Published bimonthly for The Center for Wooden Boats 1010 Valley Street Seattle, WA 98109
Volume XXI Number 1 February, 2000 ISSN 0734-0680 1992, CWB
THE GILLNETTER RESTORATION It was a familiar sight in the '80s and the first half of the '90s: C W B ' s sailing gillnetter plying the waters of Lake Union, filled to the gunwales - not with salmon but with happy kids. For many, it was their first boat ride - but not their last. Often, the skipper was CWB Founding Director Dick Wagner doing what he likes to do best: help someone new experience maritime history first-hand. Age, use and exposure took their toll on our gillnetter and in recent years she bobbed forlornly alongside our docks, her massive spritsail in storage and her bilges sloshing with rainwater. However, this is a story with a happy ending. Soon our gillnetter will once again be sailing the waters of Lake Union - and beyond! Mid-March will see the re-launching of our gillnetter, beautifully restored and sporting a brand new spritsail made by Ellen Falconer and her crew at Sound Sails of Port Townsend. Befitting all the work that has gone into the restoration, the gillnetter also will have an expanded
role in our fleet: flagship of CWB's Adventure Bound program for teenagers. When not in use for Adventure Bound, the gillnetter will assume her traditional CWB role, introducing young and old to the pleasure of sailing in a traditional boat. The Gillnetter Restoration Project was a joint effort of CWB, the Maritime Heritage Foundation, Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center and the Port of Seattle. Major funding came from a grant from the King County Heritage and Landmarks Commission hotel/motel tax revenues, the Paul Allen Foundation and a private donor. Restoration began last summer as a working display on the waterfront plaza outside Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center. Wednesday through Saturday, visitors could watch as boatwrights Brad Rice, Eric Hvalsoe or former CWB Shop Manager Chris Rockwell took the gillnetter apart and put it back together again. Excited kids dragged their parents to watch as the gillnetter underwent a nearly total rebuild. And every day the hard-working boatwrights
heard the same question: What kind of wood is that? (Answer: Alaskan yellow cedar, replacing the original Port Orford cedar). The restored boat has the same keel, aprons and some planking. The original rudder remains as do the mast partner, pintle, gudgeon, mast and sprit. The original configuration remains but the some of the original fish bins were converted to allow for three rowing stations. Last fall the gillnetter returned to South Lake Union. Our neighbor, Northwest Seaport, has provided space in their yard for the restoration work to continue. A "shrink-wrap shed" provides enclosed space. Former CWB Shop Manager Dierk Yochim joined the restoration crew and the official mascot, Sammy the Dog, returned to his rightful place alongside his friend, Chris Rockwell. Planking has been completed, the deck is on and now its time for the million and one finish details. The hull is just about ready for caulker Tim Reagan to begin his work. Chris and Dierk have plenty of room for volunteers who'd like to help out too. (Call Volunteer Coordinator Mindy Koblenzer at CWB to get on the schedule.) Sailing gillnetters have been in use in the Pacific Northwest since the mid1800s, providing a working platform for fishermen from California to Alaska for almost 100 years. They could carry great loads of fish, still showing a good turn of s p e e d u n d e r sail and
Chris Rockwell (in boat) and Dierk Yochim work on the gillnetter restoration. - photo by Judie Romeo
could be rowed if necessary. If the crew had to remain on the water overnight, they could put up a cockpit tent and cook over an oil stove. CWB's gillnetter measures 29' 10" by 9', with a draft of 2'6". The massive centerboard is 7'
KNOW THYSELF The Center for Wooden Boats is in the process of developing a strategic plan that will be our blueprint for programs and exhibits for the next five years. Because of this fresh look at CWB, the Strategic Planning Committee asked Dick Wagner for new versions of our Vision and Mission Statements. Based on a recent membership survey, a recent Board retreat and a long record of feeling the pulse of CWB, Dick came up with a mission/ vision restatement. Editorial comments by Casey Gellermann, Ken Greff and Judie Romeo were incorporated into a second draft (below) that was adopted by the Board of Trustees on January 11, 2000. Vision Statement I. History. Since time before history, people have gathered at watersides for sustenance and fellowship. At these assemblies, watercraft of diverse designs and construction were built to serve the needs of the community. Through a long thread of experience, small craft arc forever embedded in our cultural memories.
fore-and-aft. The boat was built by George Knease in the early 1990s for the Alaska Packers Association and worked out of the Diamond NN cannery of Naknek, Bristol Bay, Alaska. When the boat is repainted, the APA and Dia-
mond NN logos will be put back on the hull. Missing from the hull will be a souvenir from the '80s: the black ducky decal, awarded to the boat that finishes dead last in the summer Lake Union Duck Dodge races. - Judie Romeo
II. Education. The Center for Wooden Boats is a small craft museum dedicated to hands-on education because it is a challenging and longlasting means of learning.
Beach during which work plans will be developed and priorities will be set for near-term work and meeting the schedule for the planned opening of the new State Park in the summer of 2001.
III. Collections. CWB will collect, preserve and interpret small craft and related artifacts of worldwide historic significance.
The committee is seeking people who might volunteer for work parties and/or serve on the committee. Also being sought are tools and equipment which might be borrowed or donated to CWB in support of our building and maintenance work. If interested, contact committee leaders Stephen Kinnaman at (206) 310-7207 or Trip Zabriskie at (425) 828-2470.
IV. Outreach. CWB will provide instruction in heritage maritime skills to people of all ages and abilities. V. Inclusion. CWB will create a safe and friendly harbor for the broadest spectrum of our community. VI. Goals Summation. The goals of CWB are to preserve our small craft heritage through direct experience activities, to provide comprehensive information on historic small craft and to be an integral part of our community. Mission Statement To provide a community center where maritime history comes alive and our small craft heritage is preserved and passed along to future generations.
CAMA BEACH UPDATE Activities at Cama Beach leaped forward recently when 30 volunteers from the Camano 1sland/Stanwood area teamed up to begin planning CWB programs for the new Cama Beach State Park on Camano Island. Following are reports from the committees they formed: The Site Committee's mission is to restore and maintain the five assigned buildings and the marine railway at Cama Beach in support of the History, Education and Boat Committee programs of The Center for Wooden Boats at Cama Beach. Frank Galloway, State Park Ranger at Cama Beach, presented information on requirements for restoration, what is presently planned and how and why access to the site will be limited during the summer of 2000. The Boathouse and the four other buildings need repairs and improvements, which must meet Historic Site preservation standards. Therefore, an approval process must be set up before work can be accomplished. A second Site Committee meeting has been scheduled to be held at Cama
The Boats Committee discussed a variety of programs that the Center would like to institute such as Community Boatbuilding, Adventure Bound, maritime skills training, restoring the boats of Cama Beach and building and restoring boats for the rental fleet. The committee is looking for a temporary shop location in the Camano I s l a n d / S t a n w o o d area so that classes and boatbuilding programs can be started as soon as possible. Please contact committee head Rich Kolin at (360) 659-5591 if you have information on a possible site. The History Committee chose to begin by focusing on the Cama Beach site and then reaching out in wider circles. Although its first priority is to catalog the historic objects other than the buildings presently at Cama Beach (i.e. boats, marine railway equipment), the scope of its search will also include Native American use of the site and the era of logging. The committee hopes to work cooperatively with the Stanwood Historical Society to find primary information in its oral history tapes. This historic research will enhance the interpretation of Cama Beach through signage, handouts and docent-led tours. Further areas of interest include the ship and boat building at Utsalady in the logging and sawmill days, the watercraft that were involved with Stanwood in its "Mosquito Fleet" days, the other cabin and boathouse resorts on Camano Island and water transportation between Camano Island and Whidbey Island and other destinations. Anyone with information on these areas is urged to contact History Committee chairman Dennis Conroy at (360) 387-8023. The Education Committee discussed adapting one of CWB's current youth programs for the conditions at Cama Beach. Our Adventure Bound program for teenagers teaches traditional maritime skills and as natural history aboard a 30-foot sailing gillnetter. Cama Beach is an ideal location for this type of program. The all-volunteer/public meeting on March 25 will present
information about Adventure Bound and the yearly Pacific Challenge program, which CWB hosted last year. The committee is exploring ideas for other programs, both for youth and for adults, and hopes to begin making contacts with educators during the coming months as part of planning the programs it will offer once the Park opens. Adrienne Osborn will serve as an interim con-
KING'S CUP Sometimes space constraints mean a story and/ or photo must wait awhile to appear in the pages of Shavings. Such is the case with former Youth Coordinator Sven Holch's account of the CWB team's efforts in the annual King's Cup seamanship competition. Here it finally is: In the Canadian version of the Pacific Challenge, a CWB youth crew competed in our gig, the Dan, in the King's Cup at Sooke, B.C. Saturday, August 14, was a clear blue day with clouds
tact person until a committee head is selected. Please contact her at (360) 387-1149 if you are interested, or if you have ideas or contacts you would like to share.
March 18 (Saturday), 1-4 p.m. at CWB Lake Union. Tour of CWB and free rowing and sailing (weather-permitting) for Camano Island/ Stanwood area volunteers and members.
Upcoming Cama Beach public meetings
March 25 (Saturday), 1-4 p.m. at Camano Center, 141 N. East Camano Rd. Committee updates, Adventure Bound & Pacific Challenge programs presentations. - Andrea Denton
March 4 (Saturday), 1-4 p.m. at Camano Center, 141 N. East Camano Rd. Committee updates. Community Boatbuilding presentation.
While practicing our sea chantey, "Rollin' down to old Maui," our crew got well acquainted on the six-hour transit from Seattle to Sooke. At the wheel was our busiest youth volunteer, Jim McWha, with his dog, our mascot, Kaylie. In the passenger seat navigating and generally maintaining decorum was myself with the objects of my decorum maintenance in the back seat. The backbone of this crew were three upstanding young men, Julian and Nick Calcott and Jamie lanelli.
Maybe it's because we're from the city or maybe it's because we were exhausted, but we didn't believe this unknown Canadian prankster. Instead we had an impromptu race with an Umiak to the first set of marks on the course, after which we exchanged crew with them, taking on two 8year-old girls and a 6-year-old boy for a fun row. Two minutes into this, a 30-foot schooner, Cygnus, hailed us from a nearby sandbar requesting a tow. With our mixed crew, even two on one oar, we took their stern line under tow and, after their crcw all moved to the starboard bow, we slid them right off the bar.
The King's Cup c o m p e t i t i o n was filled with every team exemplifying the highest standards of seamanship and etiquette in the tradition of the British Royal N a v y . T h e story of the Dan is just one of the many successes
At this point someone looked up and saw the fleet rounding the first set of marks. Using a Megism (named for former Youth Coordinator Meg Trzaskoma) I said "Zoinks!" followed by a hail to rendezvous with the Umiak after the next set of marks to exchange our crew. Pushing the young ones in our boat, Nora, Noah and Phoebe rose to the occasion, pulling us around and maintaining a position of third place. After a speedy crew exchange, and dropping to fourth place, we put in a few power-10s for our crew that had been resting in the Umiak.
interesting hitch.
We were rowing for the lead with the girls of Kindred Spirit for two legs, until the final upwind leg. Coxswain Nick Calcott masterfully negotiated several deathly weed patches to bring us first across the line for the second and final lap. The day was topped off with an awards ceremony and sea chanteys around the campfire. Bringing home the awards were our neighbors to the south in Olympia. The Elder Spirit won the King's Cup and the Kindred Spirit won for the most original sea chantey, which they wrote themselves. This amazing group from Olympia was led by Jeff Bremer and one of our own CWB volunteers, Steve Summers.
holding their station on all four sides of us.
With a steady 1015 knots out of the southwest, the Dan made it around the course, with oars only, to be the first to finish. An unknown logger-type in an aluminum skiff told us to go around the racecourse again.
The crew of CWB's gig, Dan, Jim McWha, Sven Holch, Jamie Ianelli, Julian Calcott and our coxswain, Nick Calcott, before the day of races with H.M.S. Endeavour in the background.
The crew of the Dan proved themselves a great team and was rewarded with an early morning belowdecks tour of H.M.S. Endeavour, which was berthed at Sooke on a leg of her threeand-half-year tour around the world. We will be looking for more groups of kids to crew on the gig, Dan, and move up to the Chatham Launch, Anna, in 2000 for Discovery Days in Aberdeen, Washington; the Pacific Challenge in Anacortes, Washington: longboat races at the Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend, Washington, and the King's Cup again in Sooke, B.C.
EASTWARD I N WESTERLY a cruising tale by Steve Osborn When I answered the phone, it was Dick the Boatman. "Steve, the Center has just been donated a Frank Prothero cutter, Westerly. Would you like to help me sail her from Port Angeles to the Center?" "Sounds good, Mate. Where and when?" We worked out the timing, deciding to leave after Election Day, November 2. Our only deadline was to be in Seattle by the following Sunday night as Dick had a meeting to attend the next morning. First off, we drove out to take a look at Westerly and see what she needed. She was really a bare boat so my wife, Adrienne, began making a list of gear, food, utensils, etc., for the trip. The former owner met us and went over all the gear, engine startup drill, seacock locations and stove startup drill. He told us he had never put the reefing gear on the rig, so that was one priority as the season was getting pretty advanced. He also mentioned that he had not gotten around to rigging the running lights, through the pane! was set up for them. He mentioned she was a little tender, but would heel only so far, then stiffen up. He also said he thought Frank had set the waterline too high. The boot top began about six inches above where she floated. H m m m . . . She had been built in 1991 but looked brand new. The headsails still had their original creases in the bags, so may never have been used. Hmmm. . . Finally came the fateful day. Dick's son, Mike, dropped him off at our place on Camano Island. Adrienne and I had been getting ail of our gear ready. I turned out my bosun's locker for spare cordage, blocks, an extra anchor and rode, tools, compasses, a few books, etc., and plenty of food. The van was packed like a sardine tin. En route we stopped at West Marine in Port Townsend. I had never owned a GPS but we decided to get one for the trip and to have for when we begin cruising up here. I bought a Garmin GPS III Plus. It has a feature that brings up charts and road maps on its screen. That sounded handy. I bought plenty of spare batteries. Dick had a set of charts and tide and current tables so we were pretty well set. We got to John Wayne Marina near Sequim in the early afternoon and loaded gear and stores. Adrienne stowed while we carted. I had brought my oil lamps just in case, but the boat had plenty of electric lights so we used them. With no running lights we intended to be anchored before dark each night. I had misplaced our marine radios so brought along our cell phone. Finally we
hit the sack. We had flipped a coin and I got the port berth and Dick the starboard. Wednesday we hit the deck and began rigging for sea, improvising reef tackle for the first reef, reeving a downhaul for the jib. At this point we realized that the cleats for the sheets were very neatly installed, but in awkward spots and not properly canted, so the sheets jammed and had to be yanked loose rather than eased off. It was difficult to get in a position to swig off a sheet and belay it. The mainsheet was equally awkwardly rigged, though usable. We put the tiller in place and bolted it to the rudderhead. By this time it was early afternoon and we were eager to get underweigh. Backing out of the slip, we found that she would back only to port. We cleared the slip with some backing and filling. We powered out of the marina and into open water and practiced swinging her until we had it down, then made sail. A light puff hit us as we were hoisting the main and she laid down to the scuppers. We got the jib and staysail on her and the wind died to nothing. We decided we'd better head out so as to make our first anchorage in daylight. Westerly's obvious tenderness cancelled the option of sailing up to the San Juan Islands, so we decided to head east along the Strait. The channel out of Sequim Bay is rather tortuous as you must stay within a biscuit toss of the western shore until you clear Travis Spit, then parallel the spit until you clear the bar and shoal outside it. Before we had cleared the channel, the wind came screaming off the bluff from the east-southeast and laid us flat, boom dragging in the water. We had to hang on long enough to get a little sea room so, as soon as we cleared the channel, we bore off to the northwest, then rounded up, tucked in the first reef and furled the staysail. We still were being knocked down every time we eased her so we powered along the bluff, being stopped cold every few moments by head seas and occasionally dragging the main boom in the water. It was a long five miles to the entrance to Discovery Bay. Dick's hand was nearly paralyzed as he had to hang onto the jib sheet, being unable to either swig it or get a turn on the cleat without losing a foot of sheet. I was braced to windward, holding the mainsheet and tiller, so no help to him. I finally got to a point where I could luff for a moment and he got the jib secured. It was nearing sunset as we approached Cape George and the entrance to Discovery Bay. A cloud passed over from the northwest and then the overcast broke a little bit. We had been talking about anchoring close to shore near Cape George but a wind shift to the northwest would
put us on a steep lee shore. Westerly's anchor was a plough with 200 feet of heavy chain and looked unused. We had no winch and could not tell if the bitter end of the chain was secured or not. We decided to use the anchor I brought aboard, a Danforth with 36' of chain and 360' of Dacron line. At least, if it held, it would not be a struggle to get back in. We checked the chart for Discovery Bay and found no really protected anchorage until you got to the head of the Bay. We decided to try it, making better time as we entered the Bay and got out of the rough seas of the Strait. With sunset, it was suddenly as dark as your pocket. We had no way to judge where we were or how far from land. Both sides of Discovery have nests of old pilings or the side is steep too, so you are almost ashore before you have anchoring depth. "Hey Dick, that Garmin I bought is supposed to have so sort of chart display on it. Let's give it a try." Dick took the helm and I went below and turned on the Garmin. Sure enough, there was Discovery Bay right on the screen with a marker that pointed out our position. Almost like looking at radar. I guided Dick to port or starboard, keeping us in the middle of the bay as it narrowed. As we approached the 10-fathom line on the chart, I told Dick to take a look at the fathometer. "You should have about 10 or 11 fathoms." "Sixty-six feet!" I watched the Garmin position work on farther, having Dick swing a little to port as the bay bent toward the southwest. You should have about seven fathoms, Dick." "Fifth-two feet. Fifty. Forty-nine." "Let's drop the hook in six fathoms." That was safely outside the junk line of old pilings, etc., that clutters up the head of the Bay so we let out about 150' of scope and set the hook. There were still strong gusts out of the southeast. We went below and got the stove started. I set a waypoint as "Anchor 1" and we watched our position walk around the waypoint as we were blown by gusts. I always try to have a couple of thermos flasks of boiling water when I cruise. Every time I heat up the stove, I reheat the thermos water so there is always something hot to drink. Or Ramen or instant soup to eat. As the stove heated, I made Downeast Buttered Rums for the two of us. We sat and sipped, toasting the end of an interesting and informative day. I broke out a large can of Dinty Moore and some french bread. As we were finishing it up, I picked up the Garmin to play
around with it a bit and saw our track running from "Anchor 1" to the beach! 'Dick, I think we're dragging," I said as I headed for the companionway. One look told all, as we were looking right into someone's living room windows. "Start the engine and I'll pull the hook." The wind had quietly veered around to the northwest and began to blow hard. We apparently had blown back and tripped our anchor. Dick powered us forward and I pulled the hook up to about 10 or 15 feet, then went below and checked the Garmin. Sure enough, our track was leaving the shore. We crossed to the new weather shore and dropped anchor in shelter from the northwest wind. I let out about 250' this time. Then I set another waypoint, "Anchor 2" and watched it off and on for about a half-hour or so. Our track just swung back and forth downwind of the mark. That Garmin had been expensive but had paid for itself twice in one evening! The clouds blew away and the Milky Way looked like you could pour it. A beautiful evening. We hit the sack. The next morning was calm, clear and beautiful. I built a good breakfast of bacon and eggs, toast and coffee. One of our errors the day before was neglecting to get a good meal under our belts before we left. I vowed not to do that again. After washup, I read some of the Garmin book
and set up a route from our anchorage, out Discovery Bay and around to Port Townsend. We pulled the hook and motored out. What a difference from yesterday! We chugged along at about four knots, enjoying the scenery. All along, Dick had been regaling me with stories of Vancouver's discoveries, with anecdotes about how certain points were named and what was reported at different points along the route. Really brought the past alive and tied it in with our current voyage of discovery. Dick had sailed these waters 20 or 30 years before in his own schooner so he could point out much of what had been built since then.
We rounded Point Hudson in mid-afternoon during early ebb. We found the fuel dock and topped up the diesel and the water as we had run out of water that morning. Dick said, "Let's anchor in Mystery Bay tonight." He pointed out a bay called Kilisut Harbor, across from Port Townsend. "Mystery Bay is a little bay on the far side of Kilisut." We crossed over to find another tortuous entrance, well marked but winding back and forth between flats and bars. There were several dozen crab pot buoys right in the middle of the narrow channel, which made it quite an exercise to get through without catching one in the wheel. We had just cleared the last pair of channel marks and were looking over at a big schooner in Mys-
tery Bay wondering who she could be when, whump, whump, bump! We were hard aground! It was just about sunset and the tide had two or three more hours to ebb. I set a waypoint on the Garmin as "Agrnd." We began to heel to port as the tide continued to fall. We were on a hummock of sand and mud and shell so there was no danger, just inconvenience. She heeled to almost 45 degrees. The stove was so far out of trim it began to carbon up; cooking was out of the question so we had sausage and cheese on pilot bread (lunch leftovers) and a hot buttered rum, then yarned and read and waited for her to re-float. Here was where my flip of the coin paid off. My bunk was on the low side so I could use it, though I was lying on the hull with a knee in my back. Poor Dick had to snooze on the cabin sole, jammed against the lockers. She began straightening up around midnight and was almost afloat by about 1:30 a.m. When she finally floated, we were in about 50' of water in a boatlength. We had just hit a tiny hummock dead on. We anchored in about six fathoms and hit the sack once more. Friday morning dawned bright, brisk and calm. After a good breakfast, we got underway and explored the Bay. The schooner was Ragland, an old Baltic Trader converted to a yacht. There were a couple of other neat gaffers moored there and we slowly motored past them, then headed out to re-trace our steps out to Port Townsend. We were very careful to avoid the hummock. On the last leg of the Kilisut channel, we saw perhaps a hundred or more seals hauled out on the bar, sunning themselves. A few of them raised their heads to watch us go by, then went back to sleep. We exited the channel and passed clear of the naval ammunition loading pier, heading south toward the Port Townsend Channel. The wind was beginning to rise. A dead muzzier again, right out of the southwest. No point in making sail. We got into our oilies when I saw breakers at the far end of the channel. We watched a small schooner tacking its way down the bay. She finally headed off toward the marina at Port Hadlock. We exited the channel into a steep head sea and strong, increasing wind, right on the bow. Every minute or so, we would get in synch with the waves and hobbyhorse to a standstill. Then we would slowly gather way, only to repeat the process. The wind was increasing, the clouds were getting thicker and it was getting colder. We punched on. Dick said we could shelter in Mats Mats Bay, which was just off our chart. He described the entrance, a narrow slot in the hill, just inside a rock, which marks the entrance. Finally it appeared, just as he described it. It looked about 30 or 40 feet wide and went straight into the hillside. As we got into it, it bent south for a few hundred feet, then opened out into a beautiful sheltered bay. A real hurricane hole. There were perhaps a dozen boats at
anchor, including the scow schooner, Patricia Ann, looking very neglected. We anchored ahead of Patricia Ann and decided to wait out the weather if we could. We snugged everything down on deck after anchoring in about 30 feet with 250' of scope. Frequent checks showed the anchor holding well, so we could relax. Saturday morning the wind was still screaming down off the hills so we slept in, read, then had bacon, eggs and toast again. The rest of the day was make and mend, applied yarn spinning and, in the evening, reading from Masefield's Saltwater Poems and Ballads and s o m e of Gilpatrick's Glencannon stories. I didn't realize Dick was not familiar with Glencannon, so it was great fun reading them aloud to him. Our remaining steaks and bakers made up dinner again. Tough life we sailors lead! We were getting a bit worried as the gale blew all night long, though it was getting gusty with occasional calms toward morning. The choices were limited. If it continued to blow, I'd have to land Dick somewhere to seek a bus or get someone to pick him up, then stay and wait for a
break in the weather to make a run for Seattle. Otherwise, Dick would have to miss his meeting on Monday. Sunday morning dawned with the wind dropping off. The next 12 hours looked like the best we'd get for several days. We rove off the second reef in the main, lashed everything down, got into our oilies and got ready to get up the hook. I had put a route into the Garmin just in case. Dick lit off the engine and I pulled the hook. When we got it up and down it took a real effort to get it off the bottom. We powered it out and, when I got it up, it had about 50 pounds of hard mud piled on the flukes. We rounded up and headed back out the cut. It was still gusting and there was a bit of a sea running, but we were in the lee of Foulweather Bluff, which helped. We cautiously set the staysail and motorsailed, keeping it full to give us a bit of lift. Then we set the jib. The wind dropped a bit more so we set the double-reefed main. The wind was still coming straight from Shilshole Bay so it was still a dead muzzler. We couldn't ease off at all, just keep punching as closehauled as engine and sails would take us. Again we were rapidly running out of daylight with sunset at about 4:30 p.m. We had about 40 miles to make. We shook out the second reef and tacked back up into Skunk Bay and headed to Pt, No Point, then tacked off toward Edmonds, making five or six knots at times. A couple of times we eased her off a bit and really picked up speed, but had to harden up to get as much southing as we could. About halfway across, Dick suddenly called out, "Orcas!" Sure enough, a pod of four orcas swam right past us, one surfacing about six feet off the beam. We cheered and waved and thanked them. One rolled on its side and waved a flipper at us, then continued on its way. That's the truth. We both felt that just seeing that pod made the trip worthwhile. The wind was southerly now and at Edmonds we tacked back to Kingston, thence to just north of Shilshole Bay. Dick had been watching the time and taking bearings. Finally he said, "Let's furl up and punch straight to Shilshole or we'll run out of light." We hit the Locks just after sundown and reached CWB about 6:30. After a brief welcome back, Dick headed for home and I called Adrienne to let her know we were in. I stowed some gear and hit the sack. So here endeth the tale of our passage on the cutter Westerly. We motorsailed about 90 miles in four days, one day of which was a layover. We dragged once, stranded once, saw some beautiful schooners and absolutely gorgeous country. Dick and I got a chance to clear out the cobwebs and remember what life is really about. If Westerly gets another ton or two of ballast, she will be an excellent seaboat and we'll be ready to do it again. CWB Life Member Steve Osborn is a regular contributor to the pages of Shavings.
HISTORIC BOAT PLANS A number of plans for famed designer Ted Geary's sailing models, plus one set for a fullsize boat, are now available thanks to the efforts of the Pirate Restoration Committee. Pirate, a R-Boat built in 1926 at Lake Union Dry Dock Co., was donated to CWB last fall and is being restored through the efforts of a dedicated bunch of R-Boat enthusiasts, led by Scott Rohrer. The sale of the model boat plans is just one way that money is being raised for the restoration. Plans available are: Pirate Pond Boat. A single sheet plan for building this 39" scale sailing model designed in 1927. Construction is simple bread-and-butter method. Plan includes construction sections, rigging plan and sail plan. Templates for lifts and profile full-scale. $50. Olympia. An inch-to-a-foot model of a SixMetre yacht, 36" long, designed at Geary's Los Angeles office in 1932 to commemorate the Olympic games being held in L.A. that year. The SixMetres and Eight-Metres were the two big keel boat classes at the Games. Bread-and-butter construction, full scale lifts and profile. Very good print with helpful rigging details. $20. Class C Model Yacht Designed by Geary in 1922, this monster is 72" long! No sail plan on drawing but a total sail area of 2200 sq. in. is calculated. Graceful sheerline and lovely long overhangs. This boat resembles Geary's controversial racer, Spirit II. Full-scale drawing. $30. S/V Pirate Plans. Beautiful, sharp prints scanned from two original ink-on-linen drawings for the 39' R-Boat Pirate. The sail plan (1/2" = 1') includes the original rigging plan and outboard profile of this famous racer. The construction drawing (1"—1') shows profile and plan views as well as deck plan. Two drawing set. $50
WE'VE GOT MAIL! Or, at least, we'd like to have mail. And now there's an easy way to reach Shavings: our very own e-mail address. So if you've got a comment, a story idea, a criticism or (rah! rah!) a compliment, zap it to us at shavings@cwb.org
Classifieds Early Willits canoe in good condition with fin keel, rare copper air tanks, bulkheads, 2 sails (not original). $2,500. Call (360) 352-4191 (Olympia). Classified Ads are available, free of charge, only to CWB members. If you would like an ad to appear in Shavings, e-mail it to shavings@cwb. org or fax it to (206) 382-2628.
Calendar of Events Every 3rd Friday CWB THIRD FRIDAY SPEAKER SERIES 7p.m. CWB Boathouse Each month CWB finds a speaker of wit and experience to talk about his or her special knowledge. It is also an opportunity for CWB members to meet one another and the staff. Admission is free. Refreshments served (donations to cover costs are appreciated). March 17 (Friday) THIRD FRIDAY SPEAKER 7 p.m. CWB Boathouse Scott Rohrer, renowned racing captain, will give a slide talk on the great yacht designer, Ted Geary, and the exuberant yacht-racing scene in the early 1900s. Scott's tales will include a near war between Seattle and Vancouver (B.C.) over the Alexander Cup and Sir Thomas Lipton offering a way to calm the waters. April 21 (Friday) THIRD FRIDAY SPEAKER 7 p . m .CWB Boathouse For 100 years Seattle's houseboats have been an integral part of our community. Jeri Callahan, a houseboater who runs tours of the Lake Union houseboats, will present a slide talk. This will be an historic overview and a playful romp through the social aspects of Seattle's unique floating communities. April 23 (Sunday) SPRING CRUISE Noon - 8 p . m . (participants' meeting at 1 p.m.) This year's Spring Cruise takes us back 100 years. It's 1900. Seattle is booming as those who made their fortunes in the Gold Rush spend them. On Lake Union the forest still comes down to the shoreline and native canoes are still the common form of transportation but that soon will change as a century of growth begins. If you've never been a part of the Spring Cruise, here's how it works. Participants are encouraged to wear costumes reflecting the theme year. Armed with knowledge and maps from the 1 p.m. historical briefing, we set out in CWB boats (or bring your own) to tour the lake and bring history to life. The day winds up with a potluck supper and announcement of the Volunteer of the Year Award. There will be prizes for the best costumes and the best dishes for the supper (whatever your dish, bring enough to feed six). If you want to use a CWB boat, arrive early enough to do some boat cleaning (inside and waterlines) or come the weekend before and scrub away. That will get you free boat use; otherwise, registration for use of one of our boats will be $5.
May 19 (Friday) THIRD FRIDAY SPEAKER 7p.m. CWB Boathouse This session is about the natural history of the Northwest shorelines. Our speakers traditionally talk about our cultural history but there is no wall between small craft cruising our Northwest waters and the experience of the rich and diverse environment of our tidelands. Dr. Susan Zwinger has a doctorate in interdisciplinary arts in education. She has published four books on natural history and several essays, articles and poems. She will focus on her latest book: The Last Wild Edge, One Woman's Journey from the Arctic Circle to the Olympic Peninsula. July 1-4 (Saturday-Tuesday) 24TH ANNUAL LAKE UNION WOODEN BOAT FESTIVAL 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. each day Four, count 'em, four glorious days to enjoy our annual homage to the beauty, endurance and vitality of wooden boats. All your favorite boats - from dainty dinghies to stupendous schooners - and activities (toy boats, boat rides, skills demonstrations, historic and modern day exhibits, the Quick & Daring Boatbuilding Contest and more) will be there. The location's the same as always, CWB and the adjacent Naval Reserve Base grounds, but it should have a different name by Festival 2000. That's because the transfer of the Navy Base to the City of Seattle is expected this spring. So our Festival will be held in the new South Lake Union Park. Mark your calendar now for this very special Festival. (Festival forms for boats, exhibitors, food vendors and the regatta will be going out in the next couple of months.) July 11-15; July 22-26; August 20-24 (Monday-Friday) SUMMER IN THE CITY 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. We are again offering our exciting summer maritime program for kids age 12 and older. Summer in the City includes a combination of maritime skills - sailing, rowing and marlinspike work - as well as maritime history. The focus is on sailing skills with the goal of having students soloing by week's end. Three identical five-day sessions are available: July 11-15; July 22-26; August 20-24 (Monday-Friday). The cost is $175 per student and there are only nine spaces available for each session. Register by phone (206) 382-2628 - or in person at CWB; because of the popularity of the program in past years, no mail order registrations can be accepted. July 31-August 4, August 7-11; August 14-18 (Monday-Friday) ADVENTURE BOUND There's a new twist to our week-long sailing program for teenagers. This year, students ages 14-18 will have the opportunity to sail and navigate CWB's own newly-restored sailing gillnetter
throughout Puget Sound. They'll navigate this 30' open boat through the waters of Puget Sound while learning traditional maritime skills, maritime and natural history and leadership and teamwork skills. The fee of $650 per student includes food, lodging, instruction and supervision for the week. Call CWB, (206) 382-2628 for a brochure and application form.
Marine Skills Workshops All year 'round (daily in the summer!) LEARN TO "SAIL NOW!" 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. or 1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p . m . Saturday & Sunday Fee: $200per person (includes a one-year CWB membership) Instructors: Volunteers Students will learn to sail classic boats in one session of classroom work and as many sessions of hands-on instruction as necessary (within a four-month period) in our small boats, no more than three students per instructor. Students will graduate when able to sail a variety of keel, centerboard, sloop and catboats by instinct, by themselves. You may begin any Saturday, space permitting. Please call ahead for reservations. For the student who is only free on weekdays, or prefers one-on-one instruction, we continue to offer individual lessons ($20/hour for members, $30/hour for non-members) on weekdays by appointment. March 4-5 (Saturday & Sunday) LOFTING WORKSHOP 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m CWB Boathouse Fee: $115(members)/$125 (non-members) Instructor: Eric Hvalsoe Students will loft a classic boat from a table of offsets. This workshop will enable students to read plans and understand the arcane mysteries of bevels, rabbet lines, deductions and construction drawings. Eric Hvalsoe is an experienced boatbuilder and designer who has conducted lofting and boatbuilding workshops for more than 10 years. This class is highly recommended as a prerequisite for our boatbuilding workshops. Limited to 6. March 11-19 (Saturday-Sunday) LAPSTRAKE WORKSHOP 8:30 a.m - 5:30 p.m CWB Boatshop Fee: $600(members)/$650 (non-members) Instructor: Eric Hvalsoe Eric is our globetrotting boatbuilding instructor; he teaches not only at CWB but also at the WoodenBoat magazine school and, for the past three years, in the Netherlands. He's designed several classic small craft. The boat will be a classic design for our livery - maybe a Lake Oswego boat or a yacht tender or maybe a surprise. The choice will be up to Eric, who will welcome input from students as they sign up. Limited to 7.
March 25 (Saturday) SEATTLE BOATSHOPS TOUR Fee: $25 (members)/$30 (non-members) 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Seattle Waterfront Leader: Dick Wagner Dick, Seattle's expert on local boatshops, will take a small group on a tour of some of the greatest historic shops around Seattle's waterfronts. Participants will visit shops that are absolutely unavailable to the public. Our fearless founder will use all his charms as a Seattle icon to gain entrance to these shops, see the work in progress and, hopefully, get some of the great shipwrights to answer questions. Limited to 8. April 1-2 (Saturday-Sunday) & 7-9 (FridaySaturday) CANOE RESTORATION Fee: $450 (members)/$500 (non-members) 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. CWB Boatshop Instructor: Eric Harman We plan to find a canoe that needs a new canvas, a few new ribs and planks and maybe even a new stem. Then we'll fix it. Everyone who has or appreciates true classic wood and canvas canoes should know hot to fix them. If you have a canoe in need of some accelerated TLC, maybe yours can be the class project. Limited to 4. April 8-16 (Saturday-Sunday) IKYAK (ALEUTIAN-INUIT KAYAK) WORKSHOP 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. CWB Pavilion Fee: $900 (members)/$950 (non-members) Instructor: Corey Freedman The ikyak, most popularly known as a baidarka, is a different and more complicated construction than the Greenland Inuit type. Each student will build his or her own boat. Corey Freedman, owner/operator of Spirit Line Kayaks in Anacortes, is well recognized for both his expertise in native kayak construction and his
teaching ability. Limited to 4. April 15-16 (Saturday-Sunday) NATIVE AMERICAN PADDLE CONSTRUCTION 9 cunt - 5 p.m. CWB Boatshop Fee: $125 (members)/$135 (non-members) Instructor: Ray Arcand Ray Arcand is an experienced woodcarver, tool maker and paddle maker. In this class, students will use a variety of hand tools, including the traditional crooked knife, to carve their own traditional Northwest native paddle. Limited to 6. April 22 (Saturday) HOW TO BUY A WOODEN BOAT 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. CWB Boathouse Fee: $40 (members)/$45 (non-members) Instructor: Lee Ehrheart, surveyor and shipwright This seminar covers the many facets of purchasing a boat, including insuring and financing. You'll learn first-hand what to look for and where to look to get a feeling for the overall integrity of a vessel. Discover some of surveyors' techniques for sounding a hull and inspecting the many nooks and crannies of the boat. You'll be able to do some serious pre-inspection and get a feeling for the overall health and suitability of a vessel before you call a surveyor. Limited to 20. April 29 (Saturday BRIGHTWORK SEMINAR 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. CWB Boathouse Fee: $25 (members/$30 (non-members) Instructor: Rebecca Wittman When it comes to making your brightwork gleam, there's no one more knowledgeable or better able to teach you all the basics and the professional's tricks than Rebecca Wittman. Her book, Brightwork: The Art of Finishing Wood, is regarded as the definitive work on the subject.
This seminar will afford you the chance to learn all the materials and technologies in the world of wood coatings. Limited to 40. May 6-7(Saturday & Sunday) LOFTING WORKSHOP 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. CWB Boathouse Fee: $115(members)/$125 (non-members) Instructor: Rich Kolin In preparation for the upcoming Boatbuilding Workshop, students will loft a classic Salmon Wherry from a table of offsets. This workshop will enable students to read plans and understand the arcane mysteries of bevels, rabbet lines, deductions and construction drawings. Rich Kolin is a boatbuilder, designer and author with nearly three decades of experience in passing on the skills of his craft to others. Limited to 6. May 6-7 (Saturday & Sunday) UNDERSTANDING WOODEN BOATS AND THE INSPECTION PROCESS 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. CWB Boathouse Fee: $70 (members)/$75 (non-members) Instructor: Lee Ehrheart, surveyor and shipwright The program covers wooden boat construction, terminology, structural deficiencies and their causes and prevention, components of a marine inspection and their application in the field. This program is of interest to those involved with the inspection, survey, ownership and/or long-term maintenance of wooden vessels of all kinds. Limited to 12. NOTE: A $100 non-refundable deposit is required to register for all boatbuilding workshops; the balance is due no later than two weeks prior to the workshop. For all other workshops, pre-payment in full reserves your place. Classes with fewer than four students will be canceled or postponed.