Westport Week 6 and Seattle (Again)

Our winter work term is almost over! Ioana, Lina, and Maggie worked the sixth week at Westport in plumbing, mechanical, and fairing, respectively.

Dauntless, the 112-foot model that launched the week before, was docked at Westport's outfitting pier while crews continued to add finishing touches. Ioana cleaned and prepped the air handlers and the hot tub, before moving on to multiple projects on the 40-meter model. Lina took a break from cutting insulation on the next 112-foot boat to help fix the exhaust pipe and clean the engine room of Dauntless. Afterwards, she worked on installing a fire-extinguishing pipe in the 38-meter model. Maggie worked on sanding storage units and cabinets for the 38-meter boat.

On Friday, we got a tour of Dauntless in its final stages. Before we boarded, we walked to the end of the dock to see the lounging sea lions up close.

Even though most of the interior was covered by protective tape, the completed boat was still impressive to see. We proudly pointed out to each other all the different parts we worked on.

Dauntless left the yard on Sunday towards Port Angeles. Afterwards, she will go on to Canada; she will be placed on a ship and transported to Florida, where her owners await.

Saturday morning we left for Seattle for a Webb alumni/student dinner. Before that, however, we decided to take a trip to Woodland Park Zoo and look at the lions, and tigers, and bears (oh my).

After catching up with the animals, we had a pie break.

Bellies now properly pie-fueled, we drove to downtown Seattle and got dolled up for the dinner. We still had some time to kill, so we stopped at a tea house and received a bunch of free samples. Afterwards, we walked around and admired the waterfront sunset view.

We then went to the dinner, where we met many former Webbies, with graduation years ranging from 1971 to 2015, and caught up with all our schoolmates who are working in Washington. We had a great time talking to everyone and playing (say it with me) Who's Got the Carrot?- contact Will Wiley '19, Andrew Pidduck '19, or Andrew Ko '16 for more information.

Thank you very much to Matt and Cathy Tedesco for hosting the event!

And for serving such amazing cupcakes!

The next day we took advantage of Westport's improving weather and spent the day in the neighborhood. We first went to Washington's tallest lighthouse and climbed up for a bird's-eye view of Westport.

We climbed the 135 steps to the top, and didn't even run out of breath! 

 The original, hand-crafted lens, which isn't used anymore because it relies on mercury.

Jump shots part 2

We moved on to the Westport Maritime Museum, which housed exhibits on the US Coast Guard, Westport fishing, and the Destruction Island lighthouse lens.

The museum was formerly home to the Coast Guard.

By then, we were hungry, so we went to Aloha Alabama BBQ down the road. The food, decor, and hot sauce shelf made our lunch more than satisfying.

 Maggie had pulled pork and brisket; Lina had cod and ribs; Ioana had brisket and cod 

Thanks to the mechanical crew for our Westport shirts!

We went to Granny Hazel's Candy Shop to say hi to the owners, who are currently our neighbors. They were kind enough to give us a bag of fudge for free! We ended up buying some souvenirs and cocktail-flavored jellybeans while we were there.

 Maggie has never been so happy

After our shopping haul, we drove to Grayland to watch the sunset on Washaway Beach, where the circulating current has been eroding the coast for years. We were told about the end-of-the-world beach by many Westport coworkers, and wanted to see the remnants of trees and houses on the sand for ourselves. It was a hauntingly beautiful landscape, and though it started to get windy and cold, we really enjoyed it.

 Jump shots part 3

With that, our sixth week at Westport had come to an end. Next week, we switch crews for the last time: Ioana will join the finish carpentry crew, Maggie will go to plumbing, and Lina will move on to fairing. We can't wait to see what our last few weeks will bring!

Stay tuned for more adventures in Washington!