Weekend in Casco Bay

This weekend I shot up to Casco Bay with Al from Brooklyn who has built a stunning Goat Island Skiff in his shop.  He launches it into an East River tributary by unceremoniously dropping it off the sea wall into the water.  The original plan was hopefully for two boats, but Al wasnt able to get the trailer finished in time, so we took mine, which is just as well since Saturday was hot on the heels of a decent sized NorEaster we had up here in New England last week.  We got a late start on Saturday, and in confused seas we set out for Little Cheabeague-- not too far away, but with a beautiful sandy beach.  Far enough.

The ride out was exciting, we shipped a lot of water over the bow in the steep seas, and the last half of the journey was characterized by a fast reach to the island.  The ride was wet, and Al did his fare share of bailing.  One tack, all the way.  In all the excitement I left my trusty camera in the one of the watertight buckets that turned out to be... not so watertight.  My camera took a salt bath...

Thankfully, on the return journey we ran into Talisman, a 24 Ostkust.  You can see pictures and read about Talisman Here and Here.

The skipper of Talisman took some pics of us returning to South Portland that afternoon, and, video!

Goat Island Skiff Homeward Bound

Fort Gorges in the Background

Here is I am Zinea, Pterodactylus in all her youtubes glory!




Another exciting weekend of sailing!

Where is IAZ P now Update from NYC!

Oh boy Intrepid Readers- welcome to a very special installment of GISAmateur Style where we have asked Capn Patrick Danger-Danger on an update and his version of events on acquiring and sailing The Most Famous Goat Island Skiff in the World-- IAZ,P. He has gladly obliged, and without further ado I present to you....

IAZ,P Moves to Brooklyn... NYC That Is

Oh man, where to begin!!?!? So I made up my mind to build a dang boat finally. Even decided what type: The famed Goat Island Skiff of story and song. I had begun to cast about for some decent building space. New York City is not a great place to seek shop space for a labor of love like a small sailboat, so my search was fruitless and plagued with daydreams of tents in the mother-in-laws yard or a temporary shop in a storefront in a rundown neighborhood...

Anybody got a shop I can borry part time for like the next 2 years or so? While I figure out how to build this boat as I build it...?

Well I am not a big fan of "The Universe Will Provide" but the way things go some times what else is there to say? You make your luck. So I hooked up with DaveL. who had recently completed his GIS and was looking for crew for BIG ADVENTURE TIME. I thought "well heres an opportunity to have a sail or two in my chosen vessel" kind of a try before you buy kinda thing. Suffice to say, I ended up aboard GIS "Chivita" bound for adventure on the Long Island Sound and most epic of all in NY Harbor!!?!

Pic from H. LaFontaine

 in very close proximity to Lady Liberty and all her attendant craft big and small. Amazing and wonderful to say the least. Capn Dave at the helm ( I got some too!) and we sailed to and fro near Liberty Island and then made our way up the Hudson to visit the Entrepid on Mahattans west side. What a day! This day became more sailing and aboard Daves brothers yacht Flor DLuna, a fine and comfortable Beneteau Oceanis 34.

Transit from Liberty Landing marina to her home port in Glen Cove at Brewer Yacht Yard was in the offing:

Brooklyn Manhattan and Williamsburg Bridges with deckshark.

Through the East River and Hell Gate out into the Long Island Sound... A sailing weekend that started at a public ramp in New Jersey aboard a tiny yet beautiful hand crafted wooden dinghy (GIS Chivita) and ended with a cool beverage aboard a swanky modern yacht (SV Flor DLuna) Whoa! how did that happen??!! You make yer luck.

So the Summertime rolled and I got to go aboard Flor DLuna a coupla more times, all the while dreaming of my GIS in waiting and my magical NYC Storefront boatyard...

Come the winter and Capn Rick of the good ship Flor D Luna made it known that he would be entering the lady Flor in the Around Long Island Regatta. For those ignorants, (few and far between of course) this regatta starts in the Atlantic Ocean off Rockaway Beach, Queens NY, heading East, leaves Montauk Light to port and finishes some time later in Glen Cove Long Island, Home port of the Seacliff Yacht Club, Regatta Sponsor, and Flors home slip as well. Would I crew? Heck yeah! Sailing day and night? Excellent! Multiple days aboard Flor DLuna? COOOOL!!! You make yer luck. Planning commenced and soon the crew manifest was full: a salty bunch of fools the lot! Ideas and Questions and Charts and What Goes Where and EPIRB and Harness etc. etc.and all the while looking at pictures and videos of various Goats, and the one in particular that is I Am Zinea, Pteradactylus. You know the one:

No question that Callsign has truly captured the essence of something very intense and special with his builder and sailor blog about boaty exploits along the rugged and spectacular Maine coast. At least since somewhere within 2012 I had been ogling the scenery and the sailing within GIS Amateur Style: this is exactly what I envisioned I just didnt know it till I saw it here:

Spring begins to crack open a bit in 2014, and I get a message from DaveL amongst the planning and dreaming and ogling... Callsign is selling his boat! IAZ,P is in need of a new skipper as Sea Pearl Scout becomes the Adventure Realization Engine Callsign needs to fulfill further Adventure Realizing! IAZ,P is for sale!!!!???!?! Hurriedly, breathlessly, I send an email and I join a woodenboat forum. Hey Dude! I want that boat!!! Emails are exchanged and a plan begins to formulate: we will meet to look over the boat, but where? Well, it turns out that about halfway between us is a little town in Connecticut where Callsigns ancestral manse is located, complete with ancestors (very charming folk indeed) white picket fences, a town dock, you get the picture. Very Boaty.

When I arrive IAZ,P is on a trailer behind Callsigns car. After lunch and a chat with the parental units, we look her over and turn her over and "...heres this ding and that scuff..." "...rig this tie that..." and like that. Stashed her bottoms up in the grass in front of the house keeping company with a slightly sagging Aquarius relaxing into her trailer bunks.  I am bursting with amazement at my luck. Imma buy this boat from this guy!  Came time to fork over the cash so I did. What came next? Well, Callsign gave me back some of my cash and handed over a really nice bottle of rum. The good stuff! What a Prince this fellow is! A real reverse haggler. What you might call potlatch I guess in the give better than you get vein. Afterwards, a stroll to the waterfront, a coffee, and good conversation about sailing, water, life, current and tide... yknow, the important stuff. We agreed that I would retrieve the boat from the parental yard within some small space of time, (Thanks Mama Callsign!)

Well now what? I bought a boat with no place to put her!!??

Of course I had some ideas and possibilities, and certainly there are yards and marinas and mother in laws... all storage potentials (some more dubious than others) and none quite right for a fine craft such as Ms. Zinea.

Well, I go to the internet one day (as we do) searchword "small boat storage NYC" or some stupidness like that and there on the glowing screen is the website of the Sebago Canoe Club. Cool. I went down to Canarsie, Which is on Jamaica Bay in South Brooklyn to check out the facilities. I met up with JimL and Beth E. and signed up for Conditional membership. Huh. That was easy. "Yeah bring the boat on down, well find a place over there for her. Buy yourself a dolly." Which I did. The Brothers LaFontaine and Capn Paulie, (Skipper of GIS Kathleen Marie) volunteered to help load and transport IAZ,P, and get this: we cartopped her from Connecticut to Canarsie on a Saturday in late May. Full on Beverly Hillbillies action.

Hilarious and wonderful. Capn Paulie saw us safely down I95 til we got to his exit and sent us on our way with some positive words about the state of our tied down to the roof of the ManVan boat. JimL was at the Club when we arrived and helped us get IAZ,P off the car and onto her dolly and ensconced in the yard.

Relaxing after a rinse.

From that point on, IAZ,P has plied the waters of Paerdegat Basin and Jamaica Bay with interest and abandon, beaching for lunch, running aground, dodging jet skis and fishing boats, sailing with her buds, capsizing a coupla times intentionally and not so intentionally, and teaching me volumes about sailing and my own self in the process. So great to spend the summer on the water with my family and new friends at Sebago.

Jake the Snake gets his wade on...

Crabulator Crabulon with Mouse in the background.

 Matinicus Peapod Mouse, handcrafted by JimL. 

IAZ,Ps new homie.

Lunch on the beach with the gang.

In time I crewed on Flor Dluna in the Around Long Island Regatta,

Read more »

Jewell Island Redux 2013!

WING AND WING as we blow through Cocktail Cove on an evening stroll through the neighborhood.

AHOY MATEYS!

Holy SHAMOLEY I finally did some camping on the new SeaPearl21, SCOUT that I purchased in a drowsy fit of self-imposed moping over my stagnating professional career back in April.  Sometimes, being a cry-baby pays dividends.  In this case, I have secured a long mean fast camping machine that just CHEWS up the water like a hungry waterborne horse striving forward to see what comes around the next island!

Its been a few years since VisionQuest/ManQuest2010, (here, here, and here) and I thought that maybe a good introduction camping trip in Maine this year would be to march back to Jewell Island and spend a few days puttering around and shaking out the bugs.  Jewell is far enough out to offer wildness, while busy enough to provide support if needed, and Cliff Island with ICE CREAM is nearby!   There are multiple campsites, with beaches, coves, and of course, underwater obstacles just waiting to stove a plank or two.

Lt. Presto and I came out of South Portland with its fabulous municipal ramp, and moseyed our way out to Jewell in light winds.  They were so light, I fired up the Iron Mizzen (evil but awesome) and positioned Scout in a way where she benefited from rising offshore winds, and we just started moving!  We were parallel with something that looked suspiciously like a Compac 23 (not sure), and it was no contest.  Sorry Compac 23.  With steady winds we blew into the Punchbowl beach skimming over the outer rock wall with 8" of water at high speed (YES shallow DRAFT!) and impressing all onlookers with our prowess... or stupidity.  First camping trip, and Im already pushing the boat.

Red: Sailing Day 1
Black: Using the evil, yet nice, Iron Mizzen
Orange: Sailing home Day 3.

(Small Day 2 trips not shown)

Enjoy!

Inbound to Jewell 

Beached out.  Lt. Prestos tent is set up at the high tide line.  He snores.

Lt. Presto and the emptied out cove on the NE beach.  Note 150 haul-out for Scout.

Tides coming back in.  Rock wall on right was sailed over at high speed!

Evening is setting up nicely.  WHAT A BOAT!

Lt. Presto enjoying the Punchbowl is it fills in.  (Beach and boat behind us)

As my intrepid readers will remember, my camping style mandates chaos.

High class, honest.

Note Scout quietly at rest on her haul-out.

The most amazing thing to have whilst camping on islands.  Espresso maker for one.

Tied up at the dock on Cliff to get ice cream.  Ferry from Portland is in.  

Lt. Presto navigating Scout to safe harbor!

Captain Callsign just slaying it!

Duck Punting Introducing MRS MUMBLES

AHOY! A new boat joins this blog! We have seen a Goat Island Skiff, a Quick Canoe, a Sea Pearl 21, assorted other boats from friends, and now I present FLO-MOs stitch and glue interpretation of a West Mersea Duck Punt from southeast England!

At the end of September, I got a hankering to do something a little different than the coastal open-boat cruising.  A rainy solo evening at home got me reacquainted with Dylan Winters duck punting videos from the UK.  For the intrepid reader who DOESNT know anything about duck punting in traditional duck punts from West Mersea, England, have a look-see over at Ye Olde YouTubes.

I strongly suggest looking at Lurchs page, as he has some phenomenal videos of duck punting with his local duck punting group. I have spent hours watching his videos to glean sailing tips.  Dylan Winter, through his famous Keep Turning Left adventure has literally wrested this small traditional duck boat from SE England and plunked it on the world stage of sailing, where it has weaseled its way into many sailors hearts for its simplicity that also demands high levels of technique.

Duck Punts have no rudders, or centerboards. They are sailed by sail and weight trim, and an oar. They sail in a few inches of water, and cost little to build.

Capn Jon pushed me over the edge, and I built a duck punt in one month, for a few hundred dollars.
I built my punt from FLO-MOs stitch and glue adaptation of John Milgates classic West Mersea duck punt plans.  There were a few aesthetic and construction changes, but the scantlings and dimensions are true to FLO-MOs plans.  I did not play naval architect and I wanted to ensure I kept the West Mersea shape that FLO-MO put together. John Milgate requires a strongback and 10mm plywood, I wanted mine built out of 6mm ply and without the strongback.  Primarily, this was because I wanted to car top my punt, as I live somewhat landlocked.  Meranti ply and pine came from Goose Bay Lumber, leftover epoxy, some screws, and a few cans of Rust-O-Leum.  An optimist club sail came from Intensity Sails for a swell price.

Then, I called the legendary Dan Noyes, who built a solid wood 12 Yankee reimagination of John Milgates punt, and we went punting!

Dan Noyes with his punt on a dolly, walking down to the water.
Dans punt is constructed of solid pine boards and oak frames.

MRS MUMBLES and Dans Punt getting ready to launch.  Note Dans DIPPING LUG RIG.  SALTY!

Detail of Dans Punt

MRS MUMBLES working through the grasses to a hidden creek in Plum Island Sound

Dan follows behind, snaking through the grass

Dan and his dipping lug, which he dips.

Working up another creek

We find small irrigation ditches and follow them deep into the flats.
Notice my super cheap-o boom jaws! The entire rig is made of poplar dowels.
Not ideal, but a quick fix for quick sailing. Forestay to keep mast from wobbling too much.
A more permanent mast is in the works for this winter.

Dan in his own irrigation ditch.

Dans ditch comes to the end of the line. From here, we will drag the boats.

A salt pan, that remains full at low-tide, above the water line, in the middle of the flats.

MRS MUMBLES

Time for lunch! We are pleased with this beautiful day.

Dan sailing MRS MUMBLES
After these pictures, they ran away from me

MRS MUMBLES is very fast, which is why I have lots of stern pictures from a distance,
and very few up-close action shots.
Having a fast boat is not frustrating, unless you are trying to take pictures of it.

Heading home in round-about kind of way.

Hauling out in the muddiest canal we could find in the entire state of Massachusetts.
  

Please join in me in welcoming MRS MUMBLES to GISAmateur Style! HUZZAH!

There is an entire gallery, including construction, that you can peruse at this link.