SUBHEAD SUBHEAD SUBHEAD
Christine McManigal, Staff Photographer
Originally published May 20, 2016
Christine McManigal
Each year, Maritime instructor John Foster leads an overnight field on the Zodiac Schooner, a piece of floating history.
The Zodiac is a two-mast, 160-foot sailing ship built in 1924, just outside the Great Depression. In its initial years, the Zodiac competed in transatlantic races and later was exchanged hands and renamed.
Ultimately in 1973, the ship was bought and restored to its former name and configuration. The non-for-profit organization, Northwest Schooner Society partners with the Zodiac Corporation to provide sail training programs for youth and adults.
On this once-in-a-lifetime experience, a select number of students man the sailing ship while also receiving educational lessons such as chart reading and analyzing aquatic microbial life.
