A Flood of Old Heart-Warming Memories...

This is a 1965 Alden Countess 44, named Zayante.   This is my old boat!   We bought her in Florida (in 1990), rebuilt her, sailed Florida, the Bahamas & Keys, shipped her to the SF Bay Area, sailed her there, and eventually donated her to UC Santa Cruz's Sailing Team (in 2002).

We bought this sailboat with the idea of casting off the lines and sailing the world.   Then kids happened, so we raised them domestically on this sailboat, but we did not sail the world...

She is sitting proud here in Port Townsend's Boat Haven Marina.   So cool!   It brought back a flood of old great memories.   Her current owner, Mark DeJarnatt, looks to be loving her (doing lots of work and spending lots of money) to take good care of her.  He has owned and worked on Zayante for over 11 years now.   She is still a beautiful boat to my eye.

We renamed her from "Four Winds" to "Zayante" when we bought her.   Mark liked the name Zayante, so he renamed her that.   Zayante is an old Ohlone Indian place name in the Santa Cruz mountains of California.  This place was known as a gambling/casino.  Zayante meant "The price of admission", probably a mash on "The Ante" in a poker game.  There is still a small mountain town there by the same name.

We loved Zayante, she was a great boat and took us on some great adventures.

OK, back to the present day...

We went to the local Safeway, got shot (Flu & Covid vaccinations), shopped for some fresh produce, and dropped all of that back off on Blue Redd.

Then we hiked the 1.2 miles to downtown Port Townsend.   On the way, we passed this impressive driftwood structure on the beach.

Looked like a 2-room condo to me...
Our dear friends Paul & Jenell had recommended La Cocina in the Belmont Hotel as a great Mex place.

  
And they were right!   What lovely views from their outdoor balcony.

Shrimp Tacos for me, Chicken Tinga Enchiladas for Karen.  Yum!
We are not in the Caribbean.   But look at the color of the water.   Wow.

Nor the Bahamas...

Sunset from Boat Haven Marina in Port Townsend.   This is a great boatyard and location.   Right, Mark???   My bestie, Mark, rebuilt his boat over one season here a number of years ago.   I will report that it is mighty cold and windy in the winter - darn near froze my tookas off helping him!

The boatyard's expertise is in older boats, particularly sailboats and wooden boats.   This marina is chock full of absolutely stunning museum quality old boats.

Karen made her best ramen/pho yet.  We paired that with the 2023 Long Cellars Reserve Cab Sauv.   Excellent!
Tomorrow, we head out and go up to Mackaye Harbor on Lopez Island for a night out on anchor.   Then on Friday we go to Friday Harbor to rendezvous with fellow Selene friends, Mark and Roseanne, on their boat, Koinonia.

And Good Night from Port Townsend...

Comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 17, 2026 at 1:09 AM

    Geez, dude (and dudette!) … i’m a big fan of vaccines, but seriously!? Covid and Flu shots when you have things to do the next couple of days!?! Those flay me like a boning knife on a fresh flounder!! Hope you’re unaffected! -CM

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. PeterSeptember 17, 2026 at 1:12 PM

      Yup, and that Moderna Covid vaccine is kicking my butt big time. I’d forgotten that is usually go for Pfizer, which doesn’t really bother me at all. Hopefully, tomorrow, I’ll be back to 100%.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousSeptember 17, 2026 at 1:15 AM

    PS: Super cool running into your old ship! 🤩 What a treat! I’m so glad the new owner is taking good care of it.

    I remember my brother stumbling across the beloved Firebird he drove in high school in a grocery store parking lot, and the whole passenger side was smashed in, and beginning to rust. He was absolutely heartbroken did the new owner didn’t care. 😭

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. PeterSeptember 17, 2026 at 1:13 PM

      Yeah, it was kind of a magic moment to look over there and see my old boat. Really cool.

      Delete

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