Marine Invasion : 10-Mile Irvine-to-Beach Training Hike Startles Suburbanites

Groggy from a late night at work, Patricia Holland of Irvine said she struggled through her morning run along San Diego Creek in her hometown Monday, barely able to keep her eyes open.

Until she was surrounded by Marines.

“It was like something out of a movie,” said Holland, who is more used to dodging bicyclists and jeering motorists. “All of a sudden I was faced with advancing troops. It was quite intimidating.”

But the Marines reservists meant no harm. Instead, more than 70 of them--wearing camouflage uniforms, field packs and boots--trekked from Irvine to Corona del Mar State Beach during a rush-hour training hike. While the march startled some civilians, it was intended only to show Orange County that the part-time Leathernecks are still rough and ready.

The troops marched in twos past swank office parks and pricey homes on palm-lined streets, a 3 1/2-hour jaunt that made for good exercise--even if it didn’t resemble wartime conditions.

“This route shows the civilian community our training to maintain a combat-ready status,” said Lt. Col. D.J. Kingsbury, commander of the Marine Aircraft Group 46, a reserve unit based at the Marine Corps Air Station in El Toro. Smiling after the hike, he said: “Besides, it was a lot of fun.”

The unit--a mixture of men and women who usually spend their days as postal workers, bankers, aerospace engineers, college students and the like--trains one weekend a month and two consecutive weeks in the summer.

The rare tour through residential and business neighborhoods began at 6:30 a.m. at Jeffrey Road in Irvine, continuing on bike paths along San Diego Creek and later past UC Irvine. The unit then marched on sidewalks or road shoulders down MacArthur Boulevard and San Joaquin Hills Road in Newport Beach before turning onto Marguerite Avenue to reach the ocean.

Along the way, the troops got some strange looks, but Marines reported that people waved and honked horns in support.

“It was a blast,” said Lance Cpl. Dwight Brumbaugh. “There were a lot of eyes looking at us.”

Many of those who watched the procession, led by a pair of soldiers wearing fluorescent-orange vests and followed by a small troop truck, said the troops cut a strange figure marching among Mercedeses and tank-topped joggers.

John Hamilton, who was visiting a friend on San Joaquin Hills Road, looked surprised as the Marines trudged by.

“I thought I got through with this sort of stuff a long time ago,” said Hamilton, a World War II veteran.

Others, like Holland, made parallels to movies. “‘One minute I’m riding along. The next thing I know, it’s ‘Platoon,’ ” said Jan Ellison of Irvine.

Although these recreational marches are not common outside the county’s military bases, it is up to each individual unit whether to schedule them for a change of pace, said Marine spokeswoman Cpl. Sharon Farrell.

While hiking, the troops sang or whistled a few marching songs.

But as they neared their goal, they began chanting with vigor. “They were grunting some Marine talk or something,” said Dave Vistaunet, a parking attendant at Corona del Mar State Beach who watched the soldiers file down Marguerite Avenue and into the park. “We were wondering what they were doing. We were going to charge them for parking--they got four spots,” he added, joking.

Beach-area residents said the troop movement made them uneasy at first.

“It scared me to death. I didn’t know what they were doing,” said Linda Easter, who operates a Marguerite Avenue day-care center from her home. “It was neat, though. At first I thought we were getting into trouble. I mean, with all that (is) going on nowadays.”

Children at the center met the troops and, in a role reversal, gave out high-fives and candies.

“We were surprised and scared, like there was a war or something,” said Megan Stolte, 8.

After the hike ended at the beach, the troops got out of their boots to relax. A few of the reservists changed into swim suits.

“It was a simple walk to the beach,” said Lt. Col. Ken Derry, a 14-year reserve veteran, sipping a Coke after the group reached its goal. Even though some troops were rubbing their sore feet, it could have been worse, Derry said. “We could have gone to Camp Pendleton,” the Marine base in San Diego County, he said.

Gunnery Sgt. Dana Marshall said the walk reminded him of pictures he saw of German soldiers marching through European cities during World War II. “I was glad we were only training,” Marshall said.

One reserve spoke of another relief.

When asked about the best part of the hike, Gunnery Sgt. Bob Martinez pointed to where the hike ended. “It was when we stopped over here,” he said, digging into lunch.