New Boat 4 Sled

[sleddog]

Clearing back into the US was problematical. The Customs Agent couldn't understand why our CA boat registration (DMV) said "undocumented vessel." For a few moments, we felt like "undocumented aliens." That was cleared up. But then the Agent wanted to make sure our four apples had stickers of origin on them. Gee Whiz.

We tied up briefly at Roche Harbor, amidst about 400 powerboats, a similar number of blonde bombshells, and a mere 25 sailboats. The main dock at Roche was pre-empted for a "Dog Show on the Docks." Photo of Roche attached.

We sought more peaceful anchorage at Garrison Bay, home of English Camp and its 363 year old Big Leaf Maple tree.
http://www.thesanjuans.com/san-juan-island-places/san-juan-lakes/san-juan-islands-british-.shtml

All was quiet in the anchorage, except for a high school tuba player practicing, presumably for upcoming football season. Nearby, a 16' antique motor launch, SMALL FRY, came in from Canada with his one lunger, 1918 East Hope engine beating a tattoo. http://www.vancouvermaritimemuseum.com/modules/vmmuseum/treasures/?artifactid=127

That night, all was still in Garrison Bay. We could hear the machinery of passing ships in Haro Straits, 5 miles distant. Vancouver is a big port in Canada, and dozen or more large ships per day transit Haro Straits.

 

[sleddog]

AlanH,

The 16' motor launch, SMALL FRY, we encountered at Garrison Bay shows there is every imaginable size and type of vessel cruising up here in the Pac NW. Sailboats only make up about 15% of the fleet, and most all of them have completely enclosed cockpits with expensive dodgers. August is warm up here, and many of these enclosed cockpits were broiling. Enclosed cockpits on sailing craft are mandatory for winter cruising. But they compromise sail handling and visibility.

SMALL FRY had crossed Haro Straits from Race Rocks, about 25 miles. The owner had the boat tricked out, and was camping aboard under a tarp. I believe SMALL FRY is 1941 vintage, built as a work boat. Supplemental power was two oars. http://www.woodenboat.org/boats/Boat_Detail.aspx?processID=579

 

[sleddog]

Orca watching, as noted in a previous post, is BIG business in these parts. With spotter air craft and Twitter feeds, the up to the minute position, direction, and speed of resident and transient orcas is known to all commercial outfitters. They "100% Guarantee" orca encounters.

In Victoria, the outfitters predominantly use 12 passenger RIB high speed inflatables. The passengers are outfitted in Mustang coveralls to presumably stay warm and dry. This navy of RIBS leave Victoria Inner Harbor every day at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. for their dates with the orcas.

The recent birth of a baby orca was front page news in all the papers. Fines are going up to $2,000 next year for any vessel caught with 200 yards of an orca. Yikes.

I also mentioned the clarity of sound travel in this area, especially in the evening, night, and early morning. Last night we could hear the cannons fired at Roche Harbor Sunset and Flag Lowering Ceremony, 8.5 miles distant. Voices over water can often be heard at quarter to half mile. The Friday Harbor ferries can be heard reversing engine during docking at 3 miles.

 

[AlanH]

I occasionally spend time participating in the Wooden Boat forum, and there's a whole section there on "sail and oar" boats. The idea appeals. If the wind doesn't blow, then row. Then again, that does limit your range, and of course if the boat has a big cabin, who wants to row it?. Guys do sometimes row 20+ miles, personally I think that's a bit much, though 10 miles doesn't phase me if the boat is handy enough and I'm not in a hurry and the tides cooperate. One of the regular contributors sails an Oughtred Ness Yawl, rather modified. Another sails a 15 food peapod. Another sails an Oughtred Caledonia Yawl, and another sails a 16 foot Hvalsoe design.....well, duh. It's Eric Hvalsoe. And so on.

This is why I chose the skerry. It's eminently rowable, and is supposed to sail pretty well, albeit simply. It has a flat bottom so in the rare occasion that I can put it up on the beach, it will sit flat. It tows behind my 4-clyinder truck without a thought. It stores in the front yard and requires no slip fees. It requires no haulout. It requires no insurance, as it's covered on my homeowners policy. The current sail, a-building is cut from a 12 x 14 heavy-duty white polyethylene tarp. If that works, I'll probably ask Synthia to build me a "real" sail. Shelter is provided by a tent-like structure held up by nifty bendable, lightweight aluminum tent poles. That's great in a fog, dew, a sprinkle or blue skies. God forbid that it pours rain! I would love to finish up the skerrys rig and then take it up to South Puget Sound for a 2-3 week summer messabout.

On the other hand, I wouldn't take the skerry to the Farallones and I don't have a PHRF certificate. It's all a compromise.

 

[AlanH]

As a complete aside....Skip, you might enjoy this, as others will, too I'm sure...

Eric Hvalsoe's description, with lots of audience input, on how he came up with the Hvalsoe 16, and where he's going with the whole thing, now.

http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthread.php?149569-Eric-Hvalsoe-and-the-HV-16

It just goes to show that there's more than one way to have fun at this stuff. For those who are visually excite-able, here's a picture or two of the Hvalsoe 16.

 

[sleddog]

Alan,

The Skerry is Beautiful. Internet here on Lopez Island is erratic. Maybe you could tell everyone about Small Craft Advisor? ~ sleddog

 

[AlanH]

The Skerry.... Why and how?

Around the beginning of 2007 I realized that no matter how hard I tried, I wasn't going to be able to A.) launch a kiteship kite, singlehanded, reliably behind any big keelboats mainsail and B.) even if I did, nobody was going to care two hoots and buy one. The pull a boat like nobodys business once they're launched but it was 'way way too much work to get people to try them and the writing was on the wall. That was kind of the last hurrah of my keelboat enthusiasm. I'd had a real change of heart after the 2004 debacle. Seriously, that years failure to finish the SHTP and the ensuing awful trip up the California Coast totally changed my attitude towards sailing. Instead of a joyful thing, sailing became a chore. When I realized in early 2007 (maybe it was late 2006) that I was getting up in the morning and seeing my reflection in the mirror and muttering "failure" to myself, I realized that I had to finish up my business. I had to do a SHTP and finish it.

So I prepped for the 2008 race and did it. TRUTH - I never took Ankle Biter out for a fun sail. Not once. I took her out to race her in SSS events, to prep for the LongPac and TransPac. I did the work to prep yet another new boat for the SHTP. I'd done it twice before, now I did it again - this time on the cheapest budget I could imagine, because I'd blown a huge wad of dough on the Santana 3030 in 2004 and didn't really have the bucks. It wasn't fun. I was so totally burned out on the whole thing. I sailed up to the Corinthian YC before the race just wanting to get the whole thing over with. Honestly, once I got there I started to enjoy it, and I DID enjoy the race itself, but my race prep days were coming to an end. When I got back from Hawaii, it was time to take a break, and besides, Joan was very, VERY tired of pouring thousands of dollars every year into this hobby.

 

[AlanH]

I had by then gotten very sick of Sailing Anarchy and so fed my online sailing surfing need by participating off and on, in the Wooden Boat forum. It's a very different crowd. After about a year, I could start to see the attraction of the "sail and row" mentality. It's low-cost, low-stress, no-racing, easy stuff. I'd always wanted to build a boat, but.....time, you know? I also did some reading about dinghy cruising, which is very popular in the UK and Australia. Lots of the UK sailors get started in Mirrors, and I'd had a Mirror, twenty years ago....great little boat. Probably the most popular dinghy cruising boat is the Wayfarer, and there was a fiberglass Wayfarer sitting on a trailer at Herron Island in Puget Sound where my inlaws had a summer place. "Dinghy Cruising" via "sail and oar" started sounding pretty interesting to me.

About that time, Joans mothers cancer started getting pretty bad. I spent a bunch of long days and evenings sitting in the hospital or sitting at Joans parents house, "being supportive" but without much of anything to do. So I started designing my ideal sail and oar boat in a free flat-panel CAD program from Carlson Design, called "HULLS".

I had a few parameters in mind. The boat had to fit in my front yard, diagonally between the corner where the fences meet and the concrete walkway up to the front gate. That meant about 17 feet, maximum loa. It had to be trailerable behind my 4 cylinder truck. I was going to build it on the super-cheap out of 3 or 5 ply, 5/16ths plywood, and 10 foot panels were really expensive, so I wanted to use 8 foot panels. I discovered, through using the HULLS, that about the longest hull I could get from butting 8 foot panels, factoring in hull shape, was about 15 feet. I wanted it to have a flat bottom so that I could beach it on a shell beach in Puget Sound (my in-laws had a house up there) So I designed and designed and designed during that period where mom was so sick.

Somewhere in there, I made a scale model out of cardboard. It was by no stretch of the imagination perfect, but it looked pretty good, so I changed a few things....filled out the ends a bit, and made another model. That one looked good. I was just about ready to buy the plywood when I discovered the Chesapeake Light Craft Skerry, online. Whoah. This was the *exact* hull I had designed, with all the same features built-in, in a kit....and someone who actually wore the title "naval architect" had designed it. I figured that was a sign.

Well, one thing led to another, and I discovered that a local guy had bought a kit and burned out on it and given it to the Sea Scouts. I went and saw the boat during a break, doing race committee for the 3BF in 2010, I think. Maybe it was 2009. Anyway, a year later I checked in with them again...they still had the boat. So I bought it and took it home and then took my sweet time finishing it off. It's STILL not done, I need to finish the rudder and install the mast step, and then make the mast.

There will be a day when I get another keelboat (what I really want is an Olson 25) and race under the Golden Gate Bridge and out to the Farallones with the SSS again. It'll happen, I miss it too much and in time it will be fun, again. But for now....

I think my big adventure will be launching from Sausalito or maybe Fort Baker, and sailing up the Bay and up the river to Stockton over the span of about 5-6 days. Paul Kamen launched his El toro from Richmond and did it, and this boat is a LOT more seaworthy than an el toro. I realized a few years ago that over the span of almost 15 years where I had four different boats, NOT ONCE did I ever take any of them up to the Delta for the usual Delta Cruise. That's NUTS. I'll camp where I can and snooze on the boat under that nylon tent-top when I can't. I think it would be a riot of fun to take 2 -3 weeks of vacation and do as much of the Puget Sound marine trail as I can, with the skerry. Sail when I can and row when I can't and take my time....I'll be in no hurry.

Personally, I think it'd be a blast to get a passel of SSS sailors together for that jaunt up the Delta. Bring your Lido or Holder 14 or Banshee or Thistle or JY 15 or FJ or Laser or what-have you. Load some extra clothes and a camping stove and a sleeping bag in a couple of dry-bags or white plastic buckets and GO. I think it sounds like a great old time.

 

[AlanH]

PS: I think I'm gonna buy a little 2.0 m two-line bridle fun kite to run off the skerry. No spinnaker. I bet I can launch the kite with my hands and steer with my feet.

What'cha' think?

 

[BobJ]

Personally, I think it'd be a blast to get a passel of SSS sailors together for that jaunt up the Delta. Bring your Lido or Holder 14 or Banshee or Thistle or JY 15 or FJ or Laser or what-have you.

One Summer day when I was . . . a LOT younger, I sailed my Banshee from the Benicia Bridge across Suisun Bay and up the San Joaquin to Bruno's on Seven Mile Slough. I was planing pretty much the whole way, at times at the very fine, hairy ragged edge of disaster. By the time I arrived my feet were raw from the soaking and hiking straps. Man that was fun - I loved that boat, all 115# of it.

Try that today and I doubt I'd make it to Pittsburg.

 

[Jonathan Gutoff]

Delta Dinghy Ditch: http://www.lwsailing.org/events/ddd2012.shtml
Gunkholers: http://norcalsailing.com/entries/2012/07/08/ungunkholers.html#.UDzfJ47tqh4

Sorry for the hijack Skip.

 

[sleddog]

Thanks, Alan, for the History of your sailing and the Skerry. And Jonathan for the Delta Dinghy links. I encourage any and all to share links, sea stories, educational experiences. You know: what we'd share around the fireplace or bar.

WILDFLOWER is back where we began in May: Anacortes, WA. Enroute, we had a delightful visit to Fisherman Bay on Lopez Island. Locals call their rock "Slowpez." Everybody walking, cars, bikes, and boats waves to each other with the Lopez greeting.

Fisherman Bay's narrow entrance makes the bay waters landlocked, about the size of Clipper Cove. Anchorage is good in 8-20', mud bottom. We anchored 75 yards south of the Islander Resort Marina, about 50 yards offshore, in 10' of water. Our Avon Redcrest inflatable dinghy provided shoreboat services.

After riding rented bikes 14 miles around Lopez, we pedaled out to Reef Net Spit. Anchored nearby was a 5.5 Meter sloop, the turquoise blue SUNDANCE, designed by Bill Luders. I hadn't seen this one time beauty in 44 years, since the '68 Olympic Trials and snapped the below photo. Unfortunately, SUNDANCE's original bow had been bobbed (to reduce weight in the ends?)

Behind SUNDANCE are derelict reef net boats once used by local Native Americans to catch salmon swimming into Fisherman Bay. The flimsy towers allowed aerial spotters to determine when the tubular net was full and could be closed behind the unsuspecting fish. http://www.islandcam.com/fishermansbay.html

In a reminder that things that go bump in the night aren't all maritime related, WILDFLOWER crew Annie was fielding calls most of last night from concerned relatives and tenants in New Orleans, her home. Hurricane Isaac was making landfall nearby to New Orleans. Things seemed to be going OK until 3 a.m. when she learned a neighbor's large pecan tree branch damaged her roof. She is out of here first thing when NOLA airport reopens, probably Friday, armed with Blue Plastic Tarps from Anacortes West Marine. Annie is a survivor. In Hurricane Katrina, the waterline in her home was 8 feet up the wall.

Next up for WILDFLOWER is the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival Sept. 7-9. If any of you are in Port Townsend for "Woodboat Woodstock," please stop by to say hello.
www.woodenboat.org

 

[sleddog]

Today, Sept 1st, is the fourth anniversary of saying goodbye to WILDFLOWER.

Good news is Annie got into New Orleans Airport last night. The power just came back on. Ice and MRE's are being distributed by the Red Cross. The neighbor's fallen pecan tree (not just a branch as first thought) damaged the roof and interior of her home. With big deductibles for hurricane insurance, it looks like an involved repair.

I spent much of the day prepping for the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival, including varnishing and touching up paint, and unloading gear into the car. WILDFLOWER, the cat, is by no means a "yacht." But with the critical eyes of Jim Brown, Meade Gougeon, Lin and Larry Pardey, and locals Brian Toss and Carol Hasse among others who will be at PTWBF, it behooves to be ship shape.

You can tell the serious wooden boat owners at the Boat Fest: they'll have a flower bouquet in the cockpit, and chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven. My flower bouquet is a bit more prosaic. Gary is lending me his deceased mother's favorite flower vase with daisies that pop up and down to the tune of "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B."

I cleaned rust off the stainless equipment this afternoon using an old toothbrush and Crest Whitening toothpaste with flouride. I wonder if anyone will notice the mint smell of the jib lead blocks and stanchion bases?

 

[sleddog]

5/3/12 Anacortes.

I've just reread Alan H's personal account. Yesterday I had a nice chat with James McMullen of Emerald Marine. James was hauling his cool little 16' skerry, ROWAN after a 4 day, 30 mile RT row/sail/camp out to Clark Islands.

James builds these Iain Oughtred Arctic Tern skerrys, 52 of them, and has his act together for cruising. He's been cruising his little yawl since 2006, as far as Barkley Sound on the W. Coast of Vancouver Is. I look forward to learning more from his experiences.

It didn't take long for James to unrig, haul, and drive off with his skerry behind his 4 cylinder Honda Element. I will next see him and his disciples at Port Townsend Wooden Boat Fest. http://emeraldmarine.blogspot.com/

 

[AlanH]

5/3/12 Anacortes.

I've just reread Alan H's personal account. Yesterday I had a nice chat with James McMullen of Emerald Marine. James was hauling his cool little 16' skerry, ROWAN after a 4 day, 30 mile RT row/sail/camp out to Clark Islands.

James builds these Iain Oughtred Arctic Tern skerrys, 52 of them, and has his act together for cruising. He's been cruising his little yawl since 2006, as far as Barkley Sound on the W. Coast of Vancouver Is. I look forward to learning more from his experiences.

It didn't take long for James to unrig, haul, and drive off with his skerry behind his 4 cylinder Honda Element. I will next see him and his disciples at Port Townsend Wooden Boat Fest. http://emeraldmarine.blogspot.com/

HA! The James would be blinking in horror right now! "Rowan" is a modified Ian Oughtred Sooty/Artic Tern design. Ian is a Scottish designer, who in some ways lives in an earlier and simpler time. Like for example, he doesn't have a telephone or e-mail. If you want plans for one of his designs, you can get them from the distributor in the UK. Most of Ians designs are based on Danish influences, the traditional faerings. However, he has designed a few dorys and whatnot. All the designs are buildable in glued lap plywood.

James liked the Arctic Tern design, but wanted to change a few little details. So he wrote (an actual paper letter) to Ian and asked about them. Ian gave the OK, and the result is "Rowan" which is, truly an absolutely gorgeous boat.

James is pretty up-front about his preferences. After building a mess of "box boats"...like Bolger designs, and sharpies and whatnot, he nowadays won't touch such a thing. As I write this, there's a thread on the Wooden Boat forum where several of his friends are tormenting the fellow for his defiant individualism, and the whole thing has evolved into designing the NON-double-ended, "anti-Rowan" sail and oar camp-cruiser. It's great fun.

He seems like a great guy. I think it would be a blast to have a short cruise with him, Eric Hvalsoe and that Yeadon fellow with the blue peapod - "Big Food". I'm glad you met up.

The skerry design is a nod in two directions by the designer... John Harris. One is the faering...like Ians boats, but the other is more like a Chamberlain gunning dory. The skerry has the flat bottom of the dorys though is a bit wider for more form stability while sailing. Ians boats (aside form the couple of dories that he's designed) have rather more deadrise. You give away a bit of rowing performance for that, but in boats, everything is a compromise, right?

Here's a build of the Oughtred design "eflyn" which is pretty close to a Hardanger faering in shape....significant deadrise in the very wide garboard planks.

The Oughtred design which is probably most like my boat is his 15 foot "skerryskiff", which has the dory-type flat bottom, as you can see from this construction photo.

Photo of a Chesapeake Light Craft skerry.....

----------------------------


...and the part about cleaning up the railings with toothpaste is hilarious!

 

[AlanH]

Today, Sept 1st, is the fourth anniversary of saying goodbye to WILDFLOWER.

that is hard.....tough memories but good ones, too.

You can tell the serious wooden boat owners at the Boat Fest: they'll have a flower bouquet in the cockpit, and chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven. My flower bouquet is a bit more prosaic. Gary is lending me his deceased mother's favorite flower vase with daisies that pop up and down to the tune of "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B."

EXCELLENT!!!! :lol:

I cleaned rust off the stainless equipment this afternoon using an old toothbrush and Crest Whitening toothpaste with flouride. I wonder if anyone will notice the mint smell of the jib lead blocks and stanchion bases?

 

[sleddog]

Today Gary and I took WILDFLOWER out of Cap Sante to put her through her paces in anticipation of Friday's 26 Feet and Under Race at the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival.

On our way out the marina, we passed four end ties of 80-120' maxi-power yachts. Then we came to MURZY 1927, the last of Anacortes original fishing boats. This soulful little ship was red tagged and chained to the dock, her slip rent in arrears. She will likely be broken up. Sad.

At the turn out the breakwater we came to a powerboat that somehow plowed straight ahead between two "Shoal Water" "Danger" "Do Not Enter" signs. She was hard aground on the bricks. One wonders the blood alcohol content of her driver.

Our practice went well in good sailing conditions: SW 8-14 knots. We tacked, jibed, changed jibs, set the chute. Only to end the delightful sail when I noticed the mylar peeling off the starboard side of the older J-22 jib. We rolled into an inside spinnaker jibe, and came out with a nice twist. I briefly wondered about the wisdom of racing my house.

Tomorrow I sail 30 miles across the Straits of Juan de Fuca to Port Townsend. It looks like good weather, and Seattle's all time record of 51 days without rain may be broken early next week.

 

[H Spruit]

I think the negative thoughts of "RACING THE HOUSE" should be taken seriously.
Good luck!?

sincerely,
Howard Spruit

 

[sleddog]

The passage from Anacortes to Port Townsend was a piece of soup. Motoring at 6.3 in smooth conditions, clear viz. PT is wood boat central. Next door is a 50 foot bright schooner "NEVERMORE." Sugar, the cap of schooner ALCYONE, says locals call her "NEVERDONE," and that she currently has 17 coats of varnish on her hull.

The big schooner ENCHANTRESS just came in to Yacht Haven. Not a word was said as her skipper turned his 160' ship 90 degrees in her own length, and tied up to the pumpout dock. Impressive. The young crew spent an hour putting perfect flakes into the jibs. She and ALCYONE will join us all at noon tomorrow entering Point Hudson Marina, site of the Wooden Boat Festival.

Up in the boatyard at the head of the ramp is a familiar sight. Dan and Linda's PEGASUS. Unfortunately she is hauled for keel repairs, having dinged a rock in Gorge Harbor. Dan thinks the keel bulb has a broken bolt.

Time for dinner.

 

[sleddog]

9/13/12

WILDFLOWER and I are back home in Capitola. We had a wonderful final sail from Port Townsend to Anacortes (30 miles, 4 hours) running before a fresh SE wind. Monday I lowered the mast, hauled the boat, and secured for the highway. Tuesday I set off down the I-5 at 0800, and 12.5 hours later pulled over for the night at a Corning, CA, reststop. Yesterday I was on the road again at 0530, and pulled into the driveway mid-morning, 17.5 hours, 932 miles at average speed of 53 mph, 13 mpg.

The Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival ("Wood Boat Woodstock") was a feast for the senses, and WILDFLOWER and I were in the middle of it. Waiting for my dock assignment outside Point Hudson Harbor, I watched the magnificent Grand Banks schooner PACIFIC GRACE make her entry into Point Hudson, and somehow pirouette her 140' length 180 degrees in the 130 foot fairway width. A piper played his pipes on the breakwater. I could just imagine a young Sterling Hayden in her foretop. http://www.salts.ca/site/about_us/history_of_salts.html

How much rigging is there on PACIFIC GRACE? A mile? Two miles? 10 miles? PACIFIC GRACE's topmasts towered over adjacent schooners MARTHA and ALCYONE, the 1899 Bristol Pilot Cutter CARLOTTA, and SPRAY. The only thing higher in all Port Townsend was the church steeple on the hill.