Crew Log 250 – Two Tales in One

Open the below photos in a full-screen slideshow in Flickr

June 15, 2010 – Strait of Juan de Fuca, Washington
By Herb McCormick and Roxanne Nanninga

If you stroll up off the docks, hang a right and walk down the quiet highway in the fishing port of Neah Bay, after about a mile you’ll come to a tidy little park with flags flying that commemorates three things: the heritage of the First American natives of the Pacific Northwest, the Makah Nation people, the watermen and women who thrived along this rich coastline for centuries; the Spanish explorers that were the first Europeans to also populate these shores; and the local people who’ve served this country with honor in distant wars.

As war memorials go, the one in Neah Bay is pretty unique. For at the bottom of the black marble tribute, engraved with dozens and dozens of names, is a three-word inscription that couldn’t be more powerful, positive or succinct: “All came home.”

Thank you to the soldiers and sailors of Neah Bay.

Heaven knows our fortunate and even blessed voyage Around the Americas has been anything but a battle, and this anecdote is not meant to be a comparison in any way. But as I took a walk this morning while waiting for the tide to come in so we could get underway on the final leg of this trip to Seattle, the words rang true for other reasons. For here aboard Ocean Watch, we’re headed home.

But first we have a stop to make. When we left Seattle on May 31^st, 2009, our first call was at Port Townsend, so it only makes sense that we should check in on the way back. Besides, our sailmaker, Carol Hasse, calls Port Townsend home, and we need to drop her off on the way by. At midday Tuesday we left our overnight berth along the fishing docks in Neah Bay bound for Port Townsend. The plan is to anchor tonight, one more time, somewhere along the way up the strait. Tomorrow around noon, we’ll fetch up alongside the Northwest Maritime Center & Wooden Boat Foundation and send Hasse back to the sail loft. If you happen to be in Port Townsend, pop by and say hello. [Note from the shore team: dockside open house at the Northwest Maritime Center from 3-5pm on Wednesday, June 15th. More details are available on our Port Townsend page.]

There’s the latest onboard update, but for today’s crew log, we have two tales in one. The second piece is an essay by Pacific Science Center teacher Roxanne Nanninga, who proved to be an invaluable crewmember on our travels through South and Central America, and on through California. Now back in Seattle, Roxanne reflects on her experiences with the expedition while managing, frankly, to make the rest of us blush. Thanks for your dedication as a teacher and for everything else, Roxanne, including this story:

Reflections on a Voyage of Discovery
By Roxanne Nanninga

As the first fingers of light began reaching over the gray sea on the morning of our approach to Santa Barbara, I sat crouched in a ball to stay warm against the cold wind, and considered the journey that had brought me this far. From the Christmas fireworks and apprehension in Punta del Este, Uruguay, through mastery of a curriculum in two languages and a respectable amount of blue water sailing for a complete novice, I decided I’ve come a long way, not just in miles but also as a teacher and as an individual seeking to understand the great scope of our Earth’s environment and its people.

The crew of Ocean Watch and I all seem to agree that the people we’ve met along the way have been what’s made this ambitious project so worthwhile. The kids I have met need no convincing that our ocean is precious and deserves protecting. It’s not just the students, however. Parents, teachers, sailors, and scientists alike expressed gratitude to us for bringing awareness to such critical issues as climate change, ocean acidification, plastics pollution, and a basic understanding of the oceans and its life-giving processes.

These human interactions have often been very brief but that’s all it takes to make an impression. In Uruguay we received an invitation to a home-cooked Christmas dinner. In Chile, where there seemed to be the greatest abundance of kind and helpful people, very early on the morning of my arrival, I bonded with an immigration officer over our shared frustrations with US Visa policies.  There were taxi drivers in Peru who shared with me their authentic sentiments of love for their country, and sometimes disgust, too, offering rare insight to a foreigner. There have been teachers; port authorities; yacht club presidents; library and aquarium staff; random people who saw the website or the news and wanted to be involved; and many, many others who have gone out of their way to help us accomplish our mission or just make our lives away from home more comfortable.  Without them this trip would have had no meaning.

There have also been many non-human encounters that have shaped my experience, the biggest being the sea itself. Dark and formidable, the open ocean is a humbling place. My first memorable night at sea was crossing the mouth of Rio de la Plata in Argentina. An eerie glow from distant Buenos Aires sat on the horizon offering no sense of comfort in the shadowy night, the clouds sometimes parting to reveal a nearly full moon. The glow was echoed on the surrounding phosphorescent-tinged whitecaps. The effect gave me the creeps and I remember counting the minutes until morning.

Fortunately, that feeling eventually passed and I came to appreciate the night watches, especially on a clear, star-lit night.  Others who have spent time at sea know that the skies there are unmatched. The immensity of space that spans both above and below where you sit is a great reminder of our human frailty. In the Southern Hemisphere you could even peer into a neighboring galaxy known as the Magellenic Clouds, or Clusters.  However, just as I would start to believe we were alone on the sea, a dolphin, whale, or bird would come along to disrupt the illusion and remind me of the entire teeming world of life just below the surface.

As you may guess, spending time on a small vessel or in foreign countries with just a few other travelers affords many opportunities to get to know one another in a way not generally possible. The crew of Ocean Watch is a select and accomplished group, whom I have enjoyed getting to know immensely. I have heard Mark refer to his crew as family and with all they have been through and the time spent together through fortune, dysfunction, and understanding I can think of no better term for it. Being one of the few females to take part in this dynamic gives me a unique perspective on it as well. I would like to take a moment to comment on what I have appreciated and learned from each one of them.

From the beginning, Captain Mark Schrader has been warm and welcoming, inviting me into this strange and exclusive world of sailors. His determination is impressive; he was always doing whatever it takes to get where we had to be safely and as on time as possible, which is no small feat.  His passion for ocean stewardship is what has pressed this project forward since its conception, and his desire for perfection has urged us all to do our best work and to stay focused on why we are here: to bring eyes and ears to the plight of our oceans and inspire people to take action to protect it in their respective parts of the Americas.

First mate Dave Logan has been the oil in what makes the entire engine of Around the Americas run smoothly. Purposely understated, Dave often rejects praise for his accomplishments but we all know we wouldn’t have made it around without his hard work and expertise.  Additionally, he has been an essential help with the educational programs, having acted as my “lovely assistant” on many occasions, leading boat tours, setting up banners, sails and our traveling expedition tent, and enchanting both adults and children with his stories and quiet sense of humor.

Our writer is Herb McCormick, whom many of you may feel you know best through his daily logs to the web, which have given voice to this mission and have taught many profound things through his subtle stories. Herb has also provided the salty attitude and humor needed to keep the trip fun. His call-it-as-I-see-it commentary is alternately poignant and hilarious. On one occasion he even agreed to run a writer’s workshop for a hundred thirteen-year-olds at the Yacht Club in Lima. Despite his initial nervousness (yes, the ever-cool Herb McCormick does, in fact, get nervous on occasion) his contributions were a true highlight to the day’s event and I was grateful for it.

David Thoreson, our photographer, has given Around the Americas its face and context with his stunning imagery taken along the entire expedition. His ubiquitous presence at events happening at sea or in port has given us a thoroughly documented voyage and makes me wonder if he ever really sleeps. He was, however, the only one who could convince me to sleep on my first anxious night at sea. Always happy to share his candid opinion, he has proven also to be a great listener and his support was a great comfort to me throughout the journey.

Though Dr. Michael Reynolds was not a part of the core crew, I think he has been along for enough of it to be counted as an honorary member.  He has not only kept us focused on the scientific discovery of this mission but has also helped remind us all to relax a little. Never flustered, Michael would carry on with his science in the background no matter what other chaos had ensued. He offered interesting and humorous tidbits on watch and kept me on my toes by finding hats, cameras, and other items the sometimes absent-minded professor would leave behind. Still, we owe a great deal of our credibility to him.

There were of course many others I have had the pleasure of traveling with along the way. Though I can’t mention them all by name here, each one helped enrich my time with this voyage. Thanks to all of you.

I think I speak for all of us when I say it will take a considerable amount of time to fully process the experiences we’ve had with the project and sometimes lifestyle called Around the Americas. I have learned a great deal and given much of myself. And I feel grateful.

-Herb McCormick and Roxanne Nanninga with photographs by David Thoreson

*This crew log submitted by Iridium OpenPort and Stratos

*To add a comment to this story click on the comment link below the post title. Please direct your messages for the crew to crew@aroundtheamericas.org instead of submitting them here. Thanks for following the Around the Americas Expedition.