"The Chesapeake does not impress those who know it best as the grandest or most of anything. For all its size and gross statistics, it is an intimate place where land and water intertwine in infinite verities of mood and pattern." William W. Warner "Beautiful Swimmers"
|
Sailing The Chesapeake The sailing adventures on
Aeolus II of West River
Joe McCary
Home Waters
The 2009 Sailing Season
Wednesday, June 23th, 2009 What a special day! Our granddaughter Claire came to town for a visit (mommy was at a meeting in DC) so we went sailing! We were out for a record 3½ hours! Previously she had only been out for an hour or so, but with the cool temps and light winds we made an afternoon of the trip. Claire said she wanted to go fishing so we bought some worms and tried her hand. But in reality, all she wanted to do was reel in the line as soon as it hit the water. So, fishing lasted just a few minutes and sailing was the remainder of the afternoon. Not a whimper or a tear, we sailed slowly (no heeling in the light airs) but she had a good time. She doesn't complain about the PDF but clearly she doesn't like it. I can't think of a better way to spend an afternoon than sailing with a granddaughter! Maybe as she gains a few years and more experience we can brave more wind, but for now the gods have been right on the money on what she needs wind wise. Thank you AEOLUS!
Sunday, June 7th, 2009 The winds were forecast to be light and variable and all morning I watched as the wind at Thomas Point hit a blustery 5 knots at 11am. So we decided to go do some maintenance on the boat. On the last afternoon sailing I had a broken mast tang that attaches the boom vang to the mast, so I went by West marine and picked up a new piece ($4.50) and a few extra items ( a new float switch for the auto bilge pump, 2 screws in case the existing screws on the vang were damages or had to be cut off. I also bought my granddaughter, Claire, a nice whale flashlight. Then on to the boat. My landlord, Joe was there doing some yard maintenance (a good thing, I'll explain later). I started to remove the old screws. But, the screws (I have no idea how long they were in the mast) were frozen solid. I tried some oil, but they didn't budge. Joe, the landlord offered a "Nut Driver" he had in the shed. It is basically a manually operated hammer drill. You whack the end with a hammer and the force is converted to not only with a blow in but also a ¼ turn to unscrew the screw. The top screw broke loose in about 5 whacks. But the lower screw took repeated blows until it finally began to turn. But turn it did and the both came out and surprisingly, were reusable. The $4.40 tang needed to fit in the mast slot but wouldn't quite fit. So rather than repeat the same banging process to loosen screws further up the mast (big cleat would have been in the way) I drilled out a ½ inch of the mast slot. The rest was simple, the boom vang was back in working order in about a half hour. Now I was ready to go for a short sail. I started getting the boat ready. But Mary (the Admiral) let me know she wasn't feeling great and would rather skip sailing. So, after some other projects, skip it we did. We went to Ledo's Pizza for a late (6:30) lunch, maybe hunger was the problem... And then a pleasant drive home. Maybe sailing will come next weekend.
Saturday, May 20th, 2009
Memorial Day Weekend
Wednesday, May 20th, 2009 A Great Summer Evening Oh, What a night! Mary and I went to the boat about 6pm. We dodged the PCRC fleets as they raced out of the river. Our clean bottom gave us a feeling of extra speed and the engine purred along smoothly. After clearing out of West River's narrow channel we headed out for the Red #2 and the Bay beyond. At about 7 we turned around and headed back. As we approached the mouth of Rhodes River we noticed the last 4 non spinnaker boats heading for the finish line. They last boat was about 300 yards ahead of us and moving slowly. We easily gained on her and by the time we reached the anchorage area we were ahead but since we were not racing and she was, we luffed up and let her pass and head for the finish line. It was great sailing on a nice cool evening at 5.8-6.2 knots. Two very relaxing hours on the water is worth their weight in gold. The spot record below is missing a half hour of our trip, the half hour would have extended us out further in the Bay by 1.5 miles. So much for super accurate tecnhology.
Wednesday, May 13th, 2009 SPLASH DAY 2! One the first try the engine alarm went off and the boat was re-hauled and Casa Rio Marina mechanic came back and waved his magic wand and 3 days later it was running like a sewing machine, better than it has run since I got it. Today I was called and told the boat was ready to re-launch. I was busy early in the day and could have it wait in a slip for me a few days. But the weather report is for rain and thunder storms later in he week, so after our scheduled meeting for Mary's retirement we made our way to Casa Rio and I drove the boat to her slip. The engine purred all the way in spite of bucking 20+ knot head winds most of the way. It was a relief to she her safely in her slip. Next step will be some actual sailing!
Friday, May 8th, 2009 SPLASH DAY!
It has been raining for months here, well ok, for days anyway. It has rained everyday this month . My boat has been waiting for the yards to finish some work. They did a beautiful job on the bottom paint and they buffed the topsides to a nice shine, she looks new. The engine, a 4 stroke Honda 9.9 needed the oil changed and some new grease and I decided it was time to replace the impeller (preemptive maintenance)
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
The boat is nearly ready to re-launch. All that remains is the ready the outboard for the season (new oil and new plugs, etc). And I have to wait until the marina can schedule the re-launch and then drive back to the boat. Of course there is still some cleaning work that needs to be done, but that can all be done from the slip. The year is about to begin...
Friday, April 24, 2009 The bottom is painted!
The week has been cool and rainy. Yesterday (Thursday) was the first nice day . I was glad I had asked Casa Rio marina to handle the painting, they handle the daily charge and all the prep and paint and I just have to wonder when they will be done. So, today I drive down and am pleasantly surprised to see the bottom and hull polishing are both done! They did a nice job. With the purchase of an eight foot A frame ladder I venture into the cockpit to start cleaning. On my last visit to West Marine I purchased some new biodegradable deck cleaner and mildew stain remover. These Are the new West Marine Pure Oceans line of products. I am pleasantly surprised to find they really work well! Upon reading the instructions I learned that you do not dilute them in a bucket of water like most deck cleaners. Instead you wet the surface and then spray them cleaner on let it foam a bit and then scrub off. It was like magic. And the West Marine Mildew Stain Remover worked as well! In my 35 years of sailing I have found mildew the hardest to remove of all the various sailboat messes and this seems to always come with a very noxious smell. But the new West Marine Mildew Stain Remover works with ease AND doesn't have a bad odor. This winter left the cabin side of the main sliding hatch covered with a black mildew. To remove it I just sprayed on the remover and wiped clean with a paper towel! Easy! Tomorrow will find me back cleaning more of the deck and some inside the cabin. All that will remain is for the mechanic to take care of oil and grease and change the plugs on the outboard. Last Summer Mary and I met some new boat owners from New Brunswick. They were having lunch at an adjacent table and we over heard they had just purchased a new boat. Today found Rik and Linda just 4 boats down the line getting their boat ready for the long trip home in a couple weeks.
Thursday, April 16, 2009 Haul Out DAY!
The taxes are all done (tax day in the USA is April 15th) and the boat was scheduled to be hauled today (10 am). I went to the boat early and started the engine (the battery held a charge over the winter!) on the 2nd try. After a quick trip out of West River and over to Rhode River and up Cadle Creek. The trip was cold and seemed windy, but was uneventful. I made my way to Casa Rio Marina at the prescribed time of 10 am. The yard guy carefully hauled her out and power washed the bottom to clean all the scum off. Then a short trip to the yard space. So, there she sits, high and dry on the hard. Some observations, no blisters and no "Catalina Smile" so I am a happy owner. She is very dirty, so a good cleaning is first of the "projects" I have to do. And then there is the new winches and the traveler to install. Hopefully she will be done in a week to 10 days. She is sporting her new Maryland annual registration decals and a new fishing license ($50) so she will be ready for Spring in a couple weeks.
Saturday, March 28th, 2009 Just a quick note to thank my site viewers. Today is the archive day for the Cluster Maps statics. In the past year there has been 1443 hits from 31 countries. That is a nice number, so, thank you. And to those 13 hits from Mongolia, well you have my attention. Fair Winds and following seas to all...
...
Sunday March 22nd, 2009 When I was finally released from the boot I was able to make a visit to the boat to check for water and how she was tied. Much to my surprise, she was dry as a bone! Not a drop in the cockpit or in the cabin. And she was tied well. I was so relieved after spending the past several months worrying about the water she surely had taken on. I was accompanied by the wife, Mary, and my mom. We had a nice lunch at Pirates Cove. While at the boat I marked the location with my new SPOT, so you can see the slip. I would warn that the Google Maps image is over 2 years old and that is not the boat, but instead, the older Seafarer 22. The SPOT will remain on for a week (3/29)., but also I have put a version of the same map above. While at Pirates Cove we noticed that they are doing some shoring around the public dock. They are installing some large rip-rap to help fight the erosion. Rocks are not too common on The Bay so I made a mental note that these are large boulders. The next step is to arrange to have the boat hauled and get the bottom painted and the new hardware installed.
Friday March 20th, 2009 My foot is well on it's way to being healed! An early morning visit to my Doctor confirmed that my broken foot has been healing. Although the doctor said it is not completely healed but is well on it's way to being completely filled in. Now I am allowed to "transition" from my ugly boot to shoes, that is 2 shoes! He warned that I may experience some pain and might want to wear the boot. Well, he is the doctor so I won't question his wisdom, but I don't see it hurting again. Of course, I will take it easy and be very careful with my foot. My next project is arranging to have the boat pulled and the bottom done. There is plenty of work I need to do this spring, things like installing the new traveler and mounting the Bimini and installing new winches. Loads of general cleaning and some varnishing are on the list. Also, I purchased a "new" new roller furler and and 3 sails, a 120% and a Mylar 150% and a fully battened main. This Sunday I plan a visit to check out the boat and will report back then.
They are predicting snow tonight, the most of the winter, 4" to 8" and the worst will be East of DC, so the boat will get dumped on. My foot is still in that ugly boot and will remain so for another 3 weeks. I can't wait to get that thing off... Now for the fun news. My granddaughter, Claire, who lives some 400+ miles away keeps me smiling through all the winter. Today she painted me a picture of Aeolus (see left). I can see it, sailing along on a starboard tack on a calm Chesapeake Bay. When everyone else is looking at the prospect of snow and more snow and cold winter, Claire keeps thinking of warmer times and sailing! She sure knows the way to my heart when she keeps asking, "When do we get to go ride on Aeolus, Granddad?" Spring is just a few weeks away and then a little bit of work and then we can go sailing Claire, Granddad can't wait!
Wednesday February 18th, 2009 I had a doctor's visit last week and the foot "appears" to be healing. But that sounded a bit tenuous. He said he will know more in a month or so... This has to be done before sailing season! This boot is beginning to be a real drag. Any wet weather means a wet sock and cold toes. This better be cleared up before April first. I have begun thinking about this season's upgrades to the boat. My plan now is to have it pulled in April and while on the hard to have the engine looked over and checked out. I will also add the long awaited traveler. And IF I can find the funds maybe a new set of Self-Tailing 2 speed winches. And parentally install the Bimini top. I have been thinking about doing some modifications to the interior. The admiral wants a more comfortable bunk and make it wider, so I am looking into that possibility too. And heck since I am day dreaming/planning why not a new teak and holly cabin sole?
Tuesday January 20th, 2009 Winter is supposed to be the time to get ready for sailing season. We make plans for our first weekends and keep adding to that ever expanding "To Do" list for spring haul out. But today I had a setback. I went to a former neighbor's wedding Sunday the 18th and while walking across the floor I felt a sharp pain in my foot as I turned around a table. A visit to the Orthopedist today confirmed that I had a non-displaced Jones fracture of the 5th Metatarsal bone in my left foot. Talk about a klutz? So, while everyone else is bundling up, I am wearing this way less than fashionable black boot with my sock sticking out the front end. It doesn't hurt much but what a pain in the neck.
My BEST Christmas present ever...
December 25th 2008
My wife & I decided to venture to Massachusetts to visit the grand kids for the Holidays this year. We gave Claire, our 2 year old granddaughter, a doll house that came equipped with furniture and some small doll figures. We also give her a small wooden bathtub sailboat. Of course she instantly dubbed the boat "Aeolus", but the surprising part was, she went and took out the small dolls from the doll house and put 2 of them in the boat and told me it was Claire and Granddad! What a special moment it was for me to see she was putting herself and me into a sailboat. I feel I have a convert! The boat was eventually moved from it's place behind the doll house to a more convenient location and she played with it the entire week we were there. I see a bigger boat in this kid's future! But for now, this was my nicest Christmas Gift, what more could a Sailor/Granddad ask for than to have the apple of his eye put herself and him into a boat without anyone else suggesting it to her? I was, and still am, touched!
To email Joe McCary
|
Sunday March 1st, 2009
0
