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LUZON THE OLD SPANISH TRAIL On 5 March 1945, upon relief at Digdig by the 27th Infantry, our 3d Battalion moved to San Augustine on the Old Spanish Trail. Our first objective on the trail was Salazar, about 4500 yards from San Augustine. Here the trail forks: one fork leads north to Balete Pass, the other northeast to Cauco. After two days of strong patrolling, K Company, reinforced set up a trial block at Burgos and patrolled to the north and northeast from there. On 9 March, a K Company patrol ran into a Jap trail block about a mile beyond their own block. Five Japs were killed during the ensuing firefight, with no loss to our side, after which the patrol withdrew to the base camp. On the 10th, a coordinated advance of K and I Companies seized without opposition the Jap road block encountered the previous day. From the high ground occupied here, we could see Salazar. The next day, another Jap road block was encountered, and six Japs killed. In this area, on St. Patrick’s day, 12 March, the battalion received its first enemy artillery fire during the Luzon Campaign. A few casualties were suffered, but the fire was tactically ineffective, and K Company established its block at the trail junction without difficulty. On 11 March, a Division Field Order had added to the 35t Infantry’s various missions – "Reconnoiter for routes direction Santa Fe." K and L Companies, moving up the Santa Fe fork of the Old Spanish Trail in accordance with these orders, hit a Japanese trail block manned by a reinforced company. After a short fire fight, the two companies withdrew to allow artillery fire to be placed in the area. Further probing of the enemy defense, which consisted of well constructed and mutually supporting pillboxes, disclosed that despite the artillery fire laid in on them, they were still decidedly effective. L Company withdrew to Salazar, leaving K Company to establish a block of its own just below the Jap block. Until a supply route could be constructed, the affair was stalemated. On 15 March, when it became obvious that a bulldozer road was not practicable over the rough and vegetation-choked terrain the trail crossed, K Company withdrew to Salazar, at the fork in the trail. This remained the 3rd Battalion’s base camp during its subsequent operations on the Old Spanish Trail. From the 15th to the 25th, the Battalion maintained its trail block at the Salazar junction, sending strong patrols up both forks of the trail, with the mission of investigating any trace of Jap patrols or other forces in the area, destroying or dispersing them if possible, and keeping especially on the alert for any sign of the movement of large bodies of troops down the trail. The prevailing Japanese mood in this area was offensive, and it was considered possible that, if constant pressure were not put on their positions, and against any advance of theirs, they might stage a large-scale attack down the trial. The objection to such an attack was that though it might afford us an opportunity to draw out a large Jap force and destroy it, invaluable strength would be diverted from the primary mission of securing Highway #5, Balete Pass, and the Cagayan Valley. During the early stages of the 3d battalion operations on the Old Spanish Trail, a considerable amount of harassing fire was received from Japanese 150mm mortars and artillery holed up in the hills. With O.P. observations as a guide, patrols managed to locate the gun positions, and the 251st Field Artillery Battalion registered upon them. After several applications of the treatment, no more artillery fire was received. Until the 25th of March, the 3rd Battalion remained at Salazar, sending out strong combat patrols up both forks of the trail. On the 25th, the 1st Regiment of the LGAF took over their task on the Old Spanish Trail, and they joined the regiment, which meanwhile had launched an attack on the Japanese forces in the Kapintalan area. Back to History Index The "Roller Coaster Road" to Kapintalan
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