Sail Pandora

It’s hard to believe that we are leaving, assuming that Mother Nature cooperates, in a mere 12 days.  Here is sit on August 30th and we are planning to head out on September 11th.  Perhaps that’s not a good day given the history for that date but I don’t think that we will be ready on Monday the 10th so the 11th it is.   Pandora is still in Wickford and I will bring her here early next week so that we will have a week in Essex to finish the provisioning and be ready to go.   While the 11th is sort of an arbitrary date, I have heard many times that when you are planning a trip like this you need to pick a date and JUST LEAVE.  If not, days and weeks can slip by and you are STILL ON THE HARD.  Besides, I don’t want to have weeks slip by and find ourselves scraping the frost off of the front of the dodger.  So, as they say, “we have picked a date and we are sticking with it!!!”  Even if leaving means that we head down the river and drop the anchor somewhere.  At least we on our way.

There are still a thousand details it seems to take care of, between being sure that the house is properly cared for, bills set up to pay online and local folks to support us while we are gone.  While I am known to some as being a bit of an “energizer bunny”, even I am finding it hard to keep all of the details in order.

The major project that I have left, beyond purchasing and stowing food and drink for months aboard, is to finish up on the cockpit enclosure.  I received the screen and other supplies needed to construct this just yesterday so I headed up to Wickford yesterday to work on the aft screen portion of the enclosure.  It took me over 5 hours to get it fitted and it’s still not done.  No wonder canvas work is so expensive.  I must have zipped it on and off a dozen times and it’s still not done.  In spite of making a pattern twice, I still had to do the sewing on site.  I also need to put a screen insert into the front of the dodger but that’s going to have to wait till we are underway, perhaps in Annapolis, as I just don’t have time to handle that, or have the supplies on hand, just now.   I guess that I will pick up the needed zippers etc at the Boat Show next month.

Along with getting ready for our trip, we have had lots of visitors in the last week.  While it’s great fun, I am not used to doing that many dishes every day.  It seems now that we live in a great place for boats to visit we have enjoyed our share of friends visiting Essex.

Here’s an idea?  Why not make new friends along with the ones that we already know?  Being the obsessive organizer that I am, I signed up to be a Cruising Station host for a group that we belong to, the Seven Seas Cruising Association.  The group has some 10,000 members and those who offer to be a port host agree to help out fellow members with information and local support when folks show up in our neighborhood.

The funny thing is that when I contacted the SSCA offices this week, expecting to be grilled six ways to Sunday about my interest and experience but no… They just signed me up and sent me this lovely certificate.  Yikes!!! I guess that it’s official so some subset of the 10,000 SSCA members should be calling soon…

In any event, I guess it’s official.   Essex is the newest cruising station for the SSCA and I even have a certificate to prove it.

Well, sitting here messing around with this post isn’t getting me any closer to finishing the screening.  Don’t worry, I’ll take pictures. That’s all for now.

I can’t believe that after years of planning and perhaps 40 years of dreaming, we are about to leave to head south aboard Pandora.  There have been a number of times in the last few weeks that I have sat down to “pen” another post but many details, or the details of life, have gotten in the way it seems.

Boy, did I ever underestimate the amount of time it would take to get our new home ready to leave for months in the winter.  After living in our last home for over twenty years, I just assumed that our new home in “move in condition” would make it easy to cast off and head south.  Not!!!

And, what was I thinking when I thought that I would be able to slip in a two week trip to Maine?  And, it wasn’t until a few weeks prior to departure that I realized there was NO WAY that I would be able to go.

OK, OK, no more whining!!!  I have been a busy guy for the last few weeks making great progress on the remaining projects to Pandora.  No, they aren’t done but the list is getting shorter for sure.   I am almost finished with the cockpit enclosure which will certainly make Pandora more habitable in inclement weather.  My friend Rodney teases me that Pandora’s cockpit is so well covered that I can’t tell if it’s sunny or stormy from there.  Perhaps, but it’s nice to stay dry when we can.  The sides are done but I still have to construct the aft netting.  Stay away mosquito, stay away!!!  Actually, they may look like simple panels but getting them templated and to fit correctly wasn’t an easy task.   We were aboard Pandora for a few days and had one day of teeming rain.  These panels proved their value.  However, when the sun finally came out…  Did someone say greenhouse effect?Storage is always an issue on a boat and especially one that is to be used as a home afloat for months at a time.  Pandora, while not a small boat at 43′ is petite by today’s beamy boat standards.  Fairly narrow at 12′, she lacks much of the interior volume that you would expect from a boat of her size.   I was aboard another SAGA 43 some time back and saw that the owner had converted his aft hanging locker into a pantry to gain more space.   What a great idea, I thought and decided to do the same thing on Pandora.   It seems to me that this is a better approach than using the entire locker just to keep two sets of foul weather gear. Here’s what I started with, minus the hanger bar.  Not much there.

My friend had found a wire rack to attach to the locker door as a way to store some smaller items.  Alas, I wasn’t able to find such a contraption so I decided to build one myself.  Don’t be fooled by thinking that this was a simple project for me by the fact that there are only three shelves in the locker.  No square corners on a boat and while it probably shouldn’t have, it took me hours to fit the pieces as I wanted them to be as perfect as I could make them.  The process was made doubly interesting as the boat was on a mooring and I had to climb into the dink and head to shore and my tools for each cut with the saw which I set up on a picnic table at the marina.  A real pain and the constant “travel” made the project take hours more to complete.  I didn’t keep track but I think that I came ashore in the dink some 30 times that day.

After all was fitted and set, I took the whole mess apart so I could take it home and apply multiple coats of varnish to each piece.  After reassembly, I am pleased with the way the project turned out.  This is sort of like a time lapse series. Now the completed shelves.  In case you are wondering, the black tube on the bottom is for the diesel heater that I put in a few years ago.  Now, that was a pain in the backside to install. It didn’t take long to fill up some of the shelves.  Wow, but what a difference it has made in our ability to store loads of “stuff”.  Still lots to buy but we are off to a good start.  As we stowed each item we logged it into a ships stores inventory.  You’d be amazed with how easy it is to lose something on a boat, even one as “compact” as Pandora.  In fact, we “lost” a pillow case for months and just found it this weekend on board. It’s also easy to forget exactly how many of the 24 rolls of toilet paper we have left.  Was that the last one I just finished?  Well, with our inventory we will know for sure.   Well, at least as long as we are good about updating the list.  Don’t worry, there’s a strong latch on the outside of the door to keep it from slamming open at an inopportune time.   This cabinet will end up holding over 100lbs of stores I would expect.  Perhaps more.  However, purchasing things now will save money as we head south and only have small markets to visit along the way.  Besides, in the Bahamas, things like paper goods, for example, cost twice as much as they do in the States.

Brenda and I spent some hours taking the “stuff” that we had brought aboard in preparation for our trip to begin deciding where everything was going to live.

I should note that Pandora is now in Wickford RI, one of our favorite harbors.   When I moved her from Mystic a few weeks ago, my friend and long time crew member Rodney and I visited Newport, the home of the big boys.  It’s hard to imagine the kind of wealth that is required to maintain such boats.   I guess the eternal question is always “mine is bigger than yours”.  This is certainly a grand collection.I can hardly say which are the best, or biggest…  Plenty of eye candy to go around.  I wonder if the owner of this boat wears blue suede shoes?It seems that the color of choice is white, or royal blue with an emphasis on “royal”.  Not everyone has a mega-yacht though.  Some just have a classic that costs as much as a minor-mega-yacht to maintain.  This is a beauty and all the better looking cruising by a lovely estate on the bay.Of course, there’s always an opportunity to hang out with the unwashed masses at Bannister’s wharf in down town Newport.Well, there is still lots to do and with our departure date scheduled for September 10th, there’s just a bit more than three weeks to go.  We plan to bring Pandora to Essex a week prior to departure so that it will be easier to handle last minute preparations for our trip.

Following that day of teeming rain the sun came out.  What a lovely shot of Pandora about ready for her big adventure. I was impressed by this little Friendship Sloop.  I am told that Apogee is a 30ft Brono & Stillmen Friendship Hull # 2.  Not much in the way of accommodations but what a classy lady headed out of Wickford Harbor for a morning sail.  

Three weeks untill we shove off!!! Make that a triple yikes!!!

I can’t believe that we will be headed south in less than two months to begin our first “snowbird cruise”.  This is a big deal and one that began in 2006 when we decided to sell our Tartan 37 and get a bigger boat that we could live on for extended periods of time.

Our departure was delayed by two years from what was to be a three year outfitting project to get Pandora ready for the trip due to that pesky recession.  However, the time is nearly here and we are really excited about heading out.  Actually, I am really excited and Brenda perhaps “really nervous” in spite of looking forward to our journey.

Following our move to Essex this spring my schedule has been non-stop with chores both at home and on Pandora trying to get things ready for such an extended trip of more than half a year.  One thing for sure is that I definitely underestimated the complexities of packing up or home of 20+ years in NJ, finding a new home in CT and settling in here.  There have been plenty of unexpected expenses too, not the least of which is a new boiler/furnace here in Essex that we can leave for extended periods without worrying about power outages and freezing pipes. The new boiler should be installed in the next week.  The plan is to put antifreeze in the system and winterize the potable water system too when we shut the heat down to 50-55 when we are not here.  There is also the question of who will watch our home when we are away in addition to the alarm company ADT. Have a look at the alpha e-tec 28 model review and the kid of boiler you could get.

Getting our bills all delivered on-line has also been a bit daunting as, in addition to our own epenses, we also handle the bills for Brenda’s mother who is in assisted living nearby.  Oh, did I mention that we have moved her twice in the last year as well?  No rest for the weary.

Not to worry, in spite of the long list of tasks, there has still been time for fun along the way with some trips aboard Pandora.  Actually, our son Christopher has been visiting us for a two week vacation from his work at Columbia in the physics lab.  Earlier this week Chris and I headed out to Block Island for an overnightvisit.  We had a great trip and took some time to finish up the antenna installation for our new single side-band radio (SSB). This involved hoisting him up the mast to attach the antenna to the backstay.  What better person to handle such a job than a physicist.

As I understand it, the proper way to install an SSB antenna is to keep the wire from grounding to the lower backstay with PVC offsets.  The antenna needs to be connected to an insulated portion of the backstay which is of a specific length to offer proper reception. Here’s Christopher doing his handiwork. Perhaps it would be fun to sail with him up there?  His mother might have something to say about that.As it seems to be “always something” on a complex boat like Pandora, our autopilot crapped out for some reason.  This meant that Chris and I had to take turns steering the boat for the run out to Block Island and back.  I have to say that I really hate steering.  Besides, when it works, the autopilot is much better at holding a course than I am.  Happily, this is the first problem that we have had with the pilot in the 5 years since we purchased Pandora.  It’s actually amazing that the unit has worked for so long as it’s been in service for over ten years.  Nice shot of Christoper at the helm.  Speaking of complicated boats, Pandora may seem complex to me but can’t hold a candle in that department to others in attendance in the harbor at Block.  How about this carbon fiber beauty.  I’ll bet that she flies.What a great looking profile.   Really looks like she means business.   I just love that hard dodger.   This one is no slouch either.  In the project department, I am also sewing a full cockpit enclosure to make the cockpit all-weather.  The project is harder than you would expect but is progressing nicely.  Taking the measurements off the boat and making templates is not easy, especially when the wind is blowing everything around while I am trying to set up the patterns on board for sewing later.   Here’s my “workshop” in the basement.  Not exactly the best decorated room in our home.

Me hard at work sewing, or should I say cutting away. Well, the list of tasks to get Pandora, and us, ready to head south is long and complicated but we continue to plug along.  With less than two months to go… Yikes!

Perhaps I should get back to work and stop writing.

The contrast in the boats at last weekend’s Wooden Boat Show in Mystic CT could not have been more dramatic after having spent a day watching the America’s Cup Trials in Newport.  Perhaps the only real similarity is that many who own wooden boats have really deep pockets, a common theme in boating it would seem.  Yes, there are plenty of boats for those with modest bank accounts but the “big boys” toys are plenty fancy kevlar or not.

Two images that illustrate the differences are these.  High tech and plenty mean looking is one of the current cup trial boats.

This sweet electric launch would surely be a better venue for a cool drink on the water.   I guess that a mint julep here and a Red Bull on the cup boat about a sums it up.However, it’s not all about cruising at 5kts with drink in hand.  How about this “vessel” dubbed a “boatercycle” by the owner who claims that it will pull six skiers.  Tongue in cheek?  Perhaps.  Me?  I couldn’t even imagine it even floating.  However, it does have a swim platform.  Speaking of  form following function, how about this boat?  Some might suggest that it’s a good think that this is a one-of-a-kind.    Do you think that the builder loves music?  but what kind of instrument does he/she play dear Watson?How about this for a clue?Need more help?  I expect that the love of building outweighs the love of being on the water for the owner.  Not exactly a quick and dirty project for sure.   The builder certainly was true to the theme. Yikes!!!  At least the oar ends weren’t like picks. Now, this is my idea of a “gentlemen’s launch”.   With a jet drive it is high tech meets tradition.  Everything about this boat is custom, down to the fancy casting on the bow that support the running light.   Very elegant and it can be yours for cool quarter mil. One of the great things about boating is the quality of workmanship that goes into products that are to be used in a harsh marine environment.  Want to be heard?  This cannon, about two feet long, would be a perfect way to salute the sunset.  Sunrise too?  Perhaps that will upset the locals.Speaking of attention to detail, look at the great workmanship on the breach? This is a nice video of highlights from last year’s show.  It does give a good feel for what the show is all about, a love of wood and boats.  Works for me. Of course, we can’t forget one of the classy ladies that live at Mystic Seaport, the Sabino who, in her working years, was a passenger steamer in Casco Bay Maine, part of our summer stomping grounds.  I have always been smitten with her and introduced myself to her captain on this visit with the hope of volunteering to be a deck hand sometime. Good news, my suggestion was well received.  Perhaps he was just being nice.  Hmm…  That would be a wonderful way to spend a day on the water.  I hope that I get called.  In case I don’t, I’ll have to show up again to provide a gentle reminder.There are plenty of great photos ops at the seaport. Brenda and I have been members of Mystic Seaport since 1979.  What a great place to visit and it’s even better to have Pandora on a mooring nearby for a few weeks a year.   And, best if all, our new home is only about a half hour a way.

Oh yea, about that title.  For those of you who don’t know, pine tar is a preservative that is used on wooden boats.  Kevlar?  If you don’t know what that is, well…

It’s been a long process of hand steering all the way up the coast once the autopilot stopped working on Monday.  As I mentioned in my last post, the boat has  a strong pull to port caused by prop wash as it hits the rudder.  The pressure on the rudder increases dramatically as the RPM is increased so that means that the faster we push, the tougher the steering becomes.  If we are running at 8.5 kts and there is moderate wave action, it takes all my strength to push the wheel to compensate for the pull to the left.  One way that I have been able to adjust though, is to lock the wheel in place for a few moments when it is on course so that I can give myself a rest.  As I mentioned, we have broken up the day into watches with 4 hour watches beginning at 19:00 and continuing until 07:00 when we switch to 6 hour watches.  During watches, Bob and I have determined that steering for 45 min and switching off at that point works best.

The helm problem would be much less if we were sailing but the winds have not been favorable for us to keep up the needed speed.  Actually, there has been wind but the need to keep the engine running, combined with the helm issues, make it prudent not to put out any sail and rely on the motor alone.  This is because the wind has been nearly dead astern, and with the difficulty in steering a jibe would be a real probability.

We should be rounding Sandy Hook late morning and begin our run up the East River, a trip that I really enjoy.

Oh yea, we passed three sea turtles on Tuesday that were sunning themselves on the surface.  They were huge, perhaps nearly 4′ in diameter.  Quite a sight.  Unfortunately, they were too far away, and we were going to fast, for me to get a photo.

Looking forward to being home again.  I understand that the honey-do list is long.

It’s 0500 on Tuesday, and we are motoring along at 8kts on fairly flat water about 50 miles off of the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay.  As of 0100 the repaired autopilot was no longer repaired.  We feared that there may be problems again as we were not able to replace a deformed bushing along with the damaged gear in the unit.  We had hoped that the repair would hold out until Norwalk, but no such luck.  Normally, hand steering isn’t that big a deal but The Abby has a nasty pull to port under power.  As I understand it, the prop wash hits the rudder in an unbalanced way and kicks the rudder hard to the left.  I am unaware of a fix for this except to just “horse” the wheel to one side when under power.  If we had a favorable wind we could sail and the helm wouldn’t be a particularly big deal.  Alas, that’s not the way it is when you are making passage.

Fortunately, with calm seas, hand steering is easier than it would have been under more aggressive conditions.  Besides, we will be home on Wednesday so that means only about 18 hours more at the helm.  For now we seem to be doing well with half hour stints at the wheel and the plan is to adjust the watches so that we are on for 4 hours and off for 4.  We’ll see how that goes.