Easter Sunday; Denis Sullivan delayed. Her Spirit of South Carolina Welcoming Crew Makes Good use of Time

 We could see it developing,, or not developing, more accurately.. The four of us, Carin Bloom, Ken Fonville, Nate Mack, Dave Brennan, Ben Walker, and the Bos'un,(yers truly) had mustered by 10 am to finalize preparations for the schooner Denis Sullivan's anticipated noon arrival. However, frequent checks on our Marine Tracker app's, showed her still at latitude with Brunswick Georgia, easily 24 hours away. 

After leaving text messages with Sullivan's Port Captain requesting an update, The crew set to solving the issue of the imminent high tide, and centering the wai@2st of the ship under the gangway without re-endangering the stanchions underside on the caprail. With high tide and slack current coming up, the doubled #3 docklines were beginning to slack. Bryan, Carin, and Ken, immediately cast off both #3 docklines from the Kevel, taking up all slack and sweated the dock line enough to take up a foot or so, effectively pulling the ship forward another foot. 

At that point, Dave Brennan pointed out the stern quarter dockline, was taut, and likely creating resistance to the desired forward drift of the ship. While Bryan and Carin eased off the quarter stern line off the riding bitt, Ken Fonville stood at the gangway, watching the schooner's caprail slooowwwwly move past the gangway another two feet, enough to clear the stanchions out from under.  

With that adjustment made, the gangway could now be lowered, almost down to the caprail if needed, in order to safely disembark the Ashley Hall students, and their gear.  

Gazing down-harbor past Ft. Sumter, Denis Sullivan never showed. 

A look at Marine Tracker still showed her at latitude of Savannah.. at least 15 hours away. To make some productive use of our waiting time, Cox'un Dave Brennen fired up the outboard and motored the small boat out of the marina dock, back to the outboard side of the schooner to set up a Fluid Film paint station, for the final "slushing" of the head rig's bowsprit and jibboom  from the small boat. 

Bos'un Bryan and Ben Walker, walking
 their floating "slush" station aft down the portside
 martingale backstay.

As Dave had to leave, Bos'un Bryan climbed down into the small boat, and together, Ben, Bryan, and the paint station carefully drifted the boat almost under the Martingale (Dolphin Striker), tied off bow and sternlines, and slushed the headrig from the bottom up.  As Ben and Bryan completed their project, tied up the small boat and delivered their paint station gear back on board, the Sullivan's Port Captain called, expressing much regret and not informing us, but updated that Denis Sullivan would be arriving Tomorrow, Monday, at high tide(slack). By now the remainder of us, Ben, Bryan, and Rick Washington had already put in a full Volunteer Day,  We'll see what tomorrow brings at 1337 hours, in addition to high tide.  We'll be ready.

A new Volunteer Welcomed aboard, and Final touches applies before Spirit of South Carolina hosts the Schooner Denis Sullivan

New Volunteer Ryan Smith
 and Dave Brennen
 waiting for his promised shirt
 for 400 Volunteer hours,

 I would say that Saturday's Volunteer Day was leaderless, being that the Bos'n(yers truly) was away in St. Louis with grandsons.. but that really wasn't the case.  Leadership surfaced across the deck, as Ken Fonville, Nate Mack, Tony Marchesani, Dave Brennan, and Ben Walker mustered together, with a general set of objectives left to them- the Maintenance Punchlist, and a quick text message from the Bos'n, and a deadline. Also an new shipmate/Volunteer mustered aboard, Ryan Smith, USN, who fell-in behind Dave Brennan for the necessary introductions and hasty orientations followed by being thrown into the frenzy already underway on deck. Apparently unfazed, we looking forward to seeing him again soon, with some more volunteers, and even his two teenagers. 

Stalwart, Alex Ryashivich, (just Rya, to his friends) had arrived from Columbia the night before, Friday evening, but ran into difficulties in the dark on the gangway, which had been rigged unusually high on the shipboard end, to clear the stanchions at high tide. While we wait for his story, he's back in Columbia nursing a broken wrist.

The deadline itself was a moving target, based on the arrival,, sometime soon,( I keep saying), of a new Captain, and the expected arrival and rafting up to us of a visiting schooner, Denis Sullivan, the next day on Easter Sunday  at noon, to discharge a crew of Ashley Hall School students to their waiting parents, all across our decks and up our gangway. Very public, 

And so, they set to work, chose their projects, organized to teams, and set to work.  Ken went below to make organized the Aft cabin berths, and make up the Captain's berth specifically.  Tony, and Ben set up a paint station out in the head rig, a touchy scenario as you could imagine.

Tony Marchesani and Ben Walker
 in midst of time-honored job
of slushing the headrig. 

They began slushing the bowsprit shrouds and martingale backstays with Fluidfilm, a modern equivalent of tar, thinned with turpentine. Apparently made its mark as an undercoating for auto bodies... gotta be good, right? 

Coxwain, Nate in the headrig,
admiring behind him
 the successful relocation of
 the small boat(its gone)

Nate and the remainder set to lowering the small boat from it's hipped position on the starboard bow, and motoring her to a temporary dockage inside, then returning to pitch in to headrig. 

The projects went well, based on observations the following Easter Morning.  Volunteers mustered off in time to go home to lunch. 

A Personal Question: So, You think you like Tall Ships? Do you know why?

 

Bear with me on this.  Have you given any thought to that question?  I really didn't see the need to myself, until I found myself trying to explain it to someone else.  Why do these things(meaning tall ships) still exist?  Given how impossibly expensive they must be to maintain, and they're just plain hard to operate...seriously, what's the attraction?

I recently came upon some writing that does a pretty good job of explaining it. The first is a from Alan Villiers, a distinguished mariner, writer, and photographer, of early 20th century seafaring, from Australia. My favorite quote  is under the Mission Statement of Spirit's Crew Manual.

His narrative below, indirectly, offers the explanation you may be looking for.

The young apprentice may have come aboard with his head filled with queer ideas about sailing ships and the sea, principal among which is a fixed notion that all he has to do is look on while old sailors explain things to him and then later on give the Captain advice about sailing the ship.  His first month at sea may be a distressing experience, shattering illusions right and left, he sees only the bare bones of real life remain. He expected romance and found work; he expected a "great life" and found himself principally called upon to perform feats of almost superhuman endurance- feats which everybody did daily and nobody ever noticed. Then, after he settles into things, he finds that there really can be a romance in those bare bones of life if one knows how to go about looking for it.  He sings while he works aloft, and feels the thrill of the sea in his veins as he hangs on to the wheel, and laughs when he is wet through for the twentieth time in succession, and turns out quickly when the call is for all hands on deck, though he made the acquaintance of his bunk only half an hour ago and his watch is always catching it, and he fights the mad canvas aloft with the men... Yes, the sailing ship can be hard, and it is not always a pleasant process having the edges knocked off you.. But the ship casts a spell over those who sail in her.

Never been aloft, so you can't relate?  How bout this one, from the Tall Ship's America website:

The rewards of sailing a tall ship are deep and durable, because the challenges are so real and the experience is so personal.  Sailing adventure is compelling because it is uncontrived, springing spontaneously from the voyage itself.  Seafaring engages your mind, body, and spirit like never before, and inspires you to strive for your own personal best...all the while being a valued and important member of the team.  The quality of work, and the spirit in which we do it, has a profound effect on the well-being of everyone else aboard. Leadership, paradoxically, is arrived at by first learning to take direction and by becoming a team player.

Multi-talented Volunteers, lend talents to Benefit Spirit of South Carolina

The past week was just plain busy;  saw a continuous flow of several behind the scenes phone conversations, meetings, errands, and situations, not including planning/prepping for this Saturday's volunteer Day.

It began with a reluctant phone call to Caleb in New York.  Caleb, representing a faction of the New York Yacht Club was interested in  chartering  Spirit of South Carolina for a week's sail on Long Island in early August.  Unfortunately, the logistics, insurance issues, and cost of getting her there and back, without a revenue stream to cover those legs, made it a bridge too far, and I had to convey regrets.

It followed with a series of messages, then a call, followed by a meeting with Derek Astorino, of the Food Boat, here in Charleston, wishing to video a guest chef on board Spirit of South Carolina, demonstrating and cooking a lunch on board for Volunteers.. cool!  That string of communication continues with a plan to make it happen around 27 April.

In between those two was a couple of email, and phone conversations with Elliott, past deckhand, and now educator at Beaver Country Day School outside Boston, wanting a cost quote to send down 18 high school students with their 3 educators next February for up to two weeks of sailing adventure. That one looks promising. 

Another conversation with Rebecca from CORA who had some ideas for marketing the schooner, possibly even a charter sail. 

And a hurried drive to North Charleston to retrieve the schooner's sewing machine, left for repairs; the shop was being forced to vacate and reestablish somewhere else; meaning I 'm on my own for time being to order the parts and wait for dust to settle before bringing the machine, with new repair parts, back to the repair ship, hopefully newly ensconced in a new shop. 

With only a week to go before the schooner's first real public appearance, sort of , Volunteers mustered Saturday morning to jump into projects making her deck ready for inspection.  Easter Sunday, the 3-masted schooner, Denis Sullivan will raft up to us, disembarking a number of Ashley Hall students across out decks to the waiting parents and throng dockside.  very public. 

Deck Wash Crew with tools of the trade.
Bryan had already busted his brush handle.

1st order of business was a deck wash,, normally performed weekly onboard this ship, we were horribly long overdue.  The deck was first cleared of anything loose; rope coils, mats, ladders, docklines, etc. Walter Barton hauled out the fire hose to the foredeck and stood by while Tony Marchesani lay down below in the engine room to set the valve to Fire Main and start the pump. The rest of us,, Alex Lya, Ben Walker, Dave Brennan, and Ken Fonville took stations with hard bristle brushes for the teak deck and softer brushes for the painted and varnished surfaces. 

Deck Wash crew at work

Bryan opened up the Fire Main, and we all followed Walter down the the deck scrubbing or brushing everything from the waist down.  After Walter followed with a rinse and flushing of the grime scrubbed loose, the hose was drained, secured, brushes stowed and we organized for the next set of projects. 

Tricky business; heating and bending bronze

Nate Mack had just arrived, towing his acetylene welding torch cart, and set up to restore three  different bronze stanchions which had been over time, badly bent. The trick was to heat up the  damaged portion to soften it, while keeping cool the base, and the wood rail, then skillfully hammering the affected portion back into proper shape.  Tony wrapped the base in a water soaked towel and continuously ran water over it with the garden hose. Dave focused the torch onto the damaged portion of the stanchion, and Nate began the careful tapping, occasionally banging different spots to  eventually draw the hot portions back into it's original shape. Repeat three times. 

The rest of us explored the deck for anything improperly secured; re-coiling and hanging lines that were too large and dragging the deck or just plain sloppy, resecuring other lines into proper locations, or stowing unnecessary cordage in the lazarette. 

Rick serving up his choice chili.

Meanwhile, below in the galley, Rick Washington had been working a pot of chili and rice with with several fixings. The bell rang -well timed as welding projects completed, and deck organization found a pause.

Crew enjoys the break

Following lunch, Nate and team lay aft to complete his project of grinding out and setting a dutchman for a new stanchion base in the starboard quarter taff rail. Bryan, Alex, and Ben organized material and tools to fashion a UV-protective  bag from plastic tarpaulin fabric, for the rescue boat's assigned Type 1 PFD's.

Dave fitting lifelines to the newly-
 installed stanchion

Stanchion Welding repair crew
 on their third project.

By 1400 most of the work was completed, and volunteers began exfiltrating for home and their own weekend projects.  Ben hung back with Bryan for another couple hours to  work on dock line bowlines and handling and heaving lines.  Alex was keeping a berth over the weekend to make the most of a Volunteer day before heading back to Columbia Sunday.

Bryan, the gangway and the repaired stanchion

 As the say was ending, Bryan was still on deck with the speedy stitch awl, sewing together the PFD bag they had measured and cut out, and waiting for the king high tide to lift  the schooner and test the gangway height over the just repaired stanchion.  It turned out fine.

 

Three Projects Completed this Saturday- Good Progress,, With good weather it's Maintaining our Momentum

 Some welcome weather for Saturday definitely boosted morale, after seemingly 3 straight past volunteer days sabotaged by rain. With the seven of us, Bryan, Alex Lya, Tony the Wiper, Chef Walter Barton and his signature comfort food for lunch, new Volunteer, Ben Walker, and Dave Brennan.  

With a little more organization than usual, Bryan divided the Watch in to three projects;  

• Walter and Alex were assigned the project of fabricating and installing a new Mast Boot for the mainmast-not as simple as it looked. 
• Tony and Dave began rigging up the foremast throat halyard with a bos'uns chair to take somebody aloft and linseed oil the Foremast-top-to-bottom. When set, they spread the ship's  20x20 foot canvas ground cloth around the bas or the mast to catch the inevitable drips and linseed oil spatter floating down from on high.
• Bryan coached Ben, and Dave thru marling-hitching of the foresail head onto the gaff, and properly lashing  down the peak.

The last two projects were completed in short order,  As Alex and Walter continued bulding out a cloth template to fit on the mast before laying it on a slab of fresh canvas to begin cutting out, the rest of us gathered around the foremast. 

Somebody has to set the example..

With no takers, Bryan sent helpers to retrieve a clean painter's coverall suit, a canvas bucket with plastic insert to fill with linseed oil, a large fresh rag for sopping down the mast.   Meanwhile, Bryan with  Dave's help, struggled into the suit, then fitted a chest harness, followed by two tether straps;  one to keep Bryan in the bos'un's seat, the second to snug the seat next to the mast. With oil bucket clipped on to the the sling, and three shipmates standing by the jumbo halyard, and Dave on a tag line, Bryan shouted out "on the halyard,, Haul Away!). 

And they hauled, and hauled, and hauled.. stopped for a break, then hauled away some more, until Bryan could touch the top edge of the mast copper sheath, and shouted, "That's Well, make fast".  For the next 45 minutes, They alternately eased Bryan down the mast 2-feet at a time, while he reached down into his bucket for a rag soaked with linseed oil, and reaching  around the mast, slopped copious quantities of oil around the mast, hoping not to miss a spot. Meanwhile, Walter excused himself to the galley to prep his buffet of meatloaf and green bean casserole. 

Once Bryan was safely back on the deck, everyone set everything aside and hurried below into the Saloon for lunch.  As it was completed and clean-up accomplished, Nate Mack came aboard with his tools and a huge Come-along strap rig. First, he trimmed and set the wood dutchman into the taff rail for curing, in preparation for reinstalling the lifeline stanchion into it.  Next he rigged the come-along strap around one of the bent stanchions on the starboard rail, and with slow steady pressure was able to straighten it back into a vertical.

Immediately after lunch as the rest of the crew began securing tools, and other equipment, Bryan teamed up with Walter and Alex on the Mast Boot template. Inexplicably, none of us were much in remembering out spatial algebra/geometry, beyond defining "pi". and We struggled with computing the various variables into a cone surface, laid out flat.  Finally, in frustration, we cut out one large rectangle, and shaped it around the mast base, alternately cutting, taping,, stretching, more cutting, until we had a rough cone shape.  This we lashed onto the mainmast base "collar" on the deck, stretching it upward so to tape it around the mast, just about fife rail-height. Bryan broke out the canvas repair kit, and with sail palm, sail twine, and a monster needle, began stitching together the  opposing vertical edges on the aftermost side of the canvas cone, of course largely unreachable, between the mast, and the Cabin trunk.

By this time, it was 1600 hours,, motivation was sinking, and family demands were coming to the surface, so we reluctantly found our stopping place, secured all of our tools and supplies below, and left the vessel under charge of Rick Washington.

Next morning, Bryan returned to finish the stitching, and  apply the first coat of white enamel over the entire surface of the cone, to shrink some of the folds out of it, and waterproof the thing.. Another project completed.

With arrival of the new Captain still up in the air. Volunteer priorities remain, addressing our spreadsheeted punchlist, but with increasing emphasis on honing our deckhand skills, making the deck shipshape in prep for our visitors crossing it on Sunday when Denis Sullivan ties up to us to disembark her Ashley Hall Students. We have three signed up for that Easter Sunday afternoon, and could use three more., for about an hour or so.

A Captain's Farewell, More Educational Programs Contacts Developed, and a drowned out Volunteer Day. Maintenance-Not so much.

 'S no use fighting a Low Country Monsoon and a King Tide on the Charleston Waterfront.  I"ve been sitting here this morning at Toast, on King Street, for 3 hours  ordering a breakfast I should not have.   At same time, since 0830, texting back and forth with Rick Washington who's been on deck and below all night for past two,(nights) tending the bilges and constantly checking our shifty ball fender-yokohama alliance, as 15-20 knot winds clock.. around the clock. 

The tides were enough flood to keep four of us from making the Maritime Center this morning for our Saturday Volunteer Day. We may salvage some of the day, but in the meantime I'm catching you up.  

Bryan attempting to coax a medium-grilled
 double cheeseburger out of Danny.

This past Monday I met socially with Jonathan Green, the successful Maritime Artist whose bright, colorful images of Gullah Rural life are visible just about everywhere in the area. Turns out he' an advocate of education in African American Maritime History, and partners with Dr. Kim Long, with whom I had a meeting the previous week on the same topic.  We may find the schooner partnering with their projects in that area.  That translates to more active dockside and sailing opportunities, likely higher end clientele, looking for a more enriching experience on the harbor, than the normal tourism references to points of interest.  It can be in our wheelhouse, but the onus lies on Volunteers.   Time to start getting ready.  More later, as that develops.

Tuesday, the Crew bade Fare Winds to our Captain, Davis Alford.  Davis finished his official responsibilities officially, a month ago, but remained on to attend the Tall Ships America Conference,, afterwards flying directly to the Caribbean to retrieve his ketch, and bring it north.  His shifting itinerary gave us scant advance notice of his return, so a farewell soirree' was organized on board with whoever was reachable via text and email.  Amid a hastily put together burger and chicken grill on the dock, several of us gathered on deck.  

Danny describing the minimum social distance
 required to observe his grilling technique

As of this writing, Capt Davis is back in Puerto Rico, affecting final repairs of boat's diesel. He is pursuing possible opportunities in the Caribbean, or possibly returning to the Charleston area. 

Dave Brennan, Rick Washington,
 and Ken Fonville

Meanwhile, there is a short-list of replacements which Capt Heath, our Project Manager has been managing. which have yet to be announced.  It will include the selection of a new Captain, and possibly a Mate.  The hiring process is being unfortunately stretched, to my understanding, to accommodate peculiar marine insurance requirements.

Tony Marchesani and Mark Held
 waiting to transport burgers and chicken aboard.

Capt Davis, Frank Frazier,
 Ricki Washington, Hayden Hartley

As all that settles down I can report on our new access to an entire Google Drive Folder of  Educational Materials;  Curriculums, Lesson plans, teacher guides, games and activities created back n 2011 by the Low Country Maritime Foundation.  This sharply focuses our foggy notion of what educational programs might look like aboard. 

At end of the month, the Schooner Denis Sullivan is returning to Charleston with a manifest of Ashley Hall students, to drop them off after a 10-week, semester at sea.  She will be rafting up to us around noon on the 31st (Easter Sunday)  for only an hour or so, to disembark these students. Afterwards, she may be at the fuel dock.  On April 3, she will again raft up to us so she can host a Reception aboard for her recent Ashley Hall crew, their parents, and faculty of Ashley Hall. All that will be passing over our deck.  It's apparent that we've an excellent opportunity to showcase Spirit of South Carolina to this audience. Ashley Hall has been a past regular client, and has recently asked our status to hose education program cruises.  While we're not anticipating doing so for rest of the year, it's in our interest to cultivate the relationship.   Volunteers are the visible element to delivering the message. 

Wetnes puts a damper on maintenance projects, but Advances made on other Directions .

 The past Friday night's deluge left a residual sogginess to the deck, limiting much of our planned maintenance projects.  Rainwater had soaked the area around the Mainmast boot, and Fife rail base, nixing further work on reefing out seams and caulking.  Which left only some linseed oiling and up-rigging of the freshly varnished foresail gaff.  

Todd Cole's
handiwork

Bryan brought aboard copies of a Volunteer Recruiting tri-fold brochure to pass around for review. Todd Cole designed around the content to give it a more professional look. The plan is to have printed about 200 copies for distribution, leaving with various clubs, organizations, lobbies, colleges, etc.  

Alex Lyashevich broke off to search for three grits of sandpaper to sand down the two thumb cleats that had been removed from the gaff.  Their position, intended to keep the vang loop around the gaff from slipping forward, was suboptimal, so it would be repositioned after sanding and coating. After a good rub down with the final 220 grit, Alex applied two successive coats of linseed oil, and set the two thumb cleats aside to absorb.

Nate gets started repairing
 the stanchion  base

Nate Mack brought aboard his palm router and proceeded to cut out a space in the starboard quarter taffrail for a dutchman that would provide a new base for the lifeline stanchion. Bryan dropped down into the lazarette to scrounge around for a spare piece of sapele, or teak to shape the dutchman, coming up with a small block of teak. 

"It's always somthin!"
in this case a hidden bolt head
in the way of a screw.

Now the challenge will be fitting a piece over a just discovered thru-bolt head which was in the path of one of the four stanchion screws. All this time, it had prevented one of the screws from properly driving in and anchoring the stanchion. The task will include re-setting the four stanchion base screws in an arrangement away from the submerged bolt head.

As Ken Fonville, Tony Marchesani, and Dave Brennen prepared to set up the suspended gaff for resetting, Dave pointed out to Bryan the worn thru leathers lining the gaff jaws. Change of plans. Now, the priority shifted to a search for sufficient scrap leather to replace the shredded remnants of old cowhide. All that could be found were strips of buffalo hide normally used for the berth seat cushions. It would have to work. Tony and Dave set to work measuring and cutting out double layers of leather to replace both sides of the jaws. Ken started on pulling out the carpet tacks still securing the old leather. 

Somewhere in between, Walter Barton collected money and departed to pick up sandwiches phoned in to East Bay Deli. 

By the time lunch rolled around, our ranks had shrunk by a third due to conflicts. Shortly after that, all left aboard were Bryan and Alex, who promptly shifted to some deckhand skills training.  Going down the skills checklist, Alex demonstrated several knots, talked thru situational awareness with passengers aboard, and added in a little storytelling.   

On another Note, Bryan received access  from  Crew Alumnus/Education Director-Sarah Pewinski, to a real treasure trove of educational materials developed several years ago to support the schooner's mission. Themes and topics covered STEM, Geography, History, all configured for educating 5th thru 8th graders on board, including activities and games designed to engage kids with hands on things.  Their content is designed so to be delivered by, shall we say, amateurs-professional educators not required.  Volunteers can fit that bill perfectly.  So, if you're a Volunteer, and reading this, look forward  to seeing more on the topic, including eyes on the curriculum that's available.  It's extensive.