18. Triton spent several days traversing the Philippines
The Philippines were where Ferdinand Magellan lost his life during his expedition’s circumnavigation, leaving others to complete it in his name. When Triton reached the spot where Magellan is alleged to have died, it had already traveled close to 20,000 miles. In Philippine waters, Triton encountered numerous ships going about their business. They were used as drill targets for several exercises as the submarine simultaneously maneuvered to avoid detection and stay out of their way. On several occasions off the Philippines, Beach raised the periscope to see people in rafts looking directly at him. One even waved at the periscope. On April 1, Beach raised the periscope and discovered a young man in a dugout canoe, looking directly at the glass of the device.
The young Filipino, looked back and forth in the water before returning his gaze to the periscope, an indication that he had spotted the hull of the submarine beneath the surface. Beach ordered the scope lowered, waited a few minutes, and raised it again. The young man was still there, staring into the scope as it broke the surface. Beach again lowered the scope and ordered the submarine to move ahead of the dugout canoe. When he raised the scope yet again for another look, the young man was paddling hard in the opposite direction, away from whatever it was he thought he had seen. Triton returned to its planned course through the Celebes Sea to the Lombok Strait, bound for the Indian Ocean.