Voyager Students Start Winter Work on Adventuress by Stickering Wood

Last Friday, high school students from the Community Boat Project’s (CBP) Puget Sound Voyagers program “stickered” the wood that will be used for Adventuress’ planned deck rebuild in the winter of 2017/2018. Under the guidance of past Adventuress Captain Wayne Chimenti—now the lead instructor at CBP—students, CBP volunteers, and members of the Adventuress crew stacked forty-foot pieces of lumber, placing a series of small sticks between each layer so that air circulation will help the wood dry properly during its year-and-a-half in storage. In between the hubbub and activity, two students—Emily and Aelf—spoke about what working on Adventuress means to them. Sixteen-year-old Emily has a long history with Adventuress: Girls at the Helm (GATH) trips in 2012 and 2013, as well as work aboard Adventuress with the Voyager program this year and last. Participating in the immense preparation for the deck rebuild inspired Emily to speak about the side of sailing that she didn’t see on GATH: each year’s community-oriented effort to preserve, restore, and protect Adventuress to ensure that she sails for generations to come. Says Emily, “It’s really exciting to see the raw materials that are needed for the deck. I love getting to see this perspective… Last year we got to do a lot of small repairs and participate in behind-the-scenes work that you don’t see if you just come aboard to sail… I like seeing the deeper work that goes into taking care of the boat. I really appreciate being a part of this.” Of her two trips on Adventuress, Emily says, “[Girls at the Helm] was so great the first year I just had to come back.” Her favorite memories center around the sense of community that crew and participants created onboard: “I loved building friendships with people who came from all across the country.” Now, looking ahead towards her time on Adventuress this winter, she has a GATH-worthy goal: “I hope to become more comfortable in a leadership position.” Aelf, also sixteen, appreciated the continuity of last year’s winter projects. She says, “We came back week after week so that we could see the work we had done.” Now, with the Voyagers just beginning their time on Adventuress—they’ll return to the ship each Friday for the rest of winter—she’s also excited to have access to Adventuress’ science equipment, especially the plankton net and plankton identification materials. She says, “You can study plankton all you want, but it’s not the same as actually using a plankton net and seeing them under a microscope.” Discussing the experiential aspect of time aboard, she says, “Adventuress is the connection between sea, science, sailing, and getting your hands on things. That connection is missing a lot these days.” (Aelf was also interviewed last year—if you’d like to read more about her story, including her experience as a scholarship recipient on the Fantastic Voyage 3-Day, you can scroll down or click here.) Over 300 students in grades 1-12 will step aboard Adventuress this winter, integrating their classroom curriculum with experiential learning on the ship. We’ll be posting regular stories on this blog, so stay tuned.