Ashes to Ashes

Friday, August 15, 2008 – I went to see the Covey Island yard on Thursday. It was still smoking. Some photos are up on the web site, at right. What is more than a total loss? Even the propeller melted.

The current belief is that the fire started in the back of the shop, possibly by a retractable extension cord. The fire got so hot that the volunteer firemen were almost unable to pull out the fire trucks from the fire house 150 feet away.

The loss of the Schooner Maggie B is awful for me and all those who sailed on her and loved her. The loss of Covey Island Boatyard is even harder. Thirty years of plans, business records, and specialty tools. Those who worked there lost all their gear.

Bad news travels fast. People have written in from all over the world:

From Bill and Claudie in Bay of Islands, NZ:

“Condolences is not a proper expression.. as it relates to the loss of human life. We are all coming to grips with a unique loss which is the loss of beauty and fleeting dreams which we have known. .. dedicated disciplines and skills that culminated in this exceptional Maggie B. The Mona Lisa could be so lost, but its not quite the same free kinetic beauty that the sea embraces.”

From Curtis in Cadiz, Spain:

“She was a friend, a protector, a mother for all of those who sailed on her, a vicarious adventure and a symbol of hope for all who followed her travels through Capt. Blair´s log entries. To have such an inelegant end for such a singularly graceful craft is beyond my notions of right and wrong. That she was to be launched next Monday adds only acid to the ashes.”

From Warren in Rockland:

“A vessel like the Maggie B is built not only of many parts over many months
but of many miles, many shipmates, many hard-won experiences and many
tangible memories.”

From Mikalya in Nova Scotia:

“I am 14….and for 25 months, and that is a long time because I was just turning 12 back then, the beautiful Maggie B took me all around the world through our computer.”

From Robert in Atlanta, quoting David Whyte’s News of Death:

“For this loss I could not speak,
the tongue lay idle in a great darkness,
the heart was strangely open,
the moon had gone,
and it was then
when I said, “She is no longer here”,
that the night put its arm around me
and all the white stars turned bitter with grief.”

From Aaron at Wooden Boat in Maine:

“It’s been quiet around the office all day. The fire has dropped a pall on our world at Wooden Boat… She was one of the most remarkable boats I have ever sailed and I salute you for having the persistent foresight and hunger to orchestrate her creation and to have used her so well….In my brief experience, losing a boat isn’t like losing something as distinctly defined as a mitten or a mother, it’s more like losing your bearings on a map of dreams you had.”

From Bill in Maryland:

“Maggie B. was like a thoroughbred horse, who carried you so far and so well, and then was lost just after the finish.”

And, perhaps closest to my sentiments, from Theresa in New South Wales, Australia:

“F**k.”

Needless-to-say, it is way too soon to have any plans for the future, except to settle in and write the book.

All is not well.

Maggie B Destroyed By Fire at Covey Island Boatworks

I regret to report that the Schooner Maggie B was destroyed last night in a fire at Covey Island Boat Works. She is a total loss. She was to be re-launched next Monday.

Pictures coming in a few days.