High St. Ferry Dock
“At the end of the day your feet should be dirty, your hair messy and your eyes sparkling.” –Shanti
We decided to spend one more day in Portsmouth. We’re only a days run from Deltaville and our Monk Rendezvous doesn’t start until May 17. We’ve decided we’ll go into the marina on Friday and pay for a week. We have quite a few things we can do on the boat before the get together starts.
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May 11 – Portsmouth, VA
Back in a Club
Back at “the Club”
I was a member of a yacht club the day i was born. My Dad was a well-known racer at our local club, there is still a Ross Calvert Perpetual Trophy in the trophy case. A few years ago i visited the old club, Bremerton Yacht Club, then led by an old classmate of mine. i got the ball rolling and they now offer the trophy again at a youth sailboat race, Dad would be proud.
Later in my life as i moved to the San Juans and plunged head first into the boating business and life i joined the San Juan Island Yacht Club to which i was an active member until i moved away. I saw my beloved club rise to excellence, fall to despair with internal battles that split the club, and heal itself and become an excellent club once again.
When i moved to Seattle, i found a club tailor made for me, the Seattle Singles Yacht Club. Here was a club of single folks about my age who shared a love of fun and boating. I enjoyed a year of activities with this club and kept long-time friends. i still get visitors from the club and once the fifteen members chartered boats and joined me for a week of cruising in Phucket, what a blast we had.
As i am a man without a home the last few years, joining a club has not been practical. i have participated in different club events but as a visitor only. Now that i am centering more in the central Philippines, a club membership makes more sense. We love Puerto Galera, the town, the anchorage and particularly the PGYC moorings and club house. So when i was invited to join i did not hesitate.
Two Selenes at PGYC
What i found was a “cruisers” club, most members are xpats, many from Australia and the UK, a few Yanks as well with a good Filipino mix. Both Donna and I were made to feel right at home. The club has a restaurant, WiFi, and bar. There are many scheduled events and weekly dinners. When they found out i play music i was invited to play, i set up an “open mic night” for other folks to join in.
every young sailor tips over
One of my criteria for a successful yacht club is a good junior sailing program, it is a must. i cut my teeth sailing small boats in a club associated with the Bremerton Yacht Club, The Peninsula Sailing Club, we even produced an America’s Cup sailor! It was apparent from the start that this was a priority of the PGYC as one can regularly see the small boats zipping around cans in the anchorage.
i was the auctioneer at a recent fund raiser for the Small Boat Program, as i was getting bids of 4000p for a 500p bottle of Champagne i badgered the bidders by saying, “someday the Olympic gold will go to one of these kids and you will be part of it, do i hear 5000p”
We sat in the anchorage for several weeks and daily enjoyed the kids using Furthur as a mark. On Wet Wednesdays members can take a boat out so i took Donna for her first sailboat ride. a darting, heeling tiny boat was not to her pleasure, i think she is a confirmed power boater now haha.
Recently we joined the PGYC for a yearly cruise to a small town, Romblin Romblin (like New York, New York) as guests of the Romblin Yacht Club. We are joined by two other yacht clubs as well. Eleven PGYC boats are signed up for the 100-mile trip making two stops along the way.
The other big news is we have a new crew member, Donna’s five-year-old son, Priam, is visiting. He loves the boat and having a blast, there are other “kid boats” on this rally and they seem to all get along famously. This, of course, gives my “inner child” a big excuse to come out, we are planning a water gun attack the other kid boats as we speak… and yup he loves to pull my finger hahaha
So we enjoyed a week with the club in Romblon, the host club was extremely accommodating. We basked in the comradery of other cruisers, new friends both foreigners and Filipinos. Then we headed back to “our club” for a few weeks, tied to one of the convenient club moorings.
This will be our knitch for next year or so, cruising central Philippines in the season and hanging out at the marina in the off season– Then who knows what course we will set?? I do know it will be an adventure!
Make Your Dream Your Story
Capt. Brian Calvert
M/Y Furthur
www.furthuradventures.com
Back in a Club
Back at ‘the Club’ I was a member of a yacht club the day i was born. My Dad was a well-known racer at our local club, there is still a Ross Calvert Perpetual Trophy in the trophy case. A few years ago i visited the old club, Bremerton Yacht Club, th…
Listen to What the Children Say 5/12/2016 06:10
on the campaign trail
Taking a detour from the daily online bantering about the US elections, i spent some time learning about the Filipino elections. Election day is May 9, campaigning is now in full swing, and oh what fun they have.
The big one, the presidential election, has five candidates. The one with the most votes wins, so it is likely the president will not have a majority of the voters, possibly as low as 21%. The multitude of parties and the fast switching of party added to the large amount of independents take away the importance of political parties. The Filipinos clearly have more choices than we do.
Of the five candidates two are women, one of which has cancer and one holds dual US and Filipino citizenship. Grace Poe was disqualified over her US passport but the courts reinstated her. Donna’s papa is supporting her, in a large extended family that is significant. She is running high in the polls.
Papa like this one
The most interesting, and my favorite, is Rodrigo Duterte, the mayor of Davao. In a country that is 97% Catholic, he is a Muslim. He is famed for cleaning up Davao with guns a blazing old west style. He brags about the numbers of people he had killed, and the positive effect. He actually said that his presidency would be a boon to the funeral business, gotta love him. Duterte is leading in the polls. Donna’s four year old son and i are his supporters in this family.
[pic 6: as complicated as a campaign gets]
More fascinating than the national elections are the antics of the local candidates. I have campaigned many times in the states, doing humiliating things like standing on a street corner holding a sign like a mattress sales stooge to the drudgery of door belling. Here all this takes on a much more festive mode.
Door belling is done but the candidate brings gifts and bags of candy for the kids so he is welcome into each home, not the door slam-in-the-face you get in the US. They enter neighborhoods with a parade of vehicles and a large entourage, campaigning here is a roving party and loud!
The real twist i just love, is the candidates hand out money, lots of it. Go to a rally and you will get 500p, (more than a day’s wage). Donna tells of hitting multiple rallies in a day and bagging lots of loot. As one who has donated heavily to many races i found this enlightening. Money usually spent on TV ads and mailings is just handed out, probably with better return.
As we are deep into the campaign season the party is going on everywhere. Reminiscent of days of old, here the loud sound of speaker vehicles is everywhere, old beater cars, jeeps, trucks all with huge speakers strapped to the roof, parade around the neighborhoods, songs a blaring.
singing his song for miles
Each candidate has a theme song, usually a pop song with rewritten lyrics which plays over and over, loudly! we followed one such makeshift rig for miles on the motorbike, no idea who Jo Jo Perez is or what he is running for but i am still singing his song.
[pic 5: candidate fixing his own jeep, my kinda guy]
i met one candidate who’s jeep had motor troubles. He was working on it right in town, rolled up his sleeves and got the old gal running again. Loved his jingle too, a Bob Marley song with new words that never stopped playing.
Like most things in the Philippines, the people take these elections very seriously, up to 75% voter turnout. Unlike the US, the younger people vote in huge numbers and education, wealth or gender play little role in who votes. i have yet to find a Filipino who is not excited about voting.
Presidential
Year
Voter Turnout
Total vote
Registration
VAP Turnout
Voting age population
Population
Invalid votes
Compulsory voting
2010
74.?98%
38,162,985
50,896,164
64.?70%
58,986,204
99,900,177
No
2004
76.?97%
33,510,092
43,536,028
68.?77%
48,727,136
87,857,473
11.?90%
No
1998
81.?32%
27,782,735
34,163,465
68.?96%
40,287,296
73,052,254
No
1992
22,654,194
65.?29%
34,699,860
64,259,000
No
Also like most things in the Philippines they take it all with a smile, not too seriously. No one will lose a friend over who they support, no family feuds, albeit Mama is rumored to support Duterte, no hatred at all. Papa will vote for Poe because he likes her smile, i would definitely head to the polls singing Jo Jo Perez, Jo Jo Perez.
Make Your Dream Your Story
Capt. Brian Calvert
MV Furthur
www.furthuradventures.com
Listen to What the Children Say 5/12/2016 06:10
on the campaign trail Taking a detour from the daily online bantering about the US elections, i spent some time learning about the Filipino elections. Election day is May 9, campaigning is now in full swing, and oh what fun they have. The big one, the presidential election, has five candidates. The one with the most votes wins, so it is likely the president will not have a majority of the voters, possibly as low as 21%. The multitude of parties and the fast switching of party added to the la…
Port McNeill to Pruth Bay
May 11, 2016 – Port McNeill to Pruth Bay
0500 came all too soon and in the predawn light we prepared to depart. At 0536 the last line was brought aboard Spirit and we backed out of the slip, careful to not use noisy bow or stern thrusters since we saw no lights on the other boats in the marina.
Putting the tender in tow we headed across Neill Ledge and out past Pulteney Point lighthouse where we set a course for Ripple Pass. The light breezes in Broughton Strait were soon replaced by 15-25 knot northwesterly breezes which kicked up a 3 foot chop on top of the low westerly swell. Spirit was soon covered in salt spray, undoing all the work that Ted Marx had done the day before.
As we continued across Queen Charlotte Strait the wind gradually abated to 10-15 knots, but now the swell increased to 6-8 feet from both the offshore effects and the 3 knot ebb tide in Ripple Pass. We had to slow down to keep from going airborne in the larger swells.
After several miles of sloppy water we passed through Ripple Pass and set a course for Cape Caution. The Cape was abeam at 1115, with 5-10 knots of wind and a 6-8 foot swell at 7 seconds period on the port bow. We had occasional light mist/rain as we passed Egg Island and then the sky cleared.
The swell stayed with us until we were in the lee of Calvert Island and entering Fitz Hugh Sound, where the wind dropped to 3 knots and the seas were glassy. We saw only one other pleasure craft crossing Cape Caution, “Salpare”, a Catalina 400 sailboat from Roche Harbor Yacht Club.
When we turned the corner out of Fitz Hugh Sound into Kwakshua Channel the wind picked up, but fortunately subsided as we approached Pruth Bay. Along the way we saw an interesting rock formation. Can you see what we saw?
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| Egg Island Light from 3 miles |
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| The rock formation reminded us of a ??? |
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| Looking east down Kwakshua Channel 5 miles to Fitz Hugh Sound |
At 1610 we slowed down as we entered the anchorage in Pruth Bay, a few hundred yards from the Hakai Beach Institute. One other boat was already at anchor, otherwise it was an empty harbor, in stark contrast to late in the summer when there can be 25 boats anchored. By 1618 the anchor was set and the engine was off after an 82 nautical mile day. We relaxed in the cool sunshine, protected from the wind by the cockpit enclosure.
May 10 – Portsmouth, VA
High St. Ferry Dock
“I’m not lost, I’m exploring” –Jana Stanfield
We spent any day at the free dock in Portsmouth. Stan noticed in Great Bridge that he needed some new bearings on his bike…it was still useable but he was worried at some point it would give out. We found a bike shop on High Street that could do the work today, so Stan took his bike in as soon as they opened. We then too the water taxi (ferry) over to Norfolk to take care of another issue Stan was having…his phone died a few days ago. Luckily we had an extra phone for him to use temporally. A visit to the Apple Store at the McArthur Center and he was back in business.
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On to Skradin
On our way up the Krka river we stopped at one of the many mussel farms to get some fresh mussels.
Dino and Tomas are making a deal for some mussels.
The deal is done, the money changes hands, and everyone is happy.
Might as well …
On to Skradin
On our way up the Krka river we stopped at one of the many mussel farms to get some fresh mussels. Dino and Tomas are making a deal for some mussels.The deal is done, the money changes hands, and everyone is happy.
Korcula / Hvar
Tom is having a rest on the upper deck on our way to Hvar.
A view from on top of the Hvar fortress.
Happy hour on the top deck while at a mooring ball in Hvar.
Dino preparing home made spaghetti sauce.
A beautiful meal on b…
