0700 hours

Current Position: Docked at Peckham Materials in Athens Channel.
Latitude: 42˚ 16.3'
Longitude: 073˚ 48.1'

Day Five of the second leg of our Fall 2008 Voyage of Discovery.

We wake in Athens Channel to be greeted by a positively chilly morning. Mist continues to rise from the chill well into morning.

As often happens during these September Voyages of Discovery, we've gone from sweltering heat to sweater weather in a matter of days. It makes packing an interesting exercise, at least!

0900 hours

Today is the data collection layover for this leg of the voyage. The Half Moon will remained moored here at Peckham Materials throughout the day, allowing the students time to focus on their research. And there's much research to be done! After breakfast, the main hatch on the weather deck becomes Titration Central. While Elora and Devin test their dissolved oxygen samples...

...Ryan and Tyler W. begin the long process of double-checking our refractometer's salinity readings.

The starboard channel will also be a hub of activity. While John tracks temperatures within the water column, Alexis steps onto the channel for her own project.

0915 hours

Throughout the day, Alexis and Derrick will use this lead line to sound the water's depth as part of their investigation into local tidal patterns.

While the students are busy with their river science projects, the senior crew members have plenty of work on their hands as well.

Mr. Prime and Mr. Schuijer have noticed that the main course needs some stitchwork. Having lowered the main yard to gain access to the sail, they will spend most of the day sitting on the neighboring barge performing repairs.

1015 hours

Between the student projects and the Deck Log, it seems that someone is always coming or going from the channel.

In addition to the channel work and the titrations being performed on the main hatch, the main mast also houses Cheyenne and Nicole's block-and-pulley rig. With all of these activities going on at once, the weatherdeck suddenly seems quite crowded!

For now, students looking to take a break from the crowd can slip up to the foredeck to grab some shade and catch up on their journals or reading.

Coincidentally, the Half Moon is not the only vessel performing environmental research in Athens Channel this morning.

This boat is operated by the Riverkeepers, a private organization dedicated to protecting the Hudson River from pollution. The boat's captain, John Lipscomb, is in the midst of an eight-day voyage to collect water samples from the entire navigable length of the river. He still has time for a visit, however.

Mouse over to test
Mr. Terry's prowess.

1030 hours

While Cheyenne and Nicole are away from their block-and-tackle rig, Mr. Terry steps in to play with it. He finds it surprisingly easy to lift the lead weight -- almost as if he were gaining some advantage from the machine!

As the Riverkeepers vessel pulls up to the ship, however, Mr. Terry is drawn to the rail alongside the students.

1115 hours

Captain Lipscomb invites our crew on board to learn about his sampling techniques -- and, of course, to talk shop with our own captain.

1130 hours

While the Riverkeepers boat is moored alonside us, our inflatable tender returns from its first expedition. Throughout the day, Mr. Morel, Mr. Beiter, and Dr. Jacobs will take students out into the wetlands lining Athens Channel to explore the region, collect wildlife specimens, and, yes, plain old have fun.

The Zodiac team steps right up onto the Riverkeepers boat and joins the tour.

Meanwhile, Grayson and Jamie's experiment is reaching a critical point. Their goal is to use celestial tracking to determine the exact moment of true noon, which could vary from standard time (Eastern Standard Time, in this case) by up to an hour. As we approach midday, they take readings with ever-greater frequency.

Since this morning, the ship's titration lab has moved up to the foredeck, simply to get out of the increasing flow of traffic.

Elora and Devin are coming along nicely with their dissolved oxygen testing while Nicole and Mr. Beiter observe.

1200 hours

The next shift has come in; while Elora and Devin head out to other responsibilities, Ryan and Tyler W. move in to continue their salinity research.

As the afternoon begins, Captain Lipscomb must return to his work. We cast off the Riverkeepers patrol boat's lines and he goes on his way.

Meanwhile, we still have much to do ourselves. First, we need to take out the trash. The students haul it past Mr. Schuijer and the captain as they work on a project on the orlop deck.

1230 hours

That project is preparing the ship to be refueled. With a fuel truck hooked up to us on shore, Mr. Terry monitors the open cargo hatch as the fuel line runs down into the ship.

Meanwhile, down on the orlop deck, Captain Reynolds and Mr. Schuijer tend to the fuel tank itself. As of this morning, we were down to about 30% capacity, but after pumping about 500 gallons of deisel, we have enough fuel to last us through the next few weeks of operations.

With the tank topped off, we close the hatch covers again.

1300 hours

Once again, Mr. Gorter treats us to his stacked sandwiches for lunch.

1415 hours

Work continues as the afternoon unfolds.

Speaking of folds, Mr. Prime and Mr. Schuijer are have now spent hours today sewing new heavy thread into a torn seam along the port side of the main course. This tear was caught early, but untended the popped stitches could have quickly deteriorated.

(Maintenance work never really ends on a sailing vessel.)

Meanwhile, some projects are coming to an end. Nicole and Cheyenne have wrapped up their mechanical advantage project. While Mr. Hansen breaks down the rig, he discusses the construction of pulleys with an interested Mr. Terry.

1430 hours

As for Cheyenne and Nicole, they and Ms. Smith have moved down to the cool shade of the orlop deck to review their data.

1530 hours

The weather deck bustles as one Zodiac expedition returns and the next group of students gear up to go exploring.

1600 hours

After the Zodiac has cleared out of the way, Alexis and Derrick return to their current speed readings.

Mouse over to test for dissolved oxygen.

1615 hours

The students have expressed interest in trying out all of the experiments, including those not involved in their projects. In fact, it's encouraged! While Devin takes a break, Elora teaches Cheyenne how to perform a titration.

Mr. Prime and Mr. Schuijer have wrapped up their project as well. With the sail's repairs completed, Mr. Schuijer climbs up onto the yard to furl the sail.

Mouse over to say "Giddyup!"

Although the students all think Mr. Schuijer looks like Indiana Jones in his hat, at the moment we're thinking, "cowboy."

Mouse over for a close-up.

1700 hours

The last of the Zodiac expeditions returns with a creature who has already gained an infamous reputation among the student crew as the "Girlchaser." This spider only chases after female students, or so the story goes. After some initial hands-on looks, the students place the spider in a petri dish and examine it under the microscope.

Click here to see an even closer view of the spider.

1715 hours

Mr. Prime and Mr. Schuijer have finished their repairs on the main course, so we raise the yard back into position just in case we get a chance to sail tomorrow.

As Ms. Smith assists from the rig with a guideline, Mr. Schuijer oversees the work from the weather deck.

Mouse over to heave the halyard!

We squeeze as many students as wil fit onto the halyard. Working in unison, one heave at a time, they haul the main yard back into position.

1800 hours

As the afternoon winds down, most of the students have already collected all of the data points they will need for their projects. This frees them up for other activities, including assisting their crewmates or even just updating their accomplishments on the Task Matrix.

1900 hours

Mr. Prime has broken out one of his beloved historical replicas and offered it to the students to examine. Jamie seems delighted to give it a try. This is a replica of a 17th century matchlock musket -- the same sort of weapon the crew of the original Half Moon would have used to defend themselves. Of course, without blackpowder, musket balls, or even a match (a slow-burning cord used to ignite the blackpowder charge), Jamie probably won't have much luck firing it should a battle suddenly break out.

1915 hours

Dinner is served! Tonight we're enjoying burritos, rice, and vegetable salad. Jamie seems to delighted with it... about as delighted as she is when wielding a musket, oddly enough.

1930 hours

We continue eating our dinner as night settles over Athens Channel. Autumn is definitely on its way -- these past few nights have felt as if they fell particularly quickly and early.

2015 hours

Once again, Derrick pulls his weight on galley duty after dinner. John helps out by hunting pesky flies with an electric bug zapper.

Mouse over for a pictorial depiction of
tomorrow's Q&A sessions.

2045 hours

After an ice cream dessert, the teachers gather the students on the orlop deck for a briefing on how to effectively organize their information and present their oral reports to the entire group.

2130 hours

Captain Reynolds concludes the evening with another reading from Robert Juet's Journal, continuing the tale through the original Half Moon's arrival near modern-day Albany and return to Europe.

After the reading, the students settle in their bunks and update their journals before slipping off to sleep. As a bonus, now that we've monitored our mooring lines for a full day, no anchor watch will be required tonight.

Next Time: Student Presentations!

On this date in 1609:

The seventeenth, faire Sun-shining weather, and very hot. In the morning as soone as the Sun was up, we set sayle, and ran up sixe leagues higher, and found shoalds in the middle of the channell, and small Ilands, but seven fathoms water on both sides. Toward night we borrowed so neere the shoare, that we grounded: se we layed out our small anchor, and heaved off againe. Then we borrowed on the banke in the channell, and came aground againe; while the floud ran we heaved off againe, and anchored all night.

-- Robert Juet's Journal.