Old and New

I never tire of looking at these two old sailing ships owned by the Sail and Life Training Society. There is always a hint of romance and a greater air of adventure in far-away places than the huge cruise ships suggest. Victoria is home port for the two pictured above, the Pacific Grace and the Pacific Swift. The society that owns them provides sailing and life experience for young people. Whenever I see these ships I envy the young people aboard.

S.A.L.T.S.

Here's two more ships that always stir up the wanderlust in me like a whiff of a warm, spice-laden breeze. On the right is the Pacific Grace and further away just left of center is the Pacific Swift, two sailing ships owned by S.A.L.T.S., the Sail and Life Training Society. Lucky youths can learn to sail on these ships and may voyage in local waters or to some of "those far away places". The Pacific Grace was loading up for a voyage just as the Pacific Swift appeared to be arriving from one.

Bucket List

A bucket list is a list of things to do before you die. The concept is derived from the phrase "to kick the bucket" and was made popular recently by the 2007 film "The Bucket List". I'm thankful that I don't have a very long bucket list. I've been lucky enough to experience during my life most of what I dreamt of when I was young. However, whenever I spend a few minutes in the vicinity of the two S.A.L.T.S. training ships pictured above, that last bucket list item comes surging to the surface: A long sailing voyage on a ship such as this through the South Seas and on to the Orient. To wake up in the morning and look out one of these incredible windows onto some palm-fringed shore - that's my bucket list item. What's yours?

S.A.L.T.S.

Even when the weather is as gray and damp as it has been for the last few days, the inner harbor still offers some splendid sights. One or the other of these two tall ships is often moored here but they are not so often seen side by side. I'm sure modern sailboats are more comfortable and faster but there is something about these old style sailing ships that is wonderfully evocative of the sea and our close relation to it.

These ships, the Pacific Grace on the left and the Pacific Swift on the right, are used by the "Sail And Life Training Society" (SALTS) to provide sail training to young people aged 13 - 27, particularly but not exclusively those deemed "at risk." SALTS is a registered charity based here in Victoria. They have an excellent website where you can find out more about their programs: www.salts.ca and it is possible also to take virtual tours of both of these splendid ships: click here for the Pacific Grace and here for the Pacific Swift.