Boat Basics: Using the Head

While we were confident in the Sea Scout’s ability to provide world-class crew, there was one task we were nervous about ourselves: using the head. I had two important questions: what is a head, and can I use toilet paper?

The forward head in forward quarters. Spacious and light! Much like an RV toilet.

The first thing I learned is that a ship’s toilet is lovingly referred to as the “head”. Apparently the name refers to the time when the toilet area for regular sailors was placed at the bow of the ship. By placing a toilet in the bow of the ship, the seawater could wash it out naturally. Being downwind also helps in airing unpleasant smells. The second thing I learned is that we would be using marine grade biodegradable toilet paper. We made sure we located that in the items we were loading onto the boat!

Miss Monique knows her priorities and made sure the TP was loaded first.

Marine toilets are mechanical devices – and they need to be treated with care! The only thing that can be flushed in a boat’s head are human waste and that special toilet paper. No feminine products, dental floss, Kleenex, etc. Skipper Tom let us know the 3 key words to remember: flush, flush and flush. The pipes are not huge in dimension, so it is better to have more flushes with fewer contents than one flush with a large amount of contents.

Since this is a training vessel, that means every problem is an opportunity for the Sea Scouts to learn – including fixing the head!

There were multiple times the forward head would need attention - usually related to refilling with water or making sure to lift the foot lever and seal the bowl. The Scouts learned how to turn off the water main in the bosun’s locker and use a plunger to pump it out. When docked in Victoria, I had to call Skipper Tom back from shore leave when the stern head was down. Between him, Daniel and Mr. Minch, a head repair turned into an electronics class and more!

The stern head located in the lazarette is close quarters, but how many people can say their toilet is a “throne”?

The only complaint I had was the boys on the boat had the forward head with lots of space, natural light coming in the through the port holes and a full mirror above the sink. In the stern head near the female quarters, our head sits on a “throne” in a small room. When standing up to get in or lock the door, that little fan loves is right above your head. Anyone with curly hair knows that big hair + ceiling fans don’t mix! I learned that quickly.

Bella warned me about this fan. This is the first time this short girl had to worry about the ceiling!

For those of you who know how short I am - imagine the head space now!

Day Six: Destination International Harbour

Montague , B.C. —> Victoria Harbour, B.C.

Route #118 - 35.75 Miles

On a bright and early morning, the Curtis crew was up and ready for work. We took off for Victoria, B.C around 7:30am. With food in bellies and coffee in the system, the wheelhouse was ready for a busy day of traffic in the sea.

with Lily on log watch and Bella at the helm, we were underway to our exciting destination: Victoria Harbour, B.C.

Once you head closer to Victoria Harbour, you start to deal with traffic of every kind, as Victoria is a big and popular destination. With seaplanes, clippers, fishing boats and cruise ships crossing paths, stern and log watch become very serious and important jobs.

The Sea Scouts meet year-round, and they are underway locally in the Thea Foss Waterway ad Commencement Bay. They participate in charter cruises for many community organizations honing their abilities in compliance with the strict Coast Guard regulation standards.

Traveling to a busy international port like Victoria Harbour meant it was time to turn up the notch.

As eyes were peeled open in every direction, the Curtis made a safe and uneventful arrival - ready to dock in Victoria Harbour, B.C.

The kids (and adults) were excited to be in a big city again. Some scouts were even more excited for the street performers, as one group ran into Darth Vader playing the violin. It was a big deal for the Star Wars fans on board. After the hard work at sea, they earned their shore leave!

As expected, the kids stayed out in groups of three and more until the last possible minute they were due back from shore leave. Everyone gathered in the galley to share stories of what they saw and what they did. They got a few more games squeezed in until yawns started filling the room and it was time for lights out.

Day Five: Ready to Jump

Ganges Harbour, B.C. -> Montague Harbour, B.C.

Route #58R - 5.44 Miles

The crew was up and at it again, while the Curtis was ready to go at 10am. Today is an easy day, as we are heading to Montague, an hour run. The crew got to deal with a little more traffic today, which is a good practice for Victoria, B.C.

Skipper Tom always has a good lesson…and the Scouts are always ready to listen!

When the ship is underway, the Sea Scouts that are off-watch spend time working on their advancements. When walking through the galley you will see Scouts tying knots, quizzing each other on navigation rules or discussing vessel safety checklists.

Many of the Quartermaster Scouts mentor their shipmates and help them advance through the ranks of apprentice, ordinary and able.

Trevor & Caitlyn find a seat on the stern to quiz each other.

Once in Montague, the kids were buzzing around as everyone was getting ready to jump off top side. It’s a loved tradition that happens every cruise. The kids put their life vests on, climb up, and get ready to jump and meet the cold water.

Everyone had their fun jumping over and over, and now it was time to make trips to shore and set up for another BBQ.

Our amazing galley crew supervised by Miss Sue made chicken, homemade potato salad, watermelon, and chips with dip.

With more time to kill after dinner, the scouts played on small beaches around the island and hiked more trails.

As everyone made it back on the boat, we were greeted with a beautiful summer sunset.

There were a few different card games going on in the galley, stories being told, and laughs being shared. Before you knew it, it was time for lights out and another successful day completed on the Charles N. Curtis.

Day Four: Textbook to Reality

Chemainus, B.C. —> Ganges Harbour, B.C.

Rte #117 - 20.41 Miles

After three days of hard work and early mornings, the crew finally got to sleep in. We filled up on bagels, croissants and fruit, then the Scouts were back to work. The Curtis left Chemainus around 10:00am on a beautiful, warm morning.

Caitlyn, Bella and Kevin prepare lines for departure

As we were headed to Ganges, B.C., the navigation crew learned a very importnatn lesson: It’s important to always pays attention. While underway, an 80+ ft. vessel decided to cross in front of Curtis. To avoid a collision, Skipper Tom blared the horn to let the vessel know to be alert and we are staying on the right.

Little did Bernard know at the beginning of the crew what was to come…

As if that horn wasn’t loud enough for everyone on the bow, an hour later ANOTHER boat was not paying attention! It was barreling right for the Curtis. Tom had to blare the horn 5 times meaning “This is urgent - get out of the way now!”

It’s situations like these that allow the Sea Scouts real life examples of what they have read in a book - how to be responsible and safe at sea.

Skipper Tom giving engineering a quick lesson - using any prop available as a teaching tool

With another day marked down of travel, Curtis docked at Ganges. Ganges is a very colorful and quaint destination. The Farmer’s Market was abuzz and pianos area scattered all over the town to find and play. The Scouts spent their shore leave comparing which place had the best ice cream while strategizing the night’s on deck sleeping assignments.

Day Three: Into International Waters

Echo Bay, Sucia Island —> Bedwell & Chemainus, B.C.

Rte. #19 & #104 - 43.38 Miles

Up at 7am, gone by 7:30 the Curtis is heading to Canadian waters! Before we left Sucia Island, the crew had to raise the anchor. This must be done with precision and lots of communication, as to not damage the boat with the anchor. With an 80+ year old all wood boat, you don’t want to cause damage!

Pulling up anchor takes a lot of hands, and steady patience. Skipper Tom teaches by letting the scouts take action.

As we head to our destination for the night, Chemanius, we must first make it to Bedwell for border passing. Thank goodness for great preparations! Everyone’s passports and our paperwork had been organized in Tacoma to minimize delay. Skipper Tom had planned on doing fog training sometime on this trip, but with fog banks blinding the ocean, there was no time for practice.

Mother Nature put the crew to the test for the real thing.

Mother Nature calls the shots. Once the navigation crew saw this, focus became even more important.

When navigating in fog, the wheelhouse becomes quiet and focused on one thing only = getting out of that fog safely. While in the fog, one crew member is in charge of marking where they are. This means that every two minutes, they mark where they are by blowing the fog horn for six seconds. That navigation crewmember repeats this until the Captain determines visibility and they are out of the fog.

The Sea Scouts prep year round by reading and studying, but the real test is on the water. They passed.

Once we passed the fog AND passed the customs check at Bedwell, off to Chemainus we went. There were a couple rough spots due to flooding and we saw the actual currents colliding. We actually picked up 1 to 2 knots due to the currents! Captain Tom was quite please. From there on it was smooth cruising. We docked at Chemainus and the crew was quick to start their tasks.

Who gets to radio in international travel plans with the Coast Guard for a Sub Chapter-T passenger vessel? Under the tutelage of Skipper Tom, Lily can check this off her list - all before her 16th birthday.

After everything was taken care of and the all-crew meeting was done, it was time for shore leave. With small shops, parks, and jungle gyms occupying the town, the scouts had endless options of fun. Chemainus honors their history and is known for their multiple murals dedicated to the town’s history on various buildings throughout the town. Around 6pm, most scouts were showered and everyone was ready for an amazing roast beef sandwich with au jus dinner.

Dinner gave everyone the second energy boost they needed and it was back on shore exploring the town some more. Believe it or not, many scouts stay on board for bonding and working on their journals.

The journey of long cruise is not just the miles traveled….it’s the relationships formed and strengthened.

Around 9pm, we had some wet scouts returning to the boat. Apparently, there was a small beach who’s water was “…77 degrees, it was literally a bathtub!” one of the Sea Scouts exclaimed. With everyone returning to the boat, it was lights out at 10:30pm, as we were all fast asleep once again.

Day Two: Caves, Kayaks and Campfire Dinner

“Rise and shine!” came early today after our first sleep on the Curtis. Leaving Anacortes, we were greeted by a foggy morning and chorizo breakfast burritos. The crew did their morning routine of getting the boat prepared in less than 5 minutes – and we’re off!

Bernie loading us up with fresh water before leaving.

On the way to Sucia Island, we passed Orcas Island. At Lawrence Point, the Log Watch in the wheelhouse reported an object in the water. As Skipper Tom warned us, those waters in the Strait of Georgia are powerful! The OOD (Officer on the Deck) called for a float overboard drill. It was an unusual location for something to be. The helm turned the boat around while two deck crew came onto the bow to point and grab pike poles. Most impressive was their speed, accuracy, and calm under pressure.

We shouldn’t be surprised though – the crew practices this drill, among others,

every week at the Tacoma Sea Base.

At around 11:00am, we arrived at Sucia Island and prepared to drop our anchor. This is not an easy process. On the long chain, there are yellow marks. Each yellow mark indicates 25 feet of chain. At the end, Deck Crew Caitlin counted 6 marks.

When lowering the anchor, there is a counter and someone on the brake. Once lowered, a third crewmember checks the chain to make sure the anchor has grounded.

After the anchor is set, the crew filled up on chicken salad sandwiches, chips, and a delicious cream cheese dessert. After lunch, they went on top side and unloaded the skiffs and kayaks from the davit. Thank goodness the crew practiced this maneuver the last couple of months at Youth Marine Center in Tacoma – it takes a lot of coordination! The crew then was released for shore leave and took turns in our own water taxi on the skiffs– skippered by Ezekiel and Trevor. Once ashore, we got busy exploring the caves and many hiking trails.

Around 5:30pm, the real magic began. We managed to transport 24 crewmembers,2 BBQ grills, propane, food, and supplies for a sunset beach BBQ. As everyone arrived, hamburgers and hot dogs were flying around the campfire. You know what else was flying? SMOKE! It was worth enduring it. With s’mores complimenting the perfect dinner, the scouts were ready for a second adventure to the caves.

As the scouts gave Tom some quiet time to explore on his own, they convinced Miss Monique and Intern Ceciley to muster up their adventurous spirit and explore the caves. A half mile down the trail, the forest opens up to a sandy beach with a wall of caves to the side. The caves have openings small enough for a mouse and big enough for 5 Sea Scouts.  

We spent about 10 minutes trying to gather everyone in the cave for a group photo. Once we succeeded, the scouts raced each other back to the beach. Time to transport back to Curtis! The good news was we ate all the food we brought. The bad news? We had to bring newly generated garbage along – and the 10 pounds we each gained! We loaded up the skiffs with 4 passengers at a time and headed back to the ship. We started transporting at twilight, and the last run was in pure darkness. The bats would have scared us more had Tom not reminded us that they eat the mosquitoes…..

The Curtis crew’s work is not done when the sun goes down. We still had to load the kayaks and skiffs topside. As the deck crew put them away in the dark, we readied for lights out. No one objected – and soon we were fast asleep.

Day One: Adventure Begins!

We woke up in Tacoma to clouds and fog. That meant one thing: Tom Rogers was right; we need to do fog drills.

The crew met at Tacoma Sea Base at 9:00am. A lot of the youth were already checked in early and hard at work loading up supplies. In case you are wondering, it took three entire truck beds to transport the provisions – aka food and toilet paper.  First order of business was making sure everyone scheduled to go onboard had a signed and unexpired passport, their Sea Scout book and Curtis blue polo.

Once everyone was checked in, the caravan to Anacortes began!

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Cap Sante Marina, Anacortes, WA

Our 1:00 pm arrival was eventful – lots of cars to unload and people to corral. The Marina was packed with vessels unloading and more getting underway. The crew of long cruise week 1 was busy deep cleaning and unpacking. No one was disembarking until Skippers Vern & Debbie Moore gave the A-ok!

Supplies for 24 crew onboard SSS #110 means LOTS of fresh fruit!

Meanwhile, we were busy loading up gear and provisions to board. At the marina there are industrial wheeled carts at the ready to help you load and unload when walking the long dock. Man, oh man, they should make grocery carts this amazing! We saw 6-year olds hauling loaded carts down the gangway with ease.

Speaking of carts, it took us 22 carts to get everything form the cars to the Curtis. Take a guess as to how many were full of food? NINE! Over 40% of the carts were full of fresh vegetables, baking supplies, buns and other galley provisions. Feeding a crew of 24 for 8 days is no easy job…so check back tomorrow when we post about EATING ON THE BOAT: DO’S AND DON’TS featuring our galley crew and head chef Sue Searles.

Teamwork is critical - even before we are underway.

It took three hours from boarding to get everything put away. If you have never loaded on day one, there is something in EVERY nook and cranny. Food gets stored in every place possible! Bunks are loaded with sleeping gear AND personal effects. For this reason, only fabric bags and duffle bags are accepted. Hard case suitcases are not allowed. At 4:00, Skipper Tom Rogers had an all crew meeting on the bow. Skipper’s message included topics such as:

·       Not a love boat! Co-ed cruises with teenage crew need ground rules, and Tom set the stage.

·       Conduct ashore is always to be professional and courteous. As representatives of the Tacoma Sea Scout Base and SSS #110 Charles n. Curtis, all eyes are on the crew.

·       Budgeting! With 7 days ahead of us, it’s easy to go ashore and burn through all your spending money on the first day (or a picture of Frank Sinatra we heard about…). This is actually a really practical lesson – and one that resonated with the crew.

Skipper Tom giving orientation to the crew. Our March 2019 Quartermasters can be seen and are are serving as Officer of the Deck this cruise.

MIss Sue brought sweet treats. You just have to get caught being sweet to get one!

·       Want candy? Unsolicited teamwork and positive reinforcement are the way to Mama Sue’s treasure of sweets. She introduced her reward system, and anyone can participate. Just don’t leave those wrappers laying around – or you’ll spend an extra two hours fishing it out of the bilge pump!

Shore leave was fun – we were even treated to a live concert by JAM – Jeremy Abbot! His acoustic rock and reggae tunes filled the air as our crew without galley duty challenged each other to chess and checkers. Jeremy was great, and when he sang “All-Star”, everyone sang along.

Shore leave is always a blast! Tom is predicting the win.

Dinner was great – have you ever had Chicken Dorito Casserole? We did.

Two helpings worth. Surprised we had room for creamy orange jello with fresh mandarins. Yum, yum! We will all sleep well with full bellies. Join us in wishing Quartermaster and Officer of the Deck Daniel Minch a Happy Birthday – we sang and celebrated after dinner.

Until tomorrow, “sea” you later.

From the SSS #110 Crew at Cap Sante Marina

**For more of today’s pictures, visit our Gallery page as we upload daily.

What's a "Long Cruise"?

If you spend any time at Tacoma Sea Scout base in the late spring, there are two words you will hear the scouts and the adult volunteers say often:

LONG CRUISE.

The Tacoma Sea Scout program is a year-round high activity program that conducts real time maritime education and training on their three vessels: SSS #110 Charles N Curtis, SSS #190 Odyssey and SSS #198 Vérité. Since Washington weather is iffy at best in the fall, the programs do a lot of book work, service projects and maintenance when mother nature is too foul for cruising the Puget Sound. All of the training and drills culminate in long-term overnight cruises up to locations such as the San Juan Islands and Victoria, B.C.

This year, SSS #110 Charles N. Curtis embarks on a 16-day “long cruise”. There are 2 week-long trips aboard the vessel that allow the Scouts to get real sea time under them overnight for 7+ days. These teens barely clean their rooms - but at sea, they are responsible for maintaining daily checklists and participate in various duties including cooking for the entire crew of 18+, navigation, recording in Coast Guard inspected logs, cleaning the restroom facilities and even taking apart the “head” if it should malfunction…oh boy.

Check back daily as we share our real-time videos with the 2019 long cruise crew. Watch as our adult leaders mentor and train the next generation of maritime industry leaders. Visit Washington State’s islands accessible by boat only through our posts.

On land, these dedicated youth may not be able to drive a car, but on long cruise they are planning, navigating and piloting an historic 88-year old Coast Guard vessel. How’s that for fun?

Long Cruise Itinerary:

• Anacortes

• Sucia Island

• Bedwell

• Chemainus

• Ganges

• Montague

• Victoria, B.C.

• Friday Harbor

• La Conner

• Tacoma