For folks
near Vancouver who would like a chance to see Taleisin and have a look inside
her, come on down to Granville Island on August 26 to 29th. We are taking part
in the Vancouver Wooden boat festival where we hear there will be some great classic
boats, great music and friendly people. All of the boat owners are urged to let
interested people come on board between 1100 and 1700 Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Click
Here for more information |
Dear Friends:
One pleasant side effect of writing these newsletters is illustrated by an
email our Webmaster forwarded to us this week. Caleb Chung was reading this site
and noticed that Larry had been mate on the 85-foot schooner used to make the
TV series, The Wackiest Ship in the Army back in 1965. Caleb's grandfather had
this schooner, The Double Eagle, built for him in the Bahamas. Now Caleb is trying
to find this schooner which was originally named Teepee. He has a website at www.schoonerman.com/teepee.htm.
We looked there and saw the photo, which definitely brought back memories as it
is the one I (Lin) saw in the Bob's Big Boy Hamburgers head offices before I decided
to look for a small sailboat. This led to me meeting the man who has shared my
life with me. Caleb is trying to find more about the history of this schooner.
Any leads? We know she was sold to Kenny Thorell about 1975, but don't have a
clue as to her current whereabouts.
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The Double Eagle (originally named "Teepee") |
Meanwhile, we spent two weeks getting Taleisin sorted out, cleaning and upgrading
Brownie, our pick up truck and camper from our winters work (all electrical gremlins
at bay for the moment), then set sail out of Victoria, bound for Saltspring Island,
30 miles north. The weather during all of June was delightful. Dry, warm - in
fact some days were down right hot! At Saltspring we rendezvoused with Doug and
Jackie Truscott, sailors Larry has known since his early racing days around Vancouver
and we last saw in Australia. They helped us load almost 500 pounds of basalt
stonework that had been carved as a memorial bench for Larry's folks who spent
the last 32 years of their lives on North Pender Island, just 10 miles from Salt
Spring. We then sailed on to join the family for a memorial and bench dedication.
Since then we have been drifting around the islands meeting up with lots of
cruising friends who have settled in these waters. A favorite must be Kim Bushnell
who sailed around the world with her folks on a 31 footer named Dove when she
was in high school. Just a few weeks ago she launched the 27 footer she and her
Dad Winston, built and has moved on board with her own teenage daughter Misty
and eleven year old son Sky. With luck, she hopes to set sail in about a year
to share the experiences she loved, with her children.
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Taleisin carried several friends and family
members as Larry's Mom's ashes were spread on the calm waters outside Theives
Bay, North Pender Island, about 30 miles north of Victoria, BC. This island had
been her home for 32 of her 86 years.
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The sailing in these waters can be difficult for an engineless boat like Taleisin,
light winds, tides that can run at up to 9 knots in the narrow passages. So we
really have to think ahead and keep the anchor ready. Navigation is definitely
interesting as we have to not only consult the tide books, but the tide atlas
and regular charts before we lift our anchor. Saw an interesting example of what
not to do when we were in Montague harbour last week. A 40 foot sail boat ended
up hard aground for most of the day on the reef at the north end of the entrance
to the lovely national park. Seems they were leaving their mooring and their computer
didn't get warmed up before they headed out the entrance, so they didn't notice
that the underwater ledge goes out for almost 1/8th of a mile. They hit hard,
just at the beginning of the falling tide. We rowed an anchor out for them as
the onshore wind was making it difficult for them to use their inflatable dinghy.
Fortunately, the wind died by the time the tide rose enough to lift them free.
No damage other than scratched topsides. Our traditional solution for this is
to put a chart in a plastic sleeve (the sleeve has a string permanently attached
to it so it can't get blown overboard) then we keep the chart right next to the
helmsman in the cockpit.
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Taleisin carried several friends and family
members as Larry's Mom's ashes were spread on the calm waters outside Theives
Bay, North Pender Island, about 30 miles north of Victoria, BC. This island had
been her home for 32 of her 86 years.
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Right now we are at Canoe Cove, back on the big island of Vancouver. It has
been over two years since we had Taleisin out of the water to paint her topsides
in Argentina, last time we put varnish on the transom or antifouling paint on
her bottom was 16 months ago in Chile. So she's ready for some pampering. Nice
thing is we have several friends around here, so haul out time will be social
time too.
One of the really special folks here at Canoe Cove is the yacht designer, Bill
Garden. We recently had lunch at his home on Toad Island after taking a close
look at the new 20 foot cat boat he finished building this winter with his own
hands. Bill is a fully apprenticed shipwright and his work is lovely to behold.
Not hard to guess who designed it. Amazing thing is, Bill is 87 years old, spry
as can be and with a fine sense of humor. He is also sharp as a tack and delighted
us with details he recalled from sharing lunch in this same cove, on board Seraffyn
25 years ago. He definitely is living proof of the old saying, health is wealth!
Best wishes for a grand sailing summer wherever you are.
Lin and Larry
On board Taleisin, Vancouver Island, British
Columbia.
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