If you want to get a glimpse of life on a submarine, Portland is the place to do it. Walk the narrow halls, sit in the captain’s seat, look through a periscope, touch a torpedo and imagine your life on board during this fun, interactive tour through our city’s submarine, the USS Blueback, at OMSI.
Several tours take place daily on the submarine, docked in the Willamette River right below the OMSI campus.
Randy Kashka / Flickr
Commissioned in 1959, the USS Blueback was the last non-nuclear submarine to join the US Navy, and last diesel-electric submarine to be decommissioned in 1990. Since its duty, it has made a name for itself in pop culture, appearing in The Hunt for Red October and the Librarians.
Mobilus in Mobili / Flickr
The 45-minute tour will give you a broad overview of the workings of the submarine, allow plenty of time for questions, and leave you will a deeper understanding of how 85 people would live on the vessel for months at a time.
Soulrider.222 / Flickr
The tour introduces visitors to using sonar to navigate the waters below.
Ron McDonald / Flickr
You will even be able to peer out from the submarine’s periscope to see the city from below the water.
Josh Bancroft / Flickr
You may even feel a little claustrophobic walking through the submarine’s tight hallways, staircases and bunk rooms.
Ron McDonald / Flickr
All parts of the submarine will be explored during the tour, including the torpedo room.
Marcin Wichary / Flickr
Visitors will end the tour in the dining area, which fed the whole crew from a room smaller than many modern kitchens.
Ron McDonald / Flickr
If you want to learn even more, there are Technical Tours every second and fourth Sunday that are 3 hours long and cover even more information regarding the technical operation of the submarine.
Robert Tuck / Flickr
This informational tour is a great place to spend an afternoon, and when you are done, you can explore all the science fun that awaits in OMSI.
Ron McDonald / Flickr
Tours take place daily at intervals ranging from 20 to 40 minutes apart. The minimum age is 3, and all visitors must be at least 36 inches tall. The cost is $6.75 to tour the submarine.
Randy Kashka / Flickr
Mobilus in Mobili / Flickr
Soulrider.222 / Flickr
Ron McDonald / Flickr
Josh Bancroft / Flickr
Marcin Wichary / Flickr
Robert Tuck / Flickr
Have you been in the submarine at OMSI? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
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