Port Townsend 28th Wooden Boat Festival in September 2004
Wow ! What a 3 days we all had at the 28th Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend Washington. The weather went from calm and sunny to full gales with heavy rain on Friday. Tents were blown down but no boats in Port Hudson marina were damaged. That was not the case for the few boats that were sailing over Friday afternoon or the anchored boats off the lee of the city. Several boats lost there hold and were driven onto the beach of the city, only one was saved and return to the water. One boat sailing in had blown out it's jib and was still able to beat off the shore, but it's fate was lost in the dark of the night. The theme of the show this year was ingenuity, and it was well tested on that Friday by the sailors on those boats not in the harbor. Saturday the weather improved with some periods of rain and light winds as did Sunday.
Photo from Dave Farr
The historic 1922 steamer Virginia V is amazing.
Completely rebuilt, she almost seemed like a new ship.
There is no vibrations typical of diesel engines, since she is powered by
a triple expansion steam engine. As the ship was underway, visitors can
watch and converse with the chief engineer and crew as they tend to the
steam engine, powering the ship. The engine is a gleaming piece of
engineering. You can view the huge crankshaft, the 3 connecting rods, and
valve control rods. Also interesting is the way those steam engines are
lubricated. There is an oil container high up, from which many small pipes
go to various moving parts, constantly dripping oil on bearings, etc. In
addition, an engineer is always close by with an oil can to keep
everything lubricated. Pressure is about 200 psi on the oil-fired boiler,
and top speed is at 150 rpm. We were cruising at mostly 50 rpm. Anyways,
if any of you have a chance sometime, a ride on the Virginia V is
definitely an enjoyable experience.
Usually she is moored in Seattle.
Photo from Dave Farr
All the boats were listed in the boat show guide, this was Sacagawea as she appeared.
