Dead Stop
It’s cold outside. Real cold. Not cold enough that the water freezes – thank goodness! But cold enough that I don’t want to be on the water.
I had an anemometer installed by the marina 2 years ago (found the receipt – it had been that long ago!). But they never connected it to the gauges. I’d called in someone else to come take care of the final steps, but that person never showed up. So for another year, I waited for the marina to get around to it. They didn’t. So I found someone else to do it. This month. In winter. When it’s cold outside.
Well, we found a week when it wasn’t miserable.
I motored the boat to their location, not far off the marina property, docked it and left it for the repair. Then I came the next day, when the repair was done, to return the boat to its slip. As I started to pull away, the engine died, so I pulled back over and tied up again with just one line. I got the engine going and backed up again. The line fell in the water and I thought, “I need to go take care of that.” But at that point, I was drifting towards another boat, felt that was more important, and forgot about the line in the water.
I proceeded to my slip, everything going fine now, until I turned a corner. Then the engine died. At this point I’ve forgotten about the line in the water, so I think it’s engine problems and I try to restart. I do find it odd that I can’t move the throttle back to the neutral position.
Engine won’t start, and I’m too far away from my slip to pull myself in. I’m starting to drift to the other side. So I grab a line and the boat hook and a line, hoping to catch a cleat on the other side. I get the line on the boat hook, move it to the cleat, but can’t catch it before I drift again, this time to the seawall. I pull myself along the seawall until I reach the slips again. I can’t see how I can pull myself to my own slip, so I work on maneuvering the boat into the closest slip, one that’s a bit too small for the boat.
I leave the boat.
I return a few days later to see how things are doing. I haven’t been plugged into power, so the bilge pump has stopped working. It’s rained over the days I’ve been gone, and I have a leaky porthole. I don’t think that much water can get in, though.
I was wrong. There are about 3″ of water over the floorboards.
I grab the hand pump and start pumping out water. It goes way too slowly. I go over to the marina office and explain the situation, asking if they can bring over their portable bilge pump to pump out the boat. They do. They also bring an extension cord so we can get the boat plugged into power. After discussion, however, we just plug me into the neighbor’s box. He hasn’t used power in awhile and I just say that I’ll pay his power bill for that month.
Two months later, and we finally pull the boat out of the water. The line has wrapped around the prop shaft and the strut tightly. Ryan from the marina unwraps it and the shaft goes back into the boat 2″. He tries to put the boat back in the water and the shaft seal is leaking. So he pulls it back out again.
And that’s where we are today, waiting for a new shaft seal to be installed. Waiting for my engine mechanic to give the thumbs up that I didn’t damage anything on the engine. And waiting for weather warm enough to fix the gelcoat from the last adventure.
My First Raft-Up: Part Deux
A sailboat, a cabin cruiser and a power boat met in a bar….
Well, not really. But they did get together for Labor Day weekend to raft up in Mobjack Bay. This is part 2 of our story.
As you recall from part 1, I did a lot of maneuvering after I got the anchor down, trying to get the sailboat parked next to the cabin cruiser, which was already anchored. So getting the anchor up took a lot of time, because there was a lot more line laid out than was really necessary. In fact, I’m glad there wasn’t much current or winds while were were there. Because it seems were were just relying on the cruiser’s anchor. The good thing? That anchor had set well, so it took a bit to get it up.
After we got the anchor up, we started following the cruiser, who had a destination in mind. From the East River, our current anchorage, to the Severn, our new anchorage, it was almost straight across the bay. We kept behind the cruiser about 2/3rds the way across. Then they got ahead of us. No problem. We had a good idea where they were going to be – we thought. This time, though, we had Jodi’s husband marked on Google Maps. So we found the cruiser.
This time, we set the anchor and let out enough line to put us able to swing towards the cruiser. And I just floated over. Piece of cake!
I later did check for other ways of doing this. Other people suggested that you just needed to have one boat anchored. Still others suggested that you get rafted up, then send someone out on a dinghy with your anchor and set it. I’ll have to try one of those next time.
Rafting up was easy. What I did have a problem with was the kayak. I’d towed it behind us on the way over, rather than deflate then re-inflate it. But maneuvering to get us rafted up, I got the line wrapped around the rudder. So I put on my swimsuit and jumped in the water. Luckily, I have long legs and could reach with my feet to the other side of the keel. I pulled, then used my toes to pull the line from between the keel and the boat, pulled some more, and kept this up until I had the line untangled. Next time, I’ll pull the kayak in tight before starting to anchor.
After we got all set up, Maria said she was running low on ice. In addition, the power boat needed more gas. So we found the number for the nearby marina, called to make sure they’d still be open, then headed over to Severn Yachting Center. The owner met us, got us the gas we needed then took us over to the office to pay for it and get the ice.
There was a pool right outside the office. Maria, Steve and Jodi took a quick dip an said it was wonderful. We talked to the guy about what repair services he had available since it seemed everyone was still behind in repair work, even this late in the season. Sounded like he had a pretty well-rounded crew. But he, too, said he had about a 2 week waiting list. We might just have to check him out sometime!
That night was rough. We must not have pulled the boats as tightly together as we had the night before, because I kept feeling the banging of fenders throughout the night. I moved from the V-Berth into the aft bed and I could finally get some sleep!
In the morning, the fridge, again, was not working. Seems we again had run the battery down. Doing some diagnostics and getting that fixed was put on my list of ‘to do’ items.
What was working was the hot water! I had a marvelous shower. And the nice thing about this quick trip is that I could have a leisurely one and not worry about water shortage.
After showering and providing the ‘neighbors’ with hot water for tea and coffee, I packed up and got ready to head back. Once I was done, Steve jumped aboard to help with the anchor. Jodi started up the power boat and followed. Once the anchor was up, Jodi pulled up beside the swim platform and Steve jumped over.
I debated taking the ‘shortcut’ back. The shortcut allows you to get from Mobjack to the York River without going around all the shallows between the two. But the channel is quite shallow and I didn’t want to take the chance of getting stuck. So I put up the mainsail and motorsailed back.
The trip back was uneventful until I reached the power plant that marks the channel to Wormley Creek Marina. There, I saw a huge number of dolphins! It’s always fun to see a dolphin when sailing. But it must be baby season because there were more than a dozen of the creatures having a good ole’ time!
My First Raft-Up
This Labor Day weekend, I participated in my first raft up. We were a strange group: one sailboat, one cabin cruise, one small speedboat, and a kayak. We came over in the sailboat and cruiser. The speedboat was our ‘dinghy’. I was hoping, in the future, to use the kayak as my dinghy. I wanted to see how it would work out.
I met the others in the York River. Jodi wanted to come with me, since I was planning on sailing. So we tried to figure out how to get her from the cruiser over to my sailboat. I suggested she get on their raft and I could ‘rescue’ her. So Jodi hopped on the raft, I circled so I could get close enough to throw her a line. She grabbed it and I pulled her to the swim platform where she jumped aboard.
The cruiser towed the powerboat, and was able to use a ‘shortcut’ to reach our destination on the East River, off the Mobjack Bay. I sailed around the long way and am glad I did. The winds were great the the temperature was perfect. Interesting though: we arrived only about an hour after the cruiser.
We had a hard time finding the cruiser when we arrived. We’d been given the wrong mile marker to look for. But they brought the powerboat out to find us and guide us in.
I read an article online telling how to raft up so I’d have some idea what to do. So I arrived and, as the article said, I motored past the cruiser, dropped my anchor, the reversed to set the anchor and sidle up to the cruiser. Well, the anchor set. But I was on the wrong side for reversing and sidling. I kept going the wrong direction. So I tried going forward and doing it again, all the time my anchor is down and Jodi is letting out line. Well, I don’t know how much line we let out, but we finally did end up next to the cruiser.
Mistake one: letting out all the line. The next night I just drifted back and we had no problem sidling up to the other boat.
What did go right? Well, luckily our free boards were close enough that the fenders were not an issue. And we didn’t have problems stepping from one to the other. We did pull the sterns in, not the bows, as etiquette prescribed, since we are good friends. I’m not sure how we would have handled bow to bow, since the cruiser’s bow is higher than mine. And my lifelines in the front are difficult to detach, so walking across would have been problematic.
Another thing that went right is that Maria, the owner of the cruiser had done this before and knew to pull the lines in tight. That proved quite helpful when the powerboats in the vicinity sped on by, causing waves. Our boats weren’t banging hard against the fenders.
The temperatures were perfect that night. The company was great, and the food and drinks were delicious.
The next morning, I was up at 6 am. Everyone on the other boat was still asleep. I had brought yogurt and fruit for my breakfat. So I reached into the fridge and, lo and behold, the fridge wasn’t cooling. The ice in the tray had melted. I looked at the battery gauge and it showed less than 10 volts on the charge. The lights were still working. But the higher amp items, like the fridge were not.
I did have issues with the batteries the day before. After we’d been sailing for a few hours, the lights on the console began to flicker. I’d seen this before and knew that the batteries were running low. So I turned on the engine to charge the batteries back up.
I’d had this issue in the not too distant past. After finally becoming frustrated enough, I pulled out the battery meter and found one of the house batteries was dead. I’d replaced it and no more problems. Did my current issue mean the second house battery was now dead? Guess I’ll need to take a look.
So now, I finished my breakfast then tried to turn the engine on. No clicks. Was it the starter battery that was the problem?
More on the electrical set up on my boat. I don’t have a switch; I have 3 handles. I have not done anything with those handles. But a conversation with Maria from pointed to the fact that I should disengage the starter battery when anchoring to ensure I had a charge to start the engine later. I filed away that useful but of info.
Again, I’d seen this before. I’d thought maybe I was out of fuel. And, indeed, the next day when I put in fresh diesel, it started right away. But when I later tried filling the tank, the 20 gallon tank only took 6 gallons. So no answer there.
A fellow boater at the marine had suggested tapping on the solenoid, that it might have a loose connection. So I talked with Jodi, a whiz at electronics, and asked her to show me where the solenoid was. She figured that out, we tapped it, and the engine started. Batteries charged again, I was in good shape.
Maria and Jodi noticed the tea I’d also make myself and asked if I could heat them some water, too. They had an electric stove on the cruiser, which required getting the generator started to work. I had a propane stove that was much easier to light and use. So I heated water for them, as well as for Maria’s husband, CT.
After this very leisurely morning, air blew up my kayak. I have a Sea Eagle kayak that ai love. It’s quite sturdy for a blow up kayak, and it takes up a small enough space when deflated that I can transport it in the back of my car.
I got it inflated and was disappointed to see I’d not included the skeg. Ah well! Paddling would be harder. But it proved not to be. This is rated for 3 people, but 2 adults fit in in comfortably. I sat in the front so I could also play with the sail. And I had no problems steering it. I did, however, order a new skeg when I got home.
Later, I put the kayak away and we took the power boat to try going into the nearby town of Matthews.
We had talked before about taking the kayak over. I’m glad we didn’t: it proved to be further than we had anticipated. We went during high tide, since we were told it wouldn’t be passable otherwise. As we approached the town, however, it was too shallow for the power boat and we started kicking up mud. Jodi, who was being pulled in a raft, helped turn us around and move to deeper water, and we headed back. Mission to accomplished. But we did get a nice view of the rest of the river.
We played for a bit more when we got back, then decided it was time to start moving to our next destination, in the Severn River, on the other side of the bay.
More on day 2 and the rest of the trip in the next post.
[Top]Setting the Anchor
Tonight, it was our turn to be the Committee boat. Winds were to be strong, but safe. That is, it would be a quick race for the participants.
Temperatures were to be comfortable, so everyone, myself included, dressed for a beautiful spring day.
We left the docks and headed for our anchor point. After passing the shelter of the marine, we had our first surprise. Although the land temperatures were pleasant, the temperature on the water was a bit cooler. On top of that, the 12-15 knot winds were making it cool enough that we all donned jackets.
When we reached our anchor spot, I slowed the boat down. Paul and Jeff dropped the anchor. I let the boat drift back as the boys put out 150′ of line. It didn’t hold. We put out more line and it didn’t seem to help.
We were drifting at about .1 – .3 knots. So we got the race started, then tried again. This time, after setting the anchor and putting out about 200′ of line, I motored in reverse to help set it. It didn’t work. We were still drifting, at about the same speed. Thinking it might just be the sideways movement of the boat, I set up the anchor alarm. Sure enough, we were drifting.
The winds were still strong, but like many such conditions, the boats weren’t necessarily moving quickly, so I shortened the race for the non-spin fleet.
Still drifting slowly, we now had to wait our position to get the times for the non-spin boats. Well, not exactly. Drifting as we were, we were moving further from the buoy, making it more difficult to see the sail numbers. So, rather than keeping stasis, I started the engine, moving slowly back to our original position, but slowly enough to not offer an advantage to of one boat over another.
I talked to the crew about putting out the second anchor, but it seems it was put in backwards. That is, the line was on top and the chain was on the bottom. So Paul untied the line and he and Jeff started pulling it all out to put back in correctly. After all that, we selected not to deploy it.
After the non-spin boats had passed, I moved quickly back to our drop point. This time, after dropping anchor and about 100′ of line and chain (Did I forget to mention that I have about 40′ of chain?), I put the boat in fast reverse. This time, the anchor held. Huzzah! We did not drift at all.
So we finished monitoring the race, recording all the times. Now my tired crew had to pull the anchor up one more time. They got the line all up and were working on the chain. But this time, the anchor wouldn’t budge. It held tight. They tried winching it out to no avail. So I put the boat in forward to free the anchor. This time it came out.
Moral of the story? Next time, we’ll put out all the chain and a minimal amount of line. Rather than letting the boat drift to set the anchor, I’ll out the boat in reverse with the engine to set it. And, when pulling it up, we’ll again use the engine to loosen the anchor.
[Top]Saying Goodbye
I loaded the car with all the supplies that we had removed for sailing season: the extra screws and other hardware; the wires, connectors, and fuses; the extra bilge pump and paint. I drove over to the marina, pulled down a cart, and loaded everything in. I wheeled over to her slip.
The breeze was bright that day. The temperature was good. She was straining at the lines, ready to take me sailing. I explained that I was only there to drop off supplies; there would be no sailing that day. She eventually settled down as I tightened the lines to make it easier to load everything.
I talked to her as I moved everything aft, so as to be out of the way. She had a new owner. The new owner loved her now, and would to love her even more as she sailed her. I was just dropping off supplies that day. But I’d be back for a couple of last minute repairs. And I’d be helping sail her down to her new home.
She rocked as I left, saying goodbye to me.
The next day, I came back. I was meeting Paul there to put in a new gauge that would better show the state of the engine batteries. It was raining miserably. I thought I’d plugged all the leaks; the bilge pump hadn’t need to run much lately. But that day, a couple of new leaks appeared. Was she crying?
This evening, I finished the gauge installation. I straightened up all the materials again. I had the title with me to mail off to the new owner, along with some receipts I’d found for work done on her and a couple of books to help the new owner with learning to handle her new boat. She had sent me a cashier’s check for the balance. I was still going to wait until it cleared to mail off the title. But then I thought, “that’s silly! I just don’t want to admit that she’s sold and that she’s now owned by someone else.”
I stopped by the post office and mailed the title.
This is just au revoire and not goodbye, since I will be helping to take her down to North Carolina, part of the way, if not all. But still it’s sad. It’s like leaving a good friend that you may not see again. There is a loss to make it through. Hopefully, by the time we say our final farewells, it will be better.
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