Scene on the Sound: Clippers and Cutters

Victoria Clipper meets CGC Mellon
on the Shoreline Sea
Photo courtesy Jan Hansen

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mellon (WHEC-717) is a Hamilton-class high endurance cutter based out of Seattle. It has a long and dramatic history, having served in Vietnam, been outfitted with guns during the Cold War, and involved in dramatic rescues in the Bering Sea and Pacific Ocean. See the Wikipedia article.

But this day was a peaceful sailing into her home port in Seattle, as she crossed paths with the Victoria Clipper, which was taking tourists to Victoria, B.C.