Sea Scouts
So before I go into all the awesome stuff that we do, I am just going to give you some background on Sea Scouts. Sea Scouts is a part of Venture Scouts which is a part of Boy Scouts of America (BSA). It is like Boy Scouts but centered around the ocean and sailing, not to mention coed and more run by the kids than Boy Scouts is (so yes, I'm a Boy Scout).
On Saturday the 11th, the Sea Scouts ship was volunteer at the Damariscotta Pirate Rendezvous. We fought pirates, played music, and did crowd control (my favorite.... not). Anyway, here are some pictures. I don't have pictures of everything unfortunately.
Pirate Festival
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| Selling CDs. Tad wouldn't cooperate. There's a surprise! |
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| Our first CD, Celtic Knot. (we have a chanty band (pronounced 'shanty') |
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| Sally, our harpist |
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| Bethany and Jenni, fiddlers (well, Bethany is actually a cellist, but she can fiddle too) |
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| Jesse |
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| the whole band together |
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| Elizabeth and Zac |
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| Elizabeth, our awesome Bodron player (I don't think that is spelled right) |
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| Zac and Sally playing "Butterfly" |
Bowdoin
So the Sea Scouts went sailing on the schooner Bowdoin these last four days. It was an amazing experience and the captain and crew were awesome. So, no further ado, here are some pictures.
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| Francine, the deck hand |
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| Captain Jergenson... who is awesome |
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| Mrs. Chesley, chaperon |
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| Cap'n Mac & Capt. Bob, the life boats |
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| Mr. Chesley, chaperon |
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| the original compass, pretty cool |
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| a lighthouse |
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| Oh Jessica... |
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| Elizabeth |
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| Jesse... always sooo cooperative |
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| Elizabeth, 'cause, you know, she is just so photogenic! |
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| Franzi |
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| MaryCatherine |
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| Elizabeth |
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| Elli and Zac |
From here on, the pictures were taken by Mr. Chesley, the scout chaperon.
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| Someone was having just a bit too much fun getting the ship ready |
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| Jim Nelson, Skipper (of the scout ship) |
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| PIZZA! |
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| lots and lots of food |
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| Elizabeth...again |
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| Bowdoin |
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| Left to right: Jesse, Jessica, Rachel, Elizabeth, MC, Franzi, Joseph |
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| Rowan, the captain's two year old |
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| The cook makes good cookies |
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| Getting Cap'n Mac aboard |
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| Mr. Emmet (left) and Zac |
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| Love this one. I'm on the left, Franzi on the right |
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| Furling the sails |
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| Easing down the foresail |
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| That is a big anchor |
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| All of us listening to Mr. Emmet play his Ukulele. :) |
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| Franzi |
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| You didn't know it took so many people on one line did you? |
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| All our stations in case of emergencies |
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| We all had to take turns doing Bow Watch. Looking out for lobster pots and anything else that could potentially harm the boat |
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| Mr. Emmet had to go aloft to fix stuff |
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| The Nathaniel Bowditch, Bowdoin's sister ship |
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| The one with red sails is the Angelique. You can go faster with red sails |
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| Fixing the Propane tanks with Mr. McLeod |
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| Mr. Shoettle, the first mate |
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| Washing dishes... |
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| MC |
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| BREAKFAST! |
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| Captain Eric and Captain Jr. |
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| We did deck wash everyday using a fire hose |
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| Telling Red Herring riddles to the crew |
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| The Captain... blowing bubbles? yep! |
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| Zac got tired |
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| Joseph, we were polishing the binnacle, not playing with it! |
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| Polishing the compass thingy |
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| Daddy! It's my turn now! |
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| No, just no. Give Franzi her glasses back |
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| There were a lot of Windjammers out for the parade |
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| The Nathaniel Bowditch. |
The
Nathaniel Bowditch was named for Nathaniel Bowditch, author of
The American Practical Navigator. He was a pretty amazing man.
Nathaniel Bowditch is
Bowdoin's sister ship as well.
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| Lobster bake on Cabbage Island |
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| Baby Gavin! |
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| Captain and family |
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| Franzi and MC dancing a jig |
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| Bowditch with all her flags flying |
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| "Guys, can I come out of the hole now? .... Rachel, can I please come out of the hole?" --Jesse |
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| Left to right: Francine, Mr. Emmet, Mr. Shoettle, Mr. McLeod, and Captain Jergenson |
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| Mr. McLeod firing the mini cannon with the big sound. :) |
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| Last sail of the trip |
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| Big, scary battle ship |
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| It is very satisfying to have your picture taken by every tourist on an over crowded boat |
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| Singing Chanties |
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Top Row left to right: Joseph, Mr. Emmet
Next Row left to right: Mr. Shoettle, Francine
Next Row left to right: Mr. McLeod, Franzi, Jessica, MC, Sally, Rachel, Elizabeth, Jesse, Zac, Tad, Mrs. Chesley, Capt. Jergenson, Mrs. Jergenson with Gavin
Last Row left to right: Skipper Jim, Rowan, and Mr. Chesley |
All in all it was an awesome trip, even including having deck watches in the middle of the night and doing dishes, soles and bowls, and deck washes. I am definitely going back next year! A reporter and photographer came with us and wrote an article for The Portland Press Harold. Here is where: http://www.pressherald.com/news/sea-scouts-master-the-skills-of-camping-at-sea-_2011-06-23.html
