The Oosterschelde and her sisters: A field guide

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Today in Learn Along with Claire, get to know your tall ships! In case you didn’t know, I will spending part of February, March and April sailing the Atlantic aboard the topsail schooner Oosterschelde. At the moment she and her sisters are off the coast of Hobart, Tasmania as part of the Australian tall ships regatta. A couple of local filmmakers hopped on board their boat and sailed out to the harbor to put together this video, which serves as an ideal tool to get acquainted with a pirate’s most important asset: the ship!

The Europa is the three-masted barque with square sails, for the pirate who wants to make an entrance.

The Oosterschelde (my ship), a three-masted schooner. Fast and furious, for the pirate on a mission.

The Tecla is the small two-masted ketch, for the pirate who works by stealth.

Post-Pirate Day roundup o’ fun

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Wish I made this.

September 19 has come and gone, but thanks to the Internet, the piratical fun doesn’t have to sail away into the horizon just yet!

Thar she blows!

Disney Parks are still celebrating not just Pirate Day, but Pirate Week.

Shiver me timbers! Oxford Dictionaries goes hunting for pirate phrase origins.

Check out Mental Floss for 17 Swashbuckling Pirate Day Facts, like how they picked September 19 (hint: it has something to do with the founders’ ex-wife).

This vintage Dave Barry column from 2002.

Christina Hendricks, honorary pirate princess.

And finally, I’m perhaps most excited to find about The Pirate Fairy, a DVD release upcoming from Disney about a pal of Tinkerbell, voiced by “Mad Men”‘s Christina Hendricks, who not only–you guessed it–runs away to sea, but hooks up with the young Captain James Hook.

Just a guess, but I think that’s Skull Island behind them.

Avast, International Talk Like a Pirate Day is Here!

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International Talk Like a Pirate Day is upon us!

Some of us pirate princesses be settin’ sail for Krispy Kreme in our rip-roarinest pirate togs for thar free doughnut.

Others be headin’ to the galley and whippin’ up rum cocktails. Or rum cakes. Or the official Princess of Pirates rum pudding.

Need help on your pirate lingo? Time Magazine has the essential tips for soundin’ like a scallywag.

E! Online has thar favorite arrr-esting pirates from pop culture!

My pick for most glamorous pirate girl.

And finally, over yonder, Penguin Books has a list of the top classics of pirate literature, everything from “Peter Pan” to “Treasure Island” to “Con Men and Cutpurses: Scenes from the Hogarthian Underworld.” Book to keep ye company durin’ those long, stormy nights on the sea!

Announcement! Princess of Pirates is about to be more than just a state of mind

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Actual trip may differ from photo.

Actual trip may differ from photo.

For the past few months, this blog has been in stealth mode. I’ve been hiding in the trees like some kind of fairy-tale witch, tossing out candy to see if anyone will take the bait. But now that the advance check is in the bank it’s official, it’s time to reveal why I decided to start it–and it isn’t, as you might have guessed, just a sudden, unexplained obsession with eyepatches.

My first book, the memoir Princess of Pirates: Or, How I Ran Away to Sea is a go! It’s due out in 2015 from Cleis Press, with a hearty salute to my intrepid agent Anna Olswanger of Liza Dawson Associates. As a result, come February, I’ll be heading back to sea for the first time since 2006, as a guest crew member on the Dutch schooner Oosterschelde. And you’re all invited along for the trip!

In the coming months, I’ll be dishing up as many typhoons, swashbuckling duels, and wind-blown love affairs that I can cram into digestible 300-word chunks, as well as more pedestrian fare like…um, finishing my manuscript. All in real time (for the polished stuff, of course, you gotta buy the book!) As always, since this is the 21st century and not (sadly) the Golden Age of Sail, I’ll be cross-pollinating on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. Some of you may get handwritten letters stuffed into glass bottles, too–but I can’t guarantee timely delivery.

See you at sea!

At least it’s an opportunity to use the phrase “jagged rocks below”

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Have you been following the Astrid saga? The 100-foot Belgian brig was wrecked July 24 off the Irish coast of Cork, with its crew safely evacuated, and now the Coast Guard has given its approval to raise her, hopefully to find out what happened. Sad that after being built in 1918 and surviving two world wars, she might never sail again. Time to sing a dirge. “Heel ya hoy, boys…”

Wrecked tall ship to be lifted from sea

Wrecked tall ship to be lifted from sea.

Hastings Pirate Day is today!

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The town that put William the Conqueror on the map is being taken over by swashbucklers today in the biggest pirate festival in the WORLD. Last year saw over 14,000 attendees, setting an official Guinness Record! This is a must-do for every pirate princess in the area, but since I can’t jump on a plane (or preferably) a three-masted barque, to be there, I’ll point you to the website and delight you with the pirate beauties who attended last year, courtesy of Flickr user pg tips2. The variety of pirate looks range from:

Saucy.

Romantic.

Dramatic.

Or of course, these guys.

Whale and dolphin spotting on the Irish coast

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Celtic Mist in Dun Laoghaire Ready For Gathering Cruise

Celtic Mist in Dun Laoghaire Ready For Gathering Cruise.

“The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group’s (IWDG) research yacht Celtic Mist is currently docked in Dun Laoghaire awaiting the start of The Gathering Cruise around Ireland.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the 19-day event will see some 100 cruising boats proceed along the east and south coasts of Ireland from Dublin to Cork and Kerry.

Along the way they will be recording any sightings of whales or dolphins along the way using forms supplied by the IWDG.”

Sign me up!