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Daily Log: Friday, October 9th

0700 hours

Starting Position: Moored at Atlantic Salt on the Kill Van Kull, Staten Island, NY.
Latitude: 40˚ 38.7' N
Longitude: 074˚ 05.8' W

Day Six of the 2009 Masters Voyage of Discovery.

The final full day of our Voyage of Discovery begins with the Half Moon still moored at Atlantic Salt, where the students have spent the past day and a half collecting data for their projects.

0800 hours

This morning brings clear skies and a chill in the air, which we can only assume proved a welcoming climate for the exotic creature that seems to have perched on Abigail's head.

0900 hours

Speaking of notable headgear, Mr. Gans has completed the canvas bucket he's been crafting with the able assistance of Matt and Mr. Hourigan. Matt gives the new bucket a quick stress test, and reports that it passes with flying colors.

0915 hours

Although a few students will continue collecting data until our time of departure, for the most part the crew has shifted operations down to the comfort of the orlop deck.

Here they'll spend the day analyzing their data and preparing for tonight's presentations.

Meanwhile, one deck down, Taylor starts work on prepping lunch. It takes a lot of potatoes to keep this crew fed!

0930 hours

Back on the weather deck, it's time for the ceremonial first dunking of the new bucket. Days of work have all come down to this!

Captain Reynolds first doublechecks the knots tethering the bucket to the ship, just to be sure.

Mouse over to dunk the bucket!
Matt hurls the new, tethered canvas bucket into the Kill Van Kull.

Matt has the honor of giving the bucket its inaugural dunking in the Kill Van Kull.

It works! Matt celebrates by pouring a bucket of cold water over his head, ensuring that he now has the cleanest hair on the ship.

(In hindsight, perhaps we should have asked him for a 17th-century-style salinity test at this moment.)

For the rest of the students, work continues apace down below.

1015 hours

Preparing presentations doesn't consume our entire day; the crew has time to pursue other interests as well. At the moment, Izzy and Abigail are practicing knots in their quest to keep advancing through the Crew Rating ranks.

The senior crew have areas of interest they'd like to explore, too. Mr. Berg escorts Ms. Bruijn as she climbs aloft.

For Isis, however, it's all business as she continues to work her way through her team's extensive salinity data.

1200 hours

At the midday watch rotation, we find Dante on the Quarter deck, undergoing the captain's review to qualify for the rank of Able-Bodied Sailor.

Elsewhere on the ship, however, the crew has started to stir; our data layover will soon come to an end.

1245 hours

The tide has turned, and so it's time for us to leave the Kill Van Kull at last. We turn our eyes back east, toward the skyline of Manhattan.

After Mr. Berg and Mr. Van Grondelle prepare our dock lines on shore, Mr. Van Grondelle gingerly steps across the floating fender, leaving just Mr. Berg on shore to handle our lines.

Mr. Berg will free all but Line Three, which he has rigged as a tripline. As we pull away from the dock, this rig will allow us to pull the line off its cleat from the ship.

Mr. Berg casts off Line Four and hustles back on board.

1300 hours

With all hands on board, we swing around and head out toward New York Harbor.

1330 hours

Lunch is served! Today it's hot dogs, french fries, and tater tots -- the final fate of the potatoes last seen under Taylor's care.

1345 hours

After lunch it's back to work. Matt and Brandon have finished their draft graphs and are now starting to plot points on the large graphs their teams will use tonight for their celestial tracking and height of tide projects, respectively.

1415 hours

As we motor around the tip of Manhattan, the students once again delve into New Netherland history as they compare 17th- and 21st-century river charts under Mr. Hourigan's guidance.

One deck up, meanwhile, Grace is taking her first Crew Rating evaluation.

The ship has traveled up the East River as far as the Brooklyn Bridge to take in some scenery, and now turns around to take us back toward the Hudson River.

1430 hours

With a northwesterly wind now at our backs, we take what will likely be our final opportunity for a robust session of sail handling.

By now, our sailors are old hands at setting the courses and topsails...

...and with the sails set, the students handily tidy the deck by belaying and coiling the lines.

Down belowdecks, the students are in the final stages of preparing their presentations. While some students, such as Erin here, consult with the teachers and their senior advisors...

...while others work among themselves. Isis and Sofia go over their graphs by the main mast...

1530 hours

...while the statistical analysis and comparative temperatures teams work on the anchor rode.

Mouse over to strum along.
Mr. Van Grondelle strums his guitar on the weather deck.

1545 hours

As the afternoon winds on, Mr. Van Grondelle fetches out his guitar to serenade the hard-working crew.

1645 hours

An hour later, we're still passing upper Manhattan. With the exception of the crew members on duty at helm and lookout, the students all remain busy down below, putting the final touches on their presentations.

1800 hours

First Mate Hansen gently pushes the George Washington Bridge aside as we approach the voyage's final anchorage.

Now at the end of our traveling day, we dispatch the senior crew to furl the sails.

Mr. Van Grondelle and Mr. Berg lower the anchor to the water line...

Mouse over to let fall the anchor.
Mr. Collens yanks the fid free, letting fall the anchor.

1815 hours

...and at the captain's command, Mr. Collens pulls out the fid, the wooden wedge that connects the anchor to the anchor rode. With a splash the anchor dives into the water.

Meanwhile, Ms. Laufer is stationed at the bits down on the orlop deck. She makes off the line at 150 feet and the Half Moon is secure for the night. This is the last time we'll set anchor on this voyage -- and, quite possibly, the last time we'll do it this year.

Ending Position: Anchored off the Palisades.
Latitude: 40˚ 52.2' N
Longitude: 073˚ 56.6' W

1915 hours

As the sun sets and temperatures dip, the crew gathers for warmth on the orlop deck for the student presentations.

Days of work all comes down to this moment!

Each of the six research teams takes their turn to step up to the main mast and present their findings.

After speaking for about ten minutes, the team opens up for a Q&A session, taking questions from both the senior crew and their peers.

Click here for a more detailed look at the students' presentations.

2045 hours

After the presentations, a sense of relaxation settles over the crew. A few crew members still have their eyes on work, however. With Ben waiting in the wings, Abigail meets with Captain Reynolds on the Quarter deck. By flashlight, she passes her final crew evaluation, achieving the rank of Foremast Captain/Schieman.

2100 hours

With just one hour left before lights out, Ms. Bruijn and Mr. Gans gather the students for a presentation of their own. They've spent the day preparing lyrics sheets for the entire crew to have a singalong of traditional Dutch shanties. They also take the opportunity to teach the students a bit more about the Netherlands.

With the crew singing down below and the lights of New York and the George Washington Bridge once again to our south, our last night on board the Half Moon comes to an end.

Anchor Watch begins at 2200 hours, and passes quietly.

Next Time: Homeward Bound!

Robert Juet's Journal

Yesterday, while anchored off modern-day Peekskill, a clash of cultures between the crew of the Halve Maen and the Lenape resulted in two deaths. On this day, October 2nd, 1609, the violence will sharply escalate as the crew continues to face the repercussions of past decisions. Starting out anchored in Haverstraw Bay, the crew weighs anchor at dawn and continues roughly 20 miles downriver, reaching the general area of modern Yonkers before the flood tide forces them to set anchor once again. While the ship rests at anchor, a large party of Lenape row out to the ship, but Juet and the crew recognize one of these natives. On September 9th, 1609, while the Halve Maen was anchored at Raritan Bay, the crew took two Lenape hostage following the death of one of their crewmen, John Coleman. These two captives remained onboard until the 15th, when they escaped in Newburgh Bay, shouting curses back at the ship once they'd safely reached the shore.

Now the crew sees that one of their former prisoners has returned.

#1

On October 2nd & 3rd, 1609:

The second, faire weather. At breake of day wee weighed, the wind being at North-west, and got downe seuen leagues; then the floud was come strong, so we anchored. Then came one of the Sauages that swamme away from vs at our going vp the Riuer with many others, thinking to betray vs. But wee perceiued their intent, and suffered none of them to enter our ship, Whereupon two Canoes full of men, with their Bowes and Arrowes shot at vs after our sterne: in recompence whereof we discharged sixe Muskets, and killed two or three of them. Then aboue an hundred of them came to a point of Land to shoot at vs. There I shot a Falcon at them, and killed two of them: whereupon the rest fled into the Woods. Yet they manned off another Canoe with nine or ten men, which came to meet vs. So I shot at it also a Falcon and shot it through, and killed one of them Then our men with their Muskets, killed three or foure more of them. So they went their way, within a while after, wee got downe two leagues beyond that place, and anchored in a Bay, cleere from all danger of them on the other side of the Riuer, where we saw a very good piece of ground: and hard by it there was a Cliffe, that looked of the colour of a white greene, as though it were either Copper, or Siluer Myne: and I thinke it to be one of them, by the Trees that grow vpon it. For they be all burned, and the other places are greene as grasse, it is on that side of the Riuer that is called Manna-hata. There we saw no people to trouble vs: and rode quietly all night; but had much wind and raine.

The third, was very stormie; the wind at East North-east. In the morning, in a gust of wind and raine our Anchor came home, and we droue on ground, but it was Ozie. Then as we were about to haue out an Anchor, the wind came to the North North-west, and droue vs off againe. Then we shot an Anchor, and let it fall in foure fathomes water, and weighed the other. Wee had much wind and raine, with thicke weather: so we roade still all night.

-- Robert Juet's Journal.

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