Cruise of Newport harbor, aboard the Discovery

Welcome to Eric's Adventures and Expeditions, where the emphasis is on action and adventure! While vacationing in Newport, OR in October, 2004, I had the opportunity to sail on a harbor/ocean cruise aboard the DISCOVERY, a 65-foot excursion boat, operated by Marine Discovery Tours, the official cruise company of the Oregon Coast Aquarium.

Photo: Boarding the Discovery as it's moored in the placid waters of the Newport, Oregon harbor on October 13, 2004. The historic Yaquina Bay bridge is in the background. Highway 101 crosses the bay over this famous, art-deco bridge.

The DISCOVERY was scheduled to sail at 0900, so of course I was at the pier early. By being early, I had a chance to meet the crew, Dave, the captain, Eric, who doubled as a naturalist and deckhand, and Kevin, a marine biologist. Much to my chagrin, as I was preparing to board the boat, a school bus full of shrieking, giggling middle-school girls pulled in the parking lot and proceeded to board the boat. Did I pick the wrong day to go on a cruise?

After introductions, the crew requested that all of us meet in the salon, where safety issues were discussed and the morning's itinerary was discussed. It was stressed that life jackets were mandatory for the students, while they were optional for adults. I chose not to wear a life jacket, as DISCOVERY is fitted with ample spares. Aboard, there were 3 crew members, 3 chaperones, 2 teachers, 7 adult passengers, and 21 middle-school girls, from a Portland, middle school.

Photo: Discovery eases away from the pier into the placid waters of Newport, Oregon harbor. As we were passing the yachts and pleasure boats, the captain and crew gave us a lesson on how to tell various sailing craft apart by the configuration of their rigging. Thus, I now can tell you the difference between a schooner, a sloop, a ketch and others by the rigging... Yeah, right! The art-deco bridge in the background carries Highway 101 across Yaquina Bay.

Photo: Eric, the naturalist/deckhand aboard Discovery, explains the complexities of plankton to a very eager audience of middle-school girls, as we head out to the Pacific Ocean. Note that the girls are clad in life jackets, required for students aboard Discovery, but optional for adults. I figured that, if needed, I could don a life jacket in about 30 seconds.

We left the pier and cruised slowly past the yachts moored in the harbor. The crew immediately started narration, explaining the differences in yachts, in reference to their rigging. So by the time we'd passed the yachts, I knew the difference between a schooner, a sloop and a ketch.

Photo: I chit-chat with the captain, Dave, as he pilots Discovery in the open Pacific Ocean, a couple of miles out of Newport harbor. Discovery features the latest marine electronics, for ease of operation and safety. Dave is a very friendly guy, and he was happy to answer all of my questions and show me how everything works. The crew aboard Discovery is very friendly, professional and informative, and they make the voyage both educational and fun.

The weather couldn't have been better as we sailed under the graceful Yaquina Bay Bridge and through the breakwater where the Yaquina River meets the ocean. As we were about half-way through the breakwater, the captain stopped the boat so Eric could set out a couple of crab pots. He baited them with raw fish, and as he kissed the bait, he explained to the students that he was doing so to bring good luck, and the more of them that kissed the bait the better their luck would be. As he made that remark, there was a collective, sour "Ooooooooh..Yuuuuuuuuucck..." from the students. There were always enthusiastic volunteers from the students for anything the crew requested, but bait kissing didn't generate any takers.

Photo: The Coast Guard gives us a show as they head over to observe the recovery operations of the sunken tuna boat Boss, which struck a rock during a storm while attempting to make the Newport harbor. The "coasties" waved at our middle-school passengers and they waved back and shrieked with joy. The "wall" in the background is the north side of the Yaquina Bay jetty

Photo: Aboard the Discovery, marine biologist Kevin pulls in a crab pot which contains a crab and a small starfish, much to the delight of the middle-school girls. The crab and starfish received a lot of loving attention from the students, as they were passed around from one student to another. For me, it was entertaining to listen to the ooooohs an aaaaahs, the shrieks of laughter and the giggles, as the girls admired the crab and starfish.

Photo: Kevin hoists the crab pots aboard Discovery, much to the delight of the young female passengers. If you look carefully, a crab can be seen in the trap. Perhaps we had a successful catch due to the fact that Eric kissed the bait before placing it in the trap. The girls scrutinized every move made by the crew, and I heard the works "cute" and "hunk" whispered many times, especially when Eric was in view. Were they referring to the crab or the starfish?

Marine Discovery cruises are more than just a cruise; they're a fun, educational experience. Our crew was very friendly, knowledgeable, funny and entertaining. In addition to setting out the crab pots, we looked at jellyfish, birds, sea lions and pulled in plankton. The kids were fascinated with everything, the crew said and did, and despite my earlier premonitions, really added to the already fun atmosphere of the cruise.

Photo: Eric wears a funny crab hat as Kevin explains to the girls the dynamics of marine biology, specifically how crabs and starfish affect the marine ecosystem. The girls were interested in his presentation, but more interested in touching the crab and the starfish. The crab and starfish are in the blue plastic container near the center of the photo, for all of the students to observe.

Photo: Kevin and Eric answer questions about our voyage, marine biology, the Discovery and life in general. It seems that almost every student had a question about something, and the staff thoroughly answered every question. I got the impression that these guys really enjoy their jobs!

We went out to sea about 4 nautical miles, and cruised around, enjoying the spectacular, sunny day. The captain invited me into the bridge to see his equipment, as I suppose he could perceive that I was quite interested in what he was doing. After my "private tour," the students came in a few at a time to get their tours. There were gentle swells of about 6 to 8 feet, and the girls crowded the bow of the boat, shrieking and ohhh and ahhhing every time the bow would crest a wave. They didn't seem to mind the occasional wave that splashed them; it was fun to watch them enjoying themselves so much.

On the way into the harbor, we passed the wreck of the fishing boat, BOSS, a tuna boat from San Diego that had hit a rock in the breakwater, and was now almost wholly submerged. Thankfully, the crew had been rescued without death or injury from the Newport Coast Guard Station, and cleanup operations were underway.

Now was the part that the students were waiting for: Retrieval of the crab pots. Eric put on a silly crab hat and pulled up the pots, and one pot contained a small crab and a starfish. The girls went wild! Of course the big thing was for everybody to get to hold one of the poor creatures.

Photo: I'm standing on the fantail of Discovery, as Eric takes my photo and captain Dave waves at the camera, from the background. In the insert, somehow Eric talked me into wearing the funny crab hat as he snaps my photo wearing it. What's wrong with me to post this thing on our website? At the end of the voyage, I asked Kevin to recommend a good restaurant for fish and clam chowder, and without hesitation, he recommended Mo's. That evening, we had a delicious dinner at Mo's; Kevin is a man of fine taste.

When we entered Newport harbor, we circled around near the buildings that line the harbor, on Southwest Bay Street, Newport's Historic Bay Front district. There, we were treated to close-up views of sea lions and commercial fishing boats.

When you're visiting beautiful Newport, I highly recommend a cruise aboard DISCOVERY.

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