Noon Position: Docked in Lunenburg, NS, Canada
Weather: Clear sky, cool, H 12c L 2c, barometer 1001.
Last minute tasks, drying sail and repetition of drills was the focus of the morning. Fiji, of course, had her own ‘to do’ list which included a game of Cat and Mouse. The Captain held the first of many workshops after lunch. He demonstrated how to make an eye splice, how to taper the splice two different ways and then how to do a whipping. Crew with experience circulated among everyone to lend a hand and by the end of the hour each person had their own length of rope with an eye splice on either end.
At 16:00 the official signing on ceremony took place. The crew collected on the quarterdeck, heard from both Captain Moreland and Captain Sikkema, then were called up individually to sign the ship’s articles and receive two crew hats and crew t-shirts. Wally and Ashley, two volunteers who’ve been helping at the ship, were also acknowledged and thanked by the entire crew. By 17:00, when the two off watches were stood down, the official countdown to getting underway began. T minus 17 hours and counting!
Ship’s Work: Replaced port windlass brake band; prime headrig seizings; topcoat white foc’s’le head round; grease steering gear; installed headrig manropes and temporary ratl’ns where missing. Training: emergency drills (fire and abandon ship); sail drill (4-8 fore, 8-12 main); splicing and whipping workshop (eye splice, 2 tapers); security training; watch standing schedule and details of cleaning routines.