Deep Venture

A U.S. Navy submariner's account of his adventurous life in service beneath the waves.

Beginning on a cattle ranch in Colorado, this memoir follows a young sailor on his voyage around the world. After enlisting in the U.S. Navy in 1960 and completing the Nuclear Power School program, Gary Penley embarks on a series of adventures-often at risk of his life-while serving on a submarine as a power plant operator.


During his seven years with the navy, Penley and his shipmates encounter several frightening situations. While on submerged patrol in the Mediterranean Sea, his submarine, the USS Hamilton, strikes a heavy object, which tears a large hole in the ballast tank and threatens to sink the submarine. Later, they ride out a ferocious storm in the Arctic Circle that nearly submerges the vessel. Another harrowing experience occurs when the sailors, while on a top-secret mission in the Mediterranean during the Six-Day War, are attacked by unknown enemy ships and barely escape unscathed.


Throughout his expeditions, Penley stops in such countries as Spain, Scotland, Italy, and Japan. In this captivating memoir, he recounts the coping skills necessary to live in a confined space for extended patrols while facing constant danger—often resulting in hilarious scenarios that only wild submarine sailors could conjure. He also provides a detailed description of the submarine and explains how the machines operate. Written in a candid tone, this memoir carries the reader along for the epic ride.

Praise for Deep Venture
"Penley uses his naval experience and considerable talent as a storyteller to write a humorous and totally engaging account of life beneath the sea. Against a backdrop of Cold War nuclear deterrence, and the ever-present personal danger faced by submariners, he takes us down the hatch into the claustrophobic confines of his submarine and life among an odd collection of sailors willing to endure the hardship of being submerged and incommunicado for months at a time. . . . A unique and highly entertaining story." —Michael Archer, author of A Patch of Ground: Khe Sanh Remembered
"Clear and lucid writing immediately grips the reader as Penley explores the tension, fear, humor, and adventure of navy and submarine life, enriched with a realism and accuracy that is often missing from such accounts. This story deserves a place on the bookshelf of anyone who reads and admires true stories of adventure at sea." —James Ennes, author of Assault on the Liberty