The governor arrived in central Iraq aboard a V-22 Osprey. She stepped off the helicopter-airplane hybrid wearing a bulletproof flak jacket and a camouflaged helmet.

Clearly, this was no ordinary trip.

“You don’t pass up an opportunity to go to Iraq,” Gov. Chris Gregoire told The News Tribune on Monday, four days after returning from a visit with Washington National Guard soldiers deployed with the 81st Brigade Combat Team.

The drop-in was also new territory for many of the 2,400 Washington residents serving with the brigade.

“It was the first time I’ve ever met the governor,” said Spc. Shane Zoellmer, a 20-year-old SeaTac resident. “It was one of the coolest moments I’ve had. It was really awesome just to have her here, actually coming to where we’re at. That was above and beyond to come visit the troops.”

The trip, the fulfillment of a promise the governor made to the brigade during its training in Yakima last August, remained classified until she arrived in Iraq.

Gregoire traveled Jan. 4 to Washington, D.C., and met with Pentagon officials the next day. She left Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland Jan. 5 with Govs. Jon Corzine of New Jersey and Rick Perry of Texas, who also were visiting troops from their states.

The governors’ 737 landed in Kuwait, where they boarded a military C-130 for Baghdad. Gregoire met with Ambassador Ryan Crocker, a Spokane native, and with Washington National Guard soldiers serving in Iraq’s capital.

The next day she visited the 81st at bases outside Ramadi and Balad before returning to Baghdad. She returned to Kuwait that night.

It was Gregoire’s first trip into a war zone, something she was reminded of while flying nearly 900 miles between bases wearing a bulletproof vest and helmet. Even tight security couldn’t shake the feeling of danger.

“You can’t get it out of your mind that (insurgents) could, at any time, lob a rocket in your building,” she said. “It’s ever-present.”

At Camp Ramadi, outside the capital of Al Anbar province, she toured the base, including stops at soldiers’ living quarters and recreation areas. At Joint Base Balad, she greeted the Guardsmen and saw off a group of soldiers preparing for a convoy-security mission.

She shared meals with soldiers, shook hands, posed for photos and discussed a range of issues, such as veterans benefits and the faltering economy back home.

“We’re reading all the reports about the economy and the big budget deficit,” brigade commander Col. Ronald Kapral said. “… They liked the candor, they liked honesty, they liked that the governor came forward and wasn’t afraid to be with the soldiers.”

The timing wasn’t ideal – it was days before the Legislature began its session – but Gregoire said the schedule was determined by the Department of Defense. And she received word during her trip of floods in some Western Washington communities.

“There’s nothing you can do about it,” she said. “You can’t get out. I’d call back and have telephone communication, but you’re not going to board a commercial flight early and get out. They’re not going to bring in a separate helicopter or C-130 or 737 to get you out of that war zone.”

Many at Camp Ramadi are full-time Guardsmen used to seeing the governor during state emergencies.

“I’m sure it was stressful on her to be away during that time,” said Master Sgt. CathyJo Wings, 59, of Tacoma. “The fact she didn’t cancel her trip showed a lot of appreciation for us.”

Scott Fontaine: 253-320-4758

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