Message from the President

It's a busy time of year on Gig Harbor's working waterfront. The local commercial fishing fleet is fishing for Chum salmon a day or two a week just outside the harbor in West Pass, and doing pretty well. I live on the water, and I find it somehow comforting when I hear the un-muffled diesel engine of a seine skiff roar to life at 4:30 or 5:00 the morning of a fishing opening, or in the evening when our living room walls light up from a purse seiner's sodium lights as it cruises by after unloading a day's catch. Calls to mind childhood memories of looking at the fishing fleet from the boatyard house, and wondering what went on aboard the local purse seiners once they left for the fishing grounds, and later being a college age crew member aboard the Lovrovich family seiner and finding out. Hundreds and hundreds of Gig Harborites have crewed aboard local fishing boats or spent time at local boatyards and I suspect that, like me, the smallest detail of a fishing tradition or a boatyard experience conjures up vivid memories. I'm thankful that the community of Gig Harbor has taken steps to retain an active and useful working waterfront, it bodes well for the cultural health of this maritime community to keep our existing occupational traditions home.

GHB at the Eddon Boatyard is gathering working waterfront momentum and becoming busier this fall too. Mike and Pat Ryan and David Wheeler have been hard at work restoring Thunderbird #11. Mark Tilden had a full classroom and boat-full of navigation class students for GHB's first hands-on in-the-wheelhouse navigation class. Herb McQuarrie has the boatyard tool room as neat and organized as I've ever seen. Bill Issacs is back and applying his fine craftsmanship to a variety of shop upgrade projects. Tom Regan and company are getting close to completing the Lake George Rowing Boat - it's beautiful. The Thunderbird Sailing trips have been an unqualified success thanks to skippers Jaime Storkman, Tom Mitchell, Bob Huey, Ed Josberger, Ron Moblo and their crews. The folks that have sailed aboard Pirouette rave about the experience. GHB is initiating a maritime movie night in the joiner shop complete with a projectionist and popcorn, and we're preparing to launch a new family boatbuilding course, taught by local boatbuilder Bruce Bronson. Oh, and don't forget to come to the GHB holiday party on December 13th!

Starting Thursday, November 15, gather around the woodstove for the first in a series of Movies at the BoatShop. Doors open at 6:30, movie begins at 7:00. Admission $10 which supports the Gig Harbor BoatShop Tickets available at the door.  

We'll be showing "Charlotte", a documentary about tradition, craftsmanship, community and love of the Sea.

Shop and Dine from Noon - 9! Girls Night Out Gig Harbor Waterfront. We are participating in the Gig Harbor Historic Waterfront Association's Girls Night Out event this year. We will be open from noon until 7:00 PM upstairs in the store. There will be a 15% discount off everything in the store. We will have a special sale area in the loft room of items recently donated to our organization. The proceeds from the sale will support the operation of GHB.

At 7:00 we will be showing the movie "Charlotte" (see article in this same newsletter.)

On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we'll be setting up a Christmas tree in the store upstairs, and we'd like to feature ornaments made by our volunteers and members. We would also like to sell ornaments in the store.

If you would like to participate, there are a couple of ways you can do so.

First you can craft an ornament to hang on the tree that becomes the property of GHB, and is reused year after year. Please label the ornament with your name and the year. Ornaments shouldn't be too heavy and no larger than about 4"-5"

Second, we would appreciate any donations or consignments of handmade ornaments to sell in the store. Ornaments must have a nautical or maritime theme. Proceeds from the sale will benefit the Gig Harbor BoatShop.

Please drop off any contributions before Saturday, November 26.  Let us know if you are donating the ornaments or consigning them with 60% going to you and 40% to the BoatShop. Unsold ornaments will be returned to you after January 1.

There will be an annual meeting of the Gig Harbor BoatShop on December 4, 2012 at 4:30 to 5:30 PM in Program Room 1 at the BoatShop. All volunteers, members and board members are invited to attend.

Washington Sea Grant and the Gig Harbor Boat Shop are co-sponsoring a Diesel Engine Troubleshooting Workshop.

 This workshop will concentrate on high impact troubleshooting covering filters, cooling systems, fuel pumps, lubrication and more. The instructor is Larry Blais, an accredited Marine Surveyor specializing in boat systems, specifically engines.

The workshop will be held in Program Room 1 at the BoatShop

When:  Wednesday & Thursday

              December 5 & 6, 2012

              6 pm to 9pm

Fee:       $60

For more information and to register contact Sarah Fisken  Washington Sea Grant 206-543-1225

Washington Sea Grant is a federally funded program administered through the University of Washington focusing on research, education and outreach for the marine environment.