Force F-15E Strike Eagles pummelled the insurgent forces with 500-pound bombs, and an eerie silence fell across the battlefield. For the U.S. servicemembers, it was just another morning in the notorious Korengal Valley.

Nicknamed "The Valley of Death," the servicemembers have called the isolated valley, in Afghanistan's Kunar province, home, since arriving in June.

"This place is definitely its own monster; there are a lot of other dangerous places in Afghanistan, but I would say this place lives up to the hype," said Army Capt. Mark Moretti, Co. B. commander, and New Windsor, N.Y., native.

"It's all just a waiting game," said a Co. B Soldier, during a 'routine' patrol. "We come out here, and wait for them to open fire on us."

Seeing some of the toughest fighting in Afghanistan on a daily basis, many Baker Co. men find humor in the idea that many of their fellow servicemembers are envious of their assignment, who often refer to the almost constant battle as the 'infantryman's dream.'

"I would tell them to seriously reconsider their thinking positions," Army Spc. Guadalupe Gardenias, a B Co. Soldier, said, laughing.

Living in conditions that rival the third-world villages they patrol, the tiny U.S outposts dotting the valley walls are in stark contrast to other American mega-bases in Afghanistan, such as Bagram Airfield, which offers everything from personal internet to American fast food restaurants.

Here, if a resupply helicopter gets cancelled, troops miss not only letters from home, but risk having to ration their food.

At the Korengal Outpost, servicemembers use outhouses and hope to shower once a week to conserve water. At nearby Restrepo Outpost, where there is a lack any running water, troops eat field rations for every meal.

"The conditions out here are tough, and it's a tough fight," said Moretti. "But given the chance, I don't think anyone would want to leave."

Despite daily gun battles, poor hygiene and tortuous terrain, the men of Baker Co. seem content living their life in the "Valley of Death." When asked if they would take an easier assignment, the answer was always the same. "Not unless everyone else came with me."

To these men the debate back home about the war in Afghanistan means little. To them, it's the brotherhood, born in combat, keeping motivated to stand shoulder to shoulder.

"Before I came into the Army a lot of people would talk about brothers in arms, and I thought it was kind of cheesy, but being out here, I can definitely say that it brings us a lot closer," said Gardanias. "Cause no matter what we say, or what we do, nobody besides us is going to know what we went through, and what it was like."