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#1
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
Well, it's been a very long time coming, but the rehab, repairs and
refit are finished on Flying Pig. Those interested in the gory details are encouraged to go to the log sites, the photo galleries, and perhaps prior emails, but it suffices to say that we've come from a wreck to a gem. New hardware, fittings and other niceties following the structural and hull repairs make our seatrialed vessel seaworthy, comfortable and otherwise a joy to be aboard. Despite the blistering hot temps here, we've survived with fans and a night-time shower. Unfortunately for us in those areas where we may be shortly, if it's 95 out, the fan we have in the aft cabin, where we sleep, won't be used, as it's 110V, and a high drain on our electrical system. That said, we do have household current aboard, and will use it to charge our computers, power some of our internet and entertainment stuff, and, even (luxuries are found, even aboard), grind our coffee in the morning, saving me the 75 strokes on the manual grinder I had used for about a year, until we were given a very high quality electric unit which not only does a great job in grinding, but is so quick as to be nearly meaningless in load on our batteries which supply the unit which translates 12V to 110V. I'll spare you the details on what we have done, but it's enough to say that it's been staggering, and regularly, on the telling of the umpteen acquaintances we've made as a result of our notoriety, goggled and jaw-dropped over and about both the amount and speed of our recovery. In the meantime, lots of new stuff (replacing old) was added, so we should be very good to go for a long time, ordinary maintenance aside. A few days ago, we passed along (to a fellow cruiser) the vehicle which had, right after our wreck been given us by another cruiser, and, as I type this, will return the rental we had, later today. As always with departures, there are last minute runnings-around to attend to, but they're minor and will be accomplished quickly. We've acquired so many new and helpful friends that it's difficult to try to enumerate them, but the significant ones of the moment are Erkki Taada and Phillip Savill. Erkki used to build satellites for the Canadian government, and had a payload on one of the shuttles, among other things. Thus, he's pretty good at electronics, and has been working tirelessly to get us up and running in areas we've not yet had success in achieving. He's also very fully equipped, or has friends who are, where he's not, as a machinist and other very useful skills, and has helped immensely in the accomplishment of many mechanical areas. Phillip is an accomplished power boat captain and master fisherman (delete questionable joke about baiting skills) who just happens to also be a master craftsman in wood, having built his own boat to look like a victorian salon inside, and having done many restorations of Tampa historic buildings. In the meantime, he used to build boats for a living, so knows more than enough to have been very valuable in many other areas aboard. These two are joining us in our initial leg. We'll anchor overnight at Egmont Key, the location of our recent sea trials overnight stays, and head out at first light direct to Key West (nearly a straight shot south), going around there and continuing direct to Fort Lauderdale. In FTL we'll stop at the Seven Seas Cruising Association offices for more charts, attend to any issues which have arisen in our dash (anticipated time minimum 3, more likely 5-6, days from our expected Thursday AM departure) there, fuel and water the boat, and head out again. From there we'll jump into the Gulf Stream, gaining 2-4 knots (half again our boat speed, perhaps), and barring any oddities in distress or weather, not get off until we either get to the NYC area, or, if it's *really* fast, perhaps even Cumberland/Portland Maine. The Gulf Stream, in opposing wind directions, is really nasty. However, this time of year, that's a very minimal percentage of the time, and the prevailing winds are favorable for a very fast passage. The more time we spend aboard, and the more time spent sailing her, the better we love Flying Pig. We'll be out of touch by both internet and phone for the periods of our being at sea, but we're hopeful of being able to do radio-based email in the short-term future. Whether we get it done before we leave FTL is subject to reality, but when we have it, we'll identify how to find us that way, too. We've just had a mini-storm here, washing the decks which are currently in total disarray, as we've not yet stowed all that we took off in our rehab. We also are currently (as I type this) without internet connection, so I'm hopeful I'm able to get it out before we actually leave. If you see this on Wednesday, July 11, you'll know I succeeded :{)) Finally, though I know you've heard it many times before, endless thanks to all who have lent support, work, love, aid and otherwise helped us turn our wreck around into something more positive than we can effectively communicate. We're very blessed, and continue to pay it forward. Obviously, what goes around comes around. Stay tuned for further developments. As we regain connectivity, we'll post new pix in the new gallery "Away We Go - - AGAIN" in the Flying Pig is Aloft gallery - the first one in the link below. L8R Love from Skip and Lydia Morgan 461 #2 SV Flying Pig KI4MPC See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery ! Follow us at http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog and/or http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true. You may have to work for it however." (and) "There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts." (Richard Bach, in The Reluctant Messiah) |
#2
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
Best of luck to you and Lydia, Skip. :-)
"Skip Gundlach" wrote in message oups.com... Well, it's been a very long time coming, but the rehab, repairs and refit are finished on Flying Pig. Those interested in the gory details are encouraged to go to the log sites, the photo galleries, and perhaps prior emails, but it suffices to say that we've come from a wreck to a gem. New hardware, fittings and other niceties following the structural and hull repairs make our seatrialed vessel seaworthy, comfortable and otherwise a joy to be aboard. Despite the blistering hot temps here, we've survived with fans and a night-time shower. Unfortunately for us in those areas where we may be shortly, if it's 95 out, the fan we have in the aft cabin, where we sleep, won't be used, as it's 110V, and a high drain on our electrical system. That said, we do have household current aboard, and will use it to charge our computers, power some of our internet and entertainment stuff, and, even (luxuries are found, even aboard), grind our coffee in the morning, saving me the 75 strokes on the manual grinder I had used for about a year, until we were given a very high quality electric unit which not only does a great job in grinding, but is so quick as to be nearly meaningless in load on our batteries which supply the unit which translates 12V to 110V. I'll spare you the details on what we have done, but it's enough to say that it's been staggering, and regularly, on the telling of the umpteen acquaintances we've made as a result of our notoriety, goggled and jaw-dropped over and about both the amount and speed of our recovery. In the meantime, lots of new stuff (replacing old) was added, so we should be very good to go for a long time, ordinary maintenance aside. A few days ago, we passed along (to a fellow cruiser) the vehicle which had, right after our wreck been given us by another cruiser, and, as I type this, will return the rental we had, later today. As always with departures, there are last minute runnings-around to attend to, but they're minor and will be accomplished quickly. We've acquired so many new and helpful friends that it's difficult to try to enumerate them, but the significant ones of the moment are Erkki Taada and Phillip Savill. Erkki used to build satellites for the Canadian government, and had a payload on one of the shuttles, among other things. Thus, he's pretty good at electronics, and has been working tirelessly to get us up and running in areas we've not yet had success in achieving. He's also very fully equipped, or has friends who are, where he's not, as a machinist and other very useful skills, and has helped immensely in the accomplishment of many mechanical areas. Phillip is an accomplished power boat captain and master fisherman (delete questionable joke about baiting skills) who just happens to also be a master craftsman in wood, having built his own boat to look like a victorian salon inside, and having done many restorations of Tampa historic buildings. In the meantime, he used to build boats for a living, so knows more than enough to have been very valuable in many other areas aboard. These two are joining us in our initial leg. We'll anchor overnight at Egmont Key, the location of our recent sea trials overnight stays, and head out at first light direct to Key West (nearly a straight shot south), going around there and continuing direct to Fort Lauderdale. In FTL we'll stop at the Seven Seas Cruising Association offices for more charts, attend to any issues which have arisen in our dash (anticipated time minimum 3, more likely 5-6, days from our expected Thursday AM departure) there, fuel and water the boat, and head out again. From there we'll jump into the Gulf Stream, gaining 2-4 knots (half again our boat speed, perhaps), and barring any oddities in distress or weather, not get off until we either get to the NYC area, or, if it's *really* fast, perhaps even Cumberland/Portland Maine. The Gulf Stream, in opposing wind directions, is really nasty. However, this time of year, that's a very minimal percentage of the time, and the prevailing winds are favorable for a very fast passage. The more time we spend aboard, and the more time spent sailing her, the better we love Flying Pig. We'll be out of touch by both internet and phone for the periods of our being at sea, but we're hopeful of being able to do radio-based email in the short-term future. Whether we get it done before we leave FTL is subject to reality, but when we have it, we'll identify how to find us that way, too. We've just had a mini-storm here, washing the decks which are currently in total disarray, as we've not yet stowed all that we took off in our rehab. We also are currently (as I type this) without internet connection, so I'm hopeful I'm able to get it out before we actually leave. If you see this on Wednesday, July 11, you'll know I succeeded :{)) Finally, though I know you've heard it many times before, endless thanks to all who have lent support, work, love, aid and otherwise helped us turn our wreck around into something more positive than we can effectively communicate. We're very blessed, and continue to pay it forward. Obviously, what goes around comes around. Stay tuned for further developments. As we regain connectivity, we'll post new pix in the new gallery "Away We Go - - AGAIN" in the Flying Pig is Aloft gallery - the first one in the link below. L8R Love from Skip and Lydia Morgan 461 #2 SV Flying Pig KI4MPC See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery ! Follow us at http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog and/or http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true. You may have to work for it however." (and) "There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts." (Richard Bach, in The Reluctant Messiah) |
#3
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
The Walrus and the Carpenter
The sun was shining on the sea, Shining with all his might: He did his very best to make The billows smooth and bright -- And this was odd, because it was The middle of the night. The moon was shining sulkily, Because she thought the sun Had got no business to be there After the day was done -- 'It's very rude of him.' she said, 'To come and spoil the fun!' The sea was wet as wet could be, The sands were dry as dry. You could not see a cloud, because No cloud was in the sky: No birds were flying overhead -- There were no birds to fly. The Walrus and the Carpenter Were walking close at hand: They wept like anything to see Such quantities of sand: 'If this were only cleared away,' They said, 'it would be grand.' 'If seven maids with seven mops Swept it for half a year, Do you suppose,' the Walrus said, 'That they could get it clear?' 'I doubt it,' said the Carpenter, And shed a bitter tear. 'O Oysters, come and walk with us! The Walrus did beseech. 'A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk, Along the briny beach: We cannot do with more than four, To give a hand to each.' The eldest Oyster looked at him, But never a word he said: The eldest Oyster winked his eye, And shook his heavy head -- Meaning to say he did not choose To leave the oyster-bed. Out four young Oysters hurried up. All eager for the treat: Their coats were brushed, their faces washed, Their shoes were clean and neat -- And this was odd, because, you know, They hadn't any feet. Four other Oysters followed them, And yet another four; And thick and fast they came at last, And more, and more, and more -- All hopping through the frothy waves, And scrambling to the shore. The Walrus and the Carpenter Walked on a mile or so, And then they rested on a rock Conveniently low: And all the little Oysters stood And waited in a row. 'The time has come,' the Walrus said, 'To talk of many things: Of shoes -- and ships -- and sealing wax -- Of cabbages -- and kings -- And why the sea is boiling hot -- And whether pigs have wings.' |
#4
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
On Wed, 11 Jul 2007 20:23:38 -0000, Skip Gundlach
wrote: Well, it's been a very long time coming, but the rehab, repairs and refit are finished on Flying Pig. Good luck, and be safe out there. Slow and steady wins the race. Keep a good weather eye peeled for those low pressure systems coming up from the tropics, and from off the coast. I don't want to be reading any more news articles about you guys. Wayne B (currently in Long Island Sound awaiting passage of a mid-western cold front) |
#5
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
Yes, Skip,
And stay away from errant drifting WWII mines, or whatever! G'Luck! Have you ever sailed the reversing falls, Billy? Please show your free laundry ticket to the commissionaire. Be careful, my wife might recruit you. Wanna watch a parking lot for 8 bucks an hour? Terry K |
#6
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
4PM Friday, July 13th - a great Friday the 13th it is, too!
We left our slip at about 10:30 yesterday and went up the creek to fuel. I'd estimated we'd take 50 gallons, but it was only 48, instead. We executed a close-quarters turnaround, and headed out on the rest of our lives - again! - at a little after 11AM. The wind was right on our nose heading south, so we motored our way under the Skyway Bridge, perhaps for the last time. A few squalls caused multiple openings and closings of our hatches and ports, in blistering St. Pete summer with 95 degree heat. Once under the bridge, we set sail on a perfect close reach, and once past the shallows at the end of the Southwest Channel, headed direct to Key West on a lovely beam reach. We set all the sails (well, the genny, the staysail and the main - we'd been told that there would be more wind than would make the spinnaker prudent) and pulled confidently forward in all of 5 knots of wind, making about 5 knots. Unfortunately for us, the wind was light, then died altogether, so we pulled in the furling genny and motored slowly at about 4 knots with the staysail and main pulled blade tight to minimize rolling. In truth, though, the entire night and most of the next day was nearly flat water. We slowed the boat down in order to not arrive in Key West before daylight, and as I write, we're again at 4 knots, which will put us at a fishing spot right at dawn. We set up our watch schedules as 8 on/ 8 off, with a pair splitting each 8 hour shift. So far, that has worked very well, indeed. We were all up and at 'em in the beginning, of course, so we didn't start our shifts for the first few hours. Lydia went immediately for a nap, having stayed up until 3:30, again, so, needed the rest. Phil and she took the first watch at 4, and Erkki and I puttered around with electronics and took naps, coming back on duty at midnight in relief. After a wonderful breakfast of French toast and eggs, he and I were entertained by not only the Milky Way, but also light shows of lightning off in the distance, and even a few meteorites blazing across the sky. As I write, I'm waiting for the third of the satellite passes which are giving us real-time pictures of the weather around us - for thousands of miles. The most recent showed us the Gulf of Mexico and west of Central America as well as down to about Guatemala and north about to Arkansas. The next one showed us the Atlantic at about the same latitudes as the first, nearly out to the western coast of Africa. When the satellite goes directly over us, in about another half-hour, we get a view of an area from well into South America and up to Hudson Bay. Overall, we have real-time information on weather. Last night, we got our first real test of the SSB - Single Side Band High Frequency radio. I participated in the Mobile Maritime Net - the only boat to check in, with the others being mobile (auto or truck mounted) or fixed, land-based stations. We had been very concerned over our apparent inability to communicate over our radio, but it turned out to be a hazard of marina life - metal buildings, metal roofs, and a forest of masts. While we could not hear the control (the guy who directs traffic, so to speak), I was getting through loud and clear. Today we started fishing in earnest. We put out our trolls, and quickly caught a Bonita (sort of like a tuna, but extremely bloody - we cut him up for bait for when we're in the Gulf Stream), two barracuda (which we tossed back), and then a mackerel. A lovely fish, we filleted him immediately, hoping to catch another for dinner. In between, we believe we must have attracted a shark, as not only was the lure gone, but the leader was much abraded quite a bit up the line from the lure. Ever optimistic, we set again (all this while doodling along at about 4 knots). Interrupting the electronics project we had, as well as just as we were going to stop the boat and take a swim, a very large fish hit our port side line. After long time of reeling, as she'd pulled off a lot of line before we got to the rod, we successfully boated a 48" king mackerel. I said she because there was also a huge egg sac. We decided we'd better put away the rods for a while, as we have something on the order of 20 pounds of fish from that single catch. We've just finished a huge meal, immediately roasted on the grill, which was more than awesome, not to mention filling. There's still a gargantuan amount of fish left from the first half, which is all we had room to cook. The second half is being saved for other delicacies - sushi, sashimi, ceviche, a salad, and sandwiches, among others. In 77 feet of water currently, the color is stunning, and while we can't see (or, at least, know what we're seeing) the bottom, crystal clear. Our delayed swim was tempered by the reality of sharks, so we waited until we'd moved well away from the area over which we cleaned the King Mackerel. No sharks showed up for the remains we were throwing over, but there was a small crab which stood by and then latched on to one of the smaller bits, immediately heading into deeper water. It was amusing to see him swim sideways to keep up with the drifting boat until we tossed over his treat. Once clear of the area, we put the boat into a hard turn, so that its motion would be minimized, and jumped in, hanging on to mooring lines we'd put in the water to wash. While the water was very warm, it was still refreshing, and we took advantage of our stop to do a "Joy Shower" - Joy dish detergent makes a great salt-water wash. So, we stood on the platform one at a time - it's not that large! - and jumped in to rinse off. After getting off the soap, we climbed out for our fresh water rinse with the shower on the stern. That platform got a lot of work today, cleaning three fish, and washing down with the pressure-fed salt-water washdown on the stern (with Joy, of course!), so it looks great. We have taken to doing our entire exterior teak with the lightest grade of olive oil available, so we thought we'd do the platform as well. However, if this pattern continues, there won't be any way we'll have any olive oil left on it! Our exterior teak looks marvelous doing this - and there's no sanding, either! Well, I'm now on watch, so I'll stop here. More to follow. L8R Skip Morgan 461 #2 SV Flying Pig KI4MPC See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery ! Follow us at http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog and/or http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true. You may have to work for it however." (and) "There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts." (Richard Bach, in The Reluctant Messiah) |
#7
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
July 15th - Oops - we missed Ft. Lauderdale
Erkki and I had the dawn patrol today. Our shift included looking at lots of shipping, as well as distant thunderstorms, on our radar, as we tracked the Gulf Stream in search of a lift north. All the light shows resulted in nothing, however, as they were too far away to affect us. One (additional - after all the rest so far) problem which surfaced early on, however, was that apparently our mast-top navigation light has no red light. That means vessels approaching us from our port side can't see us. That's meant that we have to run our deck level navigation lights, as well as our masthead, or steaming, lights. As those lights are of the heat-generating type, they use a lot of electricity. So, we'll have to attend to that rather quickly, as we won't want to run our deck level lights any more than necessary - not to mention that the mast-top light is new, and high-tech, so we want to get it replaced immediately. Fortunately for this set of circumstances, however, the wind continues to be nonexistent - or so low as to require running the engine. Running the engine generates more electricity than we use, so it's been ok about the lights. As I write this, we're again under motor, with sails furled other than the main, which is up to minimize rolling in the light waves which are present tonight. Earlier today, the wind was entirely dead, starting shortly after first light. As sunlight is the biggest age component of sails, we stowed them all, and motored on. Fortunately, the Gulf Stream added speed to our travels, as expected, and we continued to make good time with light use of the "Iron Genny" - so nicknamed for replacing the genoa (the big sail up front) - similar to the "Iron Horse" of pioneer times. However, it was so hot that we also took a swim and bath break around noon. It was very refreshing, and lowered our body temperatures, despite the Gulf Stream being in the upper 80s. We renewed our vigor and continued to motor. As I was off shift, I went down to nap, again, and when I came up, the wind had picked up to a wonderful 4 knots, in a direction suitable for putting out the spinnaker. So, of course, we did. Another phantasmagorical sail under that marvelous piece of rainbow cloth. We were making 5 and 6 knots in the water, but with the Gulf Stream lift, we were making 9 or more knots over ground. We'd been making such good time since we entered the stream that we took a meeting and the crew decided we'd go to Daytona Beach, instead. There, it will take less time to drive home, and, as a bonus, there may be a ride available from one of Erkki's friends. As I write, we're off North Palm Beach, making over 8 knots with a 4 knot lift from the Gulf Stream. As it's such a boost, even though it goes offshore rather much by the time we get to Daytona Beach, we'll ride it until nearly 30 miles to go, then triangulate into the entry. This will duplicate the entry I made all these years ago, on our proving cruise with my second ex-wife's father. He'd been taking on crew as he did a single-handed circumnavigation, and we were one of the last legs; it's what convinced Lydia that it's what she wanted to do for the rest of our lives. Tonight on the SSB was better, in that I could hear the traffic, and, while the control in mid-Florida couldn't hear me, a guy in Texas could, and relayed our information for us. We're now in the winlink.com tracking section, so those interested could go to the web site and look for our call sign, seen in the sig line, but KI4MPC (Kilo India Four Mike Poppa Charlie). However, this time around also exposed a weakness, said to be a well known difficulty in our particular radio. At high power, we get voice clipping. Practically speaking, that means people can hear us but not understand us. The good news is that it amounts to a product defect, and should be remedied at no cost - albeit not only a delay, and probably at least the shipping costs to return it to the factory or some authorized service center. So, there are some things we'd like to get repaired or corrected, as soon as possible. If there's a service center in Daytona Beach, it's worth spending some time there to have that defect remedied. Of course, if there are service centers, likely NYC would have one, which would be OK, too, as we at least are able to check in with the Mobile Maritime Net. Likewise, if my supplier can send me a replacement mast light overnight, I could get that installed while we're in Daytona. Given the level of security that represents in shipping lanes, that's a high priority. Fortunately for the nuisance factor, there are also several other things I need to do up the mast, so I can attend to them at the same time. Overall, we're doing much better than hoped, and the breakages and difficulties are part and parcel of cruising. The saying goes that "Cruising is boat repair in exotic locations!" I'm not certain how exotic Daytona Beach, and New York City environs is, but at least it fits with the usual epectations of having to fix something after every voyage. Fortunately for us, those things so far are minimal. Erkki and I have the midnight shift tonight (ends at midnight) so I should get another full night's sleep, and be ready to go at it again. So far, so good, and we're thrilled to find that it's meeting our expectations. L8R Skip Morgan 461 #2 SV Flying Pig KI4MPC See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery ! Follow us at http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog and/or http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true. You may have to work for it however." (and) "There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts." (Richard Bach, in The Reluctant Messiah) |
#8
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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Saturday, July 14. Happy Bastille Day! And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
My apologies for the out-of-sequence posting. I was totally blasted
from the heat and sleep deprivation (why that was in later posts). The last one will make more sense after this: Saturday, July 14. Happy Bastille Day! Last night was a litany of electronic difficulties. The mobile maritime net, which, albeit with a relay, had worked so well before, this time was nearly unintelligible to the folks on the other side. While I could hear very well, I wasn't well heard. Tonight, I am unable to understand any of the traffic - so I'm back to not knowing whether I have a problem, or it's just the nature of the solar cycle or some other global difficulties. Then, after we'd redone a wiring-problem installation of a depth sounder and speed log, upgrading to being able to independently switch on the lights, we found that the depth sounder wasn't reading the depth, and the speed log wasn't working, either. Fast forward to the next day and the impeller (the thing that gets pushed around by the water running by it) became loose, again, apparently, rotating and providing electronic input to the display unit and now we have a speed indicator that works. Another of our instruments has the same difficulty, but I will pull it out (making a small amount of water in the boat) and free it up. We concluded that our last week in the marina slip,, with extremely high and low tides, as well as a case of the red tide (which killed a lot of small fish and made for a very nasty water environment), had gunked up our impellers so that they didn't work I have one other minor check point to do in order to see about the depth sounder - new right before we left! - and hope that it's a simple fix. We're on 8-hour doubles shifts, which is to say that each pair can get an entire 8 hours of rest. Before our expected changeover at midnight, Erkki and I elected to let our relief sleep an extra hour, in order to allow them more rest. After they arrived, and we had briefed them on what was happening with our course, speed, and location, I went to bed. I got a great night's sleep, but it wasn't so restful topsides. Adding to our list of things to investigate or take care of is the refrigeration. We believe that we are just stressing it immensely, with all the constant opening and closing, insertion of warm water and newly- caught fish, and the huge amount of heat added each time we trade out one slightly colder bottle of water for another, newly poured, 90 degree gallon. However, where we used to be able to easily maintain single-digit temperatures in the freezer, and 35 degrees in the refrigerator, we're struggling to get to 20 in the freezer, and are over 50 in the reefer. Back to last night. There were miscellaneous squalls to be avoided, but, primarily, there were issues with each and every one of the instruments in our helm area. The speed and depth logs mentioned earlier were already known inoperative, but at various times overnight the chartplotter failed, the GPS integrated to the chartplotter lost its fix (repeatedly), the other helm-mounted GPS either wouldn't light, wouldn't acquire the satellites, or wouldn't even come on. The speed indicator lost its light (apparently - it's connected with the autopilot, which controls the light level), entirely. The fish finder, which integrates speed, depth and temperature, is so old that the display is difficult to read. Adding insult to injury, the speed portion is the other impeller mentioned, which I will have to pull out (opening a hole in the boat) in order to free up. Disappointingly, it's also the trip log, so our distance traveled will have to be recorded based on the distances between waypoints. And, finally, the lashing securing the boom to the point of the staysail where it attaches to the sheet (which controls how tightly it's pulled) opened, creating momentary flogging and banging. The killer was, however, that it required heading into the wind, in order to take the strain off the sail, to repair it. While that job was pretty straightforward and simple, the autopilot chose that occasion to hiccup, and the speed, autopilot, chartplotter and GPS (both of them - the one below which controls the autopilot, and the one at the helm) all took dumps at the same time. The end result was lots of hand-driving to keep the boat pointed correctly while repairing the sail, and, in the end, a lack of knowledge of where the boat was, and how to get to where we were going, other than by compass. While driving by compass is ok if you are confident of where you are and where you're going, if you know neither, and are in the area of very shallow water, as the end of that particular leg of the trip was, it gets a bit nerve wracking. In the end, the instruments were persuaded to return to duty, and the sailing resumed. That's the good news - the wind had finally picked up enough to sail, without having to run the engine. All through the night, Flying Pig proceeded at a stately pace, timed to get us to our earlier-defined fishing hole. Well, as might be expected under the circumstances, with all that fish aboard, Phillip - the fisherman aboard - elected to pass on that exercise and proceed directly into Key West's Northwest Channel. Our trip through Key West was uneventful, if also boring (if you disregard all the potentials for going aground!), and we set sail on a very close reach in order to get to the Gulf Stream once in the channel. Well, wouldn't you know, despite being able to tack from our exit directly into our track for finding the Gulf Stream, the wind was again light, and, eventually, died. Again, we struck the genoa (the big jib on a roller), and started the engine. The engine and all the related stuff has worked flawlessly - except for, you guessed it, an instrument. The temperature gauge is flaky at best. It was an electronic instrument I got, new in the box, at the first Seven Seas Cruising Association convention I attended, in the Saturday morning flea market. It's worked exactly as I'd hoped in its first few trials, but, on this trip, it's totally unreliable. Fortunately, I have an electronic, infrared, thermostat, and checking the engine temperatures at several locations along the way have assured me that all is well - even though I'd much rather receive real-time info about our coolant temperatures! Lest you think this last day has been all bad news, last evening, before being relieved by the others, Erkki and I were joined, as we frequently are, by the off-watch crew (you can't sleep all the time, and nobody's seemed to want to read all that much, either!) for conversation and dinner. Right after dinner, we noticed a dolphin (well, a porpoise; dolphins are what we hope to catch for dinner) jumping beside the boat. We figured he wanted to play, and sure enough, he came alongside, did rolls and swoops, and then raced ahead of the boat for about a minute before diving deeply. In between, I managed to get a few good shots of him, including some of the ones where he was looking back up at us, to see if we were watching him! Our crew arrangements are working out marvelously. Erkki and Phillip are great company as well as competent watch standers. As I write this, it appears we'll make Ft. Lauderdale by mid-day tomorrow. Our entry to the Gulf Stream was gentle and gradual. We could see the different color of the water, but the expected temperature differential never materialized - perhaps, because it's July, and the water all around is also very warm. Initially we got some help with the usual slide that a sailboat does as it's being pushed sideways by the sails. However, once we were on our course at the edge of the Gulf Stream, we got about a knot of lift to begin with. Now that we're fully in the stream, however, we're seeing a 3.5 knot (nautical miles per hour) improvement in our speed. We'll stop in Ft. Lauderdale for more charts, fuel, water, perhaps deal with some of the equipment challenges we've found, and then head back out. If we can get a better wind, our trip north should be a great deal faster! Stay tuned... L8R Skip Morgan 461 #2 SV Flying Pig KI4MPC See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery ! Follow us at http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog and/or http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true. You may have to work for it however." (and) "There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts." (Richard Bach, in The Reluctant Messiah) |
#9
posted to rec.boats.cruising,rec.boats.building
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Saturday, July 14. Happy Bastille Day! And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
Wow, I am surprised you are still posting. If I had a run like that, I
am afraid my laptop would be the first to get smashed on the console... I have been following this for a looooong time. All the distractors now wish they were you, even with the troubles I bet! Better luck and fair seas to you and your crew. |
#10
posted to rec.boats.cruising
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Saturday, July 14. Happy Bastille Day! And Aw a-a-a-a-a-y-y we go!
On Sat, 21 Jul 2007 15:17:41 -0000, Skip Gundlach
wrote: Hi Skip, Welcome to cruising. Sod's law always prevails. The trick is to think and act quickly and learn how to get along without the gizmos when they fail. In close waters, especially at night, it doesn't hurt to maintain a constant mental dead reckoning log of where you are and where you will head if things go wrong. For example, when closely approaching a headland or point (the damned things always seem to attract either strong winds or contrary currents), have a good idea where you will go to deep water with regards to the wind and the seas if things don't go as planned - such as an unexpected strong current, the appearance of a buoy not on your charts or the engine suddenly stops - these happen to us all over time. It becomes second nature after a while to think of an escape plan without really being conscious of having dome so. Also, every now and then, get your wife to unexpectedly turn off all instruments except perhaps the compass light and the depth. These are all you really need and this exercise will give experience of suddenly managing in a crisis and better, will build your confidence so that you will not panic (easy to do) if and when things do go wrong such as a lightning strike taking everything out. "Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment." Habit A man who's active and incisive can yet keep nail-care much in mind: why fight what's known to be decisive? custom is the despot of mankind. Aleksandr Pushkin in "Eugene Onegin" regards and good sailing Peter Stay tuned... L8R Skip Morgan 461 #2 SV Flying Pig KI4MPC See our galleries at www.justpickone.org/skip/gallery ! Follow us at http://groups.google.com/group/flyingpiglog and/or http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFlyingPigLog "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true. You may have to work for it however." (and) "There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts." (Richard Bach, in The Reluctant Messiah) |
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