European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 22, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Saturday september 22, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 9over Here chaplain Kenneth Seifried a lieutenant colonel with the Giessen military Community conducts a service on the deck of the Remote installation atop mount  Post lonely but lovable by John Millar Wurzburg Bureau Vockerodt West Germany a the . Army intelligence detachment on mount. Meissner would love to see a Little Post cold War warmth especially on those Days when the Furnace wont Start. But so far its still business As usual at the units Mountaintop Home 35 Miles North of bad Hersfeldt and 2,475 feet above sea level. If the 12 members of the unit can to say exactly what that business is they be got plenty of comments about their Small fenced in compound reached by a three mile stretch of twisting Road that Heads up from Vocke Rode the nearest Village. Just getting to the tiny compound can be Tricky according to capt. Richard Albrecht the 33-year-old commander of the detachment. A native of Fargo n.d., Albrecht said most of his soldiers live in towns below the towering wooded Mountain. And commuting up can be a Challenge. A driving conditions Are bad with the slope of the Hill a Albrecht said a let alone the weather  those weather factors include Snow that sometimes closes the sole Access Road said staff sgt. Jeff Chase 30, from Mason City Iowa. When that happens the soldiers a Park about Halfway up and walk the rest of the Way a he said. Despite the Snow ice and wet leaves on hairpin turns and the fog that sometimes reduces visibility to almost Zero Chase said a car is essential for living in the area. Otherwise soldiers would be either stuck on the Mountain or at its base he said. Getting fuel for the Gas guzzling climb requires a 15-mile drive to the Esso station in Eschwege. That a nothing compared to the 62-mile round trip for Gas coupons at the nearest Exchange in bad Hersfeldt. Four soldiers live atop the Mountain in a Barracks a half mile from the compound said spec. Michael Salas 22, of Fremont Calif. The building is old cold and plagued by a electrical problems water problems heating problems a Albrecht said. The troops have tried to put the Best face possible on their antiquated accommodations. A Small garage doubles As a basketball court and there a a weight room in the basement of one of the buildings. A tiny trailer serves As a Library. There a also a makeshift Kitchen for full time residents and those working weekend shifts. Since there Are no exchanges Banks food malls or other facilities that most soldiers in Europe now take for granted Albrecht said he a tried to a bring More of the creature comforts out  through his efforts an army and air Force Exchange service  started making weekly runs up the Mountain in july. The troops Only recently started getting weekend editions of the stars and stripes although the paper is dropped at the Eschwege train station 15 Miles away As is their mail. Some support is offered by the Giessen Frankfurt and Fulda military communities Albrecht said. Giessen 90 Miles away provides such things As vehicles rations supplies and furniture. Chaplains from the Community began visiting the troops in january stopping by about once every six weeks. Fulda 40 Miles from the site provides Legal services the cafes  and a few other services. Frankfurt More than 125 Miles away is Home of the detachments Parent unit the 302nd military intelligence in and the Mountain men have to make the trek for administrative financial and professional support. A depending on How Many trucks and Travis Are on the Road and construction sometimes it can be a whole Day affair just to get a minor task done a Albrecht said. Surprisingly the hardships of being assigned to the Middle of nowhere Are lost on most members of the detachment. Staff sgt. James Brown likes it so much that he s stayed seven years. Unlike the situation in such places As Frankfurt where there a a Large american population Brown said the assignment offers a Chance to really experience West Germany. A a we re forced to do things with the germans if we want to have any Type of social contacts at All a he said. A at first its quite an adjustment. A most people i think either really like it or really hate it a said Brown a 33-year-old German linguist from Freeport 111. A being out among germans does no to bother me at All. You just get things done on the German  pfc. Edwin Cheatham worked at the units Headquarters in Frankfurt for three months and requested the Remote site assignment. Cheatham 20, of Woodbridge va., acknowledged the drawbacks. But being part of a Small close knit unit makes up for the hardships he said. A it takes a different Type of attitude to survive up Here a said 1st sgt. Mike Gaffner 37, of Perry Mich. A fall the people that Are Here have that attitude. You have to. You re out in the Middle of nowhere. Here you have no choice.�?�. Offers troop Cut in philippine bases talks Manila Philippines apr . And philippine officials Friday adjourned talks on the future of . Military bases with the americans offering to Cut their forces. However there was no agreement on the scale of the cutbacks or a timetable for those cuts. On the eve of the talks president Corazon Aquino said the time had come for an orderly withdrawal from the bases which some filipinos feel infringe on their National sovereignty. Spokesmen for both sides told reporters Friday that they would resume talks in about a month in Manila. No precise Date was announced. Philippine officials said they want Complete control As soon As possible of Clark a the largest . Overseas installation. They staked out that position thursday on the third Day of talks on the future of Park the Subic Bay naval facilities and four smaller installations. The lease on the bases expires in september 1991. Chief . Negotiator Richard Armitage and philippine foreign Secretary Raul Mang Lapus had agreed that the smaller installations of Wallace air station Camp John Hay the san Miguel communications station and Camp of Donnell would revert to filipino control next year according to philippine spokesman Rafael Aunan. However the spokesman for the . Panel Stanley Schrager said Friday that no decision had been reached on any of the installations. Mang Lapus who met with Aquino after the talks said the discussions a have lived up to our Hopes. To Lay the foundation of new relations with the United  a we Are not entertaining any phase Down in Clark because we want to take Over Clark immediately upon the termination of the current agreement a he said. He said the philippine panel will study a . Proposal to allow flights carrying american military personnel to continue to land at Clark. The philippine government Hopes to convert Park into an International Airport Complex. Mang Lapus said the proposal would also involve stationing some . Air transport equipment and personnel on the facility. When the talks began tuesday Armitage said the Days of a Large american military presence Here were coming to an end. Aunan said the United states had proposed a 10 to 12-year phaseout of its forces but Schrager said no specific time Frame had been discussed. The bases Are technically under philippine control but Are in effect run by the americans who ruled this Island nation from 1898 until Independence in 1946. The United states maintains 40,000 troops defense department civilians and military dependents at the six bases. Schrager said the United states is seeking to maintain Access to some of the military facilities. Most surveys show a majority of filipinos support keeping the bases. But any treaty to keep them after the lease runs out requires approval by two thirds of the 23-member philippine Senate where opposition to the bases is Strong