Graham Smith, an All Things Considered producer, is in Afghanistan with NPR Pentagon correspondent Tom Bowman and photographer David Gilkey. They've been there a week and will be in the country, much of the time "embedded" with U.S. troops, for another month.

Earlier today, Tom reported about the challenges facing U.S. and coalition forces in the country's Helmand Province, where Taliban forces have been on the rise. In this post, Graham describes the helicopter ride they took from Kandahar to Helmand province, the scenery along the way and the remote place they're visiting:

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David Gilkey/NPR

Sgt. Lance Jemiso, a door gunner with the U.S. Army A Co. 3/82 CAB, looks out over the desert while flying to Lashkar Gah in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan. Helicopters are a essential piece of the military operation in Afghanistan with limited roads and IED (improvised explosive device) threats becoming a daily threat.

By Graham Smith

Being on a Blackhawk helicopter is a new experience for me. What a ride. There's something of the little boy thrill at being in a big machine, even when there's the possibility that some pot shot might come in through a window.

The terrain we flew over was dry and beautiful — a close-up view of what I saw coming in to Afghanistan from Dubai.

There were a lot of farmer's fields near Kandahar, then some crazy jutting mountains where the door gunners tested their weapons. I made a recording, in case we do a story about moving around, and barely noticed the pelting I took from copper shell casings that ripped out of the side of the machine guns.

 

The mountains, which just rise out of the flat plain like icebergs, opened up to tufted desert desolation. Occasionally, we'd see car tracks through the sand or a lone camel, but not much else, and then eventually we started to see the wide flat tents of nomads.

They're losing some of their traditional grazing lands to other tribes, and many are being alienated — turning to the Taliban for support and income. Most travel back and forth between Pakistan and Afghanistan, with little use for the border. They're accused of shepherding illicit goods along with their animals, and one of our contacts here told us that it's essential to get them on board with the government soon.

Eventually, we came to Lashkar Gah, over small smoking brick factories and mud-walled compounds. Down below, most people didn't even look up at the Blackhawks — I guess they're so common that they've faded into background noise. But I was fascinated to look down into the yards that may be years away from being able to visit.

Folks were walking around, and you could see a few cars, but the thing that caught my eyes were the motorcycle-powered carts that I guess are common here. Like a house built on the back of a Honda copy. Giving me some ideas for that CB750 back home.

After getting settled, we were taken on a drive around town. We were in big armored vehicles called Cougars, and only got out at the police headquarters and another site where they're building a facility. Along the route at one point we heard a clang on the side of the Cougar, and the gunner up top said, "They're throwing rocks on the right side." Apparently not uncommon, and my first instinct was to think it's a sign of hating the foreigners.

The major who was with us had a different take, "It's like when kids back home throw acorns or snowballs at passing cars. They want to show off for their friends." And I could see that too. The major said some of the older teenagers have good arms, and when it gets bad there are some non-lethal flares that the Americans shoot to shoo the throwers off.

We did get to talk to some Afghans who were at the construction site. Not long enough to break through the bravado of wanting to join the police and hating the Taliban, etc, but enough to start feeling contact. What a diverse people, and handsome.