Golden Fin & Tiki Too

Sea Scouts and Mariners

By Dale Mack

I joined the Sea Scout Ship Golden Fin (#363) as a youth member in April of 1973, and Laura joined the Mariner Scout Ship Tiki Too (#960) as a youth member in the spring of 1976.  The Tiki Too was co-registered as a Mariner unit with the Girl Scouts, and as a Sea Scout Ship with the Boy Scouts.

Golden Fin co-ed crew at 1975 Ancient Mariner Regatta (AMR)
at Government Island, Alameda (not Coast Guard Island).

We were both very active in our units.  I earned my Quartermaster in 1976, and Laura earned her U.S.C.G. Operator's License in 1982.  Both Laura and I eventually became adult leaders in our respective units.

For me, the latter half of my college years saw a reduction in my involvement because I was attending school in another part of the state.   I spent my summer vacations with the Golden Fin and continued to serve as the head judge for the Flotilla rowing event at the annual Ancient Mariner Regatta (AMR, held every Memorial weekend).

Flotilla rowing event at AMR, 1988.

Beyond getting her Coast Guard license, Laura (Crowe) is also noteworthy in the history of the AMR as the Skipper of the first all-female Sea Scout Ship to earn the coveted Clipper award, AMR's top award.  Proving that 1982 wasn't a fluke, the Tiki Too came back in 1983 and earned the Clipper award again while capturing more first places in the regatta's events than they had the previous year.

1982, the first all-female Sea Scout Ship earns the Clipper award.

1983, the Tiki Too earns the Clipper award again.

Although our paths crossed at Sea Scout events several times over the years, Laura and I never actually met until 1984.   I had relocated from the San Francisco Bay Area to the Sacramento area and was interested in getting involved with a unit again.  One afternoon, I met the Tiki Too at Camp Pollock, in Sacramento, where Laura and her dad Don were training their crew in preparation for AMR.  Laura was so intensely focused on the crew that she hardly remembers me being there.  Shortly after AMR, Laura's dad assumed the role of Skipper as Laura headed to Southern California to complete her college education.  I soon found myself swamped at work, so AMR and the Old Salts Regatta was the extent of my participation in 1984.  I finally joined the Tiki Too in the spring of 1985 while Laura was away at school.

The 1963 Chris Craft Sea Skiff, Tiki Too at Hogback in 1985.

In the summer of 1985, Laura (on break from college) joined the Tiki Too for cruises in June and August.  We began dating and became engaged six months later.

Tiki Too crew at AMR, 1986.

Tiki Too crew at Dale & Laura Mack wedding, July 1986.

We were married a month after Laura's graduation in June 1986, and we continued to lead the Tiki Too until the spring of 1987, when a combination of our desire to start a family, my mom's final months with cancer, and the typical political unpleasantries that periodically creep into Sea Scouts, caused us to reassess our priorities.  We stepped down as leaders of the Tiki Too, and assumed roles as trainers for Sea Scouts within the local council, while I continued to serve as a Flotilla judge for various regattas.  During that time, we acquired a Catalina 22 sailboat, and become very active in the Sacramento Catalina 22 fleet.  Our official involvement with Sea Scouts came to an end in December 1989, when my company relocated us overseas to Singapore.

Dale Mack aboard his Catalina 22 in 2001.

The Boats

The Golden Fin operated a 63' AVR (hull # C-56156) built in 1943.  The vessel was transferred from the U.S. military to Scouts in the 1950's, during which time it was converted from twin Hallscott gasoline engines over to twin General Motors Detroit 6-71 diesel engines.

The 63' AVR Golden Fin at Hogback in 1976.

The boat's Sea Scout career started as the Sea Hawk (#35) of Berkeley, California.  In June of 1967, the vessel was transferred to the Golden Fin (#363) of Concord, California, and moved to Martinez Marina.

On July 4, 1979, just two weeks before the boat was scheduled to complete its U.S.C.G recertification process, the boat was destroyed by an arsonist who broke into the boat, and ignited the fire with flares from the boat's flare kit.

At the time of the fire, the Golden Fin (formerly the Sea Hawk of Berkeley) was rafted up to the Sea Scout Ship Sea Witch, formerly the Northland of Berkeley. One of the Golden Fin's orange smoke flares was later found extinguished in a locker next to the helm of the Sea Witch. Because the arsonist had closed the locker, the fire consumed all the oxygen and the flare went out. There were also reports of kids running from the boats shortly before those onshore noticed the fire.

Although never proven, what is believed to have happened is that kids broke into the Golden Fin with the intention of making a mess by lighting off the orange smoke flares. The flares coat everything with an oily orange residue when they burn. Unfortunately, the youths underestimated the heat produced by the flares, and things got out of control.

Thanks to the heroic efforts of the Sea Scout Ship Albatross (#72) and their Skipper Chick Russell, the burning vessel was towed out of Martinez Marina and to the adjacent mudflats, where it burned for over two hours before a fireboat from Mare Island Naval Shipyard could arrive.

Photo taken by Skipper Chick Russell while towing the Golden Fin.

In the photo above, the flames are engulfing the helm. The lack of light from the navigation compartment's windows suggests that the flames weren't yet in the navigation bridge or the officers' quarters located forward of the midship engine room.

July 5, 1979 outside of Martinez Marina.

The Golden Fin sits on the bottom. The port side had a hole burned down to the waterline in the engine room. The stern lazarette was the only compartment not touched by the flames.

The hatch in the upper left corner leads to the anchor chain locker in the bow.

Looking aft. The crew has started salvaging gear from the boat. The remains of the
melted brass wheel from the helm sits on the deck.

The superstructure is burned away completely.

Portside of the cabin below the navigation bridge. The bulkhead separating this
compartment from the forward quarters and the head has been consumed by the fire.

Portside 6-71 engine. Flash rust covers everything cast iron and steel after just
twenty-four hours. No paint survived the heat in the engine.

Aft cabin and fuel tank compartment looking toward the starboard side.

Standing on the stern looking forward.

Salvage efforts were restricted to just two days because of an opportunity to take advantage of a State of California contract with a snag removal company who just happened to be scheduled to be removing logs and debris from the waters around Martinez. One week after the fire, the engines, fuel tanks, and shafts had been pulled, and the remains of the boat were sitting in a debris pile in Pittsburg after having been removed from the water with a clamshell.  A sad end to a beautiful boat.

The crew of the Golden Fin aboard the Zarahemla at Steamboat Landing, 1981.

Following the loss of the AVR, the Golden Fin operated a very successful small-boat sailing program the unit inherited in 1977 when it merged with the Cormorant (#196) of Pittsburg, and the Sea Lion of Antioch.  In 1981, while I was off at college, the unit acquired the 50' Sea Scout Ship Zarahemla which it operated for a couple of years before the unit faded from existence.

The Tiki Too at Hogback in 1977.

The Tiki Too operated an old wooden boat of unknown origin, powered by a Buda diesel.  By 1978, the vessel needed to be replaced, so Laura and her dad began searching for a replacement.  Through a letter-writing campaign, Laura acquired a government surplus ex-Coast Guard 40-footer with the help of a Congressman.  When it was determined that the vessel could not be Coast Guard certificated at a reasonable cost, the unit sold the boat and continued their search.

Tiki Too acquires Chris Craft in April 1980.

In 1980, through a combination of partial donation and partial purchase, the unit acquired a 34' Chris-Craft Sea Skiff built in 1963 and powered by twin 287 gasoline engines.  The boat was eventually U.S.C.G certified for eighteen, and berthed at Sherwood Marina in West Sacramento.

The boat remained in service with the Tiki Too until Laura and I left in 1987.  Ownership of the boat was transferred from the Girl Scouts to the Boy Scouts and was it assigned to the Sea Scout Ship Trident (#777) of Sacramento.