Scouts spend night on USS Alabama in Mobile

Last week, I went to Mobile, Ala., to tour and sleep in the USS Alabama, a battleship from World War II. It was a Cub Scout activity, and all the other Webelos (fourth- and fifth-graders) in the pack went.

It was a four-hour drive from Tallahassee. After a couple of rest stops, a quick trip to Wendy's for lunch and what seemed like days, we finally got there.

First, we went to the submarine to walk around in it. The doors were tiny! They were probably a little smaller than a door on your car.

Later, we had to carry the gear we brought into our berths on the ship. After we found the bunk we wanted to sleep on and got our sleeping bags and/or blankets on it, the group set out on the main deck and started touring the ship. My dad and I went over to a room where they used to fire off cannons. It smelled like gasoline, and I was glad to get out of there.

After that, we headed over to the big tower (as I called it) and started marching up the steps. Finally, my dad and I got to as high as we were allowed to go. We stepped out on the balcony and looked down. We were so high up that I saw people walking, and they looked about the size of my thumbnail.

Hours later, my father and my sleepy body slid over to our berth. We got in our bunks and went to bed. At the crack of dawn, the cub master's alarm went off. Everyone started packing things and putting them in our cars. We all went over to the dining room and ate our morning meal. Eventually, people started leaving, including us.