Saturday we drove to the Arkansas River Valley where the Nina and Pinta ships were docked. These two ships were reproductions of the original on which Columbus sailed to the Americas in 1492 on his first voyage across the Atlantic Ocean.
I was immediately struck by the size, especially of the Nina, pictured here. It is hard to imagine sailing across an immense ocean, weathering storms and rough seas in such a tiny craft. We learned that the Nina, on which there were 120 passengers, was the only vessel in West Indian waters to survive the hurricane of 1495. As a writer I have a pretty good imagination, but my mind boggled at the idea of 120 people packed aboard this ship.
While the Pinta is 85 feet long with a 24 foot beam, the Nina is a mere 65 feet long, with a beam of 18 feet. As you can see from the photo, there are two sails up front. There is also one which you can't see at the rear. She is steered, not with a wheel, but by a tiller attached to a rudder. Imagine that for a moment. The Nina has quite a history. After Columbus selected her out of 17 ships for his flagship, he later purchased a half share in her.
She was chartered for an unauthorized voyage to Rome and was captured by a corsair and brought to anchor at Cape Pula, Sardinia, where she was stripped of her arms and crew. The Captain Alonso Medel escaped with a few men, stole a boat, rowed back to Nina, cut her cables and made sail. She returned to Cadiz in time to sail for Hispaniola early in 1498 as advance guard of Columbus' Third Voyage. She was lying in Santo Domingo in 1500 and was last heard of making a trading voyage to the Pearl Coast in 1501. In all she logged at least 25,000 miles under the command of Christopher Columbus. Both were used by explorers during the Age of Discovery, but the Pinta disappeared from history without a trace.
These replicas of both the Nina and Pinta are the first historically correct replicas of a 15th Century Caravel. They were built in Valenca, Brazil, using only adzes, axes, hand saws and chisels along with naturally-shaped timbers from the local forest. The reproduction of the Nina was finished 16 years before that of the Pinta was built so that the two could tour the western hemisphere together.
It was a thrill to see them on the Arkansas River near Ft. Smith. For someone who loves history, this was an exciting day. In my mind's eye I watched the brave men who sailed such vessels, going about their daily chores, then taking turns bedding down on the decks to catch some sleep. How they must have fought to remain on board during stormy seas. Where did they eat? I couldn't help but wonder how enough food and water was stored in such tight quarters for voyages that took many months to complete.
When I heard they were hiring on more crew members, I wished I were forty years younger. I'd take them up on it in a heartbeat. Nothing is more freeing than being on a boat or ship on open waters with nothing in sight but water and the horizon painted against a brilliant sky.
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