PO will be ‘Pirate Town’ this weekend

After debuting its Murder Mystery Weekend last year to “great success,” the Port Orchard Chamber of Commerce is bringing it back this weekend with even more to offer pirate lovers and amateur detectives.

The revelry kicks off Saturday morning with pirate dinghy races along Prospect Street at 10 a.m., featuring wheeled “boats” created by local residents and businesses eager to claim a trophy.

Then beginning at 11 a.m. both Saturday and Sunday, visitors to downtown can collect clues to solve “A Case of Treasure and Treachery.”

After paying $10 for an entry packet, participants can collect clues, interview suspects and test their sleuthing skills to determine who killed Captain Kidd.

Last year, the chamber said about 100 people signed-up to collect clues and try to solve the city’s first murder mystery, a weekend event that accomplished exactly what former Chamber Executive Director Melode Sapp and her fellow organizers hoped it would.

“It brought lots of people downtown, wandering around, collecting clues,” Sapp said, explaining that for every person who bought a packet and was officially registered for the event, there were probably two or three that just came downtown to soak up the atmosphere.

Another organizer, DeeDee Teeters, said the idea for the event came from Debbie Austin, who thought that Port Orchard should host an event similar to the annual murder mystery held in Langley, on Whidbey Island, that now attracts close to 2,000 people.

In addition to the mystery and dinghy race, the chamber is also hosting a Cap’n Jack Sparrow Look-a-Like contest (including categories for men, “wenches” and children), a boat decorating contest, a celebration for the 90th birthday of the Carlisle II, and a pirate sword fight. For the kids there will be face painting, pirate storytelling, a treasure hunt and pirate photos.

On Saturday, local radio station JACK 96.5 FM will do a remote show from downtown Port Orchard from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m., while Sunday will feature music from the Budd Bay Buccaneers from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., along with a beer garden.

The weekend will wrap up at 4 p.m. Sunday with the ‘who dun it’ reveal of who killed Captain Kidd.

Other events include the 90th-birthday celebration for the Carlisle II on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Port Orchard Marina’s foot ferry terminal, featuring cake, balloons, and a boat ride in Sinclair Inlet.

The library will also be hosting “Storytime on the high seas” with Cap’n Wally, Saturday at 1 p.m.

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