Nancy Taylor Robson

200 Ton, 200 Miles Off Shore, Licensed Tug Mate
Progress

Nancy spent years proving her mettle in the extremely difficult environment aboard a tugboat. “Mettle” is indeed an excellent word choice for Nancy’s spirit. With a clear understanding of the challenges inherent in being a woman working in a physically demanding marine industry, she didn’t shy away. She has an amazing ability to both keep a polite and pleasant bearing yet also be perfectly blunt in her statements. Her book about her experiences on boats is filled with amazing stories that touch on the trials of tug life and give insight to the unique obstacles that females face there. Overall, she thoroughly enjoyed her run on the water and is proud of her accomplishments. Some of her most poignant memories of that life involve nature. She recalls porpoises near Mexico and a very curious warbler coming to visit. Life on a boat means you’re very close to the natural world. This can also be brutal - nature doesn’t care if you survive or not, and the sea can be a harsh teacher.