i made it a point of my vacation to see the ships in Vancouver during my brief Canadian revisit. And? Well, i try to stick to the adage of “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all”. Still… Sea Vancouver was generally a bust. FRom my sailing experience, i can only say that the tallship viewing was a total cock-up; poor infrastructure abounded. The “TallShip Island” was a sand- and gravel-covered barge, with all sorts of gritty filth getting tracked onto the decks. The ferry service to/fro was pretty awful too. Even the event volunteers manning their stations were obviously dismayed at how things were turning out. Attendance was low overall (and don’t blame the weather! Vancouverites should be used to a little rain!), but the ship viewing still great enough to leave me wondering what would have happened if the anticipated numbers had actually shown up! My Lady Washington crew jacket and generally sailorly-looking visage got me into a few areas sans pass, but to get to see many of the boats, i lined up for over an hour for a $25 ferry.
There were, however, a few highlights. The first night, i went out to Jericho to see The Bill Of Rights. Invited below (by folks who seemed to know who i was, though i knew them not), i was surprised and delighted to see Jim Rich, who bounded over and welcomed me with a hearty embrace. Jim and i had crewed on the Lady a little over a year before. The next day, out on the “Island”, i got aboard the Lady, and had my hullos with the crew, some i had served with, some i had not. Good chats and laughs with Carley “Tall Ship Supermodel” Tallman and John Boy Morrison. i caught a ride from the “Island” into False Creek with a crew member from the R. Tucker Thompson, where i ran into Nate and Sarah, who i had crewed with for mere days a years or so ago. They had great tales to tell of European adventures and sailing politics. Unexpectedly, i ran into Elf manning a shoreside historical display. The tall ship community is a small one…
It was good to see some of those old crewmates, and neat to see the work that had been completed aboard the Lady in the past year. Of course, not all my memories and attachments to those past times are positive ones, but rather than feeling bittersweet about it, it was simply interersting to sit back and observe my own emotional flux. Of course, it would be silly not realize that every boat leaves a little mark on you…