Tall ship docks in Kenosha for public tours

Crewman James Leaf enjoys life, his ship at Kenosha Days of Discovery

By DAVID STEINKRAUS
Journal Times

Friday, August 10, 2007 3:11 PM CDT

KENOSHA — It’s not sailing like sailing is now. The Nina moves slowly, and in some cases on Thursday afternoon, it wouldn’t have moved much at all if not for the diesel engine rumbling deep inside the hull.

Nina is 92 feet long and can spread 1,919 square feet of sail on its three masts, but it was really designed for the trade winds, sailing mostly with the wind from behind, and it does that very well, said crewman James Leaf.

Except for some modern necessities such as the engine, radio and navigational gear, the Nina is a replica of one of three ships which Christopher Columbus used to discover the New World — unless you’re Norse and think the Vikings got here first, or you’re Irish and think St. Brendan got here first, or you’re Native American and think the place didn’t need discovering because it was already occupied.

You can see it and other tall ships this weekend during the Kenosha Days of Discovery, which run through Sunday at the city’s harbor.

On Lake Michigan on Thursday afternoon, the wind came from here and from there in between sprinkles of rain. When the wind came in the right direction, the captain shut off the engine and the Nina strolled along at about 2 mph.

Nina has been Leaf’s home for two weeks.

Leaf, 26, comes from Marquette, Mich., where he graduated from Northern Michigan University after studying history and outdoor recreation. He sailed for fun, crewed on some race boats, taught sea kayaking for a few years, but aboard the Nina he could have a job and he can accumulate sea time toward a captain’s license.

"Another thing is they get to visit so many ports. I get to travel. That’s really the draw," he said. "No, this is definitely not racing. It’s more motoring, but at least it gets me out on the water."

He joined the boat in Sault Saint Marie, Mich., and in his two weeks has been to Marinette, Sturgeon Bay, Sheboygan and Milwaukee. After Kenosha, the Nina will sail to St. Joseph, Mich., near the southern end of the lake, then back across to Chicago. There the crew will step the masts, in other words take them out so the ship can pass under the bridges on the Chicago River. Then it will be on to the Mississippi River and Baton Rouge, La., by Christmas.

After a month or so to do maintenance, it will be south again to the Panama Canal and then up the West Coast. Leaf has no plans to leave. "I got on. I’m liking it, and (we’ll) see how it goes."

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