At 0015 this morning we motorsailed under
the Lowers past Round Hill in South Dartmouth.
The breeze was building from the North, and the
visibility great in the Moonlight. Only a few
hands were on deck to enjoy the night. Most
students from the Ross school were off watch. B watch, led by Amanda Lake, took charge
getting Ernestina to an anchorage close to New
Bedford. Off Ricketsons Point we let go the Stbd
anchor, and struck the sails. Only 8 crew were on
deck to handle the Mainsail which came down
smartly.
The forecast called for strong
NW breeze at dawn. All hands were weary after a
long 80 mile trip from Greenport Long Island.
Anchor watch took the deck, and those who could
jumped to their racks below.
At 0600 all hands rose to a
hearty breakfast, and hauled back the anchor. We
made our way to the Hurricane Barrier using the
Cummins Diesel.
The Harbor is more crowded
these days because of greater restrictions on the
number of Fishing Vessels that can work a season,
and the number of days they can be at sea. More
boats remain tied to the dock, and the harbor is
crowded. Fishermans wharf is packed with
scallopers, and draggers.
As we came to our dock on the
New Bedford State Pier,the wind filled in
briskly from the North; trying to keep the
schooner off the concrete deck at the Ferry
Terminal is a tough thing to do in this breeze.
We managed to clear the large concrete Dolphin,
but touched a steel fishing vessel that pretty
much blocked acces to our dock (the scalloper was
rafted outside a sister ship, and unable to move
because its machinery was dismantled). Ernestina
suffered a little damage to the starboard rail
forward (soon to be repaired by the ship's crew).
In the end we arrived safely at our dock.
At 0900 the students from
the Ross school packed their bags, and took group
photos, and prepared to get on a bus for their
return trip to Long Island. Thanks to Heather
Tetrault and Tiffany Smythe for
all their efforts to organize this trip!
Here's the writeup for
the trip from one of the participants:
As
we, 6th and 7th graders from the Ross School,
stepped onto the Schooner Ernestina, we knew we
were going to have a great time.
We
left Greenport, expecting to arrive in New
Bedford in the evening, before we had to go to
bed. As we sailed, we were all excited to stand
watch at the helm and bow, do boat checks, study
plankton, climb aloft and up on the bowsprit, and
just be treated with the responsibilities of a
crewmember.
All
of us got a good idea of navigation, and could
tell which way we were going (NE for the most
part) and in what direction the wind was blowing
from by the end of the sail. We also learned that
there was not as much wind as expected and we
were going to have to sail into the night. Most
of us were excited with this news, hoping to
stand watch at night.
B
watch took charge of anchoring. As some drifted
off to sleep, and others tried to, we were all
recalling the events from that day. All memories
were good, and as we awoke to a great breakfast
we were ready for that day's work. It didn't seem
that bad. We pulled up the anchor and docked,
while us students tried to be as quiet as we
could. Actually, the morning went so fast, that
many of us didn't want to leave. Unfortunately,
it was time to pack up and leave, and after final
good-byes we knew that this would be one of the
trips that would be stored in our heads for a
long time.
Thank
you Ms. Smythe and Ms. Tetrault for taking us on
this wonderful trip, but all of us can't express
enough gratitude to the Schooner Ernestina and
her wonderful crew.
~Written
by Larissa Gaias, Ross School Student~
By 1000 the crew had
turned to ships work the remainder of the day.
Captain: Willi Bank
Program: Coordinator: Crista Mellican
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