Sailboats Fair and fine; Read oldest posts first

Sorry folks this may take a few days. I am working onWolftrap Video of the trip south and to the Bahamas. My computer kept locking up and some of the programs quit working. I have had this problem before and have now set up a dual boot system with Linux on one drive and Xp on the other to do only video on using Premier. I will do all my on line work in Lenux. That should keep Xp free of trash. Anyway it will take a few days to get things straight again and start posting. Sorry about that!
Doug

Sailboats fair and fine # 49 : read oldest posts first

NOVE 30 -Sunday Georgenes Log

We couldn't see much when we anchored last night but we got up this morning to find that we were in a beautiful place. The little man made basin was not meant for but one or two boats anchor- if that. There was a boat ramp that was very busy late last night and early this morning with fishermen coming and going. We were in a manatee area and I was hoping I'd see one- or an alligator. The one mile cut was really beautiful. We came into the Indian river and had a long straight stretch for about 35 miles once we turned to come down the river. This river was much wider with a little more depth and a lot of little islands just off the channel. At one of these islands we saw a couple dozen whit pelicans sitting on a sandbar. They are getting scarce and are considered endangered.

The sun was pretty warm a couple times today, I even put on my bathing suit-and then it rained. We had decided to anchored at mile 915 and I;m really glad we did As we came around Dragon Point we passed a huge stucco dragon sitting right on the point! He was about 40 ft long and 20 feet tall. We anchored at about 4:15 P.M. in the Banana River. It is a popular anchorage about 1 mile from the point to a bridge. There are a coupe of marinas just across the river from us.. After we anchored we saw porpoise swimming around near us and also got to see a fireworks display at one of the homes across from us. Some kids set off about a dozen Roman Candles.

As a kid about 11 years old I visited my mothers brother who had a sign shop Miami. He brought more up to this point to show me this Dragon he had built it and painted it years before. So I had no Idea where the thing was but was kind of excited to run across it.

Sailboats fair and fine # 48 : read older posts first

Well we were up early this morning before the alarm went off. Georgene was in a chipper mood and says she doesn't mind getting up early now that we are in warmer weather. It's cloudy and we have had rain of and on all day today. We've had a good breeze all day but smack in our face so again it's been motor sailing. We traveled a little slower, straight into the wind as we did. We passed behind Datona Beach today and stopped at the municipal marina long enough to get Ice, fuel, water and a few snacks. We are in tourist country now lined with hotels, resorts and huge homes.

This afternoon we came down the Mosquito Lagoon it's a long straight channel with shallows on each side of the channel close in. This area is fishing camps aplenty. Camping trailers everywhere and people launching and tasking up boats every where along the way. According to the waterway guide the place lives up to it's name. It's fall so I guess the mosquitoes are down and I'm sure the strong breeze is a help as well. The channel has been full of boats all day. I guess these fishermen like to fish in the channel.

Some places they are rafted up and unwilling to move out of your way. It's no problem with Woftrap because I just move out of the channel but If she was drawing five feet I would have to wait for someone to move and listen to their grumbling as the boat behind us did.

The porpoise and pelicans no the fishing is good here they are plentiful. I've heard people say they ride the bow wave because they enjoy it. I think what they are doing is watching the bottom and when your shadow runs over a fish he darts out of hiding to escape and the purpose is on him in a flash.

Running down the lagoon we could see the big missile assembly building at Cape Canaveral we watched it all day and I don't think it ever got any closed even though we were running right at it. It is one big building.

At the end of the days run down the lagoon the channel mad a hard turn to starboard and came into a cut channel that ran across a mile wide spit of land. Trees grow right to the edge and a few in the water. There are people fishing off the bank every 30 ft. Everybody waves and once in a while hold up a pretty string of fish. We had to wait a few minutes for the bridge to open and then motored through. We went on about a quarter mile and turned to Port into a really small basin. I anchored up short on two hooks to make room for another boat if they wanted to anchor. We were at mile 870 and tired. We stretched in the cockpit drank coffee and listened to soft music on our radio.

Sailboats Fair and fine, # 47 : read older posts first

Hi folks, Well here is where we are with the boat I am building today. Thought you might like to know what I do when I'm not on the keyboard. When the little boat is finished we will embark on high adventure. Now you have to know that at 70 couple of years old getting out of bed in the morning is somewhat of an adventure.

Picture at the top is the just glassed topsides

Next is the Rudder

Below it is the rudder hatch and hatch slides laying with them

The tp picture show the glass with onr coat of epoxy. With one more coat of epoxy on top then a little sanding and I'll start putting hatches and trim on her. One job I'm kind of dreading is bending a toe rail around the deck and bending half rounds on the hull as rub rails.. I will probably have to steam bend them and nail on to the hull to dry. Then drill the holes and counter sink for screws take the strips off and butter them up with epoxy and screw back on. I will likely have to have help doing the bending and nailing on when I take the strips out of the steamer as it has to be done fast. The good thing there is, that job is a ways off as I have to roll her over and glass the sides first. As with most things I dread doing, I start thinking about them way in advance so I'll have plenty of worrying time before I start.
I am really anxious to get the topside trim on and a coat of white primer, so the hull work will have to wait a little bit. I want to see what she will look like with hatches trim and a coat of white. Most if the trim is shellacked and it looks pretty good but will take on a darker amber color with several coats of varnish. I really hope the pine trim holds up well. It's a new thing for me ,varnish over pine but it will give me the color I want and so it will be a while in the weather before I can call it a success. I think it is so much prettier that teak or mahogany. Some of that is that I like the terpentine smell of working in pine.
Doug

Sailboats fair and Fine # 46 : read older posts first

Here comes a barge with a missle on deck. Headed for Cape Canaveral . If you meet one of these in a bend in the river a deep keel sailboat is nice. Wolftrap with her shallow draft will run aground if you move over to much. My deep draft Fantaisa sloop wont, you just put the wheel over and she moves to the side until the keel begins to feel the side of the channel. No mater how hard you push over on the wheel she won't get any closer to the shallows. I have on occasion in a straight stretch of channel, let go of the wheel and let her find her own way. She will slowly wonder from one side to the other but never touching bottom.

Nov. 28-Friday

We went through the bridge of lions at 7;30 A.M. and after a brief stop at the city marina for fuel and Ice. We were on our way South again. St Augustine was really a nice place to stop- a beautiful harbor. At the town marina, Doug met a man that remembered us from Swansboro. Thats where we did the engine repairs. His boat, I think is the “Sempaytico”. They talked a while when we were getting fuel and he said he would see us on down the line. We waved good by as we backed away from the dock into the wind.

It has been cloudy and overcast all day but no rain. Temp around 70 degrees. Our trip has mostly been a long straight stretch today. The last feww weeks, we've been zig-zagging in and out of rivers- to the edge of the ocean and back again, away from the inlets. Today we passed one inlet and the rest has been a long straight run behind Florida's outer banks. It's more populated now in along the beaches,but some stretches are sandstone banks and real thick palm trees. Still see a lot of flat marsh land, but another change of scenery.

We stopped early today- 4 P.M. Anchorages are in shorter supply than farther North and we slipped into a long, shallow basin behind a little island and anchored. The next anchorage is another ten miles and we probably wouldn't have made it before dark. Besides we were both tired and this place is very pretty. It's barely off the water way and only about 4 ft of water. We are at about mile 820.

I really like these floating docks for Wolftrap. If the wind is pressing her against the dock we take the lines loose except for a bow line. With the dock low to the water Georgene puts the boat in forward the bow line comes tight and the stern swings out. The bowsprit swings over the low dock and when Georgene has the stern straight out. I take the dock line loose swing up onto the bowsprit by the head stay and George backs Wolftrap away swings around and passes by the end of the dock and were off. Any man that don't teach is wife to handle the boat is missing half the pleasures of cruising. Not only that but if the boat looks like it's going to hit a piling they are likely to try and stop it. I know one lady who has never set foot on a boat again after she smashed her toes between the rub rail and a dock. They just can't stand to see the varnish get scrubbed off against something. Besides that your probably stronger, let her do the one finger thing on the throttle while you do the heavy lifting. Every one in the marina will admire you for letting your wife get the praise for a nice docking job and believe me everyone will notice. With a little patience from you, she will learn to handle the boat. It's not that hard, no matter how hard most of us try to make it look that way. Doug

Sasilboats fair and fine # 45 : Read older posts First

Nov27. Thursday Not Georgene's Log but Doug's memory

We spent the day wondering around town doing a little Grocery shopping and a little wine tasting. We pretty much filled up a grocery cart at the grocery store and they loaned us the cart to take everything to the boat. We loaded the dingy and ferried our cargo out to Wolftrap. Then went back and returned the grocery cart to the store. Walking around town we run up on a a wine tasting and always being up for that we joined in. Some of their wines are made from Fox grapes or scuppernogs and scuppernines. In Florida those grapes are known as Georgia bullets. I had mentioned that my parents were from Georgia, Scuppernog wine was a big deal at our house. My aunt shipped us grapes from Georgia and we made wine every year. I was delighted to find wine like I had grown up with so we bought some for ships stores. We got to the boat and packed them away and head for the fort in the dingy and for .50 cents we took a tour can't hardly beat that for a cheap tour.

Returning to the boat we stretched out in the cockpit to watch the tourist go back and forth. About the time we got good and comfortable a police boat came over and asked us to move as there was going to be boat parade for Christmas so we upped anchor and moved farther out. We settled down again watching the goings on and another police boat came over and said the parade is coming right through where you are. You will have to move. This time I argued a little and was told I could move or they would move me and you won't like it he said. “Alright, alright” I said. My wife punched me in the ribs and said come on move the boat. The cop stood in his boat a few feet away with his fist on his hips watching. I motored out fifty yards and turned to anchor and he waved me on out so I went out another fifty yards and dropped the hook. In a little while to more boats came in and anchored almost where I was. Nobody bothered them. When the parade came through it was way close to shore and nowhere near either spot I had anchored in. I was aggravated but kept it to myself though my wife keep glancing at me out of the corner of her eye not sure what I might do. I would have done something If I could of thought of something to do. . When the parade was over we moved to the back of the line of boats and anchored again.

In a little while a boat came in and anchored close while I was below. We went below to eat and read a little and suddenly a boat that had anchored behind us gave five sharp loud blasts on his horn. I came up quick and we were being drug buy the boat that had anchored next to us. He pulled up his anchor to the water level and started motoring off dragging us with him so I yelled over to him and he went forward and got my rode loose from his anchor so we then went back and anchored for the fifth time At St. Augustine. By this time the whole thing had gotten to be a joke and I was by now in a pretty good mood and am now glad to have this little yarn to tell. The rest of the night was pleasant. Tomorrow would be a traveling day and I would be glad to be away from a city anchorage.

I have about two hours of video that I took in 8mm and then still photo's that I intend to put together in maybe an hour video. If I can remember how to work my video program I will be putting it on line for viewing . Probably in short segments in what ever length I can get someone to host it in. I put a link here to it so that any interested can go take a look. Time is running short as I am writing for two blogs building a boat and trying to sell a book so it may take a little while.

Doug

Sailboats Fair and Fine #44 : read oldest posts first

The old Spanish Fort at St. Augustine above.

Nov. 25, Tue. Georgenes Log

Left early this morning and motor sailed all day. We had a very pleasant day . I cleaned the boat some as we went along. We have a lot of mildew. I hope we can get some things dried out soon. The bots topsides don't leak but the early morning fog has dampened everything. We anchored a mile 765 in a little creek off the waterway. Tomorrow were going on to St Augustine and plan to stay for a couple of days. It should be a lot of fun there.

The spot we anchored in was not really a creek but a backwash behind spoils that had been dredged from the waterway and deposited along side. We went around behind it and anchored in about four feet of water. Another boat came in and anchored just after sundown.

Nov. 26- Wed. Georgenens Log

We started off a little different to day. When we started to leave the Anchorage, the other boat that had anchored not far from us had swung around on it's anchor and gone aground on a sand bar. We motored over to see if we could help them get off and as we were backing , Doug shifted into forward and nothing happened. We couldn't go forward and we backed in to the other boat and put a dent in it. Also they had out two anchors and one went under their bow and in the dark water we couldn't see it. We picked that line up in our propeller. We put fenders between the boats and Doug went over to free the prop. he then found that a clamp on the shifter linkage was broken and had to be fixed. He then started the engine and shifted by hand down inside the engine compartment so that we could move away from the other boat and then we anchored a gain and Doug fixed the lever. It didn't take long. He had it fixed before I finished getting breakfast. Needless to say we did not help the other boat any. They were really hard aground by this time time ,as the tide was going out. They would have to wait for high tide.

We only traveled about 10 miles today to St. Augustine. We anchored beside the “Bridge of Lions” and had lunch and the rowed ashore. We only walked around for about an hour as the weather looked as if it were going to get bad.A cold front was supposed to move through and thunderstorms were likely. I think probably we'll stay here again tomorrow and do a little sight seeing and maybe have Thanksgiving dinner ashore.

The last few days every time we had crossed ocean inlets we have been calling good friends on the “Colony Two” who are on their way from Deltaville to Fort Lauderdale out side. We didn't expect to raise them but we tried anyway. It would really be fun if he answered.

This harbor is beautiful tonight. “The Bridge of Lions” is really something to see! Day or night! The old fort, Castillo DE San Marcos,is just down the waterfront and it is lighted all around.