Bob, one of Call of the Sea’s earliest volunteers, claims to have played only a small part in the building of the Matthew Turner. His modesty doesn’t suit his contributions: Bob harvested and milled lumber for what is now the official tall ship of Marin County alongside his friend Franz and others helping Call of the Sea. 

Bob recalls amazement that the Matthew Turner crew and volunteers were able to MacGyver a truck and trailer to haul 40-foot wooden slabs over his twisting, narrow and steep dirt roads. One of his helpful neighbors lent COTS a forklift that helped get the slabs over to Sausalito—we’ll leave out the gory details behind the fact that it tipped on day one. Regardless, the Matthew Turner crew, who understood winches and rigging on a level above most, were able to move the slabs back onto the truck without so much as flinching.

The first time Bob had been under sail was his 80th birthday, which he and his friends call an epic adventure which was lavishly enjoyed by all aboard. His friends still talk about the voyage to this day, including how impressed they were with Matthew Turner’s tight-knit crew and the number of people required to sail a classic tall ship without the aid of mechanical winches and other modern devices.

We hope you enjoy the photos from Bob’s 80th onboard Matthew Turner as much as we enjoyed celebrating with him and his friends. Get in touch with us at info@callofthesea.org to book your next gathering onboard the Matthew Turner.