About a month ago Art Hofmann and I ventured down to Sausalito to take in what was going on in the big white tent near the Bay Model.  I had heard from a kayaking enthusiast about a large boat being built there.  As we entered the tent we were surprised at the scale of the project.  The ship being built is based on a brigantine design by Mathew Turner, the most prolific builder in history, with 228 vessels built by the end of his career in 1907.  The ship measures about 100 feet long with a beam of about 25 feet, and the transom had just been lifted into position and fastened down before we arrived.   They were now starting with the planking.  We chatted with the foreman on the project and he mentioned that the lead keel was cast in Seattle – all 86,000 pounds of it.  It was trucked down to Sausalito in two trucks.  All of the timbers used in the project were locally grown and harvested Douglas Fir from Mendocino County.  All of the work done on the ship is by volunteers and funded by the non-profit organization, The Educational Tall Ship for San Francisco Bay.  After the ship is completed it will provide both on the water and shore-based educational experiences for Bay Area students.  There are many great videos about the project at the website  http://educationaltallship.org/San-Francisco-Bay-Educationa-Tall-Ship-Mission.php

They were in need of cabinet makers when Art and I visited so if you would like to lend a hand use the website to contact them.