It all started when 13 people sailed into Sucia Island 17 years ago for a Latitudes & Attitudes Cruiser’s Party. From there it moved every year, Cornet Bay, Oak Harbor, Poulsbo, Anacortes are just a few of the ports that have hosted the Latitudes & Attitudes/Cruising Outpost Cruiser’s Weekend parties. Somewhere along the line it turned into a pirate fest, and the pirate gathering became status quo.
This year was the second time the town of Port Townsend, Washington was to host this event. About 60 boats and 500-600 people sailed, drove and/or flew in for this, the 16th annual gathering of the Brethren of the Sound.
The Brethren of the Sound was formed about 15 years ago to help organize this great annual event.
As it is every year, this weekend starts on Friday when folks sail in from all over the Puget Sound area to join in the fun and games. The gatherings are always child-friendly and this year was no exception.
Early on Saturday there was a pinata loaded with candies for the kids, and for the more adventuresome there was the blind-folded dinghy race. This is always a favorite with the cruisers, as the person rowing is blind-folded, and their navigator has to shout directions to them. Of course the shouts from the docks can be distracting!
Cruising Outpost set up a small area in the Marina room for folks to gather, and as it turns out we have finally found the secret to keeping boaters happy…free beer! We had three full kegs on tap at all times, from the local craft brewery, Dirty Bucket Brewing Company.
Dave Calhoun handled the entertainment again this year Friday afternoon and during the day Saturday with his very popular ’Trop-Rock.” He has been playing at this event for years and is a member of the Brethren of the Sound as well as an active cruiser.
Saturday night it all came together at the American Legion Hall a block from the Marina. It was a perfect location for the party, and on stage we had the Dana Osborn Band once again, keeping people on their feet dancing the whole night with their great rock & roll sounds. The happy pirates packed the floor.
There was a contest to pick the best dressed pirates, with the ladies contest being the hardest to judge. In the end Machelle Trombley won the ladies competition with a costume she made herself from scratch.
The mens competition was also hard-fought. There were so many great costumes but in the end the “Aaayyee’s” had it, and a winner was picked!
Then it was time for the raffle. The proceeds from the raffle was for the Educational Tallship Foundation. Prizes had been donated by sponsors from the marine industry including a Fortress anchor and our grand-prize, which was from the folks at Ultra-Marine/Quickline, who donated a Quickline Flat rope and reel stern anchoring system.
The winner of the Quickline reel was Cathy Shelton, who was part of the Cojo-Ho-Ho, which is a part of this event every year, for people who are heading south to join the Baja Ha-Ha!
