still mulling the concept

I’m thinking of having an optional trimaran set-up, so I can sail my new boat without fear of dumping it. The idea is to have the trimaran part in manageable pieces that can stow inside the cockpit, and be assembled at the beach or dock. When I want to only paddle—I mean pedal—it (Mirage Drive, remember?), I’ll leave all the extra bits behind. The leeboard could be detachable.

The akas (cross arms) would be pipes that slide into sleeves built into the boat just above the sheer line.

(Like those colours, eh? ;-)

The sail is small and not strictly a junk or a lug sail; I think of it as a battened lug rig. I want to keep it simple, and really easy to reef. Loosen the halyard, tie the batten to the boom, re-tighten the halyard, and it’s done. No lazyjacks, no snotters, no parrels. The sail shape is from the “Paulsboat” that I was going to build at first, the 15’ sailing canoe that was based on this hull design but which I think is too big for me. (This boat is 13’.) I used the same sail plan as the Paulsboat but scaled it down for this boat: the Paulsboat sail is 42 square feet; this one is 25½—considerably smaller.

The amas or outrigger hulls are yet to be thought through. Could be a piece of pipe, but a simple vee-shaped pea pod strikes my fancy. Probably best vee-bottomed rather than flat-bottomed, so they don’t slap against waves... Hobie has an interesting suggestion...

Oh—P.S: I bought the plans for the "Rio Grande", to see how Jim says how to do it, so I don't screw up it. They may take their time getting to me by mail because of the time of year.

P.P.S: Forgot to say that I had a great email conversation with Chuck Leinweber, the main man at Duckworks Boatbuilder's Supply, who had built the two Rio Grande boats featured in the article about the design, one in plywood and the other in foam and glass/resin, the latter of which he said was a much lighter boat. He says I should build with 3/8" thick foam for the hull, and 1/4" foam for the decks, and says: "If you are going to use foam, but want standard durability, use light glass on the inside and both sides of the decks. By “Light” I mean 4 oz or less. I’d use 6 oz on the bottom."

The Next Boat

I've been considering what form my next boat will take. (I think it's understood I'm addicted to the idea of boats, for which there is no 12-step program—that I know of... or want to know of.)
 
Here's what I want in a boat:

• as light as can be, yet strong
• capacity to carry enough camping gear for a few days out
• easy to propel without a motor
• small but not as constraining as a kayak
• capable of sailing

There exists a variety of different foam sheets that people use to build things with, especially boats. Apparently, Core-Cell is best. What I've been able to find around here so far is Divinycell, a cross-linked polyvinyl foam core. With fibreglass on each side of the sheet it becomes very strong. So that's what I'll do.

For propulsion, I want to install a Hobie Mirage Drive:


So after looking around in the plans available at Duckworks, I purchased plans for Jim Michalak's Toto, a 13' x 30" boat that looks like a kayak with a large cockpit:

Well, this is my version of it. I didn't realize it but there's a plan available for this boat that actually has a deck. My Toto plans are for a mostly-open boat with an afterdeck. The Rio Grande is the same boat but with decks like this drawing. It's not difficult to design a proper deck, so I will just add decks to the design I have.

John Booth says I can build the boat at his shop—yay!

Next step is to source the foam.

Firefly sold

In buying, fixing up and sailing Firefly, originally Spindrift, I learned a heck of a lot; about myself and about sailing out of Victoria, B.C.

About myself, I learned that, although I have chronic back pain, I can still do things, as long as I pay attention, don't lift more than I know I can handle (not much), and take breaks as necessary, not allowing schedules to dictate actions. This was pretty major for me: I had thought that the rest of my life would be drawing, building and owning models of boats, not real-life boats.

About sailing out of Victoria, I found out why there aren't many people here who day-sail for pleasure:

1. The currents from the tidal exchange are a force to be reckoned with. Big boat, okay; small boat, not so much. 
2. It seems there's either too much or too little wind here. Gentle winds often are accompanied by rain.
3. Compared to Oak Bay, there's nowhere interesting to sail to of an afternoon. The wind and the tide both come in from the west in the afternoon, so you go westward first, towards Albert Head. Then you turn around and run back with wind and tide taking you home. After awhile it becomes repetitive. 
4. Cruise ships. 
5. On my boat, I couldn't get in and out of the marina without firing up the engine, which was noisy, stinky, and vibrated the rudder fittings, making a chatter I did not enjoy and could not get rid of. A 4-cycle motor may have been better, and possibly a different pintle/gudgeon setup might have eased that.
6. For longer trips, Victoria is too far away from the good cruising grounds in the Gulf Islands and beyond. It takes a couple days to get there.

And I learned a great deal about Victoria harbour, something that can only come with experience. As well, my experience with Hidden Harbour marina was excellent. Jim Witter is a fair and respectful manager.

So...

One old-timer said there are only two kinds of boats one should consider: Either you can live on it, or you can carry it.

My plan now is to build a very light boat that can live on top of my car. See my next post.

Windy city!

Day Three

Bad night last night. Too much shakin' goin' on. I'd just start to doze, when some waves would hit and shake me awake.

     I'd looked at the current atlas for best homeward (ebb) tide, and it showed early, early. I decided that, if I got up in time, and if the weather was good for it, I'd head home.

     Woke up to rain in the night, then woke again later because all was too calm. The wind had died completely, after shifting to more from the west. The water was darkly glassy.

     Woke up at five and decided this was it: I was going home. Had a slice of bread with pb&j, made a pb&j sandwich and put it in a baggie for lunch later, handy to the door.

     Filled the small gas can with the great spout, after emptying its contents into the engine.

     The bottom of the cove was clearly visible, with my anchor line in white showing clearly, snaking around through the thick leaves of sea weeds. There was a rock that showed, 100 yards or so to the east, that wasn't visible at the higher tide. Lucked out on that one! I put the daggerboards in and weighed anchor, fired up the engine and headed out at 5:40.

     Went south back the way I'd come, except this time I stayed to the east of d'Arcy Island, in the main tidal bore. The tank of gas took me past the Chathams. I didn't want to be running out at an importune time, so I put more gas in once I was inside Oak Bay. Kept motoring past Gonzales Point (golf course) and through Enterprise Channel (Trial Island), where the current from the rising tide was already against me. The tide here generally ebbs in the morning and floods in the afternoon.

     The gas ran out off Holland Point, and I had a bit of a time getting the engine started again after it'd run dry, but eventually up she fired and off we went. I've grown to appreciate the engine.

     Lots of fisher people were out, off Oak Bay (photo above) and at the entrance to Victoria Harbour. The Coho had to slow down to get through the rag-tag fleet.

     I almost fell asleep after Clover Point, as I was so tired. When I finally got to the dock I had a headache and everything was moving. The return was four and a quarter hours of solid motoring. I packed a few clothes and headed home. 

     Slept an hour; expected to sleep three. It was a very deep sleep. Had cereal and two coffees, wrote an email, caught up on some web stuff, and came back to the boat to sort things out and clean up some. Now it's raining. I just put the green boom tent up. Time to pack up the food and head home again. 

     Very nice to be back at a sleepy dock again! Things don't move quite so much.

14° Nearby Fog

Salish Sea, BC, Canada

Day Two

From the log book:

The day started out a bit gloomy, with dark grey clouds scudding along the US side. I got up around 6:30. Had 2 eggs & one slice of bread with jam. I forgot the salt! Tasted okay anyway. Followed by coffee. I also forgot the canned milk! I have a bit of coffee mate, so I'm using that sparingly.
     Almost felt like staying put, but decided to check out the NW side of the eastern Chatham Island, to see what Wolferstan was talking about. I found it not such a good-looking anchorage to my eye; maybe for a big keel boat, but too open.
     The space between the east & west Chathams was interesting, full of seals hauled out on the rocks (why don't I think to take photos? too busy) but more of a wind funnel than Puget Cove.
     Decided to go around to the west side of the western Chatham to check it out. Nothing there worth mentioning. A dock for workers to tie to, for servicing the towers.
     Jim had mentioned that the west side of Sidney Island had a nice cove for anchoring, so I decided to go and check it out. I didn't think that Sidney Spit would afford much shelter from the wind in this SWerly.
     Before I left the Chathams I stopped in a little cove and put a reef in the main, then headed out under main alone. It was a long sail from the Chathams. The wind was quite strong, whitecaps all over, tidal rips here and there. The GPS said I was going over 5 knots at times.

     About three-quarters way to Sidney Island (red circle above) I ran over some kelp I hadn't spotted, which stressed the rudder and broke the downhaul line! Eek, no rudder suddenly! I let the sail go and we broadsided for awhile. No waves came aboard.

     Fortunately I was able to pull the pin that goes through the top pintle to keep the rudder from coming up, and got the rudder into the boat. Replaced the downhaul line with stronger stuff, put the rudder back on, and amazingly enough was able to replace the pin.
     After that I was knackered, and I remembered Phil saying that he stayed behind d'Arcy Island one night, so I went around to check it out. I thought I might stay the night, but it wasn't a good spot for that with this wind. (I think I got the wrong spot.) So I anchored and had lunch: cheese & jam on bread + coffee. Felt a little ill; whether from stress or sun, I'm not sure.

The cove is just beyond the anchored boat.

     Headed out along the eastern side of Sidney Island and found the cove that Jim had mentioned. It's perfect as far as being calm, but there's still lots of wind in gusts. Set the anchor around 3:30.

The cove is just west of bird poo (Mandarte) island.

Private wharf, Mandarte in the distance.

About the reefing problem

This is what I did to ensure the sail stays on the track when I reef: I added a piece of track over the stainless bar that holds the two sides of the tabernacle together. It means I have to take it off before I lower the mast, so I used only two screws. There's no sail pressure on it; it's just for holding the sliders when they're not being used. It means a little extra work when lowering the mast, but I think it's worth it.

First Voyage

From the log book:

First Day

Left Hidden Harbour at 2:25 pm. Wind moderate from SW. Sea lumpy. Tide falling.

Went outside Trial Island. Big waves! Very big waves, from wind and tide. Rounded the bottom of Discovery Island and came into calmer water, but really gusty winds off the island. I was spilling wind from the main, so I took it down and motor-sailed under jib & mizzen into the cove between Alpha/Griffin and Discovery.

Anchored in Puget Cove. Nice little cove but windy. My first anchoring! The boat is now sailing around, tethered to the anchor. The wind comes up through the slough to the south.

This pic was to reference my position to check for anchor drag at some later time.

Nice west coast forest & rock. No trespassing.

Looking East toward the U.S. Many freighters passed out there.

I used my lead line to test for depth and it's about 10', going up another 2' by 11 pm, then down 6' by 6:30 am.

Lead line with 1-lb fishing weight lead, marked in fathoms (to 4). Packs in bag.

Anchor & rode in green box. Anchor goes over the side, attaches to painter.

Supper was wieners & beans which I'd frozen in a ziploc. Then a piece of bread and honey for dessert. 

Used the Whisperlite with the new fuel pump. I like it better than the propane stove because it's not as scorching hot.

I took the sails off and furled the mizzen 'cause I don't want anything flapping around. 

Took the daggerboards out 'cause they were too noisy. 

The sleeping bag is excellent. 

Next time:

- Bring bird book, knot book, zoom camera. 
- Salt & pepper!
- Canned milk!

- Print out relevant parts of Murphys for easier access.

48.4394° N, 123.245° W

Lights!

I bought a 12-volt LED bow light for Firefly and thought it would be pretty easy to install.

Well, it was pretty easy to install the light itself... but the wiring of it wasn't so easy! First-off, I learned that I shouldn't just use any old wire, but rather proper marine-grade stuff. The difference? Each strand of copper is tinned! So it looks like it's aluminum or something.

I started with the switch. I used a part from the portable stern light that I got; I had no idea what it was for, but after pulling out the threaded insert and drilling the hole out a bit, it was perfect for holding the switch:

John helped me solder the leads to it, one of which was for the fuse. The switch is on the starboard side of the companionway. I've since written "OFF" to the left with magic marker, as it's "ON" in the above photo.

I led the wire forward along the cabin side and through the forward bulkhead to the "focsl", where I tied it in to a post set-up I made. I'm not sure if it's kosher, but it's what came to mind to do, rather than having wires just hanging around (enough of that already!):

 There was a lot of head-banging and cussing involved in putting this together. As I lay on my back trying to squeeze myself into the bows I was always sliding down aft. Looking up, I had the flashlight hanging in the lines you see going across below, and my glasses on upside-down so the bifocal reading part of the lenses was up. Barely workable, but got it done!

The wire leading down to the left above goes to the battery,

a 12-V gel cell that John donated to the cause. It's now turned around and firmly squished in between that water tank in the bows and another cube of water between it and the mast. It's not going anywhere! Notice that it's a "sacred" battery—don't know what I did to deserve that! ;-)

Lights on!

For the stern light, as I mentioned above, I bought a portable one that operates on 4 "AA" batteries. It came with a post and a clamp and some other stuff that was undocumented. I thought I'd be using the clamp (to clamp the post to the boat), but after trying it out I considered it too mickeymouse, so I made my own post holder at John's out of fibreglass:

I just happened to have a screw that tapped into one of the holes in the bottom of the post!

I didn't go with a portable bow light because of access to the bow being so restricted—I didn't want to have to be going forward to set it up or turn it on and off. But the stern light is a no-brainer for that. It will be stowed until needed.

Of course the rudder won't be up when the light will be in use, but I may consider putting a window in the mizzen.

Another project completed was finishing the bottom edges of the boom tent and putting extra loops on so that the edges could be tied from higher up, for summer air flow-through:

The sides of the boom tent can now be either up a foot, or down closer to the deck. It sure makes a big difference in comfort, having the sun blocked out of the cockpit!

Roughest day

Sheesh! That guy from a couple posts back was so right about the waters around here. ("It's that insane dirty dancing of wind and tide that makes you wish the band would just go home.")

The wind was a nice SSW 12-13 knots...

but it was dirty dancing with the tide, so it was really bouncy. Going to windward was slow but steady, and once I got half-way to Albert Head the wave action settled somewhat.

But then near Albert Head the wind freshened and I felt overpowered a couple of times, ragging the main. So I reefed, for the first time on the water.

I got the tack and clew down eventually (need to get cam cleats!), and went into the cove on the north side of Albert Head for calm water to tie in the reef points I couldn't reach from the cockpit. Once again I considered junk rig... but, so much work to make it happen!

The run home, with the mizzen furled, was bumpy and fairly fast. I've discovered that the wave action in videos looks much tamer than it is in reality. Wind here is about 16 knots. The boat is quite dry and handles waves well without shipping any—in a word: buoyant.

View from the shore (notice "SSW 17 kts gusting to 20 kts"):

Roughest day. Nothing broke.

Saturday sail

Friday was too windy, but Saturday looked like it was shaping up nicely. I got out in about 8 knot winds, way over by Witty's Lagoon. I noticed that the tide was sweeping me toward Race Rocks quite swiftly, and the wind was getting a little iffy, so I headed back. Three cruise ships came along at the same time. This one threw up some fierce waves, and then the wind, which was supposed to have built nicely to 15 knots, quit. So I motored home.

It happened that David Bowie's Cat People (Putting Out Fire) was on my sound system. It wasn't intentional, honest!  :-)

Almost forgot to say that the jib telltales are working much better:

I made a little button and button hole with some whipping thread and a dowel, to capture the jib downhaul so the telltales don't get caught in it, just forward of the bottom telltale.

Why I didn't go out on Friday

In a word: WIND!

Kite and sailboarders had a great time.

Race to Alaska

The qualifying first leg has been completed, and most of the boats have made it in. (I don't have any info on the strictly person-powered boats.) The wind was SW around 18 knots against a fairly strong ebb tide. The people I talked to said it was wet and cold. The first boat, Team Golden Oldies in their 38′ Crowther super Shockwave, arrived around 8:45am. Oops! I just found the results page; they arrived at 9:18. The Victoria Team Mau for whom John built a pedal drive came in 6th—good show!

Here's what Dirk Visser said about the Strait on the SCA blog:

"The 40 miles from PT to Victoria can be nothing but a rippled millpond, or possibly the sternest test you have ever faced as a mariner. Any local waterman will confirm: 'It's big water'.
Back in the day, planning a run to Neah Bay or La Push we used to just say to each other with a shrug of the shoulders, 'the Straits can always be rough!'.
It's that insane dirty dancing of wind and tide that makes you wish the band would just go home. On one ocassion I can remember the relief of just getting out to the open, unprotected, Pacific Ocean!"

Here's my only good photo of the fleet in the Inner Harbour on Friday afternoon.

I don't know what team this boat above is, but I know I've seen it written about. It has tandem sliding seat rowing units; one person per oar, it looks like. Many of the multihulls had a similar set-up, with a sliding seat on each outer hull. I enjoyed that it has twin daggerboards, just like my boat does! They're flat on the outside and foiled on the inner side, in rectangular (why not shaped?) boxes. All high-tech hardware and rigging, including a carbon fibre bowsprit.

Here's the Race to Alaska web site. They start the main course Sunday at noon.

Back to Firefly

I finally got the new rudder blade finished! I installed it yesterday. Unfortunately, I was so wrapped up in the experience I forgot to take photos (what else is new?). Suffice to say one would have great trouble distinguishing it from the old blade in a casual viewing. The downhaul arrangement is different, though: I fabricated and attached a stop so that the blade can only go so far around when it's down. This will mean much better performance, and hopefully fewer or no vibrations from the engine (too long a story to go into here).

Now, to get out there and try it out!

Um... what happened to all that great wind we were having??

next rudder - pointy edge

The NACA foil formula results in a foil with a blunt edge instead of a point, so that the point can be made of something that's not wood (i.e., whatever resin one is using). That way there's less chance of the edge breaking, and water getting into the wood. Here's how I did it (John's idea):

Clamped a straight-edge to one side of the trailing edge of the foil, and filled in the triangle with resin thickened with chopped strand and cab-o-sil. Put packing tape on the straight-edge for easy release, as resin doesn't stick to it.

After the triangle is hard, the fibreglass goes on and overlaps the resin. Then one has a blade with a pointed glass trailing edge that the water will just slide off of:

The rudder is almost done. (I think I said that before.) The top groove is glassed, and the blade is glassed. Just need to (wait until Monday for the shop to be open and) glass the upper part, drill the pivot hole, attach the lines, and put the rudder back together again.

Didn't quite know how to treat the change from the point to the rounded after edge. It'll be whatever it comes out as. Notice that I've drilled and filled a large hole for the pivot bolt, so the final bolt hole will be isolated from the wood.

Rugged

I found this area rug in the garbage. It was quite new, and the backing is really grippy, so I kept it, thinking it might be useful on the boat. Today I cut it up and installed it. It happened to just cover the floor and seats.

It's polypropylene, so presumably won't take long to dry out if wet.

I really wanted something for the cockpit floorboard, since I didn't put any non-skid on it and it is slippery when wet. Safety first!—I'd hate to have an emergency because I slipped on my own floor! I was thinking more of some kind of thick rubber floor stuff like those interlocking squares you can get. I'll see how this stuff goes. If it's not right I'll just return it to the garbage. :-)

After I put the piece down on the floorboard, I sat on the bench and pushed sideways as hard as I could with my feet to try and make it move, and it wouldn't slip a millimeter, so presumably it'll do. It'll certainly be better on bare feet in the summer than non-skid grit!

Not sailing just now 'cause the rudder is off. The new blade is close to being finished and is looking really good. If I get the urge I can always re-install the old rudder setup and go sailing...