I offer this picture of Mabrouka anchored in Port Gamble to make up for the fact that I took no pictures during this visit to Port Townsend, but on to today's update:

Last night was less than comfortable. Though I'd abandoned sailing early the previous evening with a promise of falling winds, they broke that promise and became increasingly raucous throughout my approach to Port Townsend and as I set anchor for the night. Their bad temper rose continuously until early morning, making the boat roll and creak obnoxiously during my best sleeping hours. I just HATE it when it does that!

A little blearier than usual, I had my morning coffee and set off to execute my plan for the day, ...to take advantage of the chandlery at the Northwest Maritime Center to get a few fittings and some rigging supplies. A visit to Port Townsend is always a happy diversion anyway, so I planned to dovetail in a bus trip with stops by the library to take care of some on-line business and at Safeway for groceries.

In the spirit of my approach to retirement, I take a "who gives a..." uh "...dang" attitude to most such plans. One happy diversion from my list of errands was that, since the maritime center's chandlery didn't open 'til 10am, I took the opportunity to hang about in their work shop and watch as the participants in a two week boatbuilding class began their final day completing their Scamp pocket cruisers. (See http://nwmaritime.org/scamp/.) The final task before trailering (mostly) constructed boats home for finishing was to complete shaping the masts and fabricate booms and gaffs. It was fun to watch and to chat with the students and reminded me how much I'd like to do a project like that.

When the chandlery finally opened, I entered like a kid into a candy store where all the goodies were made out of brass, wood, and canvas. After a disproportionate amount visual sampling, I departed with almost everything I needed and, miraculously, nothing I didn't: success on copper nails, a bronze eye bolt, and a bronze clothes hook; failure on a piece of heavy leather. The leather is needed to make a saddle on the wooden booms where they sit in the new stainless steel boom gallows. (See the boom gallows project.) In the argument between stainless steel and douglas fir, the wood loses, so leather is to be introduced as the moderator. The store manager promised to have the leather for me at 8am the next day.

Afterwards I took a wander down Port Townsend's main street in search of pizza. Worn out from all that temptation and lulled into laziness by a stomach full of great pizza, it was time for a nap, so I rowed back to Mabrouka. Eventually, I did make it back ashore for my other errands. Running errands by bus, though inexpensive, is also time consuming, so it was early evening by the time I got back to where I'd tied up the dinghy.

GAK! The dingy was GONE! Stolen? Practical joke? Adrift? Scanning the vicinity in panic, I spotted the familiar transom several hundred yards away on the maritime center's boat dock. Whew! DOUBLE whew! So much for my honor as a knot tying expert. With shame in my posture, but relief in my step, I hurried over to get my wayward dinghy, thinking all the way of how happy I was that someone had snagged her for me. It was a stiff wind that blew her free of the dock and, if she hadn't been spotted, she had miles and miles to drift on currents that could have carried her from Seattle to Victoria. THANKS!

Rowing back to Mabrouka emphasized the risk the dinghy had been subject to, with a tidal current and a gusty wind that wanted to send me out to hell-and-gone too. With more than a modicum of apprehension, I took advantage of the shelter of the shore to row beyond Mabrouka and approach her from up current, snagging hold of the rail as the tide attempted to carry me out into Admiralty Inlet.

That was more drama than I like for running errands.