A Big, Big, Night

The sun is shining and spirits are high on board the Harvey Gamage. If you were to walk into the Main Salon, you'd see scribbled on the chalk board (where homework assignments used to be) the announcement: "School's out for summer!"
All of the students are anxiously awaiting a well deserved graduation celebration in Portland this weekend. Upon the request of some, the festivities are kicking off tonight with the Spring 2013 Harvey Gamage Prom. Several times this semester, our students have showcased their musical talents and love for dancing. After a quick visit to the thrift store, everyone is ready to look their best and dance the night away this evening on deck. Stay tuned to see who will be voted Prom Captain and First Mate....

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Swim Call!!

Cold, numbing and exhilarating. That is how one of our days in Bar Harbor began. To start off, we all woke up at the routine time of 0700 for 0715 muster. As has been the case on all chilly mornings in New England these last few weeks, everyone slowly walked their way out of their racks and onto deck. Once out of the companionway, each of us was immediately greeted by our two best friends, Bar Harbor fog and Bar Harbor rain. For our past few days in Maine, we hadn't seen the sun once, which was evident due to hundreds of wet clothes hanging in forward and the musty smell that accompanied them. As everyone emerged and made their way on deck, the crew followed behind after their own crew muster. At 0715, Captain started off telling us what would go on that day... researching in the library and paper writing. Then he said something that no one expected. "In place of morning chores, we're going to go swimming." In a blaze of time and confusion, one moment we were all on deck in full foul weather gear and the next everyone was in bathing suits in the water, or practically running up the Jacob's ladder. Some of us were used to the cold temperature and took it as a welcome back to New England, but some didn't feel as welcomed and were in and out of the water within seconds. Feeling especially comfortable, Diane, Timbah, John and I swam a lap around Gamage before exiting. John stayed in for a good ten minutes more. We still don't know if that's due to insanity or if he was born cold blooded. Measuring the water temperature after our swim, we found it to be a brisk 48 degrees F. Even though we'll have the sniffles for the next week, we are all glad we took the dip and started our day off with some excitement instead of being grumps and letting a bit of rain get us down.

Hayden Wright

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Polar Opposites

You crawl out of warm, cozy beds

We roll out of squeaky, leaky racks.

You get up at 6:30 to get ready for school

We’ve been on deck since 0400.

You take a hot shower for fifteen minutes every morning

We dump buckets of cold salt water over our heads every week or so.

You walk down crowded hallways

We walk through narrow companionways.

You sit in a little metal chair at a desk

We sit on cabin tops, on deck boxes and in crazy creeks.

You get school cancelled for snow days

We stand watch through squalls.

You zone out in an air-conditioned classroom

We sunbathe during class.

You go to school in a giant concrete box

We got to school on a beautiful wooden Schooner.

You stop class to listen to an announcement on the PA

We stop class to watch a pod of dolphin swim by.

Your class goes on a field trip to a museum

Our field trips are to the volcanoes and boiling lakes.

You have calculus and AP history

We have Nav Sea and Maritime History.

You have pep rallies

We have all hands musters.

You fold paper to make paper airplanes in class

We furl jibs out on the bowsprit.

You see your classmates 8 hours a day, five days a week

We live with ours 24/7.

You end your day staring at a TV

We end ours gazing at a breadth taking sunset.

You don’t know your teacher’s first name

We don’t know our teacher’s last name.

You carry your books around from class to class

We haul on lines to set the sails.

You ripped your paper taking it out of your binder

A wave came over the rail and soaked my whole notebook.

You have 2013 i-pads

We have 1990 radar.

You sit on your couch and play with your computer

We stand in the Nav station and plot ships.

You send 200+ texts a day

We call home once a month.

You have automatic flush toilets

We pump 50+ times every trip to the head.

You wear Uggs and flip flops

We wear Sperry’s and Tevas.

You see your parents everyday

We see our parents once in four months.

Cassidy Bierce

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Maine

                                               

            “It’s cold out, no freezing, and there is an annoying light rain and you have fifteen minutes to be on deck.”

            My response was “That’s about friggin’ right! Welcome to Maine!” I get my foulies on as quick as I can and run on deck. Quickly, I find out that we are only 40 nautical miles from the closest point of Maine. MAINE! The place I love. I have experienced most everything it has to offer from the city, to way up north in the sticks, to the jaw-dropping coast. There is beauty in so many ways. One important thing to know…if you don’t approve of the weather, wait an hour and it will probably change. But on the other hand, if you do, enjoy it because it will change soon. The wind is quite funky now; blowing a nice 20 mph then suddenly it dies within the hour. Oh well, as we have learned on the Gamage, we will get there when we get there. And when we do get there, who knows what it is we will be doing.

            I’ve had a great trip. I couldn’t have asked for anything better. I am glad to be close to home and close to my truck! See you all on the first!

Myron Hahn

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The Big Apple

                                               

            The Big Apple is one of my favorite places to visit. It is almost a return to my home, and a complete return to my favorite hangout spot. The coolest museum of all is the Natural History Museum. I was very excited to visit this particular museum on this trip. I love the epic size of the museum. It never seems to end. There are so many great exhibits on mankind and nature. The museum had a special exhibit that involved the life of whales. There was so much to see that I was unable to make it to see the whale exhibit. I started on the fourth floor in the world of dinosaurs. There were so many different kinds of fossils and sculptures. Next, I found myself in a very dark hall of old native tribes. There were many old and modern photos of their religious practices. The exhibits covered so much on native lifestyles it was hard to capture all the information. The reconstruction of old artifacts was very interesting and made it much easier to understand how the natives lived. I loved the museum and loved all the cool things I was able to see. I wish I could go back and see all of it.

Diego Purcell

                                   

             

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Charleston to New York and Beyond

                             

            I believe we all learned why Cape Fear, Cape Lookout, and Cape Hatteras are some of the most feared Capes in North America. A voyage that should have taken five days took twelve. Waves we recorded peaked at twelve feet, we saw wind gusts at 35 miles per hour and we experienced squall after squall. This will probably go down as one of my favorite passages since that was something I will probably never do again. The satisfaction of seeing the skyline of New York for the first time in three months, and the first time ever for some, is something we all truly earned. As the trip winds down, we all realize how far we have come and how this amazing experience is something we will remember our entire lives. I really look forward to the week and a half where we sail around, no classes and just enjoy being on watch together before returning to our normal lives and the hard earned summer that awaits us.

Elias Giangrande

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Glory

Our passage to Sandy Hook from Charleston was twice as long as expected in difficult weather. While many seemed to flourish in the challenge and opportunity for more sailing, some of us were wet and miserable and willing to take our chances racing old Gamage by jumping over the rail and swimming to  our destination. Two particular mornings stand out due to a thick blanket of fog that covered the ship and hid all potential beauty and danger from our view. We sailed on, blasting the fog horn every two minutes. The second morning looked to be just as dreary as the first, though as we were preparing for class, there was a commotion on deck. If you are looking out from a high elevation at your shadow over the sea, something about the light and water particles work together to make it appear as if your shadow is surrounded by a rainbow. Captain explained this to us in his own way.
"Quick! Grab your harness and get aloft to look at it (Glory) before it's too late."
Before you could say something silly like "Bob's your uncle," half the student body was either climbing the shrouds or laying out into the head rig in order to see what was going on. By this point, the morning sun was starting to burn away the mist (hence Captain's detailed description and languid air) leaving the sky robin egg blue with the sun on our shoulders. The wind was brisk, but just enough to feed you exhilaration throughout your body. It is the type of wind you see in Hollywood movies, when you know great things are happening. Looking around from the cross trees the sea was the perfect color and low and behold, there was my shadow surrounded by a perfect rainbow. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen and the best thing about it was that everything about it was so pure. The moment was created by the wind, sun, the ocean blue and the will power to climb to the top of a dancing ship. You didn't need any extra batteries for anything or any of the technology garbage we all get caught up in at home. It felt good for the soul. Sadly, class was still a priority and eventually we were called down from the sky. That moment remains one of my favorites from the entire trip. Now you know the real story: every cloud has a rainbow lining.

Mom and Dad, I miss you and can't wait to see you in Portland!

Teagan White

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Stormy Seas

                          

                        “You raise me up so I can stand on mountains.

                          You raise me up to walk on stormy seas.

                          Strong, when I am on your shoulders,

                          You raise me up to more than I can be.”

The other day, bow watch was positively thrilling. Clinging to the fore shrouds, covered in rain-resistant gear, I happily began my hour as look out, I had company. Thirty to forty Atlantic Spotted Dolphins played in the waves on the bow of the boat. “Play” is no anthropomorphism either. Perhaps the small babies were exempt, because they frequently and urgently slapped their tails on the surface to their parents who slapped back which made me think they were not delighting in the weather as much as the others. However, the rest of the dolphins found numerous ways to entertain themselves in the wild waves. Some leapt out of the water with a slight twist of their bodies and others blew distinct bubble rings, which broke on the surface as bright, white circles.

            The waves were six to eight feet high and the boat rose and fell with great force. The sky darkened from an approaching squall and still the dolphins played. One, breaking off from the large group, would shoot by the bow pumping his powerful flukes. His sleek, spotted body was beautiful. He was so much faster than the boat! As he cruised by, he turned slightly so I could see his eye. I thought of how different his perspective must be, looking up from the water at me, instead of looking down.

             A wave would crest higher than the others, and the larger dolphins would get into position. As the wave rolled by the bow, six or seven would ride in the crest of the wave. Their bodies were so close to the surface that they were illuminated in great detail.

            The pod surfed the waves for several more minutes, their dorsal fins revealing their presence. After a large wave, I could always spot them again by their fins scattered on the surface. Gradually, they fell behind and I noticed the squall was nearly on us. As the drops of rain were driven by the wind into my eyes, I squinted to the horizon to look for boats. Sometimes a patch of water would take on a darker shade, but no dolphin would surface. Saddened by their sure disappearance, I snugged up the ties on my jacket hood and gulped the fresh sea breeze.

            The waves intensified and the wind created whirling shapes and miniature ripples on each wave and swell. Cresting whitecaps filled the sea and trails of bubbles appeared from the wind grazing the surface. Alone at the bow as the squall blew and blew, I was warmed by the knowledge that those playful dolphins were continuing their sport elsewhere on the vast and stormy sea.

Chelsea Kimball

            

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