A SHIP, A HARDHAT AND A MATE

Batten down the hatches, secure the lifeboats..........Finn Christian Gustafson is coming aboard the Joides Resolution (Papa's Ship).

Much to our surprise, we learned Gus's ship would be docking at the Port of San Diego for a little over 24 hours. He made arrangements with Todd to bring Finn aboard on Tuesday. Finn had no idea what was in store for him. He was thrilled just to learn he had his very own yellow hard hat.

Papa and Finn

Port of San Diego

Three Generations of Gustafsons

(Coronado Bridge in the background)

Skipper and Mate

The Bridge

Finn in the Captains Chair

Captain Finn....sounds good.

Excitement

Underway Geophysics Lab Entry

Thin Section Laboratory

(Gus spends many hours here)

The Core Lab

The core samples from the sea floor are layed out here.

I was happy to see life perservers on board!!

Finn found the galley....

he was very impressed that Papa's ship had their own ice cream machine.

Dockside

The view of the ship as they departed the dock. Little did Violet know that Gus was a stow away in Todd's car when he pulled into her driveway Tuesday afternoon. She wasn't even aware of his ship coming into port. Total surprise!!! We all had dinner with Gus before Violet returned him back to port at 3am.

We can't thank Gus enough for taking the time and getting permission for Finn to come aboard the Joides Resolution. It will give him a better perspective of where Papa goes when he packs his bags and heads to the airport.

Over the many years of Gus's life on a deep sea drilling vessel, he has been able to bring a few people aboard. Violet, Todd, Erik, me, my father and even my little brother Robert have been part of the lucky few. It is an experience to remember always.