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Date: Thursday, August 10, 2000
Time: Midnight EDT

Today started with a squal line passing at 0500 with thunder and lightning strikes while the ship lay at the dock at Tonnessen Park at New Bedford State Pier. Luckily, the line passed by 0615 and we were able to set off under power for a full day of activities by 0630.

The upper chart shows our transit with crew aboard from New Bedford across Buzzards Bay to the Woods Hole end of Naushon Island and Hadley Harbor for a sail with many of the extended family members of the Forbes family. Commander Alexander Forbes served aboard the Ernestina, then-Effie M. Morrissey, surveying arctic waters in support of the effort to construct airbases vital to the war effort in WWII. Aircraft hopped across the Atlantic via the bases for service in the war in Europe. Forbes was aboard alongside Capt. Bob Bartlett who had extensive knowledge and experience in the far north. Our chief mate, Sophie Morse, is a member of this family. It is great to have the connections to the ship and the history deepen and grow.

After boarding at 1000 by the Cormorant, the ferry that serves Naushon Island, 68 persons sailed all day out into Buzzards Bay. Winds were building from the SW but not enough or from the right direction to allow us to sail all the way to New Bedford. We hoped we could do this simply because, historically, family members would travel to the Island using New Bedford as a jumping off point.

You can see on the second chart the several tacks toward the west before returning to Hadley Harbor by 1545 and a underway transfer by the Cormorant (we didn't even strike the main or fores'l). Photos will be up soon after they are developed.... Check back soon!

After the drop off we sailed on for Fall River and Fall River Celebrates already in progress. You can see the beginning of the sixty-five mile run take a tack over toward Quicks' Hole to get a better angle on the wind and to avoid numerous tug and barge combinations transiting the Bay.

The final chart track below shows the overall run from Naushon Island into Rhode Island Sound, Naragansett Bay past Newport (there is an inset in the lower chart of the run past Newport and under the bridge) and 18 or so miles on from there into Mt. Hope Bay and Fall River.

The lower chart shows our approach to Fall River at about midnight in the inset. By now the wind has calmed completely with moon out and pleasant night breeze. We tie up on the west face of Fall River Line Pier near the Battleship USS Massachusetts with Californian already along side.

Wind: SW Force 3
Visibility: Hazy

Captain: Gregg Swanzey
Program Coordinator: Crista Mellican

We would like to thank Lotus and IBM for donation of software, hardware and funding to enable regular electronic updates from the ship.

NOAA Chart is provided courtesy of Maptech using Cruising Navigator 4.3 and grabbing the image using Grabit Pro 6.02.

 
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Copyright 1997-2000
Schooner Ernestina
New Bedford State Pier, P.O. Box 2010, New Bedford, MA 02741-2010
phone 508.992.4900 -- fax 508.984.7719
www.ernestina.org

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