Leaving tommorow – on an air ship

Apparently I have to leave to catch my flight home tommorow, somewhat reluctantly. I tell myself it won’t be so bad, not going home on a ship, but if I call it an air-ship, I’ll feel better about it. I am a bit excited to go home because I haven’t seen much of my family in the past six months. I doubt my mom will let me leave the house anytime soon.

That’s too bad though, because I am not even home yet and I want to go sailing again, really bad! I came into this internship with few expectations, not entirely sure if I would enjoy it, but I had a good hunch that I would. Sure enough, I think sailing on tall ships and being involved with the tall ships community is awesome! Before this internship, I knew that I wanted to see the world – and now I believe I have found that the best way to do that is through tall ships. It really makes a difference in how you feel about visiting a place when you have to journey there. Sleeping on a plane and waking up somewhere else is just weird by comparison.  Sailing takes longer sure, but you work hard and see some amazing things on the way which will make it all the more rewarding when you arrive. Best of all, you’ll have friends you made on ship to have fun with when you arrive at your destination.

One thing I noticed though,  it’s not so much the destination itself that is the enjoyable thing. It is the journey taken to get there, the anticipation of arrival to your destination, mishaps and amazing things that happen to color the voyage there.

So I will definitely be sailing again. I’d be a fool not to! My internship with ASTA has given me a very good introduction into the world of tall ship sailing and given me what I need to make a beginning. I have a few months experience sailing on a tall ship, as well as friends and contacts from within the relatively small tall ship community. It is mind-boggling to consider the amount I have learned in the past few months about tall ships, sailing and myself. I learned a lot, yes, but I have realized that compared to what more I have to learn, what more I can learn from sailing on ships is absolutely vast. I’ve really only taken a first step into something far larger and greater than myself.

If possible, I want to go sailing in the South Pacific region in the not-so-far future. That is my current, lofty goal. My time on Picton Castle, being surrounded by artifacts from that part of the world, as well as hearing the stories from crewmembers who went there, has really engaged my interest in that part of the world.  I am currently conspiring plans, none of which my mother will approve.

Regardless, I plan on traveling and doing it in style – on a tall ship, covered in tar.

The last post…

 

Well, its time to write that last post…my time here is almost over. And by here I mean at the ASTA office, not here as in the world. It’s been real…it’s been fun…it’s been real fun.  I am very thankful for the internship and the opportunities that it gave me. I got to sail on my dream Tall Ship, Picton Castle and I finally made it to the ASTA TALL SHIPS CHALLENGE(r). I went to Canada after all and, let me tell you, they don’t all say “aboot”.  I learned a heck of a lot more about sailing. I worked with great kids and got to show them some sailing that  not many people get to see or do at their age, or at all. 

The end of the cadet program on Providence

   

 Last Friday marked the last day of the cadet program for Providence this summer. Friday proved to be a kind of bum end to the program – the sail with the parents had to be canceled due to adverse weather. Very unfortunate, especially since I know the kids would have been able to impress their parents with their newfound sailing ability. They also did not get to have a graduation ceremony with certificates. Even though the kids thought the graduation ceremony was a bit cheesy the first week ,they couldn’t hide a smile when they got their name called.

 

Week Two on the Providence

On Monday Matt and I were busy in the office and the Providence crew had their hands full with the new cadets for the second week of sail training.  Later I found out how eager they were to have the two of us return to help onboard, apparently the crew appreciated our help with the new students.

On the second day, Tuesday, Matt and I drove down to Fort Adams and we took the students sailing. Just like last time, the deckwash was the favorite activity. It was really nice to see a group of the students from the previous week, they acted like teachers towards the new kids. Unfortunately there wasn’t incredible wind until the end of the day, so the students didn’t get as much hands on activity  with the lines and sails as they should have gotten.

Wednesday the weather was wet….very wet. I was very happy I hadn’t forgotten my foul weather gear on Picton Castle. All the students still showed up however, no rain was going to scare these kids. We weren’t able to sail  because of the anticipated high winds, which did eventually arrive. As an alternate activity myself, Matt and the professional crew went with the students to the Yachting Museum at Fort Adams. The students like the hands on part at the beginning of the museum but lost interest as they delved into the rest of the museum. I don’t really blame them, I am a big fan of hands on museums…I like to touch stuff. Later we took the bus down to the Save the Bay aquarium which I never even knew existed. The students and I  learned that if you hum to periwinkles they come out of their shells….huh, who woulda thunk it? The kids loved the touch tunk and I was surprised that some of the students were afraid to pick up the animals including the star fish. I was also amazed that the students took it upon themselves to do the activity where they search for clues around the museum and answer marine biology questions. Later we walked down to the beach with some of the students so they could play in the water. After that we ate lunch and took a tour of the International Yacht Restoration School. I really enjoyed that and the kids were interested as well. I had checked out the school once or twice before but this time we were able to see the classrooms and go a little bit behind the scenes. We were even able to go and look/learn about Coronet. Usually visitors peak into the building through windows and read the information plaque but we we able to go up to the ship to look inside the hull and walk all around the yard. The kids really liked being able to do that. Tall Ship celebrity advantages yet again.

Thursday we on the move. There was an Opti regatta taking place that day so we headed towards the water in hopes of avoiding the little bath toys, which is what they look like compared to the Providence. The wind was a bit more stiff than the previous days but we still motor sailed. Later that night some cadets, along with Matt and myself, stayed over night. After we made it to our anchorage, we ate dinner and I taught some of the students about heaving lines and they were able to take turns throwing them. Also, they were allowed to jump overboard and swim, but only one student and the pro crew took advantage. The students learned what the pro crew does at night; sing Barret’s Last Privateer, read, and go to bed. Each stood at anchor watch with a member of the crew. The student I had watch with really liked seeing the engine room, which I later heard every student liked. The engine room was a secret spot of the ship none of the other students were able to see; it was an entire new world and depth to the ship. Not to mention it was warm when on deck was freezing. 

After a little morning workout on the windlass, we made it back to the dock and got the awning up just before the downpour which  put a damper on our day. The students were bummed we could not sail but it was risky because we weren’t sure about thunderstorms and such. But many of the students from this group are already planning on working on tall ships next summer, so the weather wasn’t too frightening as to keep them away from sailing.

A week and two days on the Sloop Providence

Last week, Heather and I had the opportunity to sail with the Sloop Providence to assist with the summer cadet program. I was definitely excited to know I’d be spending time on the Providence. I always thought it was pretty cool because it had cannons. All summer Heather had been inundating me with tales of her two months spent on Providence last summer. A number of them focused on seasickness. All told, I didn’t know what to expect or what the kids we would be working with would be like.

Day 5 Graduation Day and Parent Sail – Friday August 3

Today, instead of seeing only the crew as I boarded the Providence, I was welcomed by the 6 students that stayed on board for the evening. I actually first saw the students when I was driving over the Newport Bridge as they were motoring to the dock. I liked hearing their stories about the overnights. They had to stand two watches and several people snored. In the morning, they all had to take part in bringing in the anchor, one student stayed on the windlass the whole time!

When the rest of the students came onboard, we broke into watches for the ritual end of the program, the pin chase. It was fun watching the cadets scrambling to find the correct lines after the name was yelled out, ah the bickering. They all did well but nobody could find the waterline, we didn’t count that against them we only asked for our own amusement.

When the parents came onboard that is when the students shined. They were great, I hardly had to lift a finger. I am really glad that we had great sailing and the students enjoyed their time onboard. Many of them had signed up for the second week and those that didn’t were asking to take part because they had so much fun.

I’ll be back onboard tomorrow (Aug. 7)  for the second week and I am really excited to see the kids from last week and to meet the new cadets. It will be great fun as always.

Day 4-Thursday August 2

Well, the cadets were back onboard Thursday and ready for action. They even split up into their watches on their own! Again the day started with planning the voyage, the deck washed and the ship prepared for a day out on the water. The students remebered where the lines are that they need to pull in order to set sail. Finally,  they are yelling like salty dogs to announce that they are ready to set the mains’l. They have mastered bracing the yards and the watch leaders are great motivators and they are better at delegating tasks.

Today the crew stood back a little and let the students do the grunt work; we let them do the sail handling and jumped in to help when we were needed. We taught them a little bit about sail theory and why we did the things that we did, such as sheeting in sails and luffing the heads’ls. This was all in preparation for the parent sail on Friday.

Six of the cadets were able to stay overnight on board so there was a buzz of excitement and anticipation for later that night. The day finally endedand all the overnighters were brought to a beachy area to swim and, after Matty and I left the ship, the Providence departed to an anchorage where the students were going to help out with the cooking and anchor watches.

Above the fold!

Seafaring program puts teens to the test

Yesterday, ASTA’s Tall Ships Youth Adventure Program on the Continental Sloop Providence received some phenomenal coverage in the local paper, Newport Daily News on August 6th. Click on the title above to read the article and  to learn more about the program.

Day 3-Wednesday August 1

 

Ah Day 3. Now both the students and the crew have an idea as to what is expected and what we all want to do… SAIL!!! The winner of the bowline tying competition, the Port watch, went to the quarterdeck to work on the days navigation plans and the starboard watch was responsible for the deckwash and brass polishing. The deckwash crew also helps single up the docklines and prepare the ship to sail. These cadets love doing deckwashes and I think it is because of the firehose they get to use.

The weather on Wednesday was in our favor and it wasn’t insanely hot. The sails also helped to add some shade. Today we added another sail, the stays’l,  for the students to handle. The cadets were more involved today than the previous two days. We taught the cadets line handling and how to make lines off to pins and cleats (we don’t want the medical officer to practice caring for severed fingers). They also learned the proper way to coil lines as well as how to valentine coil. The students were paired up with crew members to set the heads’ls and everyone worked together to set the mains’l. This time, the cadets were a little louder in yelling that they were “ready in the throat” and peak halyards which made me happy that they were shouting. The cadets also teamed up with each other and crewmembers to take a  more active role in tacking the ship and we also jibbed a little.  The students were able to take turns at the helm which is always exciting for them. I know I was thrilled when I was granted the opportunity.

This day’s competition was nautical term memorization which they all did really well at. Occasionally the students said the floor and downstairs but they soon got out of the habit. I started to see more happy faces each second and many trainees were glad to be back onboard and not stuck in their neighborhood. It was great to have students jumping up to handle sail  and offering to coil lines. It helped the professional crew when they took turns on the foredeck in the watches. One watch would work while the other watch would observe. The students liked that since there weren’t 12 kids rushing to work 6 lines. Because the deck was less crowded,  they were able to see and understand what needed to be completed.  I really liked the students in this group because they are all fun, high energy, and get along well with each other as well as the crew.

Day 2 Tuesday July 3

 

 On the second day it was still hot and the students still complained about the heat, but at least we were able to go sailing, sort of. After the students broke into their watches, the port watch did a deck wash and polished brass,  while the starboard watch worked with JC (the captain) and helped plan our course. I was surprised at how much the students wanted to do the deck wash and polish brass. As much a I love to polish brass (which I really do) I would love to take part in planning the daily voyages. The students learned about using the reeds books, how to read and apply tide tables, and how the current and wind determines the sail.

Once we were under way the crew set sail and the students observed. This was the ships first time sailing with the new crew. As the day progressed, the students were invited to help with tacking the ship. Many were hesitant to get involved with the sail handling, but with enough invitations they slowly started to participate. The confidence level was at first pretty low. Just before we were setting the mains’l we gave an brief explanation of the the commands to set sail and when asked if they were ready on the Throat halyard, the students mumbled to themselves “Ready”. They were asked again and one or two more students muttered “ready”. However, it is common to be unsure and nervous about sailing a tall ship especially when it’s your first day and you have no previous experience on boats let alone sail boats.

As a day time activity, we went over knots and the students really enjoyed learning them. The competition for the day was to see who could tie a one handed bowlin, and surprisingly several of them learned how. I am a natural born knot tying champion…it took me 18 years to figure out the bowline. The students also used the Marlinspike Sailor to teach themselves monkeyfists and turkshead knots. They were my inspiration to learn how to teach myself how to make a monkeyfist and, by George, I learned how.

It was nice to finally sail, however the wind was a bit against us and once or twice we were sailing under the Newport bridge…backwards. Nevertheless,  it was wonderful to be on the water under sail without the engine noise, it really makes the experience better when the engine isn’t involved.