Vérité - the Bantry Bay Gig out of Tacoma, Washington
It was a beautiful day.
Eight Vérité WOWers met for lunch at the Antique Sandwich Company.
Saucing the thwarts
sounds like a catchy title for a sea shanty, don't you think?
"Oh, they sauced the boat from stem to stern
and then things took a little turn.
They giggled so much the inspector came round,
a few fumes later she joined in making happy sounds."
Oh, boat saucing can be so exhilarating. It means that there are just a few more things on the to-do list:
a little painting of the green and leathers for the oarlocks. Then Verite will go down to the water, we pray, to soak up Commencement Bay.
Thank you to today's crew - Sally, Jan B. and Jan and Leslie (the inspector) and
of course George!
This week some of the Jan's gathered to paint the yellow stripe inside. Up the stairway to heaven and once again we were in the boat. Oh, joy. I feel a song coming on....
Mellow yellow
July 22, 2024 at 11:35 am there was a -3.11 tide. With a overcast sky above and a slight breeze to greet us, we made our way across the space between the land and the sea. The water looked like a mirage and felt very far, far away. In the foreground a murder of crows walked purposefully through the green ribbons of eel grass. Once the WOWers gathered we would join them on the slip slide to the water.
Right away things looked different. Sand dollars were upright, tube worms were sticking their body parts? up. There were so many it was like a carpet of soda straws popping up on the beach. We noted the ell grass looked much more plentiful. Good work restoration team! The plethora of little things - tiny gastropods, barnacles, a sky little wormy thing in a shell, tiny, tiny mussel shells proved love was in the air. The eagles and herons always appreciated. Oh, you will see if you watch the video.
It was all amazing and yet one thing puzzled us. We had our guesses, but I suppose we will never know what it really was. The thing of which I speak is toward the end of the video. Maybe it is better we keep it a mystery.
What a restorative sight it is to see Vérité being carefully and lovingly restored to her previous beauty. Just look at the carefully placed tape so that the painting can be done precisely. Look at Vérité's sleek lines and structure. One day her form will once again meet the water because great care and effort went into attending to her underside. Even in it's unfinished state, there is beauty in her hull. A representation of the sea itself written on her normally unseen parts.
How does a wooden boat breathe? Through the hands of those who touch her. How does a gig move - through the hands that row her. How does a boat's spirit live on - through the efforts of those who believe and love that she can create a community, ever restoring itself a new.
Thank you George and your team of Boat Builder staff and volunteers. Thank you Sally, Terese, and Leslie for last week's red paint work.
The realm of possibilities is opening up.
Once again - she lives
The clouds parted, the winds stopped and the sun came out for a New Moon Walk on Dumas Bay on June 5th. There is nothing quite like seeing what has been hidden, out of sight when there's a -3 low tide. Tip toeing through the eel grass down to the water's edge brings delight over and over again even though we have seen it before. It is always fun to bring someone new to experience it with fresh eyes and new observations. It reminds us how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful place, a beautiful country in spite of the news about the elections.
For the first time we saw 6 eagles to match the 6 WOWer's walking. Juveniles and parents flew over head, talking and squawking like most families do. We felt their joy as they danced through the sky. You will just have to imagine because the photos didn't capture theirs and our joy, said the dizzy blonde. The shell hear our ohs and words of delight and reflected it back to us which brought more joy.
