Very good.
From time to time I have played w/ the idea of something similar. We have
little distance to go, so @ present just use a kayak to the mooring, then
bring the boat back.
I do want to build a floating dock that can be somewhat dismantled.

"Terry K" wrote in message
oups.com...

Garland Gray II wrote:
Terry,
I'm curious about your cable ferry to your mooring.
Can you describe ?


The cable ferry I made consists of 6 oil barrels bound up with
champhered rough sawn cedar planks and steel strapping into two 10 foot
tubular floats hung together with figure of eight chains, topped with
each two 5X5 foot cedar plank decks, all dissassembled and retrieved
for wintering ashore and launched and assembled in the spring by two
people in gumboots. A steel clothesline is tied to a tree and the
mooring chain, to enable it's easy location and servicing after the
spring thaw, also serves to propel the floating dock between shore and
mooring, about 150 feet from shore. Rubber work gloves improve one's
grip on the wet cable.

I do not know how long the clothesline will last in fresh water, but we
do have clotheslines at home probably 25 years old and still ok. A
sinking nylon line serves as backup. It's year three, to date.

I do not know how long the unpainted plain black steel strapping wll
last, in fresh water and mud and acid rain ashore. I estimate at least
5 years, and will restrap early. Next time I will try some stainless
strapping. I used a borrowed (demo) strapping machine from Gerard Oval
Strapping. The tool is about 1200 bucks and uses no clips. Works a
treat. The planks are 5 inches wide, use each 13 - 10 footers (I
staggered 26 - 5 footers, they were on sale cheap) to encompass the
barrels, with one of about 3 inches, trimmed to make it all snug
together. Striking appearance.

Next, I anticipate another dock to be left at the mooring, possibly
with electricity from a shore cable, and possibly with a water turbine
hung below in the tidal flow, to send power ashore, made from a
differential axel and drive shaft to a generator on the raft. Maybe a
bunch, and commercial docking. Maybe a shape that doesn't need
wintering the ice ashore and commercial nets, even a fish farm?


"Terry K" wrote in message
oups.com...
I sail a 29' bilge keeler sloop on the St. John river, in New
Brunswick. I keep it at my cottage in Evandale.

We are in the tidal estuary, so we get reversing tidal flows of 3-4 kt,
but water levels range only about 2' normally, thanks to the protection
offered by the reversing falls at the mouth of the river, in the port
city of St. John. I use a cable ferry to get out to the mooring, and
sail as often as I can, though this year I am recuperating from
pancreas surgurey, so the boat is on the back yard on it's trailer.

I use a self tending jib to make sailing easier and more efficient when
beating against the wind and current. The St. John is perhaps half a
mile wide in spots. The wind direction relative to the river varies
with location as the river winds a bit and it is turbulent near the
banks, all part of the fun.

We have not yet explored all that we might get to. We have spent weeks
at a time sailing our river and it's lakes. It is beautiful and
relaxing.

For day sails, we mostly go up current, and up wind to start, if
possible.

I look foreward to shooting the falls and going to the island of Grand
Manan, my wife's childhood home some time.

I hope you will enjoy sailing anywhere you go.

Terry K