This talk was a very interesting and well attended one, in which OFF member Jen Baxter spoke of her recent trip to East Africa, when she retraced some of her grandfather’s travels as a ship’s engineer and later captain on Lake Victoria. Her photos were a great mix of her own travels and sightings of colorful birds and wildlife and her grandfather’s original photos from the early 1900s. A great comparison of then and now. She also recounted some of her grandfather’s tales of life back in that time.
Jen finished her presentation by telling the audience of her volunteer work at the Sydney Heritage Fleet, “The Museum that goes to sea”. Their fleet consists of the 1874 James Craig, a number of steam launches and through to a mid-1950s workboat. A number of these boats are available for charter.
Following the presentation, members enjoyed catching up over a cup of tea and snacks at a social supper.
You can listen to Jens’s talk here.
Jen also intended to play a video of James Craig sailing from Hobart to Sydney, but was unable to so on the night. Here is the link to a fascinating insight into sailing on a square-rigged sailing vessel
PROMO
Against a backdrop of rediscovering post WW1 Nile River paddle steamers and railway connections in East Africa, member Jennifer Baxter’s quest to sight the critically endangered shoebill stork turned into something else entirely. Affected by climate change and migration, local populations are reengaging with traditional values and skills, enabling culture to thrive joyfully and share the fascinating wildlife and birdlife of East Africa with visitors.
Jens’ interest in steamships also led to her being a volunteer with the Sydney Heritage Fleet tugboats and crewing on the 151-year-old James Craig sailing across Bass Strait in gale-force winds.
This promises to be a fascinating talk by one of OFF’s adventurous members!
This meeting will be held in the Oatley Uniting Church Hall at 7.30pm and on-line by ZOOM. The ZOOM link is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3742141020?omn=86110187560 or open ZOOM & enter meeting ID: 374 214 1020.