Potter Yachters Strike Again

"A mere two weeks after our caper in the mud in Redwood City (see April’s Sightings for the full story), our intrepid fleet of micro-cruisers sailed out of Benicia the last weekend of March to visit the Mothball Fleet," writes Dave Kautz, who sails a O’Day 192. "Great weather, great sailing, interesting ‘scenery’. By my quick count, there were 15 boats — all under 20 feet." And it appears that, this time, they all managed to stay out of the mud!

The Mothball Fleet — also known as the ‘Ghost Fleet’ — is a large flotilla of retired ships moored in Suisun Bay, just east of the Benicia Bridge. Officially dubbed the ‘National Defense Reserve Fleet’, these ships can ostensibly be ready to provide shipping within 20 to 120 days in the event of a crisis, but their appearance — scaly, rusty, apparently crumbling — makes one wonder.

According to Wikipedia, "external painting and other cosmetic-appearance work is generally deferred since it is not detrimental to the ability to activate and operate the vessel," while corrosion and mildew are kept at bay to keep the vessels usable and inhabitable. But a February U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration inventory of the fleet shows that 38 of the 89 boats moored in Suisun Bay are slated for disposal. The fleet’s superstar — the WWII-era battleship USS Iowa — isn’t one of them. Instead, ‘The Big Stick’ is in the process of being donated to not-for-profit group so it can be turned into a museum.