I saw some people on other websites do this and thought “Hey, why not give it a go?” Their designs are much better than mine, so go check them out too.
The Flying Dutchman’s design has similar details to another artist’s design of the ship. If I find them, I’ll credit them here.
I was going to make more ships but I’m busy with school these days. I probably won’t be able to upload much for the next 10 months or so. Though I’ll do my best to update this blog from time to time. Thank you for your patience.
Edit: I found the artist! And my friend helped too https://www.pinterest.co.kr/pin/614319205437518615/
This weekend, I went for a sail on the Lady Washington, aka the Interceptor from Pirates of the Caribbean. I had a great time, learned a lot, and made many observations of my own. Below are my learnings, observations, and pictures from the sail.
1. The Sails
The first thing I noticed as we approached the ship were her sails. She flew 4, but I only remember what 3 of them are. As the state tall ship of Washington State (west coast of America), she flew both the American and Washington state flags. More interesting, though, was her pride flag. I was surprised, given that it's past pride month, and many people/businesses take down their flags after the end of the month because they're really just used for advertising and fake inclusion. Not so with this ship. (Mrs. Norrington, if you ever read this, your husband's ship openly supports gay rights.)
2. The Crew
The first thing both my mother and I noticed upon boarding was the crew. Most of them were women. (I don't have pictures because it seems intrusive). This came as a bit of a surprise to both of us; these were young women, too, in their early to mid 20s. The captain, first mate, and events coordinator were all female or female presenting, along with the majority of the volunteer crew. Many of them had nautical themed tattoos, though my favorites were the Lord of the Rings tats one sailor sported (we geeked out over them together, it was cute). They were also mostly noticeably queer. That explained the pride flag better. Apparently, it's quite common that on these older models of ships, the crew is mostly, if not entirely, female.
3. Interactive!
That's me! I know I have little on here about myself, but now you know how I look. I was wearing a Jack Sparrow shirt, too, because I went prepared.
I went on what they call an "Adventure Sail" where they let you handle some of the ropes. There are two pictures of me here where I'm hoisting the fore staysail. It's actually not as hard as you think, though I did have to put my bodyweight into it. I wasn't allowed to climb the rigging, but I noticed that the crew had safety harnesses and clips for when they were out on the masts. The ropes really hurt your hands, though, and now I understand why sailors got blisters so easily. That rope burn sucks. In any case, I was so enthusiastic, they offered me a two week volunteering position! I'm looking into it for next summer, because if you think I'm not going to work on the honest-to-god Interceptor, you're wrong. Which brings me to:
4. Volunteering.
They have 2 week volunteering positions for a season of, right now, six months. This runs from spring until autumn, as they do ship repairs in winter. It sounds like they sail the full coast of Washington over the six month span. You live on the ship, sleeping in a room that can house up to 10 people, though I don't think it ever gets that full. There's also a cook, so you don't have to worry about food. Volunteers are allowed to work all parts of the ship, including climbing the rigging, though they don't have to if they don't want.
5. The History
The Lady Washington is a re-build of her original. The original ship (brig) served in the American revolutionary war, and was used as a shipping vessel afterwards. She was the first American ship to go around the tip of Cape Horn, and also the first American ship to land on the west coast. She opened the trans Atlantic trade as the first American ship in Japan, Honolulu, and Hong Kong. Also, according to the site: "Lady Washington opened the black pearl and sandalwood trade between Hawaii and Asia". Interesting that she began the black pearl trade, isn't it? She was eventually lost in the Philippines.
The replica was made in 1989 and launched as part of the Washington State Centennial celebration. Her current model is almost an exact replica of the original, save for the more modern fittings in her hull to make living on ship easier (they have a generator). She also has an engine to make her easier to maneuver in and out of harbor. Currently, she's a teaching vessel meant to educate people on the lives of sailors and trade. She has been in multiple films and TV shows, including our dear PoTC, Star Trek: Generations, and Once Upon A Time.
6. Little Observations
I made lots of little observations about the sailors and the sail in general. One thing was made very obvious: every time you were given an order, you were to repeat it back aloud. This both fixes any confusion about orders, and lets the rest of the crew know what was going on. There were many instances where the captain gave orders only one person could hear, though the order was meant for "all hands available".
Another thing was how they got lines taut. They did this maneuver where they had two people on major ropes when trying to secure them. This is hard to explain without a visual, but I'll try. Basically, they would have the rope wrapped under the bottom of a belaying pin, and one person would lean into the rope before quickly pulling back into a squat and letting their bodyweight pull the line taut. The other person would then secure the rope to the belaying pin.
Speaking of belaying pins, they're just that: pins. I didn't realize that you can really just....pull one out of the little hole it goes in. They're fairly loose until a rope is secured around them. The ropes, depending on size and what they were supporting, were sometimes wrapped around multiple pins. Many ropes were wrapped in a sort of figure-eight pattern. For those of us who write, it's absolutely possible for a character to use a belaying pin as a weapon. That being said, they're a little smaller than you think, and it would take a bit more force to knock someone over the head with than you would imagine. They aren't a bat, they don't have that range. Otherwise, solid weapon if you put some strength behind it. (You can see them for size in the pictures of me above. Keep in mind I’m about 5′9″.)
Ropes on a ship are a major tripping hazard. There are six miles of rigging on the Lady Washington, so the air above your head is a frickin maze. Every rope that touches the ground gets coiled. Every one. It doesn't matter if there's only three feet of it touching the deck: it gets coiled. There are all sorts of coiling methods, though I didn't quite pick up on names, except for the Flemish coil pictured below. It really isn't practical, except when you have completely loose ropes or huge strands of rope touching the ground.
Black Pearl: daring. proud. chaotic good. action movies. long jackets. late nights. ideas so bad they’re good. laughing until you can’t breathe.
Interceptor: righteous. hardworking. strict moral compass. dresses immaculately. straight A’s. shy crushes. sways a little and calls it dancing. handsome handwriting.
Flying Dutchman: wild. unknowable. fiercely loyal. loves mythology. walks barefoot in the forest. crying over people long gone. Hozier vibes. chicken-scratch handwriting.
Empress: regal. ancient. wise. knows things they shouldn’t. studies dead languages. carries their ancestors in their eyes. only drinks tea. stares at the stars like they’ve been there.
Jolly Mon (the boat Jack stole from Anamaria): Trying Their Best
