The Tenuous Lives of Tall Ships: A Reminder

heartbreaking

In the recent Weather Channel special on the rescue of fourteen of the sixteen crew of the HMS Bounty by the United States Coast Guard, survivor Douglas Faunt said it well:  "A wooden boat is always sinking."

The mariners all know, to borrow a turn from Gordon Lightfoot, that there is no permanency to a ship.  This was simply a given in the age of sail:  The lee shore would come, or simply the timber would give out.  The bottom of of any body of water will bear testament to that water's power over the vessels that pass through it.  Yet today's tall ships--museums, classrooms, and symbols of the bygone--can achieve such a status that their fragility can be overlooked.

Wasn't she lovely:  HMS Bounty and a nice bow wave

The 1960 replica of the legendary HMS Bounty has, outside of the family of sailors and fans, perhaps achieved that unfortunate status of becoming more famous in death than in life, like the Edmund Fitzgerald that Gord immortalized in song.  The aforementioned TV special places equal emphasis on the tragedy of the ship's loss and the heroism of the Coast Guard.  It seemed wise enough for Captain Walbridge, who had commanded the Bounty for seventeen years and through plenty of rough weather, to see riding out Hurricane Sandy at sea as a better alternative to being battered ashore.  Whether it was the 80 knot winds and the 30 foot seas, some special circumstance, or some fateful decision that brought the ship and its commander down may never be known.  What is clear is that the personnel of an HC-130 and two helicopters braved incredible conditions to rescue the equally courageous souls, in gumby suits and fragile rafts, that made it off the Bounty as she took on water, listed, and sank.  USCG rescue swimmers have the most insane job ever, and, really, Daniel Todd deserved a shout out from President Obama.  Yet I cannot help but think that for millennia there were no such saviors.  Is it possible that sailors take for granted that a Jayhawk will swoop out of the sky, drop a swimmer and a basket, and put the sea at bay?

Almost beautiful:  The La Grace aground

And is it also possible that we take today's tall ships for granted, as if their curatorial position makes them more invincible than the thousands of real, working vessels that they strive to maintain the memory of?  Over at the Fo'c'sle, the fate of the the Czech brig La Grace has been followed after she ran aground at Marbella, Spain, in October.  There was no hurricane taking over the national media here, no dramatic rescue.  It took weeks for the La Grace to be pulled free, and it is still unclear whether the damage sustained is too severe for the ship to be restored to her previous splendor.  Only slightly less alarming was the Fo'c'sle's reporting that schooner W.N. Ragland, built in 1913, the private boat of Neil Young for 35 years, and a regular at the CWB's annual festival (and thus I boat I have been aboard) was dismasted during transit from Seattle to San Francisco.

La Grace:  It could happen to anyone

You have to be getting the picture by now.  All beings are mortal.  Boats are mortal.  Wooden boats are even more mortal.  I shudder at the idea that, some day, dear vessels to me, from the little sharpies Betsy D and Colleen Wagner to the grand ships Lady Washington and Surprise, may not exist.  You are the choir being preached to, of course, but recent events MUST REMIND US that we cannot assume that boats we know and love can live and thrive without human care and effort.  Let not the deaths of Robin Walbridge, Claudene Christian, and the ship they adored be not without a lesson worth repeating, a purpose worth giving and even sacrificing for.  Do everything that you can.

Now.

Great flavors that taste great together

Just a quick recommendation...

You, dear reader, may already be a fan of the show Once Upon A Time.  If not, you should be, as it is a truly enchanting piece of entertainment.  It is now just into its second season; the first has been out on DVD for a couple of months, if you want to catch up.  I bring this up now as it has now gone piratical.  In the latest episode, they have introduced none other than my original pirate, Captain Hook!  I will give away nothing, just urge you to seek it out via On Demand, online, etc.  If you have already watched it, feel free to leave a note on how you liked the show's spin on Hook.  And, just to make it even cooler, our good Lady Washington appears, under sail and all, as Hook's ship.  Magic, piracy, tall ships, swordplay, taverns...  More, please! 

Logan, Pt. IV: Out to Sea

We return again to Logan's tale.  What follows is somewhere between fact and imagination. The facts are largely gleaned from Rediker's Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, from which I have generalized and borrowed the occasional phrase.  There's probably some debt as well to Dana's Two Years Before The Mast, certainly O'Brian, and even a little Moby Dick.  The rest comes from my head.  This is historical fiction in a raw form...a writer's warm up.

Liverpool's Old Dock and Custom House, 1773

Logan has managed to slip, relatively unnoticed, into the dirty streets by the docks of Liverpool.  He was free of at least the immediate attention of English authorities, but he was ready to be away from here, too, knowing that he had a new set of dangers.  Like any crowded city, pickpockets came out of shadows and sidled up quietly, tho' they would have been sore disappointed with this bedraggled Scottish fugitive, who had no purse at all.  He was far more worried about the crimps.  These unscrupulous men preyed on the down and out, the sailors whose pay had already been spent on ale and women, or were still too drunk to know that they had been shanghaied.  They might have been working for some equally amoral captain who needed whatever crew he could get, but the crimps were most interested in their cut than who they got or how they got them--a little bribery, a quick knock to the head, it didn't matter.  The unlucky seaman could suddenly find himself signed to a wicked vessel with a vicious commander for next to no pay.  More insidious were the "spirits," who lured the vulnerable with immediate cash and the promise of good wages but were actually indenturing their careless prey.  Finally, there was the ever-present risk of the press gang.  This was less of a concern, as there was no war going on; the War of the Spanish Succession had just ended, and in fact many soldiers at sea were out of work...and turning pirate.   Nevertheless, there were many reasons for Logan to not linger in port.

When boats are movie stars

The postmodern tall ship:  The Earl of Pembroke in a poster for the upcoming Cloud Atlas

Outside of genre films, it's not very often that a boat gets to be a movie star.  The Lady Washington, thanks to her role as the Interceptor in the original Pirates of the Caribbean, is now recognizable to fans worldwide and is essentially the modern image of the pirate ship, even tho' not only as brig would she have not been common in the Golden Age Caribbean but also the ship was built as a replica of a late 18th century vessel of the U.S. Navy.  The HMS Rose, after her moment in the spotlight as Lucky Jack's dear ship in Master and Commander:  The Far Side of the World, was even renamed the Surprise and is now educating thousands at the San Diego Maritime Museum on the ways of the old Royal Navy.  Now the barque Earl of Pembroke of Bristol, already a veteran of the Hornblower series among other roles, is hitting the big screen in the new Cloud Atlas.  All of these are, at least in part, historical dramas, and readers of this blog should know these ships well.  But, the other night, the DVR captured a modern film that was all about the boats.  This is especially worth pausing for as one of the vessels is no longer with us.

At sea, no one can hear you scream

Dead Calm came out back in 1989, based on the novel from 1963 and directed by Australia's Philip Noyce.  There are only three human cast members:  the always intense Sam Neill, a young Nicole Kidman (only 22 at the time), and, the sole Yank, Billy Zane (with hair!).  Without giving too much away, as this is a film I would recommend, the premise is that Neill and Kidman are cruising the South Pacific when they are overtaken by the psychopathic Zane.  Other than some set up at the beginning, the film takes place entirely at sea.  It is a psychological thriller, but the tension would be nothing without some realistic nautical elements.  Thus one must give equal billing to the film's two boats.  The identity of these vessels are revealed in Dead Calm's production notes here.

Stormvogel with sails set for running downwind, from blog.tadroberts.ca

The protagonists are sailing aboard a ketch named the Saracen.  In reality, this was a rather famous yacht named the Stormvogel.  Details of her design can be found here at boat designer Tad Roberts' blog, while a discussion of her history is here at the Wooden Boat Forum.  She was built in in 1961, commissioned by one C. Bruynzeel.  Not surprisingly, as Bruynzeel was at the time the head of a long-standing and still extant producer of plywood, he had the boat made of marine plywood.  Stormvogel was built in South Africa, purportedly the "first truly light displacement maxi ocean racer."  She has won numerous blue-water race trophies.  She is also a big boat, 74' LOA, with three double-bed cabins and a fourth twin-bed cabin.  Bruynzeel died on Stormvogel while racing her in Greece.  The producers of Dead Calm found her in Sydney, doing their filming in the Whitsunday Passage between Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef.  The latest I can find on the Stormvogel is that she is on the charter list at yachtcharter.jp.

The Golden Plover in all her finery

The Stormvogel appears to be alive and well, but her costar in Dead Calm did not fare well.  In the movie, the villainous Zane has just abandoned the "schooner" Orpheus.  The ship was in fact a 30-meter (ca. 98') brigantine, the Golden Plover, and had been around since 1910.  A well-written narrative on the ship can be found here at wordpress.com blog The Fo'c'sle.  She began life as a steam-powered tug in Melbourne and worked various jobs for decades until she caught fire.  She lay sunken in the Maribyrnong River until she was resurrected by the brothers Helmut, Gunther and Gerhardt Jacoby.  In 1974 she lived again, and by the 1980's was not only the oldest working boat in Australia but regularly used in film, including 14-year-old Brooke Shields' notorious softcore disguised as cinema, The Blue Lagoon.  In the 1990's, the Golden Plover was based in Cairns and spent time doing "Great Barrier Reef boat partying tours."  Whether as a result of this lifestyle or not, at the turn of the century she was in horrible disrepair.  In 2011, at the age of 101, she was broken up.

Golden Plover in 2009, looking weary

I don't mean to be a downer, but fame does not equal preservation when it comes to boats.  The Surprise was deemed unseaworthy by the Coast Guard for quite some time after filming Master and Commander, tho' she is now fully operational and was back in form in On Stranger Tides.  Lady Washington underwent major hull restoration over the summer that required nearly $200,000 dollars in state and private funding.  There is even a web site, still to be seen, that tried to save the Golden Plover.  The point is simple:  If we are to continue to enjoy our tall ships, on the water or on the screen, then we must contribute how we can.  That message must and will be repeated.  You can help the San Diego Maritime Museum here, and the Historical Seaport, home of the Lady Washington and the Hawaiian Chieftain, can be supported here.  If there is a boat dear or close to you, and you can't give money, give time.  Every effort counts.

Portrait of a pirate as a young boy

35 years ago.  1977.  Best known to those of my kind as the year of Star Wars.  That momentous day was May 25th, which should have been duly celebrated two months ago with your own personal recreation of the Mos Eisley cantina (just leave the droids outside) or at least a plastic cup of blue milk.  But I want you to go back to earlier in the spring, before the world learned of The Force, before Han Solo became this geek's favorite captain.  Back to when my favorite captain was named...Hook.

Forget about it, Sparrow.  He got there way before you did.

Lake Union Wooden Boat Festival 2012

The Lavengro says, "Welcome back."

Day One, Saturday, 6/30:  My Happy Place.  It all feels comfortable and familiar.  Eldon walks around and officiates as always, and Aislinn gives me a big hug as I check in.  As Pirate Lou starts making the rounds, it's as much about saying "Good to see you again" with the coffee drinkers aboard the Orion as it is about hooking kids for story time.  I'm convinced by Dan the man that the One Reel relationship may not be so bad.  If it means not only more people knowing about (and donating to) the CWB but also a possible vision for the 4th of July that completely encircles Lake Union, how can one argue?  Even the boats are old friends:  Adventuress is the biggest, Opus is the cutest, and Silva Bans is the one I want to commandeer.  At noon, I maintain my rep for being first patron at the beer garden, the manager from Jillian's grinning and saying, "Back again so soon?"

Lake Union Wooden Boat Festival 2011

Sails are ready

Day One, Saturday, 7/2:  Get In The Groove.  As usual, the arrangement of the Festival is completely different from the year before.  There seems to be more space for vendors in the new Lake Union Park, but there seem to be less boats.  Lavengro, Zodiac, and Adventuress represent for the tall ships.  Logan does what he does--fascinate some, frighten others.  I am pleasantly surprised to be joined by old pirate buddies the Carlsens, who find me at a table behind the boat house.  They join me as the beer garden opens, which this year has been expanded because it is now being run by nearby Jillian's but has lost any sense of character, with big Redhook and Budweiser banners and out of place music like Huey Lewis and Elton John.  I storm the Model Boat Tent and the pond--with flintlock and megaphone!--and progress to the Arthur Foss.  My Pirate Pied Piper routine pulls in a young boy named Matthew, who sits next to me and watches for the British Navy with my brass telescope as I get down to Story Time.

Float the Fleet!

THE LADY WASHINGTON AND HAWAIIAN CHIEFTAIN NEED OUR HELP!

The Grays Harbor Historical Seaport recently launched a fund raising contest called "Float the Fleet:  For the Next Generation."  The objective is to raise money simply to keep the ships maintained.  This starts with $168,000 to purchase wood now to restore the hull that was originally going to be funded by the State until the grant suffered the axe (so to speak) of budget cuts.  The long-term goal is to raise $3 million by 2017.

Doing good for Washington's tall ships is important enough, but here's the fun part.  "The Pirates and Privateers" contest, which ends June 20, has a fabulous grand prize:  The winning crew takes the Lady as a "prize" for a whole year, meaning official recognition and photo op's; gets 12 VIP (Very Impressive Pirate) passes good for any public sail; and may hoist their own colors on the Lady's masthead!

I have decided to captain a crew for this effort.  Now I need YOU...and anyone else you can press into service.  On the online sea, the easiest way to contribute is to go to http://www.historicalseaport.org/ways-to-give/float-the-fleet-pirates, click on the "Donate Online Now" link at the bottom of the page, and tell 'em Blue Lou Logan sent ye where it asks "How did you hear about us?"

The Lady and the Chieftain need US.  Do it for the ship...and for the prize!

Booze and Boat Bits #1 (5 short items of interest)

1:  In the process of gathering sources for my "Under Lake Union" post, I found this recent article at Three Sheets Northwest about a couple of homebrewing liveaboards.  The article is mostly a simple introduction to homebrewing, but there are two revelations.  The first is that they named their boat the Filthy Whore.  The other is the simple fact that they're homebrewing liveaboards.

Galleon ahoy!

The last time I was in the boat shop at the Center, a group of people came in to look around.  A man came up to me--keep in mind I was just past orientation--and asked if we had any caulking mallets.  I knew that this kind of tool has been used since the days of tall ships to seal between planks using cotton and oakum (hemp soaked in pine tar).  The question struck me as odd, because our little shop wasn't normally in the business of repairing tall ships.  "I make them," the man said.  "I donate some to the Center's annual auction, and I was wondering if there were still some around."  I did find a drawer with caulking mallets in it, but upon inspection none turned out to be made by him.

I then learned that he and his group were on "vacation" from the San Diego Maritime Museum. 

for a Monday...

Just a pretty, pilfered image for the new week:  the Hawaiian Chieftain, which last week arrived in Coos Bay, Oregon, with the Lady Washington as they work their way north and homeward after wintering in California.  Lucky bastards all around.  Their next port of call will be Newport, OR, which means the crew will be luckier still as they'll be at the homeport of Rogue Ales.  Sigh...