The Alma is the last of the commercial sailing barges which used to populate the bay.

Just 30 or 40 years ago I went to the Coast Guard offices to inquire about getting a captain's license. After outlining my experience at sea, I was told I would have to jump through more hoops than I was interested in. But, one of the officers had a sudden insight: On experience alone, I could get a license to captain a "non-auxiliaried sailing vessel". He said no one else had such a ticket, and that meant that whenever the Alma took on passengers for it's bay cruses, they would have to hire me as Captain.

I wasn't sure I could the handle old tub and I didn't want to ferry a bunch of people around the bay anyway, so I passed on the idea. I've never been aboard the Alma which, now days, has an auxiliary engine...