It's the final day of the tour. As I start to ready the Witness for her journey back to Washington D.C., I can't help but think back over her many stops throughout this tour. As first mate, I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to be a part of such a beautiful vessel and such a successful tour. The Witness is the newest and smallest addition to the Greenpeace fleet. She is also the only vessel under the American flag, which I believe has carved out a very unique niche for her within the organization.

Greenpeace vessels are no strangers to the waters of the Eastern seaboard, however, the shallow draft of the Witness allowed the campaign to come into smaller ports of call, ones that previously would have been less accessible with a ship drawing 16ft. By being able to tie up at local town docks it allowed the campaign to establish a more direct dialogue with the local communities that are most effected by projects such as Cape Wind.

The opportunity to use the Witness as a platform to conduct grassroots campaigns and public education outreach was very evident throughout this tour. Also evident was the need for such tours. I must have given close to one hundred tours of the ship everyday and while not everyone was in agreement on the project itself, all were eager to learn more and anxious to open dialogue that more often than not led to the dispelling of myths and missinformation about the turbines. Provincetown, was a great place to end this tour, the people here are socially responsible, progressive, and understand the immediate threat global warming posses to their precious Nantucket sound.

I am confident that I will sail the Witness through the sound once again, however, next time I know it will be to give the citizens of the Cape a first hand look at their beautiful and productive wind farm, the true keeper of the sound.

- Heath
First Mate
Witness

We have made it to the last stop on the tour, lovely P-town.  Witness has a nice parking spot on the pier and we definitely find ourselves in friendlier waters. Alas the weather is not cooperating with us too well.  It is cold and very windy; they have even stopped the ferry from running back and forth from Boston because of the wind and waves.  But the staff and volunteers continue to be out on the street spreading the word about Cape Wind and yesterday we had over 100 people tour Witness.

On Thursday we said good bye to our Danish friend, Jens Larsen.  Jens is an offshore wind expert that came over for part of the tour to help educate people on the reality of offshore wind success in Denmark. Jens presented to the Massachusetts State legislators, the Massachusetts wind working group and sat on a panel at Cape Cod Community College.  The panel, which consisted of a retired Nantucket Sound ferryboat captain and the public policy director for Mass Audubon Society, got pretty heated with the local NIMBY opposition out in full force. Over 90 people were in attendance and got to hear from the panelists and visit the Rolling Sunlight on their way to and from the parking lot.

This weekend we were also joined by some of the frontline canvassers form the Boston office, they worked the streets of P-town signing on supporters and collecting postcards in support of Cape Wind.

Two more days of open boats in P-town and then the tour ends and we make our way home.  
Cheers,
Kate
Energy Campaigner
Greenpeace USA