Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2012 day 2

Saturday, the busiest day of the Festival.


I headed over to sign up for a rowing/sailing trip aboard the longboats. These longboats are replicas of the longboats used by Captain George Vancouver to explore the Puget Sound region in 1792. Ive been wanting to take a tour on them for years, but havent been able to until now because they were either full or there were too many other things to see and do. There are so many things to do at the festival there is no way to do them all.

These 26 replica longboats are used by the Northwest Maritime Center School Programs. They are each equipped with 8 rowing stations and 3 dipping lug sails.  They are used to teach youth teambuilding, problem solving, and maritime skills.  Teenagers attend intensive 2-5 day programs of discovery and exploration where they learn to row, sail, learn navigation, compass use, knots, marine biology, history and more.  They are also used in the Pacific Challenge.

Fortunately, we had several of these teenage students aboard to help us learn to row in sync and teach us how to tack the three sails on our dipping lug rig.

The first lesson we learned was "Crab!".  "Crab!" is what you yell out when the rowers get out of sync and get their oars all tangled up, which usually brings all four rowers on that side to a halt.

To prevent Crabs, one rower is designated as the pace setter.  From the rowers point of view, its the rower on their right and all the way up front. The rowers are all facing aft of course, so that would make him the aft-most port-side rower.  Anyway, the rower to his immediate left is supposed to row in sync with him.  The rest of the rowers are all supposed to keep in sync with the rower seated immediately in front of them.  Sounds simple, right?  We had lots of Crabs.  All it takes to create a Crab is for one rower to lose focus for a second or two.

Tacking the dipping lug rig involved a complex sequence of  tacking the halyard, the sail tack, tacking the sheets, lowering the sail and dipping the yard, that I still dont fully understand.  It was unlike anything Id ever done before and required about 3 or 4 people on each sail.  I loved it!  I wish I were a teenager so I could sign up for these programs.  I also have a new found respect for the crew of these longboats. After only a half hour of rowing, my hands were numb and my back started to ache.  Vancouvers explorers often rowed for hours upon hours exploring and charting the miles of coastlines here.  Heres a bit of video.  Its not very good.  These are working boats.  Youre always rowing or sailing, or trying to stay out of the way of other boats.  There is very little opportunity for filming.

More to come.

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Sucia 2012 Day 1

After what seemed like an interminably wet Spring, the weather finally broke just in time for this years Sucia Small Boat Rendezvous.  My Son and I met up with Marty Loken at Sandy Point marina early Friday morning, arriving almost simultaneously.  After rigging, launching, and puttering a rather long way through Sandy Point, we finally reached the Strait of Georgia, or the "Salish Sea" which some people now call it, but most of us dont, only to discover ... No Wind.  Drats!

Marty rowed his beautiful Whilly Boat for a while.  We motored for a bit.

Then we towed Marty for another bit until finally, we started to feel a breeze.

The breeze steadily increased until whitecaps began forming, so we stopped to put in a reef.

Shortly after we tied in the reef, naturally the breeze started to die off again, so we shook out the reefs. Argh!

Then, up ahead, we saw three Pelicans! I dont think Ive ever seen pelicans around here before, so this was a real treat for us. I even managed to capture them on video as they flew away.

The wind was now almost completely calm, so we started up the outboard again. Then we saw dolphins!  I believe these are Harbor Porpoises.  We spotted them frequently over the course of the weekend.

When we arrived at Fossil Bay we faced this little problem. I had to wait for the tide to come in so I could move Ellie close enough to the beach to set up my clothesline anchor. Note the seaweed.  This is the nasty stuff that nearly killed my outboard motor last year.  The motor sucked some of it into the cooling intake, plugging it, which caused the motor to overheat.  The engine block got so hot it melted the insulation on the wire to the kill switch, grounding it and shutting off the motor. If that hadnt happened, the motor would have surely seized up.

While waiting for the tide to come in, some of the other boats began to arrive.  This gorgeous boat is a Connecticut River Shad boat.  After talking to the owners for a while, I finally realized that they werent a part of our Rendezvous.  They lived on Orcas Island and were just there for the day.  I told them about our yearly Rendezvous and they said maybe they would join us next year.

Others continued to arrive. Directly behind Ellie you can see Doryman Mike standing in his Valgerda and fellow Shopsmith owner and master woodworker Paul Miller in his Friendship.

Is this tide ever gonna finish coming in??? It did (finally).

We set up camp, did a little hiking, planned our next days trip to Patos Island, and enjoyed this beautiful sunset.

We retired, looking forward to tomorrows Fossil expedition and trip to Patos.

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Sucia Small Boat Rendezvous 2014 Day 1

My son Tim and I just got back from one of our favorite annual events - the Sucia Small Boat Rendezvous at Sucia Island State Park.

Like the last two years, we launched at Sandy Point Shores marina. 

The entrance to Sandy Point always makes me a bit apprehensive. The narrow and shallow entrance goes through a blind S-curve, which then opens to a shallow area with a 270 degree exposure to the vast Straight of Georgia.  During an ebb, the tidal current rushes through this S-curve like a river.  At low tide, there is barely enough room for one boat at a time to fit through the entrance.  You have to approach slowly and peek around the corner to see if there are any oncoming boats, then zip through if the coast is clear.

High tide was 8.9ft at 3:18 am
Low tide was -2.4ft at 11:02 am

We launched at 10:00am.  The worst possible time.  Right near the end of a minus tide with a swift outgoing current due to an 11.3 tidal change.

We should be Ok, I figured.  After all, Navigator only draws 6" of water.  In the back of my mind, I wondered if that was still true when fully loaded with two people and a weeks worth of camping gear.

As we approached the entrance, I idled the motor, double checked that the centerboard and rudder were fully up, and cautiously peered around the corner as I slowly crept toward the entrance.

The swift current immediately grabbed Ellie and swept us into the narrow channel. I instantly realized that the current was so strong that there would be no turning back. Id be using the motor to try to stay in the middle of the narrow channel and not much else. I shot a quick glance for oncoming boats, fortunately there were none, thank goodness. The channel looked too narrow for two boats to pass and there was no room to maneuver.  We were going through, no two ways about it.  Along both shorelines we could see about a dozen spectators, waiting to watch the next fool to try and shoot the rapids.  Up ahead the water looked "funny".  Ripply.  Whatd that mean?  Shallow?  Must be shallow.  How shallow?  I glanced over the side.  Gravel!  Crunch!

We were aground in the middle of the narrow channel with a swift current all around us.

Ok, now what?  Think.  Tides going out. We gotta get out of here or well be stuck here for hours, or until the next boat comes along and hits us.  Should I get out and push her off?  Probably a real bad idea.  The strong current would most likely rip the boat from my hands.

I looked over the stern.  The prop was still above ground.  "Ok, Tim, were gonna try and back our way out of this.  Hope it works".

I turned the motor around and gave it half throttle.  Nothing.  Gave it full throttle.  Our mighty 2hp outboard was giving it everything it had, but still nothing.  Still stuck.

"Tim, lets try shifting our weight around".  Ellie slowly started to move, then broke free!  We backed a safe distance away from the gravel bar and took a couple minutes to regain our composure and assess the situation.

Looking more closely at the water, we could see that it was shallow and ripply on the right, but on the left, closer to the opposite shore, it was clearly deeper.  But then it shot directly into a rocky breakwater.  "I think we can make it, Tim.  Well have to hug the left shore, then quickly zip over to the right at the last second to clear the rocks, then were home free".  Tim agreed, it looked doable.

So we checked again for oncoming boats, then cranked up the Honda to half throttle (full speed for Ellie) and rocketed through the channel.

Whew.  Made it!  Next time, we vowed, well pay closer attention to the tides.




After that ordeal, we were rewarded with many hours of  absolutely perfect sailing conditions.  We saw lots of dolphins.  One surfaced less than 20 from the boat.

We arrived at Sucia and set up camp.  This was our first opportunity to try out my new Anchor Buddy - a Fathers Day gift from my daughter Heather.  Thanks, Heather!  It works great.

Thats Cameron Im talking to.  Cameron and his son take a month off every summer and stop by Sucia for the rendezvous.  They sail a beautiful Wayfarer.

Jamie Orr, organizer of the event, always brings along a set of bagpipes, which he uses to greet arrivals, wish them farewell, or summon the group to various get-togethers like wine and cheese night, campfire gatherings, and the around the island race.  Boaters all around the island applaud using their horns.  In this video clip is Bob Ennenberg (Scram Pram "Duck"), Jamie Orr (Chebacco "Wayward Lass"), Paul Miller (Benford Friendship sloop "Friendship") and Dan Rogers (Balboa 16 "Ladybug").  Dan is organizing an 8-day Movable Messabout in Eastern Washington and Idaho that I am looking forward to attending.

Here, Jamie is summoning the group to celebrate the 11th anniversary of this Rendezvous, with a fine bottle of single malt scotch.

There is so much more to write about, but it is getting late.  I will write some more soon.  In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this most beautiful sunset.

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Sucia Small Boat Rendezvous 2014 Day 2

Saturday morning, after sleeping in a bit late, I fired up the Kelly Kettle while Tim did some writing.  Our Kelly Kettle, by the way, was a big hit.  Just about everyone who saw it was impressed with the speed it could boil water.  Several said they were going to get one for themselves.

There was no reason to hurry because we werent going anywhere.  This is what the perigee-syzygy  does to shallow Fossil Bay.

 

A -2.8 tide does provide an excellent opportunity to see parts of the island normally hidden from view.  Like Sucias treacherous reefs for example.

"Boaters should use caution when in the waters around this park. The word "sucia" is Spanish, meaning foul or dirty in a nautical sense. It refers to the numerous rocks and reefs which surround the island. These rocks and reefs have grounded and sunk numerous boats since European explorers first named the island in the 1790s. Boaters should check their charts frequently and pay particular attention to Clements Reef on the north shore of Sucia, as well as the entrances to Ewing Cove, Fox Cove, and Shallow Bay. There is a long reef which extends to the west of Little Sucia Island. Reefs also extend outward from Ev Henry Point, North and South Finger islands, and the Cluster Islands".

A couple years earlier I discovered what remained of one unfortunate boaters yacht, claimed by the reef at the entrance to Fox Cove.  This mornings low tide would be a great opportunity to see if the shipwreck was still there.

As I was about to set out for some shipwreck and fossil exploration, James McMullen appeared, looking for someone interested in going for a hike.  I told him about my plans and he agreed to join me.

We found the rusted, barnacle encrusted remains of the engine block and the boats windlass right where I remember seeing them years before.  They were straddled one on either side of the reef that obviously sank the boat.  We looked for evidence of exactly where the boat hit the reef but saw no obvious scratches or anything in the reef, but James found some other bits of metal nearby.

From there, we went on to explore the fossils on the southern cliffs of the point.  Every year they look a bit different as the cliffside slowly erodes away, replacing last years fossils with newly exposed ones.  Fossilized clams are by far the most common.  We didnt see anything else this year, but James discovered an unusually large one.

Later that afternoon, when the tide came in, Tim and I finally had an opportunity to explore Little Sucia Island.  This is a completely undeveloped little island just outside of Fox Cove.  It is surrounded by reefs and swift currents.  There is only one small patch of beach suitable to land a boat. The little bay on the North side looks inviting, but its a boulder field just below the surface. We anchored at the patch of beach and walked around the island.  The entire shoreline is covered with rocks and there are no trails, no campsites, and no indication that anyone has ever visited the island.  Quite nice, actually!

We returned to our campsite at Fossil Bay.  Tim went for another hike out to Ev Henry point.  As he came around a corner, he startled two bald eagles which took flight only a few feet from him. He said he could hear the wind whistling through their feathers and it scared the crap out of him!  Tim also came across a pile of white feathers, apparently the remains of a seagull eaten by something.  The park ranger we talked to later said it was probably a hawk.

Later that afternoon was Wine and Cheese night, a visit from my fishing buddy Ray, followed by an evening around the campfire with drinks and music.

Good times.

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Eastern Washington Moveable Messabout Day 1

“I just talked to a camper who came over from the other side of the island.", said Steve. "He said they saw a bear"
“Grizzly or black?”, I asked.
“They weren’t sure.”
Later that evening, just before crawling into my tent, I carefully packed away my food, eliminating anything with a scent.
At 2:30 am, I awoke with a start. Someone in camp was frantically blasting an air horn. Oh shit.

The Eastern Washington Moveable Messabout was Ellie’s grandest adventure to date.  Eleven boats, eleven sailors, seven days, 940 highway miles, two States, five campsites, hot days, freezing nights, fog, sunshine, gale force winds and dead calm.

 
It all began on Sept 9, 2014.  Joining Ellie and I was Steve Lansdowne from Austin, TX.  Steve, who manages the Events Calendar for Duckworks Magazine, was here to visit friends and relatives, attend the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival, join me as a crew member for this messabout, and then return home for Sail Oklahoma.  Quite the schedule!

We packed the back of the truck with a weeks provisions and set off for Newport, WA.  We decided to take the scenic route, Highway 2 instead of Interstate 90.  This added an hour to the trip but was well worth it for the scenery.

No trip to Eastern Wa on Hwy 2 is complete without a stop in Leavenworth, a charming Bavarian village in the Cascade Mountain foothills.  Our lunch stop included some outstanding brats and beer, along with some sightseeing.  Leavenworth is gorgeous in the winter, and of course its the place to be during Octoberfest.

We arrived at our destination, Little Diamond campground, and were soon joined by Tom Gale from Port Townsend with his Bolger Old Shoe.  We set up camp, as it was getting late and it gets dark quickly in this remote area of Eastern Washington.  Next stop: the 8:00 am crew meeting at AJs cafe in Priest River, Idaho.

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Eastern Washington Moveable Messabout Day 3

Sept 11, EWMM day 3.  I unzipped my arctic mummy bag just enough to get an arm out.  I unzipped the rain fly of my tent just enough to poke my head out.  I exhaled and saw my breath.  Then I reversed the entire process.

But alas, Nature calls.  Fortunately this campsite had restrooms. Better take advantage of them (who knows when the next opportunity will be?)

On the way back, it was clear we could do with a campfire on this cold morning.  Steve was up so we started one and made some breakfast.  The team soon gathered.

The plan for today was to transit to the north end of Priest Lake for overnight beach camping (about 15 miles) with the option to continue into remote Upper Priest Lake for an additional overnight or day trip (an additional 5-7 miles).

But, Dan warned, the weather forecast called for conditions much like the ones that kicked our butts yesterday.  After some discussion, we decided to make for the north shore of Bartoo Island instead, stopping at Kalispell Island for lunch along the way.

We broke camp, loaded the boats, and departed.  Steve opted to join Dennis aboard his Scram Pram. There was no wind at all when we left, so we motored at first.  As we entered the main part of the lake a gentle breeze appeared and we killed the motors.

Ellie was doing very well in the light breeze, slowly but gradually pulling ahead of the group.  I soon found myself all alone, in one of those rare Zen-like moments when there is absolutely no man-made sound.  Only the delicate gurgle of the water trickling past the hull, the slightest whisper of the gentle breeze, and the barely perceptible creak of Ellies wooden masts against her leather partners. I tried to remember the last time I was truly "away from it all", or if that was even possible?

Up ahead was Kalispell Island.  My handheld VHF radio crackled to life, bringing my moment of Zen to an abrupt end.  It was Dan, asking me to look for a patch of beach suitable for our lunch stop.  The first patch I saw was rocky and too small, but just past it was a longer beach, complete with a picnic table.  I beached Ellie there and waited for the rest of the group to arrive.

By this time Id grown quite fond of these sandy beaches!  Kalispell had an abundance of firewood so we gathered a bit and loaded it into Dans plastic kayak, knowing it would be another cold night at Bartoo. Soon after, we departed for another lazy sail to Bartoo, a largely uninhabited island with primitive campsites - no potable water or toilets are available.  The wind gradually weakened, and finally stopped altogether, forcing us to motor the rest of the way.

We set up camp in a long line near the beach, and then began cooking dinner.  The wind finally started to blow, gradually growing stronger and stronger as the evening wore on.  Then I saw Steve walking towards me.

“I just talked to a camper who came over from the other side of the island.", said Steve. "He said they saw a bear."

“Grizzly or black?”, I asked.

“They weren’t sure.”

Later that evening, just before crawling into my tent, I carefully packed away my food, eliminating anything with a scent.

At 2:30 am, I awoke with a start. Someone in camp was frantically blasting an air horn.
Oh shit.

There must be a bear in the camp!  What should I do?  Stay in my tent where Im safe?  Safe??  Behind a thin layer of rip-stop nylon?  I could see the flickering of flashlight beams glowing outside my tent, and could hear some alarmed voices, but I couldnt make out what they were saying.   I heard the air horn blast again.  Two short bursts followed by one long one.  I laid there, listening carefully.  The voices were more calm now, sounding like normal conversation.  I listened for a long time.  There were no more horn blasts and all the conversations went away.  I peeked out of my tent flap.  Nobody there - theyd all gone back to sleep, and so did I.

Next morning, I learned what had happened.  The wind had grown strong enough to break Ellie loose from the beach and she had drifted over to Denniss Scram Pram, rubbing against her hull.  Dan, anchored a short distance offshore, had discovered this during the night and sounded the alarm to alert us to move the boats apart.  The two boats exchanged a little paint and suffered some minor scratches.

Ill take that over a bear any day.

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Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2012 day 3

Final day of the festival.

Without a doubt, the hit of this years festival has to be James McMullens "Bar Tender" dinghy.

I caught a glimpse of James towing his keg laden dinghy on the way into the festival on Thursday, then gladly accepted a brew after we had set up, but it wasnt until now that I had a chance to fully appreciate it in all its glory.  Beauty, brilliance, utility, usefulness, hops, barley.  Its got it all.  Well done James!

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Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2012 day 1

Friday morning. Let the Festival begin!

There were lots of interesting boats this year, including some Welsford designs new to the festival.
The Oregon Coots brought two Welsford Mollyhawks named Salt and Pepper, built at the Port of Toledo Community Boathouse.

This is Humu, Arlie Blankenships family built Scamp #74 which will feature a lateen type sail  and an auxiliary electric motor with AGM batteries for ballast.  Humus name, color scheme, and choice of sail depict the Hawaiian state fish, the humuhumunukunukuapua?a, aka reef triggerfish.  I love it when a boat has a theme.

Need bronze hardware? Top quality hand tools? This is the place to go.

A few of the festival boats.  Doryman has done a far better job than I of photographing the many beautiful festival boats.  See his slideshow here.

 

 

 

Hang onto your socks, but this year I decided to enter the 26 and under wooden sailboat race.  Yes, me, the guy whos never raced anything in his life. The guy who has no trace of the racing gene in his DNA decided to become a sailboat racer for the first time.  Well, sorta.  After I attended the pre-race skippers meeting I quickly realized that I was utterly clueless so I invited Doryman to come along for my own protection.  Mike is an experienced racer.  I needed him badly.  Thank goodness he accepted.

We headed out about a half hour before the race was due to start so we could locate the markers and check out the boat.  Mike confirmed what John Welsford told me last year; that my jibsheet fairleads need to move aft about foot.  I still havent moved them.  I have no excuses.

The race started at 2:30 but we got off to a very late start after we tangled with another boat that didnt yield the right of way to us.  To make matters worse, the winds were light and the currents were strong, plus the wind shifted direction making it difficult for us as one of the smallest boats in the race.  Still, we gave a Beetle Cat a run for its money, and passed a Goat Island Skiff for a while.  Many of the smaller boats were unable to complete the course before the two hour time limit expired so they dropped out.  But Mike and I were determined to finish the race, no matter what, even if the finish line was no longer there. We completed the course about 5 minutes after the time limit expired.  Victory!

So, whats it like, Ive been asking myself, to be a sailboat racer? Ill probably get in trouble for saying this but I must confess it didnt do a lot for me.  Dont get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for skilled sailboat racers, and I mean no disrespect to anyone, but Im afraid going around in circles as fast as you can just doesnt stir anything within me.  Im sorry.  I really am.  My DNA has no racing gene.  Its not my fault!  I think Ill just cross Sailboat Racing off my bucket list and go back to exploring, relaxing, and just generally enjoying myself when out sailing.  Please forgive me.

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Opening Day Parade

Saturday last, the Port Townsend Yacht Club, in Port Townsend, Washington celebrated the beginning of spring sailing season with a sail-by of the downtown area.

Doryman took the opportunity to hitch a ride with Captn Kirk Gresham in his Crotch Island Pinky, Tradition. Here we see Kirk rigging his sprit ketch with fellow crew member Lynn Watson standing by.

Most of the boats present were plastic power driven craft. Seemed to have missed those in the photos, which can be found in Dorymans Flickr sets.

The Port Townsend Pocket Yachters turned out in force, though catching them in the act was harder than it might seem. This was suppose to be a parade...

Bad Doryman! He was playing hooky from work. But happily he can say, the Stone Horse, Belle Starr is very close to being ready to launch, none-the-less. Plans to put her in the water have been, of necessity, postponed until August. Its going to be difficult to wait that long.




The name graphic on her stern is a stencil, ordered on-line. The letters are black and outlined with a thin burgundy stripe. The name is printed in an arc to match the transom.
Looks pretty good, wouldnt you say?

Please note the small door down below, on the forward bulkhead. See the dolphin? This is a very cool boat.

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