I also read,in recent times,Tim Severin‘s “The Jason Voyage”,his attempt at following the mythical story of Jason and the Argonauts. He had a Bronze Age Aegean galley built using archeological evidence and historical texts. This was the real deal –it would have banks of rowers toiling away and the characteristic “ram”bow. He set off from Greece and headed for the Dardanelles,following the legend’s trail and,once again,finding evidence that the myth may have been based on reality. Among the most fascinating aspects of the voyage was that it debunked the longstanding reason for it being myth:a vessel of that era could not have transited to notorious currents of the Dardanelles and Bosporus. Severin,though,figured out how to use back-eddies and other local nuances of the waterway to successful complete the trip from the Aegean to the Black Sea. Once there,the voyage continued to current-day Georgia,wherein Severin and crew “seal the deal”by identifying the likely source for the golden fleece as well as numerous other facts that match the stories.
I was almost tempted to make this book second to The Brendan Voyage,if only because the myth-to-facts aspect of the book are so compelling. In the end,I gave The Sinbad Voyage the honor,but this is a close third. The year after he completed this voyage,Severin took the same boat on another voyage to trace Ulysses’s voyage in “The Odyssey”. That book is in the on-deck-circle on my bed-side table and I look forward to sharing a review with you all soon.
I have had some time to sift through the back catalog here at Chine bLog headquarters and noted that I never covered a few key books I read in the last couple years. In particular,after knocking off Tim Severin‘s The China Voyage and then his The Brendan Voyage,I moved on to his some of his other like books. Severin’s trip in BRENDAN,the authentic 9th century curragh,got his wheels spinning,it seems,and he hit on another mythical journey to test:the adventures of Sinbad.
It was commonly accepted at the time (~1980),that these writings were pure myth. Severin arranged to build a replica 9th century dhow in Oman,scouring the Arabian Sea shores for period materials,especially the coconut husk fiber builders of the day used to lash the boat together. Yes,these were plank–on-frame boats that were fully lashed. He and a crew then sailed the boat from Oman to China,identifying sources for the supposedly mythical elements and,thereby,suggesting the Sinbad stories may have been based on an amalgamation of true events.
The first quarter or so of the book is all about the boat and its materials,and that alone makes it worth reading. The actual voyage is not as gripping as that of the BRENDAN,but it is still an engaging story. If you haven’t read any Severin,I’d start with The Brendan Voyage and then grab this one immediately afterwards. Here is a summary piece if you need more convincing.
For those scoring at home,your 2011 Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival sailing race winner was a Sunfish. A non-traditional,plastic boat –kinda violates my sensibilities. But well done.
I am eager to get going with the paddling race as it is COLD here in St. Michael’s,MD.
[UPDATE] It was me and four kayaks. I got shallaced…again. Time to get my double paddle working with this boat (tried once and I could get my position right). At least the race committee noted I was the only single paddle and called me my own class. So they gave me recognition.
I had not been aware that in the Persian Gulf region they sail modern racing dhows. Imagine a sandbagger crossed with a traditional lateen rig crossed with modern construction and rigging. These look fun fun fun! Fusion of Tradition-y too.
I noticed a while ago that our friend Gary Dierking,the Kiwi outrigger maestro,has been running a blog to compliment and promote his work. Take this as a study in how well I am doing at keeping up on this blog these days –I am just now getting to an appreciation of this resource on these amazing craft. And an appreciation it deserves,because there is some great stuff here.
I particularly enjoyed Gary’s thorough study of ama lashings,done in six parts (part 1,part 2,part 3,part 4,part 5,and part 6). These posts provide good pictures of the different types as well as their derivation and advantages. Now he is on to different rig types,with the most recent post giving a nice overview. We’ll certainly be watching –and learning from –this excellent blog.
I actually had the crazed idea to read a book recently. Doesn’t happen much –I am lucky if I can clear my magazine rack in a given month. Long on my to do list,though,had been reading some of Tim Severin’s works. Severin is an Irishman (at least he lives there) with an fascinating joint interest in history,archeology,and epic voyages,mostly maritime ones. Sound intriguing? It gets better. Severin’s shtick has been to identify an unproven or poorly understood historical journey,build a traditional boat,if a maritime one,that represents the type of that era,and then recreate the journey to see if it could have happened as theorized. Oh yeah,I am IN! I have known about him for a while and only just got around to checking him out.
Also in the June/July issues of Maine Boats,Homes &Harbors magazine I learned about the Mill River Race,a fantastic-sounding race in and around Vinalhaven,ME. Rather than a standard ’round the buoys deal,the race is an out-and-back through narrow passages. In the map below,it seems to start in the Fox Islands Thoroughfare,near the North Haven label,and head Southeast into that tidal river. That just seems tons of fun because it is so unusual and unconstrained –except by raw nature. Quoting from the article:“…things get tight as the dinghies squeeze through tiny passages,some little more than a boat-length wide…small islands and big rocks create random lees…”I dig that.
Of course it helps that the race is run in North Haven Dinghies,a classic class of gaff-cats. They look like great little boats. Check out this slide show of the race.
I was in Seattle for business last week,which allowed me to make a pilgrimage to the Center for Wooden Boats,a place so cool I cannot contain it to a single post,nor even two. In fact,friends,a roughly two-and-a half-hour visit gave me four interesting posts to lay out for you. This place is everything I expected and then a bunch more.
Here’s the overview,for those not familiar. The Center for Wooden Boats is,on the surface,a museum of small,classic boats that happens,unlike others of its type,to be set smack in the middle of a major American city. Right away,that gives it some cache. The thing that first drew me to the place,however,and I have known of it for a couple years,was the fact that this museum has a livery service. In short,for many of the boats,you can not only touch them,you can use them. At a very reasonable cost,too. Brilliant concept,and I have been itching to check it out. Thursday,6/12,was the big day.
After looking around a bit,I found my way to the livery shack,where the manager,Zach,gave me a going-over on my sailing chops before letting me free on Lake Union. There were some nice options:a few Beetle cats (never actually sailed one),some small prams (seemed a bit tame),some knockabouts (a bit much for single-handing,first time out). Then something a little different caught my eye:the boat I was to come to know as the Cape Ann dory Q-ONA. Now she was the ticket.
Several minutes later,I was aboard and skippering Q’ONA across Lake Union (which,for those who haven’t experienced it,is real lake sailing,with 30 degree wind direction changes and the like). With a gunter rig and small jib,she sailed well in the pleasant breeze. The biggest challenge was the one design feature that was really new to me: the push tiller. Yikes –that was weird. Everything you know is wrong. For the uninitiated,the tiller extends to an arm the sticks out athwartships from the head of the rudder. You basically operate the rudder by pushing and pulling on this arm with the tiller,so going to starboard was always a pull forward and port always a push aft. My reflexes are so tuned moving the tiller toward or away from the sail to tack and jibe,though,that I got fouled up there. It was fun to play with this boat and get to know this style.
Unbeknownst to me when I first selected Q’ONA,she occupies an esteemed spot on the “Bud’s Favorites”list (named for a longtime volunteer). I began to sense that my tastes pleased the regulars. As I was heading to the boat to embark,I guy passing by on the float beamed at me and said boisterously “Dude! I love that you are taking the dory out. That’s awesome!”I’m telling you,this place is fantastic.
Posted on January 16th,2012
This was the real deal –it would have banks of rowers toiling away and the characteristic “ram”bow. He set off from Greece and headed for the Dardanelles,following the legend’s trail and,once again,finding evidence that the myth may have been based on reality. Among the most fascinating aspects of the voyage was that it debunked the longstanding reason for it being myth:a vessel of that era could not have transited to notorious currents of the Dardanelles and Bosporus. Severin,though,figured out how to use back-eddies and other local nuances of the waterway to successful complete the trip from the Aegean to the Black Sea. Once there,the voyage continued to current-day Georgia,wherein Severin and crew “seal the deal”by identifying the likely source for the golden fleece as well as numerous other facts that match the stories.
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Apparently there are a group of archeologists who believe (or believed,as of the early 1990s) that there was contact between East Asian cultures and Central American cultures within the last couple millennia. 
You basically operate the rudder by pushing and pulling on this arm with the tiller,so going to starboard was always a pull forward and port always a push aft. My reflexes are so tuned moving the tiller toward or away from the sail to tack and jibe,though,that I got fouled up there. It was fun to play with this boat and get to know this style.