Layac Junction

[Karl Welteke]

First walk to the Layac battle Field on the 15th June 2013.



This is the track of my first walk in the Layac First Line of Defense, the 15th of June 2010. It is in an album I posted at the top, 2nd page, this thread. It had become a dead link and I don’t know why and there are more on that page which I will have to reactivate. Anyway that link, 1st Walk at Layac, near the top of the 2nd page is active again. But I post the URL to that album here again:

s74.photobucket.com/user/PI-Sailor/library/Walk%20in%20the%20Philippines/No%202%20Walk%20PI%20Group/Layac%20Project/HEIP%20to%20Bacong%202010-06-15?sort=9&page=1
or
tinyurl.com/nwujdlf

Note: 10 sample images have been posted this time also!

[victor]

Hi Karl, thanks for the photos and commentaries. I'm dying to sit down and sort through my own pictures and add my comments. Got caught up right away with work and pressing tasks upon return here in the US. I do however want to share Joe calugas, Jr's appreciation for our research. I posted some of our pics in the PSHS FB group.

"Thank you for sharing the pictures of your research about the position of the 88th FA , PS on January 6, 1942. My father Sgt. Jose Calugas, Sr. of the 88th FA, PS was cited for his action that awarded him the Medal of Honor on January 6, 1942 in Culis, Bataan . Best to your family. Joe Calugas, Jr."

[Karl Welteke]

Second Walk in Layac, 19th June 2010.



This is the track of our walk in the Layac First Line of Defense, the 19th of June 2010. It is in an album I posted on the 2nd page, this thread. It had become a dead link and I don’t know why and there are more on that page which I will have to reactivate. Anyway that link, 2nd Walk at Layac, on the 2nd page is active again. But I posted the URL to that album here again and I also posted 10 sample pictures on page 2 this time:
s74.photobucket.com/user/PI-Sailor/library/Walk%20in%20the%20Philippines/No%202%20Walk%20PI%20Group/Layac%20Project/to%20Colu%20Rv%202010-06-19?sort=9&page=1
or
tinyurl.com/o574c4y

[Karl Welteke]

Fourth Walk in Layac, 2013-06-22



My friend John and I decided to scout out and get a picture of the area the Philippine 71st Div. defended. Basically this area was between the national Highway and the Culo River.
We walked a circle around the area where the 71st Division of the Philippine Army had their positions.

The link for this walk on the 2nd page of this thread has been dead, I don’t know why but it is active again as this 24th July 2013. But I take the opportunity and post that link for that 4th walk in Layac also here, the album has 38 images:

s74.photobucket.com/user/PI-Sailor/library/Walk%20in%20the%20Philippines/No%202%20Walk%20PI%20Group/Layac%20Project/71st%20PA%20Div%20area%202010-06-22?sort=9&page=1
or
tinyurl.com/ncoed2y

Note:
-And now since I know how to post images I also posted 12 sample images with that link on the 2nd page of this thread.
-One more link, the 3rd walk at Layac is still dead but I will correct that too.

[Karl Welteke]

Third Walk in Layac, 21st June 2010



This is the track of our third walk at the Layac First Line of Defense, the 21st of June 2010. It is in an album I posted at the bottom, 2nd page, this thread. It had become a dead link, as of this date, 25th July 2013 that link is active again!
That should be the last link in this thread that needed reactivation. I took the liberty to post that link/URL here also and in addition I posted 8 sample images in that post at the bottom of the 2nd page in this thread!

s74.photobucket.com/user/PI-Sailor/library/Walk%20in%20the%20Philippines/No%202%20Walk%20PI%20Group/Layac%20Project/Around%20rear%20of%20Arty-Positions%202010-06-21?sort=9&page=1
or
tinyurl.com/o7ybm8g


This walk had the purpose to look deeper into the rear for the possible Artillery Positions and to have a closer look at holes in the ground near the Culo River at Layac. Where they Carabao wallows or WWII artillery impact holes?
John, fots2, had come to join in this effort. We had a good walk and considered several location where the artillery positions might have been.

[victor]

Hi Karl,

I think the bridge we crossed to get up the hill crosses the "dry river bed" reference in the book. According to the author it had 4 to 5 foot banks. It was the headquarters personnel who were ordered to take shelter on the defilade side of the river, not the battery personnel. The batteries were further up the hill. So I think the section of the river they sheltered was further around the bend beyond view of these pictures. In January, this creek is probably even more dry.

[Karl Welteke]

The First Line of Defense is remembered of course by the Memorial Marker at the Layac Intersection.
www.bataan.gov.ph/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=113
This Bataan Government URL says the following about the Marker:

(Rotunda, Layac, Dinalupihan)
It marks the first strong line of defense of combined Philippines USAFFE Troops against Japanese invasion during WW II. Symbolic of the tragedy that befell Bataan and the gallantry of Filipino and American heroes who restored our country and people to a government of free peoples is a monument in the center of rotunda in Layac, Dinalupihan, Bataan. This monument was erected by the 38th Infantry division, Army of the United States, in memory of the defenders of Bataan, living and dead, including the 38th Tank Company of Harrodsburg, Kentucky, a unit of said division, in December 1941 to February 1942.
It also marks the liberation of the place on January 19, 1945 to August 16,1945 wholly by the following units: 149th Infantry, 151st Infantry, 113th Engineer Combat Battalion, 139th Artillery Battalion, 38th Field Artillery Battalion and the 38th Division Special Troop.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The First Line Defense Marker has been seen by many, anyone traveling to Bataan, Zambales or Subic Bay got to thru this intersection and passes this marker. But how many had a closer look? Earlier and in 2007 I stopped by when I walked the Death March and posted these 18 images in this URL:
s74.photobucket.com/user/PI-Sailor/library/Death%20March%20Markers%20Death%20Camps%20and%20Memorials/DMM%20No%2068%20Layac?sort=3&page=1


Here are some sample images:



Z220-This picture is from 2003, the marker has been refurbished in 2009.



Z221-On the north end (Olongapo direction) of the marker is this plaque located.



Z222-This picture was shot 20004-Jan.-7th and it is the bottom part of the plaque in the previous picture. It is hard to read but I’ll try to figure it out. I think it says: “In this battle three Filipino Soldiers became recipients of distinguished awards from the United States Government for their extra ordinary Bravery & Heroism. Sgt. Jose Calugas was awarded the US Congressional Medal of Honor while Lieutenant Julian Q. Chau and Cecilo A, Garcia were awarded the US Distinguished Service Cross.



Z223-Where is the Layac intersection, this map shows you!



Z224-The Layac intersection area zoomed in



Z225-Remember the Government URL above said this marker was built by the 38th Division and indeed there is a plaque from the division, it is little obscured by a plant.



Z226-The 38th Div. Plaque with a list of all their units. I already met some of the units on the Manila Bay islands they liberated and helped to liberate Corregidor also. The Japanese took 3 month to capture Bataan but the 38th Div. liberated Bataan in 3 weeks. That is why they are called the Bataan Avengers. One of their National Guard tank units helped defend Bataan in 1942.



Z227-This is how the intersection looked in 2007 coming from the Manila direction.



Z228-On my walk, tracing the Death March, I seen this plaque on several bridges. This one is from the Layac bridge.

[Registrar]

The following is from Lou Jurika, edited and posted here by proxy:

Karl:

I have really enjoyed your recent posting regards the Battle of The Points with all the photos. In 2006, when John Lukacs, Jim Litton, and I took a pumpboat from Bagac down the coast to the last point before Mariveles, we were searching in and out of every bay for the cliffside caves that figured so prominently for the Japanese in that fight. We were hard-pressed to determine exactly where they were, or perhaps more correctly - where they had been. So I'm interested to hear what you find approaching the topic from the landside in the future.

Here's another interesting mystery. In 2004 and 2005 I met a veteran at the ADBC/AGOM reunions and we got to talking about Bataan. Born in 1920, Eugene E. Bleil had been a member of ground personnel with the 17th Pursuit Squadron in 1941. When they lost all their planes he ended up being given quick training with a rifle and sent in to the Battle of The Points. He survived and I believe he just might still be alive at 93 in Michigan. I hope to talk to him today in order to get his email address for you, and here's why. After the Japs had been mopped up, Bleil and some buddies were reconnoitering above an area of fierce fighting when they came across a large lava tube that they could actually walk into. Checking it out they came to a group of native coffins that had been stacked back in the cave/lava tube, evidently a sacred burial place. They were about to leave the place in peace when one of the men decided he would have a peek into one of the coffins just to see what a mummy might look like.

But when he lifted the coffin lid he discovered a cache of arms and ammunition neatly stacked inside, still packed in Cosmolene. Indeed all the coffins contained the same. This was a pretty shocking discovery, and from the types of guns they concluded that somebody Japanese had probably laid in these supplies sometime before the war for just such an occurence as the Battle of The Points, and that the Japanese landing force had indeed been trying to get to the lava tube as one of its objectives. Bleil helped himself to one of the guns because it was so unique, quite different than everything else in the cache. It was a nifty sub-machinegun that was Finnish! He kept it as his own personal piece and was so enamoured with it that he is still bitter to this day that he had to lose it at the surrender of Bataan. He threw it into the bay rather than let the Japs get it.

I wonder where that lava tube might be today?

[victor]

Wow, well that's an interesting twist... did he mention if there were any Japanese guns at all in the stash? It's also possible that communist Huks stored those.

[victor]

Hi Karl, thanks for going back to the previous pages and updating old photos with new info and commentary.

Just to refresh, here is the background about the battle that happened here in the Layac/Culis/Dinalupihan area.
www.historynet.com/battle-of-bataan-brigadier-general-clyde-a-selleck-commands-the-layac-line.htm

We were interested in finding the general battle position where Sgt. Jose Calugas earned the Medal of Honor:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jose_Calugas


Here are my pictures from our visit.

This bus shed was at the corner of the road that we turned right (west) into from the main road.


This road was probably the trail that the 88th took from Culis to get up to their positions. Following Karl’s car.


This is the first high point that we visited that Karl had pre-scouted earlier in the morning. This is Renan, my doctor friend.

Karl and I consulting maps and GPS. Funny enough, this area high point had a tall pole with a flag.


My friend kept on snapping pictures while Karl and I get our bearings.


We investigated another high point that had the Tama river closer to its south. We were getting close but some things didn’t add up yet. There was no 50 or 60 foot hill drop to the north of the position.


I’m pretty sure this quarry wasn’t here in 1942 so this doesn’t count as a steep drop off.


More consulting, hiking around, and searching…






We went around and back up to the road. This is promising because more often than not, an old trail in 1942 turned into a paved road (sometimes) in present day. This road isn’t even paved. But we’re still up in an elevated area.


Then from the road, we spied an area to the left (north side) where there looked like a steep drop off.


We found a break in the hedgerow and were able to get in close.


It looked very promising indeed. This area is close to the road (or trail in 1942), has a steep drop off to the north, has a meadow to the north following the drop off…


It has a good commanding view of Layac. Since the present day bridge does not have a tall span anymore, we couldn’t really pinpoint visually where it was.


But Karl’s GPS were telling us that we were facing and overlooking the bridge


I tried to glean where the bridge was… doing a “reconnaissance by zoom camera”. No dice.


Here’s another look at the drop off from another angle. I would say this was about a 50-60 foot drop.


We were pretty convinced that we found the place. One more time here’s the commanding view of Layac.


More views…




Satisfied that we found the place or were within 200 yard radius of it, we broke some ground. I took a soil sample to bring back to Joe Calugas, Jr. President of the Philippine Scouts Heritage Society. (this is for you Joe!) Thank you Karl for your tireless scouting and hiking, guidance.


Mission accomplished. Leaving for Mabatang…


Karl just checking out a nearby dirt road on our way out


We crossed the Tama river on the way back. It occurred to me that the headquarters company was further down the trail and lower in elevation. The artillery batteries were the ones that went up the trail further and higher in elevation. The description that there was a dry river bed with 4-5 foot banks about 40 yards to the south of the headquarters personnel, jives with the Tama river. These pictures are of a section of the river that runs north/south, but it bends to the west not too far away.






This is Renan, my doctor friend. Buddies since kindergarten. His grandfather was an artillery officer with the 21st PA Division in Bataan. I wanted to swing by Mabatang to show him where his lolo’s artillery unit supported the embattled 57th Infantry Scouts.


Bonus photo. Mt. Malasimbo and the cows looked so cool.