Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival Part Two

The Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival seems to have a different atmosphere each day.

Fridays are my favorite day. Friday seems to bring in more of the amateur boatbuilders, eager to attend the festival as early as possible in order to beat the weekend crowds and get more one-on-one time with the exhibitors.  I really enjoy the relaxed atmosphere on Friday. I made this video clip to give you an idea of what I mean.

Saturday is the busiest day, drawing people from all walks of life, with the full spectrum of interests.  Sunday, the final day of the festival, seems to bring in many of the locals whose friendliness knows no bounds. It gradually builds in anticipation of the spectacular grand sail-by, cheered by thousands of spectators along the shore, immediately followed by thousands of fond farewells.

On Friday I alternated between answering questions on Ellie and sneaking away to look at the other boats while waiting with great anticipation for John Welsfords talk at 12:30.

Having already taken a peek at Peters Penguin "Tenatious" at the boat launch, I figured this was a great time to go see the other Welsford boats at the festival: A Scamp and a Walkabout.

First up was Scamp.  I will be writing much more about Scamp in the future.

And nearby was "Puddles", Rick Thompsons Walkabout. Puddles is built as a coastal rowing boat. She is stretched to 17 10", and has seat rails and removable seats and foot stretchers to allow one or two slide seat rowers. She was launched in May 2010.  Her home waters are San Francisco Bay, the Sacramento Delta, and lakes of the Sierra Nevada.  The workmanship is impeccable.

I met John Welsford at the Small Craft Advisor tent and spoke with him briefly. He had a very busy day scheduled.  Johns talk at 12:30 was about the history of recreational boating.  The talk was fantastic.

There was an "Under 26 wooden sailboat race" scheduled from 2:30 to 4:00, with a skippers meeting at 1:00 to go over the details.  I missed the skippers meeting because I was at Johns talk. No matter - Im not a racer (Ive never raced in my life) but I got this crazy idea to invite John for a sail just to watch the race. To me, dodging the racers is much more fun than racing with them.  So after his talk, I invited John out for a sail, and much to my utter delight, he accepted!  In the last few days, John had survived traveling halfway around the world in coach, gave three talks, and met hundreds of people. I couldnt tell for sure behind that beard, but I suspect John was ready for a little sailing vacation from his vacation!

So off we went to dodge the racers!  As soon as we left Port Hudson marina, I turned the tiller over to John.

I asked John how many Navigators hed sailed.  He said hed sailed twelve.

I ask how "Ellie" compared.  He said they all sailed very much the same, but had subtle differences.

I then asked John to let me know if he sees anything that needed to be adjusted or changed.

"Youre going to want to move your jib fairlead aft about a handspan and a half.", he said.
[note: this would put the jib fairlead right at bulkhead 4]

"Really?", I said, puzzled. "Oh, is that because I shifted the jib higher up when I added the furler and turnbuckle?

John said "You see that curvature you have along the foot of the jib?"

John studied the jib for a few moments, then said, "Take the jib sheet out of that fairlead and lead it right back here to this camcleat."

I did as John instructed and looked at the jib. It now had a nice even airfoil shape along its entire length.

"Thats better", said John "You could still use the other fairlead location for light air if you like, but moving it a handspan and a half aft looks just right."

John tacked and passed just astern of a gaff sloop that looked several feet longer than Ellie.


"Do you normally sit back there?" asked John

"Yes", I said

"Here, take hold of the tiller"

I took hold.

"Now let go the tiller. What do you see?"

I let go and the tiller moved slowly to port.

"A slight weather helm", I said, taking the tiller again.

"Right. Now shift your weight forward, all the way up here and let go the tiller."

The tiller moved slowly to starboard this time.

"These boats are quite sensitive to crew weight. The boat will sail its fastest when properly balanced. Youre a big guy so you are going to want a tiller extension so you can sit up here near the center."

I gave John the helm again, and sat further forward.

We sailed for several more minutes. John tacked occasionally while I daydreamed, soaked in the sunshine, and gazed at the variety of other beautiful boats in the race.

Meanwhile, Ellie seemed to be sailing faster than usual.

John tacked again, this time just ahead of a familiar gaff sloop.

"You see that?", said John, "Earlier we passed astern of that boat.  This time we passed ahead of him."

I didnt realize it, but John had joined the race.  Not only that, but with two expert adjustments and his experienced helmsmanship, John was overtaking a boat that had an advantage in length over us.  Remarkable!

Thanks, John, for generously sharing your time and wisdom with me.

After our sail, John and his lovely wife Denny met with our local TSCA group at Bar Harbor.

Next up: Saturday - the busiest day of the festival. The boats, the events, the maritime center, and much more.  Stay tuned!

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Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival Part Four

The crowds on Sunday morning, the final day of the Festival, were light.  This finally gave  me an opportunity to take a closer look at some of the magnificent boats in the Festival.

Here is a small sampling of boats selected more-or-less at random.

Joshua is a historical replica of Joshua Slocums gaff-rigged yawl Spray, which was the first vessel solo-circumnavigated by Slocum in 1895. Joshuas hull and deck were built in 1982 by Bill Elliott of Bay, Ship and Yacht in California. Owner Wm. Harpster completed the rest of the vessel, including rigging, interior and exterior construction. Joshuas maiden voyage was in San Francisco Bay in 1983.

The Poulsbo 16 was one of the northwests best known small fishing boats. They were used in resorts, as rentals, and for pleasure. Ronald Young designed and built the sturdy craft in Poulsbo, WA (1933-65). The original owner of this boat was Doc Shelton (1946) and the second owner was Howard Jones (1965).

Restoration included: totally stripping fiberglass and paint, removing 2000+ galvanized cut nails and bolts and replacing them with coppercut nails and brass screws and bolts. All seams were stripped and re-caulked with cotton, then filled with 5200, the transom was removed and replaced with mahogany, the stem-forfoot-keel was replaced with oak and fir. The breast plate and transom knees were replaced with mahogany.

Mike Long designed and built the current deck and supporting structure, and inboard-outboard gunwale rails. The new engine bed was also designed and built by Mike. The hull was painted and varnished.

The 1913 Clift engine was rebuilt by Dale Fye and painted International Harvester red. The transmission was rebuilt by Mike and painted Detroit Diesel alpine green. The exhaust was changed from the starboard side to the transom. A heat exchanger cooling system was designed and installed on the port side of the motor. The auxiliary bilge pump was then installed followed by the wiring and the fuel system. Restoration was completed in the fall of 2010.

Nordso is a wonderful modern rendition of the classic North Sea Trawler, designed and built by Christian W. Dahl as a pleasure craft. She was first launched in 1985 on Lake Minnetonka. She has Port Orford planks on white oak frames , mahogany cabin and teak decks. She is powered by a Westerbeke 38B4 diesel and has been recently dressed up with new Hasse sails and new boom for better performance. Nordso was featured in Wooden Boat Magazine # 74. The new handrails, stantions and rails are being crafted and fitted by The Port Townsend Foundry. Sails by PT Sails. Mike Baldwin and Tricia were responsible for the restoration in recent years and the Nordso Foundation is in part the continuation of Mikes dream and environmental activism, following his passing after the 2010 Wooden Boat Festival.

Nordso is the primary vessel for educational programs of the Nordso Foundation, the boat is used to gather plastic waste from the waters of the Salish Sea and Pacific and spread the word about ocean health to youth of all ages.

My good friend Larry Cheek began building "Nil Desperandum," a Devlin Winter Wren II in October 2008 and completed her in 2011 after approximately 3,000 person-hours of labor. The hull is Okoume marine plywood sheathed in fiberglass/epoxy, the spars are Sitka spruce, and all other structure and trim pieces are white oak, khaya mahogany and vertical-grain fir. 

"Nil Desperandum," which appears in an ode by the Roman poet Horace, translates as "Nothing to Worry About." Larry looked at the name every day during construction as a reassuring morale-builder. He says it didnt work.

Dance Me is a Nancys China, a Sam Devlin design, built with the stitch and glue construction method. She is a fine sight with her tanbark sails, blue hull and white topsides. She is easy to sail and easy to maintain. When the winter storms come she resides on a trailer in the back of her owners rose garden. The rest of the time, she is in the marina in Port Ludlow.

JO E 3 is a 1958 Elgin. Purchased new and still owned by original owner Carl Moushey, the boat is currently being completely restored as a surprise for his father.

Milagro was purchased in 2000, severely damaged from poor storage, The owner fell through the deck when he first stepped on board. Taken completely apart down to an empty hull and totally rebuilt and restored back to its original state. The fiberglass deck was replaced with a teak overlay. The Perkins engine was rebuilt and all the original hardware restored or replaced. A new rigid dodger was designed and installed in the lines of William Gardens style. The boat has been in the water one year now and sails beautifully.

Steam Launch Puffin was built in 1906 by the Truscott Boat Works in St. Joseph Missouri. She was powered by an early gasoline engine, though her hull design, a “Compromise” model, was originally intended for steam power. Her construction is oak planks over cypress frames.
She was found derelict, restored and converted to steam power in 1975. After changing hands, she was eventually donated to the Center for Wooden Boats by Bob Evans of Missoula, MT.
Steam launches like Puffin were popular in the 1880’s, when the only other options for propelling boats were rowing and sailing. Although Puffin’s steam power plant is relatively new, it is practically indistinguishable from a steam plant from the earlier era. Her boiler burns wood, usually scrap from the Center’s boat shop. A bushel basket of wood propels her for about an hour. Puffin’s original boiler wore out in 1999, and was replaced with a duplicate built to current boiler codes. Her original steam engine was damaged several years ago and was replaced with the current one in 2001. Volunteer machinists built the current engine from a commercially available kit. Puffin’s power plant, while modern, closely resembles a typical steam power plant used in steam launches in the 1800s.

Tenacious is the Penguin model designed by John Welsford of New Zealand. The boat is a trailer sailor, 21 LOD, and will be moored on its trailer to enable exploring all of the large lakes in the Northwest and Puget Sound. For a 21 boat there is plenty of room for a couple or a Granddad to take his grandkids for comfortable explorations. As with all Welsford designs this boat has a reasonable turn of speed with lots of buoyancy.

The Jean Alden is modeled on the traditional Cape Cod catboat. Mike Higgins  started with Phil Bolger’s design for the twelve-foot Bob Cat, scaled it up to fourteen feet, added a small cabin and copied the rig from a Crosby catboat described in a monograph by Barry Thomas. He also modified the stem profile to have the tumblehome that is characteristic of this traditional design. He built her in his garage and driveway over a three-year period, starting in July of 1997.

The primary hull construction is Okoume plywood reinforced with epoxy impregnated fiberglass cloth. The deck and cabin top are laminated Douglas Fir and Red Meranti strips over Okoume plywood. Cabin sides and coaming are tongue-and-groove Douglas fir. Cockpit seats and sole are Okoume plywood. The stem and other deadwood are laminated Red Oak. Cap rails are Iroko. The spars are hollow and constructed from Douglas fir with birds mouth joints. Fastenings are silicon bronze and epoxy. One Christmas vacation, Mike used a large conference room at his job as a loft for making the sail.

 
As you can see, the festival boats come in all shapes, sizes and types, but they all share one thing in common. Every boat begins with a dream.  All of these boats encompass the love, the devotion, the dedication, the hopes and the dreams that their owners bestow on these beloved craft.

Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made,
For somewhere deep in their oaken hearts the soul of a song is laid;
A soul that sings with the ship along through plunging hills of blue,
And fills her canvas cups of white with winds that drive her through.
For how could a nail and a piece of wood, tied with a canvas thread,
Become a nymph on moon-washed paths if the soul of the ship were fled?
Her bosom throbs as her lovers arms clasp her in fond embrace,
And the joyous kiss of briny lips is fresh on her maiden face.
No storm can smother the hempen song that wells in her laughing throat.
Small wonder then that men go mad for the love of the sea and a boat.
For the singing sheet is a siren sweet that tugs at the hearts of men,
and down to the sea they must go once more though they never come back again.
- Robert N. Rose

 Next up: the Grand Sail By

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Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival Part Five

Mid-day Sunday, the final day of the Festival; only a few hours left until the Grand Sailby.

The Grand Sailby is the parade of boats that marks the end of the Festival.  All of the boats depart the festival beginning at about 2:00 and join the 90 minute long parade just offshore of the festival grounds. They are joined by boats from Boat Haven marina and by many dozens of spectator boats.  Hundreds of spectators line the shores, the breakwater, and the Maritime Center to cheer the boats. The Festival gatekeepers abandon their posts, allowing many friendly Port Townsend locals to join the fray.  The Sailby is followed by hundreds of fond Farewells.  Boats ranging from dinghys and kayaks to schooners and square riggers, tugboats, steam powered vessels, motorboats, all manor of sailing craft, and everything in between are suddenly everywhere.  Its quite a sight to see.

I took a break and headed over to the Small Craft Advisor Magazine tent to see what was up. Several of us chatted for a while and it was then when we came up with the idea which was later dubbed the "Rugby Scrum".  The plan was to try to get all four Welsford boats, and a photographer from Small Craft Advisor Magazine, close together during the Sailby for a photo op.  Maybe, with a bit of luck, the photo would be good enough to make the pages of the magazine.  Now that would be awesome!

The plan was to meet around Scamp, piloted by Howard Rice, John Welsford and Johns wife Denny.

A few hours later, off we all went!  As we left Port Hudson, we could see the Sailby beginning to form off in the distance.

Soon we were in the middle of it, surrounded by boats.

Now we just need to find Scamp.  A bit like finding a needle in a haystack!
Oh, hey!  Theres Mike in Jean Alden.  Hi Mike!

Then I spotted her.  Scamp!  There she is near the shore entertaining a huge crowd of spectators!  Head thataway!

And there is Ricks Walkabout "Puddles" headed toward Scamp, rowing faster than I can sail!

And Tenacious?  She should be easy to spot.  There she is, headed towards Scamp from the SouthEast!

We all converged on Scamp, circled around one another several times, and then lined up for the family photo.  I heard a cheer come from the spectators on the beach, but I dont know if they were cheering us or something else.

We did it!  Will it make the magazine?  Only time will tell.

Nearly close enough to shake hands, we all shouted fond farewells, and just like that, the 35th Annual Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival, the best one ever, was over.

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