Joining the Atlantic Huron

The last few days have been a whirlwind. I shared with you a video of me getting on the ship by the punt boat which was an experience in itself. click the link if you haven't seen it. You don't need a YouTube account. Just click on the link. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/F-ZldfEfA2w  Joining the ship is always a little nerve wracking, but joining by a punt boat adds that extra element of adventure. I used to use the punt boat to go ashore all the time when I was on the Louis R Desmarais years ago. We used to load cement in Picton, Ontario and take it to unload in the Rouge River in Detroit. There was no dock, so the ship just sat close to shore and the deckhands would use the punt boat to get ashore to tie up the ship and once we were secured we could also use the punt boat to go ashore. I don't remember being afraid back then and I always had numerous shopping bags with me. The punt would be attached to a line and the crew member manning the punt boat would pull us across using the attached line. Boarding the Atlantic Huron was a little more involved. There were quite a few rocks to clamber over first. I was being helped by a nice crew member trying to follow in his footsteps but chose a rock just off to the side of the one he had taken...big mistake as the rock I stepped on swayed back and forth, and I sent out a scream. The crew member then had to make sure each rock was solid before I would step on it.

I took my time clambering over the rocks to the little punt boat

The crew were very nice helping me with my luggage

Stepping onto the little punt boat from the rock was not difficult and I sat down immediately double checking that all my bags were there and looked secure enough to make the little trip around the stern of the ship to  the gangway on the opposite side.

I was happy to be seated in the punt boat

Making our way around the stern to the opposite side and the gangway

The crew member expertly held the little boat against the gangway and another crew member came down to help me get onto the first step of the gangway. Once I am on the gangway I'm fine, it was just making that first step.

This is probably not the easiest way to get onboard

I was happy to see all my luggage made it on board

The plan was to bring my heavy luggage onboard by tying it to a heaving line and pulling it up over the side. I couldn't watch, I'm always afraid that it is going to fall into the water, but like they have many times before, they tied a knot that I have still not mastered and with the strength of two men, pulled the big red suitcase followed by the smaller pieces. One of the small bags was a purchase made just before arriving to the ship. I messaged the Captain with my ETA. (I have sailed with him before and look forward to making some of his favorites.) I asked if he needed anything because I was stopping at Walmart to pick up some fresh dill, mint, cilantro and parsley. He said if possible pick up some Halloween candy for the crew. It was funny because when Lorraine (my sister, best friend and publisher and I went into the Walmart store we looked for the Halloween candy and couldn't find it in the usual places. We found a store clerk who had a shopping cart half filled with mini halloween candy bars so we asked where is the rest of the Halloween candy, He replied "This is it" We took what he had and went on our way.

The Halloween candy Lorraine and I picked up on our way to the ship

We set the GPS for the address that the company sent to me. It was easy to go and because it is not a regular dock there was no guard gate or need to show identification. Lorraine maneuvered the pretty red car around the big potholes until we arrived at the stern of the ship. The unloading of the stone had already commenced so we made sure not to drive under the boom which dropped the occasional splat of wet stone dust. Both Lorraine and I were so grateful that it was still daylight and that it was not raining. I gave a final wave to Lorraine as the little punt boat I was on made its way around the stern and disappeared behind the massive ship.

Ship yards always have lots of pot holes

The ship was already unloading when we got there

Lorraine and I had such a great two month vacation. Now time to go back to work

A final wave to Lorraine

I made my way to my room remembering where it was located from my previous time here. I went to the galley and walked through the fridge and freezer. Everything looked great. The cook I am relieving had made my bed for me so I went to bed early to catch a few hours of sleep before the groceries came. After we completed unloading we were going to the fuel dock and we would receive the groceries at the same time. I asked the watchman to call me when the groceries arrived. I met the 2nd cook and he is very nice. The groceries came in and I recognized the boxes of some of my favorites and noticed that the regular cook ordered all my favorites as she promised she would. The fridge, freezer and dry store are full making my job easy. I was up for the groceries from 01H15 until 02H30 and then went back to bed encouraging myself to sleep quickly. The crew that recognized me from my last time here and the crew who were new to me all asked if I would be making homemade bread. I laughed when one crew member recounted a story. He was trying to explain to one of the crew that I was coming and the other crew member couldn’t place me until the first crew member reminded him that I make bread and he said "oh yes, the bread lady" The first few days are always a little harder because I have to start from scratch for everything. I made a cream of vegetable soup which will be in the next book. I really like it and it is really fast. For lunch I made my dad's hamburgers/cheeseburgers on homemade buns. The buns did not come out as nice as usual. The dough hook for the mixer is missing and I now know that you cannot make yeast dough with a flat beater. There is a new one already ordered. I decided to make the bread dough by hand this morning....stay tuned to see how it turned out. For supper I made roast pork with gravy, or chimichurri or apple sauce, mashed potatoes, and peas. The second choice was rainbow trout with chimichurri and steamed rice. I was impressed with how many crew opted for the chimichurri over the gravy. It was a full day and I was happy to finish my day. The second cook is very nice and I told him I would do my own pots so I finished a little later, but I like to take my time and take photos, so I didn’t want him to have to wait for me to give him my pots.

First lunch, cheeseburgers on homemade bread and onion rings

Roast pork with gravy and mashed potatoes

rainbow trout with chimichurri

My room is nice, the cook left all the drawers and cupboard empty so I unpacked all my bags. I am hopeful that I can stay here for the month of December too. It would be wonderful to finish my year here. I cannot share our trips with you but I can say that I am extremely excited. we are currently at anchor outside the Soo waiting to go in and load. I heard it will be a slow load. I will talk to you tomorrow now that I have settled into my routine and have some extra time again. This is a really great job that will allow me free time to share the highlights of my day. www.shiptoshorechef.com

The books make great Christmas gifts. Order soon so we can mail them to you in time for the holidays.