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The RV Heraclitus Arrives!
24th September 2003
Our approach to land was a suitable ending to our
four and a half month voyage. Just after dawn we arrived at the entrance
to the Juan de Fuca Straits with humpback whales blowing us in from the
stern. The mists surrounded us, and the sight of land for which we had
waited so long, eluded us until the last! It wasn’t until 11 am that the
clouds lifted, and the mountains on the south side revealed themselves to
us – but only long enough for us to assemble together on the deck, pop
champagne, bless ourselves with a drink and bless the ocean for carrying
us safely across. The clouds descended after just minutes and the
snow-capped peaks disappeared. We remained in this white shroud for the
rest of the day, hearing passing ships blow their fog horns, but unable to
see them even when they were only a few hundred meters away.
As the sun began to droop, and the mists finally
broke a little, a boat came screaming towards us from dead ahead. Could
this possibly be our very own welcome committee? Indeed, a boat loaded
with familiar, smiling, relieved faces – Gaie, Laser, Johnny, Cynthia, Sierra, Thrity, Dan, Sally,
Caitlin, Victor, Sharon and Solomon. We waved and jumped
and screamed across the Straits to each other, they circled around us and
around us, eager for us to arrive and dock and clear into the United
States. We reunited in Port Angeles that night – feet touch land,
sea-people hands touching land-people hands, long awaited hugs and
reunions, a surge of emotions. Arrival at last. But the ship didn’t stay
still for long – by midnight we were underway again, reversing away from
the dock and moving further down the Straits to make it to Seattle the
next day.
At last, dry land!
We journeyed through the Puget Sound, found ourselves
navigating through locks and under bridges until we finally arrived at our
Seattle home, a dock upon which stood Victor and Sharon with their beating
drums, Native American chants, and beaming smiles. We held a sacred story telling circle on board
that night, sharing moments from the voyage and simultaneous experiences
on the land as our oceanic dramas unfolded. And we feasted on all that we
had missed during the crossing, finishing with ice cream galore!
We had five full days to do two week’s work – insert
a new foremast, rig and position a new foresail, weld the cracked main
mast, fix the shattered winch, paint the hull, fix the generators, restock
our food supplies – and without a minute’s delay. Every second counted in
this extreme schedule which would get us out of Seattle and on our way
again towards San Francisco for our date under the Golden Gate Bridge on
the 11th of October. The angels fell from the sky again to help
repair the Heraclitus – Robert pulled up in a kayak one morning and jumped
on board immediately to employ his mechanical engineering skills, Allen
performed artistic welding miracles on the main mast and Kurt appeared at
the right moments to move broken freezers and shift unbearably heavy items
on his little finger.
Laser and Allen inspect the bolster
pipes before the new foremast is stepped
Under
Laser’s management where tempo is everything, we succeeded in achieving
what had seemed almost like the impossible, including re-immersing
ourselves into the land of plenty – supermarkets, Starbuck’s coffee and
dance floors larger than the ship’s small spaces!
Fresh eyes at the bow as we head
through the locks back to the open ocean
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