In which IAZ P boldly sails forth to new adventures

AHOY Mateys, Intrepid Readers, and friends!  I report to you this fine spring day that "I Am Zinea, Pterodactylus" has exchanged sailors in a happy fashion and is southwest bound from New Hampshire to the bustling and exciting 6th boro of New York City.  She is now in the hands of Capn Patrick Danger Danger and his nefarious gang.

Lots of symbolic appropriateness going on in this picture

Oh! Poseidon look kindly on IAZ,Ps new crew! I now shall recite to you this slightly modified age-old Goat Island Skiff plea. Amazing aquatic one, please receive it with benevolence:

May they enjoy fair winds and following seas,
High adventure and times of quiet relaxation,
May they always find the port before the storm,
and may she never abandon her crew in their most dire moment of need. 

Appropriate beverage-esque ceremony to follow.

I am happy to see this happen.

Thank you everyone, for everything.  Too many people to list, so many unknown peoples, it doesnt matter, thank you all.  IAZ,P has been such a wonderful experience in my life.  Please continue to follow GIS Amateur Style as we slowly segue fully into Sea Pearl 21 adventuring with "Scout" who has been featured in several previous posts, such as this one.

HUZZAH
HUZZAH
HUZZAH!!!

Transom

The transom is ready for gluing. I spent mucho time preparing the top frame last night, I cut it wide with the jigsaw and then sanded it down to match the ply, so this took quite a while. I was being cautious. Everything fits nice and tight and perfect. I am pleased with the result of taking my time with this important element.


AND THEN

I screwed up. I was cutting out the hole for the tiller. I carefully plotted everything out, carefully cut everything out, sanded smooth and inspected for variations. Along the top cut, I noticed I had ever-so-gently strayed "north" and my top cut was not as true as my bottom cut. "NO PROBLEMO" I muttered, whilst grabbing the jigsaw firing it up. "Ill just trim it straight out easy peasey! The fact that maybe the power tool wasnt the best idea didnt cross my mind and I proceeded to venture boldly north now, as opposed to gently stray. goddammit. Now the radius of the corner doesnt match the width of the hole, the top cut is wobbly and not even parallel anymore, and Im super scared to keep cutting to get it straight, because even with a jig clamped down for the jigsaw, I wasnt getting a straight cut. So Im leaving my wobbly, diagonal, cut as a two part lesson: a: SLOW DOWN. b: Its OK to screw up. Im owning up to it, and Im walking away from my almost-but-not-quite perfect transom.



Tomorrow, I will do the first gluing, and stay tuned for some exciting new boat developments!

Framing the transom

Ooooh boy, Im in it now. I got home after being on the road for almost two weeks and immediately picked back up on working on the boat. I decided to frame the transom. I cut the cedar parts to frame the sides, the bottom, and the seat cleat in 2:45. I thought it would go significantly quicker, but it didnt because it was a little more complicated than I thought, and my framing was fraught with multiple mistakes. I also do not have a solid piece of cedar for the top piece, which needs to be wider than any of my stock. Maybe Ill use two pieces, maybe that will have to wait.

The first mistake was correcting an old one... the transom needs 7mm of extra on the sides of the ply and 12mm extra on the bottom. I figured this was extra that was going to be cut off, so I threw in a few extra mm to make round numbers. Turns out the 7 and 12 is important, because I will be basing the bevel of the sides and bottom off these numbers. Fortunately I read the section first before, cleaned up the lines to the correct length, and then cut and sanded smooth.

After that, it was a comedy of errors cutting the cedar to fit appropriately. In the end, it looks good, tight, and straight. Next up, I have to glue it all on and/or seal the ply in epoxy and then glue it on. I also do not know how to bevel any of this stuff. This is something I am going to have to ask about for because I dont know how to do it simply and without screw up. Time to phone the collective.

BCBCBfest!!!

AHOOOY Intrepid Readers!

Yours truly is back and with a tale of journey to tell!  Actually, SCOUT and I have TWO stories, but they will be added in installments.  The first story is a four day trek on minimal left-over foodstuffs that spanned mid-coast Maine from Belfast-Castine-Brooklin-Castine-Belfast, or as I like to call it, the BCBCBfest! It almost sounds like a famous punk-rock bar that is now closed in NYC, but not quite and probably not as cool.

Lets get this party started, right here on your favorite Amateur Style network!

Red = Sailing
Black = Iron Mizzen
Yellow = Rowing

DAY MINUS UNO (-1)

The first day minus one day was spent with Capn Jon of TWO HEARTED.  He has a new transportation device, an expedition length Old Town Canoe Tripper XL, henceforth dubbed, "THE TRIPPAH." We spent an evening on the Kennebec and trippahed down to a Renys, which is a Maine Institution, like Hamilton Marine, but less marine-y.  I needed a pair of muck boots, and I definitely found them, and for the right price (15$)!  My life afloat has dramatically changed with these boots.  Why did I wait so long? Thank you Renys! (No joke, life changing).

BOOTS! and Capn Jon sprawling around.  But the BOOTS!

DAY UNO

Characteristically late, and catching the last of the outgoing tide before it became a threat to forward progress I sailed out of Belfast Harbor with a stiff Southwesterly sea breeze coming up Penobscot Bay.  Think:  Outgoing tide, incoming wind.  Since I was in a rush, I was in t-shirt and didnt button up the center cockpit under the tonneau cover.  Woops.

Half way across Penobscot to the north end of Isleboro, I ended up stuffing the bow into the chop.  The Sea Pearl has some great design features.  The water I was shipping aboard flowed back to the aft cockpit, and drained out the stern (I thoughtfully opened the plug), and so swamping wasnt too much an issue.  The bow-stuff maneuver was a first time event for me, and SCOUT shook it off and kept marching forward.  I ended up reefing multiple times as the further I left Belfast behind the higher the wind velocity and the steeper the chop.  It got to a point where I was taking so much water I put on my dry-suit.  My heart rate was up, a tad.

I stayed very determined on the north point of Isleboro, because I knew when I cleared that, the fetch would diminish significantly and I could enjoy some calmer waters.  The goal was Castine, and I planned to throw the hook in a little harbor between the Ram Islands.

Entering the lee from Isleboro and calmer waters

Everything is soaked.  Canvas bags worked! Sleeping bag dry.

Four wraps in on the mainsail reef.

Safe harbor in Ram Island with Castine in the distance.

Something big this way comes.

Did I mention my new boots?!  Life is awesome!

DAY DOS

Up and at em early I motored out of the little bay and headed down south to enter the Eggomoggin Reach.  I was somewhat something kind of planning to head to Mount Desert Isle/Acadia and sail up Somes Sound, which I hear is legendary.  However, I was flexible and was going to let chips fall as they may.  Rounding the Head of the Cape the wind picked up and I killed the Tohatsu and fired up the sails.  We had a very enjoyable sail down the Egg Reach, under the Deer Isle bridge, and down to Center Harbor/Brooklin, where we had an interesting and unexpected meet up with the good people over at OffCenterHarbor.com.  They were sailing a 7-strake Caledonia Yawl, and were a little intrigued at SCOUT and I bebopping around the coast like a bunch of worthless bums.  We spent a few minutes discussing particulars, and there is a good chance well see some SCOUT and me over at OffCenterHarbor.com.  I will admit I was somewhat trepidatious, as SCOUT and I arent the most clinical of sailing types, with sails and oar and sacrilegious motors and lots of loud opinions, but as Eric piped up, they are "off" Center Harbor, after all.  I was sold.

Its really a wonderful website with lots of great videos and I highly recommend the subscription, its kind of like WoodenBoat/SmallCraftAdvisor but online and with videos.  Capn Jon certainly likes his. (and thats an endorsement!)  If youre an arm-chair winter-sailor like me, this is a great hint-hint for the better half.  Just sayin.

Sea-side cabin

Fall is coming to New England.  You cant stop it.

Deer Isle bridge.  A rite of passage for all boats.

Apologies about the blurry but this is MARTHA, E.B. Whites boat.  
This is his boat.  No joke. I pass close to legend.

A little Chesapeake skiff. 

I dont know what this is (International 210), 
but it looks fast, and it looks mean, and I want one.

YAY Beetle Cat! I love Beetle Cats. They saved me when I was lost.

Tom Jacksons FAR AND AWAY looking lonely under the green tarp. 
Cmon, Tom, lets go sailing!

SCOUT hiding behind Little Hog

Sunset over the Egg Reach. 

Home sweet home.  Cooking up some random rice bag found floating in the bilge and enjoying
the heat from my German lantern.  Go lantern, go!  Keep the cold and humidity at bay! 

DAY TRIOS

This was day four without a shower and since OffCenterHarbor was coming my way I took a sponge bath of sorts which was cold and exhilarating and brutal all at once.  I will say, that my view from my morning constitutional was fantastic, however.

The view from The Can.

OFC and I did a little sailing and a little video and then I went off to the holey of Holies, Wooden Boat where I totally clinched my "Small Boats" collection with the supposedly LAST 2008 issue left in inventory!  YES!  Years of searching and waiting all for this very moment! Victory is mine with a capital V!  Then there was some more sailing around Center Harbor, specifically with a gorgeous Herreshoff 12 1/2 from 1928 (I may be off on the date but Im damn close, thing was old!) and we had some great sailing together.  She was a beautiful boat and SCOUT totally cleaned her clock. That being said, sailing with a boat almost 100 years old is humbling in ways that is tough to describe, cleaning of the clock non-withstanding.  I dont have a picture of the 12 1/2, and I find this very sad.  I was enjoying the moment, and didnt get the camera out of the bilge.  A win for my memory, a loss for all your intrepid readers.  Apologies.

After some more sailing in Center Harbor I headed back to Castine for night, and ran into a dead calm.  The Tohatsu answered the call to putt-putt, and we motored almost all the way back to Ram Island.  More blasphemy? Or more cruising? I dont judge, too much.

Another perfect morning in Brooklin.
Where were you waking up?
tic toc tic toc tic toc, time waits for no man. etc. etc. etc.

Back under the Deer Isle bridge bound for Castine, under Iron Mizzen power!

Into the sun. Not enjoyable.

DAY QUATROS

So back to Ram Island SCOUT and I awent, where we spent the night again.  This evening was largely burned up listening to people on a beach party, which brought to mind this post from 2012. Read the paragraph below the ferry.  My feelings havent changed. What is with people and noise? Seriously.

After waking up, we waited for the tide to come up across the bar by Nautilus Island, and headed to Castine.  The waiting of the tide clearly illustrated the benefits of the Sea Pearl 21.  I came across Penobscot Bay in a blow and steep chop with little worry, ghosted down the Egg Reach, effortlessly motored back to Castine, and I can cross a bar in 6" of water.  Thats all I need to find a snug anchorage and get to where I need to go.  Six inches of water.

I was tipped off by Capn Jon that Castine is home to lots of Elm trees that somehow escaped the blight.  I found this fascinating, because I grew up listening to the Olde Popster who would tell me about Elm trees that would line all the main streets and provide shade and so on, and how they have all disappeared with the Dutch Elm Disease, and how he would chase ice carriages in summer time for ice-chunks to suck on, and Ye Olde Dayes were not like today with you and your kids and your refrigerators.  And behold, Castine has Elm trees, and they are great to see, as Olde Popster said they would be.

Waking up to more dew and a paradisio anchor hole.  Good holding ground, well protected, morning sun.

All that separates me from Castine

Give me 10 minutes.

Starfish a-plenty! This one is blue.

Crossing the bar with 6" of water.  YES shallow draft!

Castine Town Dock.  Everyone stop. SCOUT has arrived.

ELM TREES

ELM TREE and Congregational Church. Is there anything else more New England?

Another Elm Tree!

Not an Elm Tree.

Sigh, catboats.  So wonderful.  I love New England.

PRESTO? Lets face it, I love sharpies.  Is this the Presto 30?  It has 4 windows instead of 3. Not sure. Regardless, beautiful and capable.  I.Want.One. You want one! This boat also has the Australian rudder-cassette design a-la Goat Island Skiff.  Very excited I was, to see that on a large production vessel.  If anyone knows what this is, please advise.

After breakfast in Castine, I motored out of the harbor, ran out of gas, and ended up rowing most of the way to Belfast.  That was a lot to row, right across the top of Penobscot Bay.  Dead calm, and just me.  Harbor porpoises, seals, birds, and a run in with a fellow TSCA member which precipitated a mid-bay messabout.  Afterwards, a quick stop at the legendary Youngs Lobster Pound, and off to the boat ramp, ending 4 days of wonderful mid-coast Maine cruising.

Rowing weather.  Jeeeezum, its flat. 

Im really not that excited. CCBB represent.

Mid-Bay Messabout.  Thats the tip of Isleboro I was so happy to see three days prior.

THIS IS HOW YOU END JOURNEY. LOBSTER. 

HOWEVER THERE IS A DAY 5 (6)! Stay tuned! SCOUT and I got to Massachusetts land of aggressive driving, lights, noise, Berkshires, Boston, and DAN NOYES New England Dory Man!

On the metaphorical road again heading for more small boat sailing adventures

The brotherhood of the travelling boots.

Its occurred to me that the hikers boots that I’m wearing have been to seven different countries so far, they’re good friends the two of them, get along well even though they’re almost twins. One of course is a lefty and the other a righty but even so they seem able to co operate and generally arrive wherever it is that they’re going at about the same time.

I’m on my way again, this time to Chile,  will arrive in Santiago in about 18 hours.

Right now I’m sitting in Auckland International airport, within a few metres of the Percival Gull aircraft that Jean Batten flew from England to New Zealand in 1936, setting a number of aviation records on the way.  That flight took 11 days and 45 minutes to cover a bit more than 14000 miles. 

I’m going to be travelling in an aircraft that barely resembles that tiny single engined spruce and canvas plane.  In fact it would be no real problem to fit the “Gull” into the cargo hold of the big Boeing that I’ll be imprisoned within for the 13 ½ hour flight across the Southern Pacific Ocean. We’ll be travelling at around 590 nautical miles per hour, how different it is from Jean in her little light plane t125 mph.  I bet she didn’t complain about the cabin service in her tiny cockpit .

Jean Battens Percival Gull airplane, as I write this Im sitting about 2metres away from the wingtip on the left of the picture, its a graceful little thing, but a real reminder of how much aviation has progressed since then, remember too that Jean Batten was with us until 1982, so most of this amazing progress has happened within the space of a long lifetime.

This trip I’m making is by the way the longest uninterrupted stretch of ocean that there is north of the five great capes about twice the distance that it is across the North Atlantic from USA to UK.

Which brings me to why I’m travelling.  I’m to meet up with friend and co teacher Howard Rice, and we’re going to be setting up for the big voyage of exploration that he is undertaking next southern summer.

That voyage, in a modified SCAMP, all of 11 ft 11 in long ( 3.575M ) will leave from Punta Arenas in the Straights of Magellan, carry him out through the channels and straights into the Pacific where he’ll turn left, and head south toward Cape Horn.

That latter is not necessarily the objective of the voyage, but rounding “The Horn” is a possibility.  The real purpose of the voyage is to explore the least populated and most rugged coastline on the planet,  riven with steep sided fjords, many with glaciers at their heads, backed by mountains, many un named as yet, and battered by the incessant gale force winds of the Roaring 40s this is an extraordinary place, and one which Howard will be exploring, and documenting.

There will be cameras on the boat, as well as within his support crew back at Punta Arenas, there is already some video “in the can” and the intention is to make a comprehensive video of the voyage, a video which will be available to anyone wishing to see the grandeur of the wildest place on the planet from the viewpoint of a small boat sailor.

There is more on the boat and the voyage in Howards Facebook page here

https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=howard%20rices

Yes it costs by the way, and if you’d like to support this, check out the directors website here. http://www.below40south.com.  There is also a lot of information on the voyage there.

  Any donations would be very gratefully received, we’re covered for the actual filming but the production costs will be significant and even a small amount would help to get what will be one of the great small boat adventures out where people can share it.

So I’m sitting here in Auckland airport with several hours to wait until the big silver bird roars down the runway and turns out eastward over the sea.

Its not boring, I’m in a quiet corner upstairs, this is one of the better airports that I travel through, and I’m alongside a glass wall where I can watch the people flow like a gently stirred anthill.  It’s the arrivals area just below me, and there are friends, parents, siblings and visitors arriving, it’s heart warming watching the enthusiasm and emotion with which they are being welcomed.

But I’m going the other way, I’ll be among that crowd downstairs in 20 days.

Ive been out having little adventures

Last week I took the ship out up to Kawau Island, about 2 hours away by sea, visited friends their then went to meet up with the beginning of the Kiwi Raid at Sandspit.

I was the “baggage barge” for the first day, baggage including camping gear for about 30 people was a good sized cargo but there is plenty of space in the covered cockpit aft so apart from needing four loads in the inflatable to get it all ashore at Martins Bay where they were to spend 3 nights at the motor camp while exploring the river at Mahurangi and the islands in the area, it was no problem at all.

I had the pleasure of the company of Roz for a couple of days, she is the organiser behind the Taweh Nugganah raid in Tasmania, those people being the bulk of the participants in our raid here.  Nice to meet you Roz, thanks for the pleasant time, you’re a great “deckhand”.

Raid progress reports here, I wish I could have stayed longer,  next year!

http://nzcoastalrowing.org/page/2/

More Kiwi participants too, this is a fabulous event, well organised, well supported with escort boats, the campsites all arranged, food provided, well done all the organising team.

From there, it was Mahurangi Regatta time, the annual event for classic yachts held in the entrance of the Mahurangi River,  there are usually between 250 and 300 boats there and while I’m primarily interested in the small boats, and admit to being biased and wanting pics of some my own designs, this is a fabulous event and one that I hate missing. 

This time, with the aid of Denny on the helm I was able to get around the fleet, hopefully not inconveniencing any of the racers, and got some very good shots.

Waiting near the beach, this is Carlotta Ann, soon to be renamed Kairos, I dont have any connection to the original name and she was an opportunity not to be missed.  Shes my most of the time home, big, comfortable and capable. I still have five other boats two of them with sails so Ive not defected from the small boat fold.

Breeze, 65 ft on deck, operated by an Auckland Maritime Museum volunteer group, a lovely sight at the Mahurangi Regatta, she sails the course with all of the racers and adds much to the spectacle. Yes Ive been up on that yard, while shes not a big ship its still a long way down.

Four of the St Ayles skiffs from the raid, all Tasmanian crews. Thanks for coming over people, great to meet you.

A sloop rigged Pathfinder,   http://www.jwboatdesigns.co.nz/plans/pathfinder/index.htm 

At this stage of the race  lying second to a boat that has won the event multiple times, local knowledge makes a huge difference on this course.

Rogue, slim, easily moved by that big sail. She finished second, well done. 

http://www.jwboatdesigns.co.nz/plans/rogue/index.htm

Saturday Night Special, designed to be a really quick and easy build for events such as the Texas 200, while not at her best in the very light winds ( the T200 is a notoriously windy event, there is an alternative larger sail area rig) she more than held her own among a fleet of very competitive small racers.   http://www.duckworksbbs.com/plans/jw/sns/index.htm

No excuses for just chasing pics of my own designs, the opportunity does not come up very often so I take it where it happens.  But Ive more pics and will post again.

We took the ship up the river to Warkworth, the town at the head of the navigable part of the river, being a midday tide and a holiday weekend, plus the Raid boats were up there with John Dory their escort,  it was way too crowded and no space at the dock so I managed to turn us around in the smallest space imaginable without touching anyone else, a maneuver that I was very proud of, tied up at the kayak jetty ( not being used at the time) for an hour then headed back out.

Perfect weather, light winds, just enough to move the boats, sunny and calm, itrs a lovely venue and ideal for boatwatchers, birdwatchers as well, there was a big flock of Fluttering Shearwaters resting just off the point as we came in.

I’m back at my home dock now, have a few jobs to do before I catch the bus into the airport and fly across the Pacific to Santiago to meet up with Howard Rice to help prepare the way for his planned Southern Ocean adventure with his SCAMP.

Check it out here.   http://www.below40south.com

The fundraiser is to make a movie so everyone can share the adventure. The cameras are organised, the filming planned, it’s the production costs that we need to cover, even ten dollars will help.  Please.

I’ve not been to Chile before, New Zealand has strong trade ties with that country and quite a few Chileans live here, but this is a first on that continent for me.

I’m very much looking forward to it.

Watch this space for reports.