The Captain's Logs are below.

Read the Crew's Views from John, KC, and Caroline as they reflect on their experiences in Asia.

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No one told us about the tradition of ships firing a cannon salute when passing Mount Vernon until we had already reached Alexandria. Seeing as we have four carriage guns, two swivel guns, and an eager gunner, it would have been a cinch to do, if we'd only known.

Ascending the Potomac past the home of George Washington was a delight. Pride II anchored 15 miles below the Woodrow Wilson Bridge at a place called Mattawoman Creek on the night before we were scheduled to arrive at Alexandria. It was a perfectly serene evening and everyone rested well. When we arose, however, a dense fog had filled the river basin from shore to shore. We weighed anchor at 0700 and felt our way over to the buoyed channel, not knowing how the fog might slow our progress. As luck would have it, the fog burned off and within the hour we were again treated to a view of the banks as we proceeded upriver. There is an emptiness and a solitude about the lower reaches of the Potomac that is most unexpected. Because the territory downstream from Washington, D.C. appears so rural, one would never guess that one was approaching a nation's capital, much less that of the United States of America.

As Pride II drew closer to Alexandria, we had to slow her progress to a crawl. The bridge was scheduled to open for us at 1130, but this wasn't just any bridge. An anomaly of the interstate highway system, the Woodrow Wilson Bridge is on Interstate 95 at a point where it runs concurrent with 495, the infamous Washington Beltway. Suffice it to say that it is a heavily traveled section of road. The bridge opened on schedule, and we passed through the gap carrying the four lowers and the foretopsail. Can anyone doubt that this sight thrilled the hearts of the occupants of the hundreds of cars and trucks that were backed up on I-95 in the blazing hot sun?. It certainly thrilled us. I look at it this way: the world is moving fast enough as it is. To be forced to slow down for the most beautiful topsail schooner in the world probably doesn't do any harm, and it may do some good. And shutting down I-95 for 10 minutes a day does wonders for the self-esteem.

Though the river is narrow and shoals abruptly just past the buoys, a light easterly breeze sprang up that filled the sails and allowed us to ghost up and down the length of the waterfront on a beam reach. At intervals the gunner let fly with a few cannons and we eventually brought in sail and went to our berth.

The Mayor of Alexandria greeted the ship and the crew at the dock, along with several citizens who are working on Alexandria's year-long 250^th Anniversary celebrations. Pride II is the first of several vessels that are scheduled to visit in connection with these celebrations. Likewise, Alexandria is Pride II's first port-of-call in the 1999 season. I am sure that there are all sorts of ways to end up "inside" the Washington Beltway, but arriving by Baltimore Clipper surely must rate among the more unusual.

Our stay in Alexandria was extremely pleasant. The ship received on the order of 2,400 visitors during two Open Houses, and there was a constant stream of polite and interested visitors on the pier. One evening the crew was welcomed at the Old Dominion Boat Club, which led to a gentleman providing the favor of transportation to a Laundromat the next day. A lovely waterfront park follows the river where Pride II was berthed and her presence completed the picture. After work, the crew tossed a Frisbee in the park and otherwise enjoyed investigating the many pleasures of Old Town Alexandria. This included plundering the local thrift stores for articles of clothing, reading the paper with a good cup of coffee, seeking out vintage second-hand CDs, and, of course, the eternal search for the perfect pint of Guinness. Some believe it may have been found at Ireland's Own, but this is far from settled. Old Town has great architecture and history, and generally has a great feel to it.

During the days in Alexandria, Pride II's usual activities of hosting school groups and reception went full steam ahead. The season has begun and the crew is quickly becoming expert in the myriad of skills, both nautical and otherwise, that are entailed in her mission. On more than one evening, we got a taste of the summer thunderstorms that haunt the Chesapeake region. During the course of Sunday, the crew dutifully filed to the public phones to call their mothers.

For years, Pride of Baltimore II has participated in a voluntary weather reporting program organized by the National Weather Service. Vince Zegowitz, who leads the program for NOAA, came down to the ship while at Alexandria to train and educate the crew in how the program works. He explained that, much of the time, a ship at sea is the only source of data on which forecasts are based for huge sections of the ocean. Pride II's contribution here on the Chesapeake is probably not very significant, because many sources of weather data are available. However, last year we transited the Pacific Ocean twice during an El Niño event. As a sailing vessel, we were often following routes that merchant ships do not travel, thereby providing data that would otherwise have been very hard to come by. It's a long term contribution that eventually helps all mariners, including ourselves.

We are heading up the Bay now, on our way back to Baltimore. We left Alexandria on Monday morning; they were good enough to open the bridge to let us out. The thoughts of aggravated motorists again filled the cosmos as we pointed our bow downriver. We remained All Hands through the day and anchored last night. By not breaking into watches and sailing through the night, we were able to work on the ship all day. A myriad of tasks were accomplished aboard during the day: tarring the rig, tuning the rig, oiling the woodwork, painting, and so on. It seemed like we got a great deal done but I know that we have only scratched the surface. At Mount Vernon, we dipped our ensign and did our best to wake the dead with our cannon salute. I have not yet received word as to whether anyone has seen our nation's Father out wandering about.

Watch Below,
Captain Dan Parrott