Moored to the end tie of C/D float in the Port Angeles Boat Haven marina is a topsail ketch that is heading for the deep blue waters of the South Pacific.
Rowena, a Formosa 41, was built in Taiwan in 1973 and is currently owned by a nonprofit educational foundation, Live Ocean, that was founded by Julia Miller.
Julia will use the ketch as a platform from which to teach children and the local citizenry within the Vanuatu archipelago how to monitor and protect the marine environment and the fragile coral reefs.
Live Ocean has established a cultural exchange program with students from Bennett Elementary School in Bellevue who are becoming pen pals and exchanging letters with their contemporaries in the schools and villages of Vanuatu.
The 90 or so Bellevue students participating in the program have also held fundraising events to create scholarships that help pay for some of the island’s children to attend school.
Julia and her crew of three expect that the 6,500-mile voyage to Vanuatu will take about 60 days.
The trip began last Monday when Rowena made her way to Port Angeles from Port Townsend.
Not unexpectedly, a few kinks cropped up.
Shortly after leaving Port Townsend, Rowena’s diesel engine, a 33-horsepower Vetus, began experiencing fuel-starvation issues.
Then, when they finally got around Point Wilson, they were confronted by a Navy Trident submarine being escorted by the HOS Arrowhead and HOS Eagleview as well as a number of Coast Guard boats.
Rowena was asked to change course but was unable to do so because of her engine issues.
Instead, the submarine and her escorts reset their course.
Once clear of the submarine convoy, Rowena’s engine shut down.
Despite the crews best efforts over the ensuing 9 hours the balky engine would not come to life.
As night fell, the wind died down — and the ketch found herself in the Strait of Juan de Fuca’s shipping lanes.
The Coast Guard kept marine traffic well informed of Rowena’s circumstances.
Eventually, she was able to make it to Port Angeles, with a final assist from Coast Guard personnel who helped her moor in the Boat Haven.
And just to cap off the adventuresome and exhausting day, the Coast Guard performed a safety inspection at 2 a.m. — which Rowena passed with flying colors.
Julia said they had the fuel polished and that the engine is now running smoothly.
Rowena was scheduled to depart Port Angeles on Saturday, and the crew will stop in Neah Bay for one final check of systems and rigging before heading out into the open ocean.
If you would like to follow the adventures of Rowena and her crew, log onto www.liveocean.org and monitor their blog.
Boat with a history
Veteran water-watchers will recognize Rowena from when she was named Scrimshaw and was moored at the Port Angeles Boat Haven’s N float from 1992 to 1997.
She had been sailed up the coast from Redondo Beach, Calif., and was the live-aboard home for Capt. Bill Larson and his wife, Kristen.
Capt. Bill, as many know, received his Master Seaman rating when he was 18.
Despite a long career in the Army, he was seldom far from maritime haunts.
From 1993 to 1996, he was the master of the state’s official tall ship, Lady Washington.
He appeared with her in the movie “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
Although currently confining his activities to shoreside endeavors, Bill does serve as the land captain whenever Lady Washington makes port in Port Angeles.
Bill and Kristen were married at a restaurant in the marina at Redondo Beach, and for their honeymoon they sailed to Santa Catalina Island aboard Scrimshaw.
Bill said that on the return home, they ran into a vicious storm out of the northwest that was “fiction-like in its circumstance,” and that there were times that he wondered if they would make it back.
For their wedding ceremony, Kristen put an English half-penny in her shoe which is said to bless the union with good luck and prosperity.
Subsequent to their marriage, Bill had worked on the mast.
When he placed it into the mast step, the coin was placed beneath the mast which is also intended — according to maritime tradition — to bring good luck to the vessel.
Julia said that when she took possession of Rowena from Rebecca Linde of Seattle, who donated the boat to the Live Ocean foundation, she was handed the boat’s keys — and the half-penny coin that had been retrieved from beneath the mast.
Bill, Kristen and Julia recently met, and Julia returned the good luck coin to the Larsons.
Bill said he and his wife were very grateful.
New patrol boat
Lee Shore Boats, Port Angeles’ newest addition in the aluminum boat manufacturing sector, signed a contract last week with Clallam County to build a new patrol boat for the Sheriff’s Department.
Eric Schneider, who is Lee Shore owner, said the 26-foot mono hull vessel will be powered by twin 175-horsepower Suzuki outboards.
It will seat four and be equipped with a full set of electronics as well as a complete law enforcement package.
Delivery is scheduled for July 29.
Out in the harbor
Tesoro Petroleum, in Port Angeles Harbor, bunkered Polar Enterprise, an 894-foot crude oil tanker operated by ConocoPhillips, on Friday.
Yesterday, Tesoro refueled Alitis, a 620-foot bulk cargo ship whose last port of call was Prince Rupert, B.C.
Today, Tesoro is scheduled to bunker Universal Bremen, a new 620-foot bulk cargo ship that is flagged in Luxembourg.
She is owned and operated by San Juan Navigation, a company that specializes in the handling of dry bulk ocean cargo from offices on Bainbridge Island.
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David G. Sellars is a Port Angeles resident and former Navy boatswain’s mate who enjoys boats and strolling the waterfronts.
Items involving boating, port activities and the North Olympic Peninsula waterfronts are always welcome. Email dgsellars@hotmail.com or phone him at 360-808-3202.