Water beckons from practically everywhere in Western Washington. And in the sun-soaked days of summer, the lapping waves fairly beg you to come enjoy them.
The Cappio family of Queen Anne have figured out a way for the whole family to answer that call through The Center for Wooden Boats.
Tucked along the south shore of Lake Union next to the Museum of History and Industry, The Center for Wooden Boats is an authentic, floating link to Seattle’s maritime past. It’s not a fancy place. Visitors are invited to wander the creaky docks, checking out historic vessels and watching boat building and repairs in progress. There are rowboats, pedal boats and canoes at the ready for anyone to rent, and sailboats for those with a little more skill.
Beatrice, 13, and Julia Cappio, 10, are among those with skills. The Center for Wooden Boats kids’ lessons start at age 8, so Julia is in her third year of summer classes and Beatrice has pretty much taken them all.
Kids learn to sail in El Toros, sailboats measuring just under 8 feet that are stable and relatively easy to handle. Once a child or adult can demonstrate their sailing chops, staff will approve them to sail on their own. For Beatrice, that came at age 9.
“She was checked out to sail that boat by herself on Lake Union, not during a class, but any time she could check a boat out,” says dad Adam Cappio. “But as parents you’re like, ‘She’s 9 and sailing all over the entire lake.’ Seeing that independence was amazing, but it was a huge leap of faith that she was big enough to take this boat out by herself, and doing it responsibly.”
On summer days and evenings, Beatrice and Julia have fun racing around in an El Toro while dad and mom Gretchen Freeman Cappio rent a bigger sailboat for themselves. The girls like teasing their larger rivals.
When racing, “there are certain rules that you have to follow,” Beatrice says. “One of them is, if you are on a starboard tack, you have right of way.” So as the girls sail by, they’ll shout at their folks: “We’re on starboard tack, you have to move out of our way!”
Setting sail offers a respite from the city, says Adam. You can “turn the phone off and be out on the water and just sort of play about in boats for a while.”
The Center for Wooden Boats: 1010 Valley St., Seattle, 206-382-2628, cwb.org
Lessons and camps: Lessons and half- and full-day camps are available, and CWB has a “pay what you can” program for lower-income kids.
Free stories: On the second and fourth Thursdays of the month, preschool-age kids are invited to tugboat story time aboard the 100-year-old tugboat Arthur Foss.
Rentals: Based on the boat’s size, sailboat rentals are $35 to $50 an hour for CWB members (a household membership is $75 a year), and $40 to $65 for non-members. Rowboats are $30 an hour for members, $40 for non-members. Canoes and double kayaks are $25 an hour for members, $35 an hour for non-members.
