Daily Log, September 14

Wednesday September 14, 2005

Morning Position
Tompkins Cove
(across from Indian Point)
41˚ 16.5 minutes latitude
073˚ 57.8 minutes longitude

Midday Position
Beacon
41˚ 30.5 minutes latitude
073˚ 59.5 minutes longitude

Evening Position
Beacon
41˚ 30.5 minutes latitude
073˚ 59.5 minutes longitude

0600 hours: The crew rises bright and early, thanks in part to the efforts of Mr. Prime and his snare drum.

The skies are cloudless, but still hot and hazy with humidity. However, a weather report last night notified us that we are likely to see a sharp turn in the weather later today. A cold front moving in from the west and the outermost fringes of Hurricane Ophelia, far to the east, are converging on the region. We should expect a rain tonight.

We eat breakfast at 0700, then weigh anchor and make our way north through the Hudson Highlands, where the river becomes a particularly narrow and deep cleft through the surrounding Catskills. We will be traveling a relatively short distance today, giving our student crew plenty of time to further familiarize themselves with the ship, bond with each other, and enjoy themselves.

 

0900: We pass the Lois McClure, a replica of a 19th century schooner barge on its maiden voyage through the Husdon River region, and fire a salute with one of our cannons.

Keith performs his harness test as Mr. Morel observes and Kathleen waits her turn.

By this time, the students have started taking their harness tests. Before any student is allowed to climb the rigging, he or she must learn the proper methods of climbing (starting with the three-point-contact principle the crew learned yesterday) and the correct use of a safety harness.

To the right, you can see Keith maintaining proper three-point contact (both feet and his left hand) as he adjusts the tether of his safety harness.

Ciara stands lookout while Kyle and Shannon join her on the fore deck.

0930: We have passed West Point and are nearing the northern end of the highlands.

Navigating the Half Moon (or any large ship of its era) is no easy task, simply because the crew member at the helm (and thus steering the ship) can't see straight ahead -- his or her view is blocked by the forecastle.

Above, Ciara stands lookout on the fore deck while Kyle and Shannon keep her company. Ciara is keeping a close eye on the water for obstacles, buoys, and oncoming river traffic. She then relays this information to the officers on the quarter deck...

Meaghan takes the helm.

...who then issue commands to the crew member at the helm, such as Meaghan here, seen while making a sharp right turn.

Unlike ships of the 18th century onward, the Half Moon does not have a ship's wheel -- that technology had not yet been developed in 1609. Instead, it uses a whipstaff: a large lever that acts as a direct extension of the tiller below on the orlop deck. The whipstaff is a simple lever system, so the helmsman often finds him- or herself wrestling the river currents for control of the ship. For that reason, taking the helm is a task that requires constant concentration.

Pollepel Island, gateway to the Hudson highlands.

0945: We are passing Pollepel Island, traditionally considered the gateway to the Hudson River highlands. Pollepel Island has a long history, but is perhaps best known today as the home of Bannerman's Castle. This Scottish-styled keep (sadly now just a crumbling ruin after being gutted by fire in the late 1960s) was built by a bombastic army surplus dealer in the late 19th century, both to honor his Scottish ancestry and to house his extensive Civil War-era arsenal.

A view of Newburgh from the river.

1000: We have now passed Pollepel Island and left the narrow Hudson highlands behind us. Here, between Newburgh to the west (above) and Beacon to the east (below), the Hudson River swells wide enough to allow us to practice our sail handling. We've already reached our destination for the day, so we can spend as much time as we want sailing. The reason for such a short leg in our journey is what awaits us to the north: a section of river called the Lange Rack (more on that tomorrow).

A view of Beacon from the river.

Madena and Richard are ready to work the main course.

Our mast teams return to their positions and pick up where they left off yesterday afternoon. Here, Madena and Richard stand at the ready on their main course lines.

Today, we practice by tacking back and forth against the wind. We move slowly upriver in a zig-zag pattern, sailing relatively close to one shore before quickly changing course and heading back toward the opposite side.

 

A view of the foremast, with both fore course and fore top set and drawing wind.

 

 

 

 

 

These maneuvers require quick reflexes and finesse. Such a fine degree of control requires the use of the top sails, so our mast crews specifically focus on practicing with them today.

The foremast crew observes their work as they adjust the fore top.

Here, Mr. Colley and some of his foremast crew -- Ciarra, Kyle, and Keith -- examine their handiwork as they practice maneuvering the fore topsail.

Kathleen and Ericka help Mr. Prime batten down a cannon.

1015: Meanwhile, down below on the orlop deck, Mr. Prime recruits Kathleen and Ericka to help him with a task he's had his eye on: properly battening down the cannons. Specifically, he wants to position the cannons so their muzzles (the front of the barrel) point downward. This is for the same reason you might store cups and bowls upside down in a cupboard: It prevents dust, water, or other detritus from collecting inside, where it would just make a mess (and inside a cannon's barrel, messy equals dangerous).

With his able assistants, Mr. Prime soon has all of our cannons positioned to his liking.

Crew on all three top decks work to maneuver the ship.

1200: We set anchor just off Beacon, wrapping up as lunch is served. Today's lunch includes tomato soup and several kinds of sandwiches -- even our light meals are a definite step up from the steady diet of hardtack, pea soup, and salt pork Captain Hudson and his crew had to rely on. (However, if you read Robert Juet's journal entry below, you'll see that this far upriver, Hudson's crew could supplement their diet with freshwater fish.)

Several students haning a tarp over the orlop stairs.

1245: The skies are still clear and hazy, but the decision is made to stretch a tarp over the main hatch in preparation for the rain we're expecting later today. In the meantime, the tarp helps shield those of us in the orlop deck against the harsh sunlight.

Student crew members gather on the orlop deck for a meeting.

1300: With sail handling done for the day, the teachers convene a meeting for their students, gathering everyone around the now-shady orlop deck stairs. They discuss the details of the crew's tasks and responsibilities, such as manning the helm, standing lookout, and fire and bilge.

Madena clips her safety harness into the rigging as Mr. Dawson observes.

1330: Once the briefing ends, the students are again free to pursue other projects, such as continuing their harness training. To the right, you can see Madena practicing clipping in her safety harness with one hand. When our crew is preparing to climb, they must maintain three-point contact even when they're still standing comfortably on deck. No exceptions! This hammers the lesson home, helping turn proper safety precautions into a force of habit.

 

Several crew members work in the main mast top.

 

 

 

Having completed their harness training, some of the students take the opportunity to climb all the way to the tops (it is incorrect to call them "crow's nests" on a ship of the Half Moon's type and historical period).

Meaghan writes in her journal on the orlop deck.Kyle writes in his journal while sitting by a gun port.

Elsewhere, some students use their free time to update their personal journals, as Meaghan and Kyle are doing here.

1530: Other students simply relax or show off their invidual interests or talents. To the right, Kathleen demonstrates Irish step dancing to the beat of Mr. Prime's snare drum.

Despite the fact that our students have come from three entirely separate school districts, they have all bonded as a united crew very quickly. There is talk among the students of putting on a talent show later.

1630: With dark clouds on the southern horizon, we decide to lower the flags for the day. To the right, Katie is nearly engulfed by our huge new tricolor flag as Mr. Morel lowers it from the main mast.

The tricolor flag is the national flag of the Netherlands. The orange stripe represents the royal House of Orange, while the blue stripe represents the sea.

Up on the fore deck, Shannon helps Mr. Ely take down the lion rampant, the royal crest of Prince William of Orange, ruler of the Netherlands when the Dutch East India company was first founded at the dawn of the 17th century.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All throughout the day, the students have also been learning their knots. Old salts might learn hundreds of different knots over the course of their sailing careers, but you can go far knowing just a few. One of the most widely used knots is the bowline, which creates a noose that doesn't cinch up when pulled. This can come in handy whether you're just fastening a canvas bucket to a rail or creating a rescue line to pull someone to safety.

Later in the afternoon, Mr. Terry spends an hour on the port side channel, teaching students how to use two tools of the sailor's trade: the lead line and the secchi disk.

To the left, Ericka retrieves her lead line after casting it out into the water. By letting the lead weight (here dangling just above the water line) sink to the bottom, a crew member can read the water's depth by noting how many leather straps sink below the surface. (You can see the first strap, marking one fathom's depth, just below Ericka's hands.)

To the right, Adam lowers a Secchi disk into the water. By noting how deep the disk goes beneath the surface before its bright pattern is no longer visible, a sailor can measure the water's clarity.

 

1740: The student crew has decided to throw an impromptu talent show. One after another, many of the students -- and even a few adults -- step up to the capstan to strut their stuff. It's a true variety show, including such acts as Adam singing a Weird Al Yankovic number, Kathleen's Irish step dancing, an interpretive dance from Madena, and a bit of ballroom four-step from Shannon and Madena. Katie flips her tongue, Ericka demonstrates her double-jointed fingers, Mr. Terry touches his nose with his tongue, and Katie wraps up with a magic trick. In between, we also enjoyed jokes from Adam, Richard, Keith, and even Captain Reynolds.

At 1800, we pull the curtain on the show so Mrs. Lawler can serve an excellent spaghetti dinner.

Ominous clouds and fog roll north through the Hudson highlands.

1845: While most crew members are still relaxing and enjoying their dinner on the weather deck, the expected blustery weather finally arrives. Ominous clouds and thick fog billow up from the Highlands to our south, carrying rain and blotting out our view of Pollepel Island.

Fortunately, the storm proves to be all bluster. The rain is heavy, but blows through quickly, without bringing lightning or high winds in its wake. Even better, the storm front pushes out the humidity for a few hours, offering comfortable sleeping weather.

With the combined rain, fog, and darkness, the crew generally agrees to make an early night of it. The students are again briefed on anchor watch, using the bright lights of Beacon as their reference points.

With that, the day is done. Tomorrow, we enter the Lange Rack, and the students begin to concentrate on their academic projects.

Oh -- one last thing. Happy birthday, Mrs. Fountain! (And you thought you could hide it from us.)

On this date in 1609:

The fourteenth, in the morning being very faire weather, the wind South-east, we sayled up the River twelve leagues, and had five fathoms, and five fathoms and a quarter lesse; and came to a Streight between two Points, and had eight, nine, and ten fathoms: and it trended North-east by North, one league: and wee had twelve, thirteene and fourteene fathomes. The River is a mile broad: there is very high Land on both sides. Then wee went up North-west, a league and an halfe deepe water. Then North-east by North five miles; then North-west by North two leagues, and anchored. The Land grew very high and Mountainous. The River is full of fish.

-- Robert Juet's Journal.