Jenna Austin, a leading organizer of the Nautical Renaissance, claims the Port of Ilwaco boat in the name of pirates across the seven seas. Photo by Alex Pajunas.

Pirates of old sought treasure on the high seas. Jenna Austin finds loot at the local thrift store.

The Ilwaco, Wash., woman doesn’t need a hook or parrot on her shoulder – an old scarf and puffy shirt let her get in touch with her inner Blackbeard and show some “pirattitude.”

“You don’t have to have a ‘pirate’ costume; it’s all about style and attitude,” she said.

There will be pirattitude aplenty at this year’s Nautical Renaissance, going on through May 27 on the waterfront at the Port of Ilwaco. The festival features tall ships, music, historical presentations and of course, lots and lots of pirates.

The sailing ships Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain return to the historic river town to offer dockside tours and, on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, “battle sails” on the open water. On shore, there are sea shanties and pirate songs from the Budd Bay Buccaneers and Whistlin’ Oysters, plus talks on local maritime history, a kids’ treasure hunt and more fun.

And the festival coincides with the opening of “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End,” the third installment in the hit movie series. The Neptune Theater in Long Beach, Wash., will show the film at 3, 6 and 9 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

While Johnny Depp plays Jack Sparrow on the screen, real-life swashbucklers the Black Diamond Pirates will bring the shiver-yer-timbers for festival-goers at their encampment on the waterfront. The reenactment group from the Puget Sound area will offer such activities as sword-fighting, dress-up for kids, storytelling, songs and dancing.

Ilwaco artist Don Nisbett created the poster for this year’s Nautical Renaissance.For Austin, one of the festival organizers, pirates’ free-spirited ways offer a model for everyday life. A decorator and co-owner of the Crew House Gallery in Ilwaco with her husband, Don Nisbett, she shows her swashbuckling side with a scarf and striped socks as part of her everyday outfit. They sometimes draw odd looks, but they give her a sense of adventure she lacked when she dressed in business clothes.

“Everyone knows me as the ‘Pirate on the Peninsula,'” she said. “When you get away from the rules, and worrying what other people think, you find fun in other ways.”

Austin organizes pirate weddings, and hopes to share her pirate passion with others through a series of weekend workshops for women titled “Finding the Treasure Within” that will help participants find their inner pirate.

Whether you are a landlubber or seafarer, Jenna Austin, left, and Carol Collins can assure you no one is safe when pirates come to town. Photo by Alex Pajunas.”I think it’s a misnomer that pirates are bad,” she said. “I think pirating is more about finding treasures in everyday things.”

Pirates feature prominently in Nisbett’s work, and are some of the most popular subjects at the couple’s gallery, Austin said. Nisbett will sign some of his pirate art from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday at the gallery at 167 Howerton Way.

Austin has researched some historical pirate figures, including Grace O’Malley, a famous 16th-century Irish chieftain and seafaring adventurer whose fleet of ships preyed on merchant vessels that sailed past her estate on the west coast of Ireland.

The Whistlin’ Oysters will entertain visitors with their authentic seafaring music. Submitted photo.Usually portrayed as lawless bandits, pirates weren’t all bloodthirsty criminals – at least not full-time, Austin said. Some, like O’Malley, conducted legitimate trading and other business alongside their more criminal enterprises. And many operated with at least the nominal blessings of various governments under official charters that authorized them to attack other nations’ vessels.

No picture of a pirate seems complete without a hook and pegleg. While they’ve become cliches, Austin said more than a few pirates probably carried them. If life at sea is dangerous now – think of the TV series “The Deadliest Catch” – imagine what conditions were like centuries ago, she said. Eye patches, hooks and wooden legs probably weren’t uncommon accessories.

The Lady Washington’s mission is a voyage of education and discovery. Photo courtesy Grays Harbor Historical Seaport.”You had to be a hardy person to withstand it all,” she said.

And that ubiquitous parrot on the shoulder? Exotic animals were probably also fairly common on board pirate vessels, Austin said – on their voyages pirates picked up birds, monkeys and other local wildlife as pets.

“But I don’t think every pirate had an eye patch and a parrot on their shoulder,” she said.

Modern-day buccaneers seem to fall into a couple of categories, Austin said. There are the so-called “stitch snobs,” reenactors who meticulously copy every bit of pirate garb down to the button.

That’s all well and good, she said, but for her, a simple scarf and stripey socks are often enough of a costume to evoke “pirattitude.” Thrift shops and discount clothing stores are good sources of piratical gear, and make for good treasure hunts in their own right.

“To me, a pirate would have and still does today, have to utilize the resources available,” she said.

Karla Nelson, owner of Time Enough Books at the Port of Ilwaco, got into the act at last year’s event. Submitted photo.Make way for tall ships, pirates and high seas adventures when the Nautical Renaissance returns to the Long Beach Peninsula May 22 through 27.

The tall ships Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain will arrive at the Port of Ilwaco at 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 22, with free dockside tours offered from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. Tours are also offered from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, May 26 and 27.

Two “Battle Sail” excursions are scheduled for 2 to 5 p.m. and 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, May 26. Tickets are $60. An “Adventure Sail” is offered from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 27, for $55 per person. Reservations for all excursions are required and may be made by calling (800) 200-LADY.

Pirate Days will cap off the event Saturday and Sunday, with activities for the entire family scheduled at the Port of Ilwaco. Cannon firings, sword fights and sea shanty singing will be among the mix.

Nautical Renaissance is one of many events that celebrate the unique heritage of the Long Beach Peninsula, along with museums and interpretive centers that explore local history including Lewis and Clark, the Chinook Indian Nation, the Clamshell Railroad and kite flying traditions, as well as the multigenerational industries of cranberry growing and oyster farming.

The fishing port of Ilwaco marks the gateway to the new Lewis and Clark National and Historical Park and two historic lighthouses on the Cape Disappointment headlands watch over the confluence of the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean. For more information, call the Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau at (800) 451-2542 or visit www.funbeach.com