Boarding Ladder Practice....

Ah man!  This sucks!  If you can do this well then you've got "total body conditioning"...

11th MEU Raid Force aboard the USS New Orleans.  Photos by Cpl Chad Pulliam.

Cpl. Justin Schoonover, 25, climbs a narrow ladder aboard USS New Orleans from a rigid hull inflatable boat here March 8. Schoonover, a Charlotte, N.C., native, serves with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit's maritime raid force. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Lance Cpl. Ethan E. Allen climbs aboard USS New Orleans from a rigid hull inflatable boat here Mar. 8. Allen, a Fort Madison, Iowa, native, serves with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit's maritime raid force. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Lance Cpl. Harland D. Shelton, 20, watches from a rigid hull inflatable boat as another Marine climbs aboard USS New Orleans here March 8. Shelton, a Indiahoma, Okla., native, serves with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit's maritime raid force. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.

Marines with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit's maritime raid force climb aboard USS New Orleans from rigid hull inflatable boats here Mar. 8. The unit is deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, a U.S. Central Command theater reserve force. The group is providing support for maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet area of responsibility.