Nestled along the turquoise coast of central Queensland, Australia, the small agricultural town of Bowen is used to hosting out-of-towners that come to work the fields during mango season.
The town also gets its fair share retired residents from Southern Australia who make their way up the coast each winter to escape the colder climate further south.
But despite its stunning coastal views and easy going pace, Bowen has somehow remained off the beaten path for American tourists making their way Down Under.
That certainly has not stopped the population of approximately 10,000 from welcoming, with open arms, a group of U.S. soldiers, sailors and Coast Guardsmen operating in the area during Talisman Sabre 23.
"It's been absolutely fantastic," said Bruce Hedditch, the chairman of the Bowen Chamber of Commerce and the owner of the Larrikin Hotel. "They're wonderful visitors and their manner and their courtesy is unbelievable."
This year marks the 10th iteration of Talisman Sabre, a biennial exercise designed to advance a free and open Indo-Pacific by strengthening partnerships and interoperability among key allies.
Nearly 30,000 troops from 13 different countries are participating this year. Several Pacific Island partners — including Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Tonga — are participating for the first time.
The 15-day exercise includes a variety of large-scale logistics and amphibious assault training operations and multinational firepower demonstrations and field training exercises throughout Australia.
The exercise also serves as a key opportunity to further deepen the longstanding bonds between the U.S. and Australia at the community level.
Hedditch said Bowen has seized the opportunity to connect with the group of Americans, whom many Australians see as an important allies and friends.
The Chamber of Commerce hosted a gathering soon after the exercise kicked off to welcome the troops to town. A photo from gathering accompanied an article that ran front page of the local newspaper.
"We've treated America as a wonderful ally, he said. "Everywhere the Americans have been since World War I, we've been with them. We try at every opportunity to help the United States, whatever endeavor they have, because we need a very strong friend."
In Bowen, U.S. Army, Navy and Coast Guard units are working alongside their Australian partners in a large scale combined joint logistics-over-the-shore operation to offload heavy equipment from ships stationed off the coast via a modular causeway system.
The capability provides a key logistic advantage for combat forces operating in areas lacking port infrastructure and can also be used to shuttle supplies to shore during humanitarian assistance operations.
But pulling off such a complex maneuver is by no means easy, and teams have been on the ground for weeks in preparation for the operation.
The units deployed as part of the operation have lived and worked for the past month much as they would during real world operations.
Just outside of Bowen, rows of tents line a patch of land guarded by military security personnel where the units live. A joint operations center has been set up near the camp, and service members work around the clock preparing the beach and offloading equipment.
Despite the high op-tempo for the servicemembers, Bowen locals have gone out of their way to make them feel at home.
A steady stream of food trucks has made their way out to the camp to offer the servicemembers a break from the monotony of deployment rations.
On Thursday, the smell of smoked barbeque filled the air in camp as Wes and Kama Bau, owners of Bauie's Smokin' Hot Meats, served up huge portions to the hungry crowd.
The two have made their way out to the camp with his smoker in tow several times since crews began preparing for the exercise. After a few times he started asking how to make it more like barbeque they would have at home.
"We asked 'what do you like,' you know, 'we'll have a crack at it,'" Wes said.
They began to branch off in to making macaroni and cheese, and American favorite, to serve on the side.
"We gave it a go, and they loved it," Wes said. They have since added baked beans and smoked pork sausage to the rotation.
While the camp just outside of town has certainly been good for business, for Wes, it is about much more. He said it has been an honor to connect with the servicemembers and deepen the ties between the two countries.
"We've been good partners for a long time," Wes said of the U.S. and Australia. "I think in times now, I think we need to be stronger than ever."
Cuppas on the Cape, a mobile coffee shop has also been on hand at the camp to give the troops a quick pick-me-up to start their day.
Troops begin to line up early outside of the coffee stand to order their long blacks and latte's before heading out to the beach or to the joint operations center for a long day of work.
Edenn Womal, one of the baristas manning the stand on Friday morning, said she has regulars that show every morning.
"It's been good to stop and have a chat," she said. "They've been really nice."
She said her and her coworker Amanda Moore have particularly enjoyed placing rare American accents spoken by their customers. Boston and Texas have been their favorites.
One of those Cuppas on the Cape regulars is Army Spc. Jarvis Thompson, a satellite communications specialist from the 307th Expeditionary Signal Battalion – Enhanced based in Anchorage, Alaska, who says he has ordered a brown sugar, oat milk, espresso about every other morning, depending on his work shift.
"I have a really difficult coffee order, and I come and give her a hard time sometimes," Thompson said of his chats with Womal.
"She gets mad at me, but it's okay," he said with a laugh.
Thompson said it was a great opportunity to connect with the local community.
"I'm just a people person," he said. "I just like going and talking to people."
Out in town, one of the more popular stops for those with a little time to get off camp is the Suntan Snack Bar, a cash only burger joint a few blocks from the shore that has been in operation for close to 50 years.
Owner, Steven Wilson, said he has had a steady stream of sailors and soldiers stop in to try the Suntan Special, a steak burger with bacon, egg, cheese, pineapple and beetroot salad.
The reviews on camp are positive.
Wilson says the American troops are a welcome addition to Bowen.
"The people here love Americans," he said. "And now that they're meeting them in person, their opinions are much higher."