not so tiny temporary home tuesday ~ a visitor in our midst

every year we watch the harbour as boats and ships come and go (what is the difference between a boat and a ship, mj? good question!) and one of the more striking ones, visually, is the harvey gamage.

photo credit: matty kniskern

i got an email from a man whose daughter is on this voyage of the harvey gamage and he told me a little bit about her story. wave hi to these kids when you see them around; each of them has a story. i think, though the gamage is big, hazel's quarters are. most likely, tiny, which slides this into tiny home tuesday just fine.

from hazel's dad, jamie. go dad!

On Sunday morning the Harvey Gamage anchored in Culebra harbor.  The Harvey Gamage (or Gamgage to her crew) is a 130' double masted wooden schooner owned and operated by the Ocean Classroom Foundation in Damariscotta, Maine USA. 

On September 17th the Gamage pulled up anchor in Portland, Maine USA with 20 students from Proctor Academy in Andover, NH, USA and 11 Ocean Classroom crew members.  One of those students is Hazel Brewster from Morrisville, Vermont.   

Before embarking on the Harvey Gamage Hazel had no prior sailing or ocean experience. For two and half months Hazel has live aboard the Harvey Gamage learning to sail and about life at sea, all the while carrying a full course load. 

The journey aboard the Gamage joins a list of other adventurious experiences Hazel's had in her 16 years. Past summers have been spent paddling the lakes and streams of the Adirondacks of New York and the wilds of Ontario and Quebec, Canada. When not in a canoe Hazel can be found zipping through the Vermont forests on her mountain bike or grinding her way up the New England gaps and notches on her road bike.   As the colder weather moves in you'll find her tearing up the ice with the other members of her ice hockey team.   

Hazel has always loved a challenge.  And without a doubt this time aboard the Gamage fits the bill.  She has endured mental and physical challenges along the way, facing each one with a smile.  Each day waking up knowing there was something new to learn a new skill to hone.   With the challenges come great reward, whether it was sitting on the headrig watching dolphins surf the bow wave, seeing bioluminescence at night for the first time, or the view from aloft after climbing the mast.  

Hazel's aunt lives on St. John and has had an affinity for island life in her blood dating back to her first 4 years growing up on the beaches of Hawaii.  Time will tell if the two share the love of the ocean and islands. Hazel returns to Vermont on Saturday.  A bittersweet return to reality.  The adjustment from life at sea will take awhile and hopefully will never be complete.  Culebra seems a fitting place to begin fond memories or rather start fond memories of a new beginining.

Find out more about Hazel and the journey of the Harvey Gamage here: http://harveygamage.blogspot.com/

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best of luck on your return trip, hazel, along with the rest of your life!

have a thriving training tuesday. do something timeless.