Search:

The guys left for home and I walked back into the grounds and found these small boat builders.

I took the picture because this is the first time I have ever seen a visitor build a pier along with...

A look at the steering gear.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52279835384_8b19d17937_o.jpg

We found Aly doing some paint scraping on top of the engine.
...

August 11, 2022

My wife and I are in Mystic on our boat. We arrived Tuesday after a 3 hour ride up Long Island Sound.

Passing Falkner Island.
...

August 6, 2022

This past Saturday I escorted a team of swimmers across Long Island Sound. This marks my 23rd year doing it for St Vincent's Hospital in Bridgeport, CT.

My team called Survivors,...

Gray setting up the tour times.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52264899186_1e1fee8632_o.jpg

Jim is working on reinstalling one of the big lights on the stern.
...

Oh yes, the trailer.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52264899216_2b9c777995_o.jpg

Walking over to Fire Fighter I noticed a sign I had not seen before. It was about the fire house that has...

They all had a hand in it.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52265381985_d5c478de76_o.jpg

Time to crack open the champagne. Well, she's a working boat so this time it was the champagne of...

August 4, 2022

It may not look like much has been done on Catherine, but there was.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52249186661_68233da709_o.jpg

When she arrived last week, she brought...

On the way back I stopped to go aboard the Morgan.

Just routine maintenance.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52249474919_acba8a58db_o.jpg

I'm not sure what we saw being lifted aboard...

From on top you can see a lot.

This coupe were just sitting there while nothing was going on.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52249474959_6eb28a04d9_o.jpg

There are many groups visiting...

July 28, 2022

Catherine has arrived.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52249186661_68233da709_o.jpg

This boat has a special place in my heart. A very dear friend's grandfather had the...

Usually the tours end up here on the upper deck. There are five monitors to look at.

They all need help, but this one works easily enough so this is the one to play with.
...

Back in the "day" there would have been time between fires. Firemen would use this "Free time" to maintain the boat and all the equipment including polishing the brass parts to a beautiful shine....

Walking over to Fire Fighter I found the sailing camp ready to go out.

Colorful.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52234015385_4254bbe1db_o.jpg

Lance is getting ready to open Fire Fighter...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52233808449_aac89c9980_o.jpg

In the pole barn, the new keel is close to completion.

The template is on the right.
...

July 21, 2022

Gerda III is out of the water.

I know she needs a complete restoration, but I did not find out what was going to happen this time out.
...

Grey and I gave tours on board. He followed and listened and after a short while I pointed at him to explain a few things to our guests. He did quite well.

As the day went on I gave him more and...

July 14, 2022

Jake continued polishing the upper, forward monitor.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52218058651_00fb7defd9_o.jpg

It's starting to look really good.

Charlie wants to...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52202468969_b47e28a833_o.jpg

Getting there.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52202701055_61f647bba6_o.jpg

Just a little more.
...

Looking up from the deck looks like we're about to collide.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52202198111_59163df4d6_o.jpg

Out the starboard window a beautiful yacht is leaving.
...

July 7, 2022

Today we did cleaning.

There is a lot of work that Fire Fighter needs, but there is a lack of manpower and money. I would love to take apart a monitor and replace the gaskets, or...

As I always try to promote Mystic Seaport, there are other things to see and do in the area.

From Bloomberg.

https://apple.news/AE4qZPvIgRAy7yyZf6mSSaA

So now you can come to a top notch...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52185324717_cc03cce678_o.jpg

And then back through the village to Fire Fighter I passed this.
...

This thing looks like it will make great ballast.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52186596419_a228a1d748_o.jpg

On the stern, Susan was making Sabino pretty by removing several layers of old...

I spent the day alone on Fire Fighter.

Jake came down with our old friend Covid so he's off duty for a while. I spoke with him yesterday and he's feeling much better. Wayne has his son and ...

June 30, 2022

There is a new exhibit in the Thompson Exhibition Building called Story Boats.

The exhibit displays several boats that have stories that came along with them.

This was a...

<strong>OK, I'm back.

Between running my business, getting the engines rebuilt on my boat, (sea trial today) and trying to keep Fire Fighter running....

As my Texas cousin once said, "You've...

I have much more but I have other things to attend to.

More later.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52149265544_5a6f9bce8e_o.jpg

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52149516175_b36cf7e46f_o.jpg

The Old North Church.
...

Now it was show time.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52149026646_9675d966c9_o.jpg

Boston pumped water too.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52148007437_5a62b3ea53_o.jpg

We still...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52149265464_f5b122b0c0_o.jpg

My wife and Martha showed up.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52149516065_762a629221_o.jpg
...

The week of June 6 to June 10, 2022 in Boston

We made Boston with ease. The boat is 86 years old and showing some signs of her old age, but she ran well.

I drove up with my wife and stayed in a...

On Fire Fighter, the "Life boat" was lowered down and started.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52119719970_b3371f35e2_o.jpg

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52119247063_ae81479051_o.jpg...

June 2, 2022

The new docks were installed last week and the next day they were put to use. On Saturday the place was filled with boats rafting up.

...

Morgan work is going a bit slow, but it is steady. The bowsprit is in the yard being worked on but the masts need the bowsprit before the rigging can continue there. In the stern, work goes on.
...

We leave for Boston next Saturday. While docked there we will need more fenders for the boat.

I went to a local shop and they donated these old tires. They are in tough shape for use on a truck,...

May 26, 2022

Charlie had an "Oopsie" last week. He was using a ladder made for Fire Fighter and it went overboard.

Jake spent an hour trying to retrieve it with no luck. So I drove back on...

Up near Fire Fighter, the pilings for new docks were going in. Fancy docks, ipe decking.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52086734566_8c3bef4da1_o.jpg
...

This is an odd engine configuration. The injectors are near the top. Normal enough.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52087046169_77f1e2f24d_o.jpg

The strange thing is that both injectors...

May 19, 2022

Can you help?

In the seaport's collections are may items that normally would not be connected to the sea. However, a ships captain owned this flint lock and the CRC, (Collections...

Of course all the extra leaking water has to go somewhere.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52070604493_6a97de9943_o.jpg

One of the better dry places to be.
...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52071075100_5ec06cfff5_o.jpg

The EPA must love us.

It was time to get ready to squirt some water.

The monitors all needed to be aimed out into the river...

Get ready.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52070597106_504c5191db_o.jpg

Go!

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52071075085_7f14f26325_o.jpg

This is the same starting method Nate uses...

The next day the Engineers came on board from their homes on Long Island. Charlie calls them Engineers, because they know how to run everything.

First job, fix the military surplus generator.
...

Tuesday I arrived to find the new floating docks being worked on at the north end of the seaport.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52071075020_3df485df5b_o.jpg
...

May 9 to May 12, 2022

Charlie and I rode up to Boston on Monday to take a look at the dock where Fire Fighter will be docked in June. We will be at the John Joseph Moakley United States...

Time for lunch, and we picked up Barbara along the way.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52053056872_01b4da643d_o.jpg

On the way back, we found Charlie doing his Mystic Seaport job. He...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52054137158_db1f35e454_o.jpg

We did get the four sides and top cut to size, but I need to get something to absorb the sound and I still need to assemble it.
...

May 5, 2022

Arriving in the morning I found the Viking ship has been hauled out for maintenance.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52054106351_5c4468f349_o.jpg

The Morgan's jib boom.
...

The weather was very windy and somewhat cold. Outside work was not going to happen on Fire Fighter today. The bunk house floor was newly painted too, so there was nothing to do in there.

So we...