A Ship, a Submarine, a 10,000 Year Clock, and a Penny Arcade: Mechanicrawl 2008

The Christmas Tree, aboard the USS Pampanito

The Long Now's Chime Generator
The Engine Room aboard the SS Jeremiah O'Brien

Telstar Logistics spent a good part of Saturday afternoon checking out the first-ever Mechanicrawl along San Francisco's northern waterfront.  Organized by the folks at the Long Now Foundation, Mechanicrawl is a celebration of the many magnificent mechanical marvels (whew!) clustered along the Bay in this part of the city. 

Taking aim at the Jeremiah O'Brien from the Pampanito

We were able to hit four of the stops on the self-guided tour: The Long Now Museum, the World War II Liberty Ship SS Jeremiah O'Brien, the World War II submarine USS Pampanito, and the Musée Mécanique.

Planet Earth in the Orrery, at the Long Now Museum

All were excellent, although the Jeremiah O'Brien scored extra points by firing up one of its boilers for the tour. The ship's giant pistons were bouncing up and down throughout the day, so it felt sort of like playing Fantastic Voyage inside the engine of your car.  Amazing:

The crankshaft of the SS Jeremiah O'Brien

It's also worth emphasizing that whole the point of the Mechanicrawl was to call attention to various attractions on permanent display along the San Francisco waterfront.  So if you couldn't make it to the Mechanicrawl last Saturday, no sweat...  go see these things next chance you get, because they'll still be here, and they do not disappoint. 

Whirly Bird, a 1969 arcade game, at the Musée Mécanique

LINK:

Mechanicrawl 2008 (Photos by Telstar Logistics)

Comments

[striatic]

i rather enjoyed The Musée Mécanique last time i was in SF. it has a really different tone than most of the "attractions" on the waterfront, and i found the contradiction compelling.

[Telstar Logistics]

Yes! The Musée Mécanique is a treasure. In fact, that whole pier, Pier 45, is a must-see. But because it's part of the tourist zoo that is Fisherman's Wharf, few locals ever make it to that part of town.

[Larry Jorgensen]

"The camshaft of the SS Jeremiah O'Brien"

That looks more like a crankshaft to me.

[Telstar Logistics]

Larry, you're right. I fixed it above. Thanks!