By SCOTT HADLY, Scripps Howard News Service

From the boat, you couldn't quite make out how big it was, but the smell of petroleum and methane wafting offshore from Coal Oil Point north of Santa Barbara, Calif. was strong enough to signal that it was a pretty large oil slick.

Until now there were just a few legal options to get to the waves at Point Mugu, Calif.: Befriend someone in the military who didn't mind escorting you to the beach, boat in, or enlist in the Navy.

Guarding the nation's borders and airports is hard enough, but security experts say an equally tough task is watching over the country's 12,000 miles of coastline.

When the 200-nautical-mile buffer zone that makes up U.S. territorial waters is included, that amounts to almost 2.5 million square miles of open water to patrol.

DIYALA PROVINCE, Iraq -- Editor's note: The Ventura County Star sent a reporter and photographer to document the experiences of Seabees deployed to Iraq from Naval Base Ventura County. While there, an Army battalion commander invited them to see how the American military is attempting to defeat the insurgency in what is now considered the most violent spot in Iraq -- Diyala Province.

CAMP RAMADI, Iraq -- There are many threats to the troops deployed here, but few as insidious as the bacon cheeseburger, French fries and soda.

Reflecting what's happening across the United States, the military is fighting fat.

Fitness is not just an ideal, it's a necessity in the military.

Glenn Harris tilted a heavy piece of pockmarked armor onto its edge.

The green veneer was gouged and dented with quarter- and dime-sized cavities. Next to each divot was a bit of writing, some in white, some in gray and black: "7.62 x39LC," "5.50," "AP 308."