In Camden, a sure sign of winter
Schooners Mary Day, Lewis R. French and Angelique all wrapped up for a long winter's nap.
The Schooners Mistress, Grace Bailey and Mercantile
Ray Williamson (right) directs the placement of a stringer.
Skeletons of frame await shrink-wrap.
All three green boats are readied for plastic
A deckhand from the Mary Day works aloft before the boat is shrink-wrapped.
Schooners Mary Day, Lewis R. French and Angelique all wrapped up for a long winter's nap.
The Schooners Mistress, Grace Bailey and Mercantile
Ray Williamson (right) directs the placement of a stringer.
Skeletons of frame await shrink-wrap.
All three green boats are readied for plastic
A deckhand from the Mary Day works aloft before the boat is shrink-wrapped.
CAMDEN — It’s a sure sign that winter is just around the corner. Boats that spend the winter in Camden Harbor are covered and shrink-wrapped in white plastic, readied for the long winter. The wrap allows hands to work during bad weather. Ray Williamson, of Maine Windjammer Cruises, operates the Grace Bailey, Mercantile and Mistress. He took the time to explain what’s involved with wrapping a schooner.
“We start with 20 foot sections of PVC pipe in the middle and shorter six foot sections on each side,” he said. “The shorter sections get lashed onto the sides of the boat and we use couplings to make the sections of pipe all fit together. The couplings are taped to hold them in place. Then come the stringers that run the length of the vessel. They get lashed to the booms to keep it all rigid.
“Strapping then gets put around the bottom of the vessel where the PVC stops and gets lashed into place. We use one piece of plastic for each boat. It measures 40 by 100 feet. We roll it out across the top the full length of the boat and it pretty much hangs down to the water. We take another piece of strapping and roll the plastic up to where the other piece of strapping is lashed to the PVC and it gets sheet rock screwed together.
“There’s a lot of buttoning up and we have to install doors for access. It’s a loose fit at this point, but with the shrink wrap gun you can make it as tight as you want. If there’s no wind it’s a simple process. If there’s a lot of wind, you can imagine what it’s like trying to hold a 40 by 100 foot sheet of plastic. Everyone is trying to hold it down while only a couple of people who are doing anything to button it down.
“Normally we go around the perimeter and shrink whatever we can up to the rails, but you have to cut and patch around the rigging, so it can take some time. Once the cover is on and secure we’re good to go, unless we have a really bad storm. We can come inside and use the shrink wrap gun to shrink it all down from the inside. It can take a few hours to shrink down the whole boat.”
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