You down with OPB?

You down with OPB? Yeah you know me!

Fun on Other Peoples’ Boats:

In our last two months living as what some folks call “landlubbers,” we’ve been taking advantage of the opportunities life and work present us. One such occasion was the 2018 Maryland Fleet Week and Air Show last weekend, of which, my work vessel was participating. As the Captain (for all intents and purposes), I was granted the lovely privilege of invitations to the receptions on Other Peoples’ Boats… specifically, other military’s boats (but OMB just doesn’t have the same ring to it…). Naturally, a party is always better with your partner in crime, so I dragged Nate along. I can assure you, he was not kicking or screaming.

Thursday night we graciously climbed the gangway aboard America’s Tallship – the US Coast Guard Cutter EAGLE. This beauty, known commonly since 1946 as the Barque Eagle, was originally known as Horst Wessel before Nazi Germany gave her to America as a war reparation. We were quite impressed with the wine and beer selection, (given no Coast Guard vessels allow alcohol, this was not a difficult impression to make), and equally pleased with the food. I certainly do not recall the food being as tasty in the icy condition of my last sail aboard her in March 2014, and there certainly exists no memory of alcohol. My, oh my, did I come full circle in my almost five years as a NOAA Corps Officer. From climbing up the ice-laden rigging to the topgallant masts to drop sails and scrubbing the officers’ dishes in the scullery to being served libations by Officer Candidates and making small talk regarding the scrumptious bacon-wrapped scallops… what an upgrade!

Nevertheless, Nate also greatly enjoyed being aboard and took some neat photos, despite the torrential rain the grazing thunderstorm brought upon the evening. We ended that evening with a glass of wine on the water at Fells Point and with an old OCS shipmate of mine putting his glass of wine on my lap – classic encore!

Nate spent much of Friday morning enjoying the Annapolis Sailboat Show, drooling over OPBs and shopping for new safety equipment and comfort items for our trip (shout out to Sport-a-Seat for the extra discount!). Slightly unplanned, but as a result of his conversation with North Sails, we ended up purchasing a new mainsail for Lady Sun Dream!

Friday afternoon, we each donned another fancy outfit and gallivanted off to the USS Oak Hill to fool everyone into thinking we’re more important than we are (let’s be honest… we did it for the free booze and food, anyone see a theme here?). After an “everybody hold on!” style cab ride, the security guard at the Port Terminal chasing down said cab, screaming “HAYYYY” impressively loud, to the awkward bus ride with seemingly important people, to the not-so-secure security checkpoint, onto the super speed golf cart, we finally arrived at the ship just in time to enjoy the show of someone’s wife working her way down the 40-foot grated ramp to the reception in 3-inch stilettos, which proved to be as entertaining as it sounds, after which, we promptly found the nearest bar. Phew, made it! Side bar: Warm champagne was a poor choice; take our advice to your next cocktail party. The ship was older than dirt, but still impressive, as she carried at least one artillery tank that we could see and countless sailors, weapons, etc. We forgot to take photos on this OPB, but the gray background of the inside of the ship wouldn’t have been too impressive. We were lucky to have the wonderfully chatty Commanding Officer of the USS Milwaukee join us for much of the reception’s awkward mingle-hour, which was not only entertaining, but proved to be well worthwhile, as we not-so-stealthily boarded the bus to the following reception without invitation.

Not that a British Naval Ship ever turned down anyone dressed in uniform for a reception, but being the rule-follower I am, I walked aboard with shaky hands, albeit wearing an “I belong here” smile. Nate walked next to me, diplomatically and as confident as if he were on the VIP list. Once aboard Her Majesty’s Monmouth, we naturally found another cocktail to calm any last nerves and scare away the last bit of shyness either of us had… and the party began! Allow me to backtrack for a moment – on Thursday night, we met the CO of HMS Monmouth and he was slightly peeved to meet the person (me) “responsible” for surveying the Inner Harbor, as the results relocated his vessel from Fells Point to the Under Armor pier across the water – a location fairly void of bars and entertainment options. We quickly discovered his annoyance was quite short-lived, as the “stag-ship” crew discovered soon after that UA hosts yoga classes on the lawn along the pier. In classic British fashion, he was neither proper, nor politically correct, in his edited explanation of the crew’s “frustration with the distraction.” Much to his surprise, he was later informed that the Baltimore Raven’s cheerleaders would be doing a photo-shoot at UA the following day and wanted to come aboard his vessel. Let’s just say I probably could have asked for compensation for the survey of the harbor that moved him there at this point, but just reveled in the moment instead. Bringing us back to Friday night: Nate and I were determined to hear the outcomes of the cheerleaders’ visit. We snagged a chat with the CO and, to absolutely no one’s surprise, the visit was “quite nice” (please forgive my choosing of words as I’d rather not repeat all the comments, nor do I remember them verbatim). On to the reception: We both were oddly astonished that neither of us had ever considered that the British drive most mechanical equipment from the right side… even helicopters! After a few Bellinis and some chilled prosecco (“Ma’am, we don’t drink Champagne in England…”) We met some entertaining British folks, from both the ship and embassy, and then a brother-sister pair from the Canadian Navy which were the focus of much of our chatting. The USS Milwaukee CO was with us much of the time… apparently we’re more fun to be around than most in his crowd. (Forgive me, sir, if you’re reading this, I can’t remember if we gave you our website information!) Our evening aboard finished with a phenomenal performance from the Royal Marines Band and Color Guard. We were terribly impressed and delighted to be privy to the performance. We concluded our night on OPBs and left with smiles on our faces, even as we declined invitations to after-parties.

To think of the memories we made in just two short nights excites us greatly for our forthcoming adventures! Shout out to Will and Maddie for hosting another adventure on Saturday night. I vow to blog more regularly as our departure date nears, even if it has nothing to do with sailing. Share with your friends and family and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram: Tipseatraveler.

Cheers. – S&N