“RACE II: Chicago!”

So far so good. That used to be the name of this little Chinese food joint in Queens that I visited until it moved to a new, bigger and better location..that sort of reminds me of what is going to happen to us when we are off to Chicago!

Green Bay has been great, however it has been non-stop running around, survey filling, merchandise-selling, sail-promoting craziness, especially on a day like today where it has reached 104 degrees. I just jumped into the pool at the Holiday Inn on my break with some sailor buddies and by the time I walked five minutes over the bridge, my long hair was completely dry. This morning our race directors brought us to the Lambeau Packer Stadium for a Captain’s Breakfast whereupon each of the Captains were awarded unique keys to the city in appreciation to bringing their ships to the city. The Mayor gave a gracious speech in which he thanked all the sponsors such as AT&T, Sail Tall Ships Adventures Inc, and ASTA for making the event possible and bringing in more than 30,000 people to the event. Events such as these also greatly boost the local economy (I’ve studied a lot of this stuff before I became an ASTA intern) as well as the city’s “connaissance” throughout the US.

Race 2- Green Bay to Sturgeon Bay

Here are those pictures that I promised! There will be a link at the bottom of this post so that you can browse the rest of the pictures!

Sailing Appledore V to Chicago!

Chicago is great and I realized how much I love city life, however I also became conscious of the fact that I was just out in the wilderness with not even a bit of land in sight doing the “camp thing” to a whole other lifestyle. It reminds me of my crazy hectic NYC life that was semi-stressful which is a little moreso here after sailing on the Appledore V. I think that was such a fun contrasting experience aboard this 67 foot schooner that holds about 12 crew members with a much more laid-back attitude than that of the US Brig Niagara. I enjoyed both, and the momentum of a schooner that picks up 10 knots of wind is quite different than that of a 198 foot brigantine with over 40 crew members.

Day by Day from Bay to Bay

July 24th…it begins…again!

Alexandra and I got to sail from Bay City to Green Bay on U.S. Brig Niagara. We left the dock at 9am on Monday the 24th. Alexandra was in Starboard Watch, and I was in Port Watch with fourth mate Robert Blood, or just “Blood” when you need his attention, as the mate of my division. We were on watch from 12-4 pm and set EVERYTHING…it was a little peace of sailing heaven, but my favourite part of that day came during night watch. My division was on from 2-4, also known as the twilight zone, and Captain Heerson was on deck and gave us all a little lesson on celestial navigation, so now I will never be lost because I know exactly where that North Star is…just don’t test me on it!

July 25th…the longest day I can remember

I woke up at 7 for a hearty breakfast created by our very own “gastronomic artiste” Josh and Nate! We started setting sail at 8am and did not stop until we were cruising along at 8 knots. What a workout hoisting yards and halyards can be…forget the gym, sail training will whip anybody into shape! Later on in the afternoon, we all mustered for class which consisted of the Captain throwing everybody back to 1812 and the Battle of Lake Erie. Of course this day couldn’t have been complete without a visit from a VIB (very important bird) who decided to drop by the Niagara in the middle of Lake Huron and sup on bugs and water from Chief Mate Jamie T.

July 26th…a little rendez-vous

Last night we anchored just outside of Mackinac, in plain sight of the Mackinac Bridge which is the dividing link between Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Sharing our anchorage was the Picton Castle, and Captain Dan Moreland invited some of the Niagara crew over for an evening of  music and shipmates…the best part was being able to take pictures of the Niagara which are posted at the top of this entry.

July 27th…I survived major galley!

As I was sitting eating lunch after standing watch from 8-12 pm I was getting very excited about the possibility of taking a ‘nap’ as I would be off watch for the next four hour when Josh walks by and informs me that I would be taking over major galley…so sleep was put on hold! Major galley went smoothly and I was able to be on deck when we crossed under the Mackinac Bridge holding our breath as our t’gallant masts “just’ swept underneath the bridge cables. Of course, the best way to finish off a day of hard work on board is with a guitar (or two), a sunset, and some of the best shipmates I’ve ever had. 

Keep this in your hearts when you think of tall ship sailing:

In Bay City, paintings were hung from the lamp-posts to welcome in the tall ships. They were created by high school students, unfortunately I don’t know which student wrote this quote, but it could not have been said any better… 

“Tall ships are the closest thing to heaven that hands have ever created”

“Rocking the NIAGARA, a Blast and a Half!”

Well, this blog may be very long especially after I think through the plethora of experiences that took place during my 5 day voyage on the US Brig Niagara from Bay City, Michigan to Green Bay, Wisconsin. Woah, now I feel like I can truly talk about sail-training and understand why it changes people to the extent that it opens your eyes to a new world…of living, sleeping, working, and thinking.

This is a ship where, when one boards it, you have to be ready to work, to learn the ropes and never be idle. For someone like me who needs to be moving around alot, this was perfect. Sometimes, however,  it can be overwhelming, depending on how much sleep you get and what the weather is like. Each day melts into one another as even permanent crew members aren’t sure of what day of the week it is. One lives day by day, following the maps, performing duties, receiving lessons from our captain on the history of the ship and important knot-tying lessons, as well as much more.

BAY CITY RECAP

Our time in Bay City passed quickly, although it was wonderful. The city held at least one function for the crew almost everyday the ships were in port, and the crew never stopped raving about how welcoming the city had been and what a good time they were having. Some highlights of the week were: a crew party the night of arrival in Bay City, a symphony concert, a concert by, yes one of my all time favorite 80’s bands, REO SPEEDWAGON, and finally to wrap the festivities up a pancake breakfast and a mariners ball on the final day of the festival.

Personally I loved Bay City, and it is my belief that Bay City loved us. Everyone was so welcoming. Storefronts put out special displays in anticipation of our arrival, free laundry services were offered by a local businessman to the crew, and on arrival each crewmember was given a welcome bag filled with all sorts of goodies from hats, to postcards and stamps created by local artists. The tall ships event made the papers every day for the duration of our stay, and local residents all inquired  when we would be back next and stated their intentions that they wanted us back again. All in all the Bay City experience was fantastic, the ASTA tent had many visitors and we even ran out of our brochure “What is Sail Training?”.

Swim Calls and Galley Duty on NIAGARA

It was to be our last full day at sea when I awoke on Wednesday,  the 19th. The sun was out and shining, I had just eaten a lovely breakfast of unleavened pancakes, (the cook ran out of baking soda) and I was out on deck playing in the suds of the washbasins (on account of my galley duty for the day). After we had scrubbed down and put away the dishes, the entire crew mustered for a lecture given by the Captain and the third mate on “sail theory”, and “rules of the road”, lights and shapes.

Day Two on NIAGARA

After our exciting night, everyone aboard was exhausted and the Captain allowed everyone to keep their hammocks hanging longer than he normally would. After indulging in Josh and Nate’s (our resident Emeril Lagasse’s) biscuits and gravy, the whole crew was ready to once again resume their normal watch schedules. During the day we passed through St. Claire and the Detroit Rivers we watched as plenty of tankers, and bulkers slid down the side of our ship going outbound from cities of industry, such as Port Huron. After dinner, in the late afternoon the crew (minus Division 1) gathered at the bow with their guitars and pipes. While Mike the Division 3 AB played others sang, danced and practiced their knot tying skills with one another.

As the sun went down on the US Brig Niagara,  the seas were calm, and the weather fair, the upcoming days promised to be just as beautiful. Although my day had been fantastic, my nightly preparation for bed left me dealing with one of my most despised shipmates, THE MARINE HEAD. I pumped and I flushed- still nothing happened. I read the directions again and restarted the process……..still nothing. After about five minutes of pumping the valve, I had broken out in a full out sweat….finally I called Frank.

Frank came in and with two little pumps and a chuckle of laughter everything was gone. It happens to us all quipped Larry (the professor) as he recanted his stories of past experiences with the infamous EXPLODING equipment aboard. Oh well, I was hoping I could hold out on using the head again until our next port and until then I was going to string up my hammock and get the best nights sleep I possibly could.

“YOU BET I’M GOING BACK TO SEA!”

After three days at sea, Meredith and I are back on land. Our stories are still fresh in our minds, and our sea legs have not yet begun to wear off. We began our adventure on Sunday, July 17, arriving to the US Brig Niagara just before its departure from the docks in Cleveland.

It was all hands throughout the morning as the Captain and the Mates prepared for the race to begin. At the 20 minute preparatory gun, you could feel the excitement of the crew as they manned their stations to prepare to cross the line and get underway with the race. Just as the race was about to begin and the starting gun fired, there was a sudden shift in the winds, causing the ship to lose its ability to sail on the proper course across the line. This natural occurrence caused the vessel to miss the start of the race and lose approximately 20 minutes of race time, a disappointment to everyone onboard.

US Brig Niagara

These past two weeks have been like being stuck in a time warp, where at one moment you are working ashore with all of this world’s modern commodities and, in the blink of an eye, you are living aboard a majestic tall ship where a shower consists of jimmy rigging a Tarzan rope and jumping into Lake Huron.