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| The spray and camera |
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All three of us Tauno Jim and Me took a trip to Conn. Saturday and opened up the barn to get the Spray boat out Oct 2. She is big It didn’t take long but it was fun to see all the people and watchers admiring the boat.
Also some great news, BJ and My sister Elke got together and decided to replace my lost camera (THANKYOU) When it arrives I will try to catch up on the missed photos.
The dingy is coming along, we are on the second strip layer on the bottom and the sides are still left. |
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| The trip |
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Friday Oct 31
I have been looking forward to this day for quite some time now
. One week on the lake with my boat
Everything is checked out and working fine. I forgot my gas can but borrowed one for the trip so all should be well. I did not get the radio into the boat; it did not arrive in time.
Saturday Sept 1
The weather is perfect a south wind and we are going north great.
Jim arrived about noon and loaded his things on board. We decided not to stay for the big Labor Day feast; Jim wanted extra sailing time north. We left at about 8 am and in four hours we made it all the way to Westport wing on wing; sweet waves were only one foot. Pulled into Westport only to get kicked out because the were having a private lobster party. I guess we weren’t invited. So we ended up in a small cove just south of the marina and set anchor had a great meal and settled in for the night with the anchor light on.
Sunday Sept 2
We woke at 7 am, had breakfast and pulled up anchor only to have the engine not start, week battery because the anchor light and a few others were on all night it sucks the battery dry maybe some very heavy batteries for next year (Big Ones) I hand cranked the engine and she ran fine out of the cove and north we sailed. The winds and waves got heavier and bigger but the boat is a fine craft that handled quite well in heavier seas we pulled into ----- bay about noon because the winds were close to 30kns and that’s serious work. It was beautiful there and I should have insisted on spending the night but Jim wanted to test the water again, rounding the island we hit heavy wind and waves, which drove us back towards Westport again. As we passed Otter creek Jim missed his green buoy marker and the boat ran aground on the sandbar. It took about an hour to get off and in the process we lost the Jib halyard up the mast. I used a free line that was extra as a temporary and it worked fine. Guess what! We ended up in Westport again that evening anchored and got a sandwich in town. I figured that wasn’t so bad since the wind was due to shift out of the south in the am, letting us sail north into the Otter creek Wrong again
Monday Sept 3
In the morning we were expecting a south wind but what we got was a north blow
And 3 foot waves after crossing the bay and unable to head north under sail we cranked up the engine again. I must admit the atomic 4 engine can really take a beating.2 hours of motoring north and we turned into Otter Creek and what a difference it is beautiful and the wild life is just like in a national geographic video. It takes about an hour and half to go to the Vergennes falls but the trip is well worth it We docked at the public docks and met up with our friends Dick and George, got cleaned up a bit, and went out to dinner in a fine restaurant. Don’t forget to stop by at the library its one of the finest architectures that I have seen in a long time. Jim got picked up be his wife and I was again single handing Joyful Too.
Wednesday Sept 5
Today we have to leave the Otter Creek, I’m really sorry and I will return to this wonderful place. Before leaving, our boat neighbors for the day Dick and Libby lent us their bosons Chair and with it we sent George up the mast to retrieve the halyard that went up the other day. I’m sorry to say that while I was taking photos of the great event I lost the camera sometime right after that, and with it went about 130 photos and 2 very long videos. I WAS BUMMED. Once out of the river the winds were string out of the north. We had planned to go to Westport but with the heavy winds we could not find a quiet harbor. In the process of looking and switching to engine I lost the track lock in the main mast and the entire main sail came out of the mast. O was! @#!$. With this problem I motored to Westport and got beat to death at the dock due to the high waves and wind, it took half hour just to set the bumpers and another to put the main sail back in the tracks. I got it done, but I forgot about the engine and it had been idling all this time, the weeds were heavy against the dock and as a result covered up the engine cooling intake and the engine was almost 200 degrees before I noticed it. I did get it down a bit but it never settled down after that . I believe I damaged the water impeller .I will now next week when I exchange the pump with a spare that I have. The night was anchored under the bridge at Crown Point and I still hadn’t found the camera. It’s just gone.
Thursday Sept 6
This is our last leg home. First I woke up at 4 am and was still in the same anchor place, but the wind shifted to the south and as it did I must have dragged the anchor because at 6 am I was directly in the middle of the lake under the bridge in between two large pylons. What a rush. The engine got fired up and back I went to where I was supposed to be and let out a lot more anchor line 200 feet. Dick came over with the dingy later, helped me pull up the anchor and off both of us went motoring down the lake in 20 knot winds strong enough to shake the boat and mast. It was weird. By the time I got to the paper mill The fuel was low so on the radio I called dick and we transfer another 3 gallons and that got me home .The trip was very educational and a great learning experience for me. I’m ready to go again
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| the maiden voyage of one week |
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There is some sadness in this entry, even though I had a learning experience that I will never forget. I will list our one-week lake adventure in a separate category,
The sadness is in the fact that I advertently lost the family digital camera sometime Wednesday am
And I don’t know were or when, but with it we lost over 130 of my best photos and two very long videos of this trip. The point here is that now I can no longer post photos until
I replace it. This will take some time since the cost will be high. I’m sorry. The only thing right now is the memory of the trip that I can’t share with all of you
So to the best of my knowledge and my daily log entry I will post my recollections on a special link
Please give me this weekend to put it all together.
Uwe
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| under construction |
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We have a new dingy under construction
as well as a sterio system still need speakers
I also purchased a used hummingbird GPS system about 8 years old in momocrome but very reliable. This still needs testing and setup
The ladder mount is still in the works and has turned out to be quite a difficult problem
Just what i like, A cant be done problem
Uwe |
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| Joys birthday party 2007 |
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I haven’t made an entry in 2 weeks so I’m sure everyone is concerned Don’t be, we are just having fun
All of our friends from NY showed up for Joy’s birthday party, a full weekend bash with about 30 people. Many slept in a large tent in the backyard and we used the large pavilion at the marina for 2 days of food and sailing, I have over 200 pictures of the occasion but I will only post some important ones to five you an Idea of the fun we had. Thanks all for coming, Guests from the Philippines, NY, NJ, and Con,as well as VT and heavens knows were lese
Some of the problems that came up was the bathroom got plugged up because someone threw handy wipes down the head ,instead of biodegradable toilet paper and the sump pump got clogged with junk so that also had to be serviced All just general maintained. The boat itself is just a dream come true.
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| some repairs |
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This is my cleanup and rest week
We put a new carpet in the boat, at first I wasn’t sure if it would look good but a woman’s touch always seems to bring out the best, It looks great. I finally reworked the wooden ladder and figured out how to attach it. I got yelled at because the water pump in the boat wasn’t working, so that got repaired. I also sewed the spinnaker sail tare that I got when it got hooked up on the anchor when I let it go last weekend.
Finally I replaced the vent that I lost last weekend a $50.00 screw up ,No pictures I’m getting lazy but I did finish up some more artwork. BY and Torry are due up Sunday. I guess I better take the camera.
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| Family fun |
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This week
Was fun?
Let see I lost my umbrella overboard
The old dingy sank
I lost one of my vent ports overboard that one was expensive
Joys family came to visit this weekend, so lots of short sailing and many rides for the kids
I don’t have a single picture so we have to wait until a CD shows up
Right now I need to rest
In 2 weeks its Joys birthday so the whole crew will come again.
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| Spray weekend |
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This has been an interesting weekend
First Joy and Jay went to NY; this left me with a free weekend on the boat
All my sailing was solo this weekend, so I thought.
Friday we dealt with thunder storms but not bad Saturday I was out all day
I started with the Jib sail because its small and easy to handle in case of bad weather, this did not happen. So I switched to my biggest sail the 150 jenny and that worked fine until the wind died and because the 150 is a bit heavy finally dropped all my sails and hoisted the spinnaker my larges and most colorful sail, its like a big kite that was fun.Jim and Tono showed up on Sunday to fill me in on our next project.
The car photo is Tono, in his 1949 Packard. Tono is a retired 747 pilot from the Pan Am years.Some friends from the next marina and we were taking photos of each other’s sailboats.
The little gaff rig sailboat is a very stable boat.
The other adventure is BIG
We have been watching the bidding ebay on a very large sailboat The Spray This boat is a replica of Joshua Slocum’s boat that sailed around the world solo, Well ,Me, Jim and Tono decided to go in together and bid on this partially completed schooner with the intention of finishing it and then marketing it for profit.
We got the bid and are now partners in our next 5-year project.
1995 Joshua Slocum Replica 40 Ft. Sloop Spray Near Complete Item number: 120143346107
Look it up on Ebay
You will think we are nuts, all of us
We will develop an entire new website around this project.
Uwe
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| Christmas in July |
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This was just a fun weekend to go sailing check out other boats and have a party Everyone came and had fun,
Uwe |
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| My Ladder |
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The ladder
The ladder is the last wood project in the boat. It is probably the most heavily traveled and used item, up and down so I left it for last Ladders are interesting in that they hurt you when you least expect it such as when they get a bit wet from morning dew or when you don’t pay attention because you are tipsy!!!. That said here are some safety mods, first anti skid surface so you don’t fall on your ass at the most inopportune time, second make sure all your screws are secure that hold the actual ladder there is so much weight put on this thing daily that they actually work themselves loose and off comes the mounting plate and your ass is on the cabin floor. Trust me this happens more than you think.
Last so the ladder does not kick out from under you there is a clevis installed on the back which has a turnbuckle attached to secure it to the engine cover .The last thing I need is to have joy or her friends fall on their ass while coming on board. Safety first, is always a good practice. Boy have I changed my tune over the years.
Uwe
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| a quiet weekend |
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This was a quiet weekend
I finally learned how to properly felly a fish.
Jim came up Friday and Saturday we spent on the lake most of the day
Some house cleaning and a few repairs were done. Something always needs fixing on a boat
I did get the fuel pump running and the system installed both the electric and mechanical work fine I know this because for the first time ever I ran out of gas while motoring in. No problem we have sails it just takes longer.
Next week should be fun Christmas in July we are all going to decorate the boats.
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| upgrade |
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Ive made some additions to the boat upgrade section |
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| a full week of fun |
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This was the first full week on the boat, first the boat sails like a dream, and we had several night sails with a light breeze
And during the week some heavy thunder storms and the boat was surprisingly steady in high winds
The sails work great the little jib worked fine in 15 knot winds, the 130 in light air. Also this week a good friend gave me a storm sail for the boat as well as a full spinnaker. These sails now give me a complete set for the boat. We can sail in any condition.
Mid week was a bit of playing and getting used to the boat. The fuel pump still is not working and when I get back the new one should have arrived, so no more squeeze bulb. Poor Jims’ wife she got tired of keeping the engine running.
I also took home the mechanical pump to repair that. This will give me a nice backup just in case
Dick and George were a pleasure to be with this week as always. George at the helm of the boat is quite a sight, not his normal place on the boat.
Jim enjoys the helm immensely and he is very good at it. The powerboat is Wane, after 2 years of struggling with the engine; he bought a new one along with all the out drives, so now its turn the key and go.
Sue is taking sailing lessons, and doing well. The egret has become our pet for the summer and we watch as he goes fishing.
We did get a big thunderstorm Thursday and it took one of the houseboats off the dock and crushed the end of the dock. It was so strong it shifted the entire marina over about 3 feet right. Everything had to be straitened and all the support posts reset.
Saturday was my solo sail, I went out by myself for almost 5 hours and it was just heaven I cant wait to do all this again.
Uwe
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| the mast step and wet bottom |
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Today we stepped the mast and last weekend we launch the boat
First I started this project last Thursday for the prep work to get the boat ready. The thou hull fittings and plumbing first. Friday the mast, lines and lights and wiring and Finnish buffing out the starboard side of the hull. Saturday we put the boat in and she floats.
That was a fun affair. BJ was up with Torry and Caroline
There was a fitting that needed replacing in the hull
And we ended up getting water in the billage when we ran the engine. It took me until Tuesday to find out that I had left out the drain plug to the water pump when I installed it and it was pumping water directly into the boat when I ran the engine.
We also have a fuel pump that works sometime so that needs to be replaced.
Anyway the engine runs and the boat floats.
Tuesday BJ and I went up to step the mast at chipmans point so it was the boats first maiden voyage under power .and there is a lot with the tree bladed prop.
After the step the winds were high so we actually backed the boat out of its mooring were we stepped the mast. That was interesting because she refused to turn around until we hit the open water. They say you have to back the boat up at least 2 lengths to erase all of its past history and start over.
See the pics
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| The boat floats |
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The boat was launched saturday morning and asside from two minor problems it sits in the water fine.
The thruhull fitting I put in was not tight enough and it leaked a bit.The engine fuel system is intermitent and the engine will run for ten minutes and then just cut out. I think its the fuel pump( electric) and one of the water hoses leaks. All small problems that can be dealt with next week I need to step the mast this week.
Sorry I left the camera on board so I have to post pics when I get it back BJ has Pics and Plunder bay has pics.
Uwe |
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| thru hull fittings |
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there have been some bajor design updates to the thru hull fittings .I have placed the photos on the plumbing site
any questions ,please leave me a message
Thanks Uwe |
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| A quote |
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"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out and loudly proclaiming "WOW--What a Ride!"
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| the laswt bit of dry work |
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We are at the trailing end half of the starboard side has to be buffed out. Two thru hull fittings have to be installed and the masts needs one wire to be run and that’s it
NEXT WEEKEND INTO THE WATER
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| the mast |
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The mast is coming along fine; we put in some deck lights and cleaned up the wiring a bit
The mast got a new anchor light cover and fresh bulbs. The spreader bars have been refinished but I do need to come up with a back plate for both sides. The worst is the thru bolts at the top and at the spreader, both have a n aluminum tube with a 3/8 ss bolt running thru it, all corroded, I had to take home half the cable rigging along with these fittings to get the tube off the bolt. I beat the hell out of the tube after putting the heat to it and they did come off but will have to be replaced with new ones, I also took out a very large birds nest out of the end. All that’s left is some cleanup and then figure out a way to put the mast up.
Uwe
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