A Start to Our Adventure

Anchored off Grenadier Island

Sal finished his last night shift and headed to Brockville Monday evening after cleaning the house and getting all the last minute things from home that I had forgotten. The boat was docked at Brockville City Marina after a three day shake down cruise with my mom. We had a great sail out of Brockville Friday afternoon with an east wind giving us a smooth run past Mallorytown. We anchored on the North Side of Grenadier Island for the night. Neither of us slept well the first night as we were not used to the sounds and the feel of the boat. But up at 8 am we did a few chores, mostly finishing the plumbing on the holding tank so we could finally use the head (our cedar bucket was not going to do the trick much longer!). Our wind had all but died as we vainly tried to sail past Rockport. A busy Saturday morning on the water forced us to drop our sails and motor through the narrow cut under the bridge to the USA and past Ivy Lea. We anchored off Cedar Island by four and the heat gave us incentive to see how the water temperature was. Refreshing but a perfect way to cool off after a sunny, hot busy afternoon. Another quiet night anchored all by ourselves. We left Sunday afternoon having to start our journey back home as we needed to be back in Brockville Monday morning to do the exchange. Not quite as busy on Sunday we quickly made our way back under the bridge thanks to the strong current, and this time anchored on the South Shore of Grenadier Island. We were just starting to get into the cruising groove and our trip was almost over. Unfortunately another dead calm day led us to motoring back to Brockville.

Mom doing dishes

A little unwanted excitement in Brockville as I found out the hard way that this boat does not turn so well. Only a little scrape on the tip our bowsprit but a well-learned lesson: A full keel has a wide turning radius. I filled up with diesel, water and got our first pump out which must have irritated my plumbing job as I discovered an unwanted leak the next morning.

Sal at the helm

Monday morning had us doing a lot of running around as we did some final groceries and stowage of all the gear that Sal had brought from home. A last minute plumbing job, fingers crossed, looks to have fixed our leak. We headed out of the harbour without any further destruction and pointed our bow southwest, right into a 10-15 knot wind. We motored through the Brockville Narrows and once past, raised the sails. Time to test how close she sails into the wind. It took a few tacks to get the feel of the boat when I head an unwanted pop from overhead followed by a slight splash. A quick look up and down into the water confirmed we had lost in the water the “boot” holding our upper shroud to the spreader. Not a catastrophe but we decided we had better stop sailing as the top part of the mast had an ominous bend to it and though it wasn’t super windy we decided we better not risk it.

Under full sails

We anchored again off Grenadier Island for the night in hopes of a calm morning so I could go up the mast and see if I could figure out a way to secure the stay to the spreader.

Phil came to our rescue again in the morning and was able to go up the mast and use some wire to secure the stay, then did a quick check on the mast head then showed us how our self steering system works. We headed out shortly after with renewed enthusiasm and wishful thinking that it would be the last of our issues.

We're Back!!!!

We're back to sailing after a short hiatus

After a 2 year hiatus we are finally back in the water! I’ve been looking forward to contributing to the blog now that I have things to write about again. I was thinking about where to start last night and remembering how easy it was to write a blog post when I was doing it regularly on our last trip down to the Bahamas. I could probably whip up one in under an hour. I hope to get back into the groove as I find it a great way to collect memories and I still reference our old blog when I need to remember a place or time on our Bahamas trip.

It has been about 3 years since we returned on the trip down to the Bahamas and back. I’ve only done a tiny bit of sailing 2 years ago when we did a small test voyage on Senta in Lake Champlain. Since then she has been on a trailer in various locations, most recently in the front yard of our new house. I have been slowly plugging away on various tasks. It took about a summer to complete all the outdoor teak work, scraping, sanding and various coats of Cetol. That was a busy summer though with moving into our first house, getting married, and being away on our honeymoon. I didn’t have a lot of extra time for much else. This summer I was a lot more productive as I had a deadline. This boat was GOING to go in the water this year, and I was going sailing. I sanded and applied a satin varnish to all the interior teak work, changed the name from Senta to Nymeria, painted a new water line, added a raw water foot pump, ran new VHF wire, installed a holding tank, painted all the lockers, and did a few smaller projects. Looking back now it was quite a feat but I felt I was progressing very slowly.

Boat on the trailer ready to go

Following behind in the rain

Originally I had wanted the launch date to be the 4^th of August, but of course delays in receiving some parts and myself having to work a few more shifts before my vacation started, we settled for August 19^th, which turned quickly into August 21^st because my membership approval for the yacht club where I would be launching and hauling out the boat would not be voted on until the 20^th of August. It was all very stressful as there were a few projects not finished, most importantly the holding tank was not installed and I was waiting for a few fittings and hosing to be delivered. But there’s always something, and without further delay we secured the boat to the trailer and moved her from her parking spot on a rainy Thursday morning. I followed as my dad pulled her down the road to Brockville. The drive went very smoothly and we arrived in Brockville as the skies were clearing. Up and into the water she went and up the mast went without a hitch. A bit of difficulty figuring out and adjusting the turnbuckles to the stays but with a bit of help from the passerby’s at the Yacht Club we eventually sorted everything out. Sal headed to Kingston as our sanitation hose had come in and I sorted out a few things on the boat. Phil (our sailing mentor and guide) came by to have a look at the engine. It started up right away but a horrible discovery of our fuel tank leaking led to total destruction of the starboard locker as we removed the bilge pump and eventually the fuel tank. I was more than a little dejected but it just so happened that Phil had a spare diesel tank that just might work! It had been a long but exciting day. Tomorrow would also be another long day as the new tank got installed, finding out the engine worked PERFECTLY, installing most of the holding tank, and setting sail with my mom for a 3 day trail. Sal had 3 more shifts of work before his vacation began.

Trailer Troubles

First, let me apologize for the late post.  Life has gotten ten times busier this past month.  First, I started working full time a month ahead of schedule.  Secondly, Sal and I bought a puppy – which has kept us up at night and running around all day long. And finally my parents are moving at the end of the summer, so it’s been busy at home! I have had very little free time to work on the boat the past few weeks and even less time to sit and write. We are starting to adjust to these changes and hopefully I’ll get some time here and there to work on the boat in the coming couple of months. I requested time off at the end of September, so my goal is to get the essentials done and have a good trail run at that point.

It was almost a month ago when we were stressing over our trailering situation….

Monday morning we got all ready for the mast to go down and the boat to be hauled. The mast came down with out any problems and we secured it on the bowsprit and to stern with a couple 2X4’s. I motored the boat around and the travel-lift and the marina staff raised the boat up. They lined up the trailer and lowered the boat. It was too far back (not enough weight on the trailer tongue), they raised it and moved it forward. We had to adjust the forward edge of the trailer and all six stands. It was still too far back. Up the boat went and moved it a bit further forward. We had to lower the forward stands all the way and put some 2X8s under the keel. I guess our measurements were a little off.

We messed around like that for a good 20 minutes until the boat seemed to be in the right place on the trailer. It was less than ideal as the forward stands were too high so the boat had to be raised with wood along the keel trough and the rear stands were too low so we added some wood on the stands so that they would be supporting the boat. But it would do until we could make some permanent changes at home. We brought the trailer to the marina boat yard and secured the mast to the boat and the boat to the trailer. We loaded up the truck and headed home (unfortunately without the boat as we weren’t able to find a truck to pull it home).

Sal had called u-haul in Canada and they said they had “ONE” truck with the right size hitch. He booked it for us while we down at the boat. But of course when we drove to pick it up they told us that they only have the fixed 2-inch balls. And had no idea why someone would tell us otherwise. I was so annoyed to say the least! We did a bit more driving around in Ottawa, trying to find a truck rental place that would rent a truck with a 2 and 5/16 inch ball or a vehicle that we could put our own hitch on. We finally went to the U-Haul main distribution centre and rented a pick-up truck. It was a V8 F150 and we were hoping that it would do the trick. If it didn’t, then we’d have to pay someone to drive the boat back for us and that would cost at least double.

So back across the boarder we went. The boat was a bit heavier than rated for the truck so we definitely took it slow at first. But to our absolute happiness the truck pulled it fine and we had a non-eventful ride home. No problems at the Canadian boarder. All they needed was the paperwork and a credit card.

After a few stressful days it was a relief to pull the boat up the driveway and park it in the backyard. Time to start sanding!

Single-handed on Lake Champlain

The trial run was successful and I felt surprisingly comfortable and confident with the boat. The weather forecast predicted hot and very light winds for the weekend. We had the car and a boat so we decided that I would make series of smaller hops north and my dad would meet up with me with the car after each day.

After breakfast I cast off on Friday with clear skies and a slight SW breeze. I motored around the corner and into Willsboro Bay. I headed into the wind and raised the sails. I cut the motor and enjoyed the morning and mountain scenery. The wind was a bit flukey until I left the bay and then it remained steady at the SW 5 knots and the boat moved along surprisingly well at about 3 ½ - 4 knots. The wind picked up a bit before Plattsburgh and we flew along. There were only a few sailboats in the distance. It was such a peaceful feeling being out there alone. Just before the city marina, I dropped the sails and got out all the gear for docking. My dad was waving at me at the end of the dock and I took it real slow and proudly pulled up alongside. The marina was bustling with activity as the Canadian long weekend was beginning. Almost all the boats stored at the marina were from Montreal. It is only about an hour drive and Lake Champlain is a deep, no tides or current sailing destination with canals to the Hudson River, Lake Ontario or Lake Erie.

The next day my dad and I went out in the morning for a little sail around. It was super hot out and after about 20 minutes the wind died completely. We tested out the tiller pilot, which would make single-handing a whole lot easier. We motored until we found a bit of wind, then turned around and headed back to the marina where I dropped off my dad and continued north a few miles. I picked up a mooring ball in Deep Bay, off the Point Au Roche State Park. I didn’t quite feel comfortable anchoring yet. I spent a quiet afternoon and night by myself. My dad on the other hand was panicking a bit, as he was unable to find the boat. He drove up and down the road adjacent to the river looking for me. He of course assumed the worst. So when we met the next day at the Gaines marina, he was very relieved. It was a very, very hot Sunday afternoon as we took off the sails and the boom and made a stand for the mast. We were scheduled to get it stepped the next morning and have the boat hauled on to the trailer.

Launch and Trial Sail

We headed to the boat after grabbing a coffee at the local gas station/grocery store/restaurant (it's a very small town). Things were quiet in the boat yard, a few people starting work on their boats and one boat in the process of being launched. We began to get Senta prepared. We put on the mainsail and found some dock lines and fenders in the boat.  I tried to tidy up a little below as we had rummaged around to find where the previous owner kept everything. We made sure all the thru hulls were closed, and checked the engine oil. The man in charge  came by to see if we were ready to go and to give us a few instructions. 

The boat was transported to the launch area with a yard trailer than lifted off the cradle and placed gently into the water with a travel lift. It all thankfully went without any problems. Once in the water, I checked the bilge and thru hulls for leaks. Only a small drip was coming from the sink drain. We pulled the boat forward to the dock and did a more thorough check. Our plumbing that we did when installing the marine head proved less than ideal as it leaked as soon as we tried pumping the handle. Our connections needed some plumbing tape and some caulking. We were able to stop the leak in the sink by tightening the old bronze fitting that attaches to the thru hull. 

The true test would be when we tried to start the engine. I had been worried about it working as its quite an old motor, over 30 years old. However, the previous owner recently had it overhauled and many of the parts replaced. It took two turns of the key, but she started up and seemed to run smoothly.  After running for a while we shut down the engine. It was a huge relief to know that the engine works as repairs or replacing would be a major unwanted expense.

Sure that the boat would not sink, we headed back into town to pick up some food. It's quite hard to buy for a couple days because I end up wanting spices and condiments with the food. But I think we did ok. I bought a package of hot dogs and buns and some ketchup, as well as some sandwich supplies, pork chops, potatoes, fruit and some cereal and milk. So we shouldn't starve.

I was anxious to get out on the water and do some sailing. I had a fear that the boat may not sail so well as she displaces 6700lbs and has a full keel. We had a less than perfect pull away from the dock as I wasn't used to the throttle, gear controls or tiller but no dings or scratches, just not very pretty (I hope no one was watching). We motored out a little ways then I went forward as my dad steered and I raised the sails. Second wind had all lines leading back to the cockpit so raising the sails from the mast was new to me. The sail went up easy, well a little too easy as the bottom sides came out of the track on the mast. I had to lower the sail back down and reinsert the slides. More carefull this time I raised the sail and winched it tight. I raised the yankee sail next and quickly returned to the cockpit. Once the wind filled the sails we cut the engine and were left with only the sound of water rushing by the boat and quiet lap of waves. 

Ahhhh I had waited all winter for this.

 I was impressed with the boats performance. We had all sorts of wind conditions in the bay from dead calm to gusts to a steady 15 knot breeze. I love the sturdiness of the boat as the gusts created only a slight heel and even in the lightest breeze she made good speed and kept a straight course. I could have kept going but we turned around at 4:00pm so that we could be back to the dock before it got dark. 

Satisfied with the days events, we spent our first (very cold) night on the boat. I claimed the v-birth or what I like to refer as the stateroom as the door to the head shuts off the v-birth from the main cabin. My dad took the starboard quarter birth. The only complaint we have is the cushions are original to the boat and are rock hard. I mean, "It was like sleeping on concrete" as my dad put it. The cushions, I think are top of the list for replacing!

Annnd...We're Off

Tuesday we packed up the truck and finished up the trailer.  A family friend welded 6 stands onto our new trailer in the fall. Yesterday my dad shortened the tongue and Tuesday we moved the wheels forward about 6 inches. We did numerous measurements each time we visited the boat so hopefully when it comes time for the boat to be hauled out, she will sit on the trailer perfectly.

The truck was packed full. Passports, check. Money, check. Boat papers, check. Ladder, life jackets, tools, etc, etc. check check check.  I'm sure there's something that we forgot, but hopefully it will be something that we can either do without, or purchase while down there.  Wednesday was a gorgeous day as we headed south.  Our first stop was at the north end of Lake Champlain where we dropped off the trailer and made arrangements to get the mast stepped and the boat hauled in a couple days time.  Next stop was at U-haul where we hoped to rent a truck to tow the boat back home.  This is where we encountered our first problem.  All the ball hitches on the u-haul trucks were 2 inch and our trailer needs a 2 and 5/16 inch ball.  According to the guy all the trucks come this way and there's no way to change the ball as they are welded on.  Ohh noooo.

 Well we must have visited about 6 truck rental places in Plattsburgh without any success.  Car rental agencies won't allow towing with their vehicles and any moving trucks seem to only have the 2 inch ball that can't be changed.  We were out of ideas and starting to get a bit worried.  We still had a bit of time and hoping that we'd think of something, we left and headed to the boat.

At the boatyard Senta was as we left her.  A few boats had already been launched but many still on cradles.  I did a quick clean of all the lockers and interior to get rid of a small amount of mold and the musty boat smell.  We unloaded the truck and filled the boat with supplies that we would need for our trial sail.  We called it a day, but will be returning bright and early for the launch tomorrow.

Contingency Plan

The warm weather is really getting me excited about sailing.  Yesterday I strolled along the Ottawa River with a friend and it was a glorious sunny day with a light breeze.  A couple sailboats were out on the water and it really got me longing to be sailing. 

There are plans in progress for bringing Senta home.  I managed to do a couple switches at work and have 14 days off.  I called the marina and booked our launching date for Monday, May 14^th.  That would give us 13 days to bring her back to Canadian waters before I have to work again.  Rarely do our plans go without a hitch though.  It was originally planned that my dad would help me bring the boat back, unfortunately he’s got a stomach bug at the moment so we’ve had to make a couple contingency plans in the event that he’s not better.  Perhaps now we’ll do a smaller trial run on Lake Champlain for a couple days, and then trailer the boat back? 

…We’ll see how things pan out this week.