I may actually go sailing soon

[crazycarl]

I've been spending a lot of time on Miss Adventure.  Not sailing, just sitting in her cockpit and dreaming of the next sail.  I still haven't ordered the new trailer axle so she's not going anywhere unless there's a flood.  However, today I prepped the small boat.  New lake sticker and set up in the drive to make sure everything is there.  The wind is perfect right now, bit I'm a bit tired so thinking if the wind is still around this evening, I'll hit the water.  She hasn't been wet in 3 years!

[Bob23]

Go sailing! Before you go crazier!!

[rogerschwake]

  Sorry but it's to late for that. What is going on with the moving to the south east? If things clear up thinking about going to the North Channel again next year.

ROGER

[MacGyver]

When it comes time to sell that little guy make sure to hit me up.

I too have been wanting to sail, but the time to get that 19 in and off is a little bit more (not by much) than what I have time for lately getting a late start this year on projects and such.

sicne I have CLR original week off I still plan to sail that week as vacations are picked in January and getting it changed due to COVID would be a nightmare......

Mac

[crazycarl]

Well...I had the boat ready and the trailer hooked to the truck.  All I needed to do was grill up some grub and I would be on the water by 7pm.  Joanie got a text from a friend that a government truck was unloading food at the high school and she should come over, which she did.   She came home with 8 gallons of milk and 8-25lb boxes of produce.   Cucumbers, tomatoes, potatoes, lettuce, celery, green peppers, onions, baby carrots, apples, and oranges.  not crappy produce either, this stuff looks real nice.  We spent the evening delivering the boxes to friends of Joans that could use the food so no sailing last night.

This morning I rode my bicycle to town for a dentist appointment and was prepared to go sailing afterwards, but when I returned to the lake, the whitecaps were huge and the wind almost stopped me in my tracks. (26 to 30 mph and gusting) It's raining sidways at the moment and the weather alert radio activated with a wind advisory.

Tomorrow?

[crazycarl]

When it comes time to sell that little guy make sure to hit me up.

I too have been wanting to sail, but the time to get that 19 in and off is a little bit more (not by much) than what I have time for lately getting a late start this year on projects and such.

sicne I have CLR original week off I still plan to sail that week as vacations are picked in January and getting it changed due to COVID would be a nightmare......

Mac

Will do Jas

[Christopher]

I finally went sailing yesterday for the first time this year. I took my son, daughter-in-law and grand-daughter out at the local lake where they are camping.  It was a very pleasant day with fairly low humidity and a nice breeze.  First time sailing with my grand-daughter.  The nice thing was it made me get my boat washed, waxed etc prior to the event.  I'm all ready to go now for the rest of the season.

[crazycarl]

WE SAILED!  wow, never thought i'd see the water from a boat again.  the winds have been great for sailing this year, but only when there is something i need to get done.  when i'm completely free from chores, the wind is nowhere to be found.  yesterday things fellin place and we finally were able to get on the water.  the tile installer finished early so had a quick dinner and were on the water by 7pm.  however the wind that was making rigging the boat somewhat difficult died 200 yards from the ramp, and we had to settle for 5 mph for the next hour and a half.  when the wind completely disappeared we used the electric trolling motor to bring us in and joan remarked it only took me 10 minutes to retrieve and break down the boat before heading for home.  not bad considering i haven't sailed this little gem in 2 years.

 

[Fastdoc98]

Glad to hear it finally worked out for you!  I feel the same way - every time I have to work the weather is perfect and my days off are crummy, but I'm heading down to Carlyle tomorrow for sure.  Theoretically I'm free from work except for the phone tether and the wind is predicted to be quite good.  Only downside is 92 degrees, but I'll just throw out an anchor and dive off the boat if I need to cool off.  Even got me a cool new sun hat!

[crazycarl]

go for it!  i don't mind the heat, it's the biting flies tht get to me.

it was another perfect afternoon for a sail, but i was expecting a visit from a drywall contractor and he was no show. 

[crazycarl]

This not an accounting of sailing our Compac 19 as it still sits in the drive waiting a new trailer axle.  However it is still about sailing so...

I got out on the water between working in the yard and on the house for a nice 4 1/2 hour sail.  We left the ramp under sail and made our way through the shallows to the bridge that boarders the north end of our little lake.  Being a weekday, the restaurant's docks were empty, affording us the leeway to tack just before the mast engaged the bridge. From there we headed south with the intention of running the lake all the way to the dam at the south end.  A round trip like this usually takes 5-6 hours.  3/4s of the way there is a very narrow area where the islands block the wind, and we'll sit for some time trying to get past.  This day long summer daze and I sailed right through.  It seamed no matter what direction I was headed, the wind was in my favor.  I even did some gunk-holing in the coves, being careful not to snag the mast on the overhanging trees.  As I past the crowded beach, I could here the kids calling out "look at the sailboat!".  Reentering the main portion of the lake, I spotted a sailing buddy rounding the peninsula with his hobie.  Keeping a safe distance, we sailed neck and neck circling around each other as we chatted and caught up on what we've been doing during the lock down.  He sailed half way back north with me until the wind started to fail and tacked for home.  I continued at a snails pace for several hundred yards before completely stopping.  Joanie and I have found that when the wind dies, the best thing to do is to grab something to eat and drink.  This always brings the wind back.  Well, Neptune must have smelled the spam sandwich I was eating because with only two bites taken, the wind filled the sails and once again we were sailing along.  With a dogleg right approaching, I was expecting another lull, but the winds we were enjoying from the southwest became west as we tacked east into the north bay.  Another tack north would put the wind between us and the old oaks that line that shore, but once again Neptune saw fit to change the wind back to the south.  As we progressed north the wind increased as it came down the high southern shoreline, pushing us into the no wake area with enough speed to almost pull skier.    We sailed to the campgrounds wing and wing and returned friendly waves from homeowners enjoying the day on their docks.  We were losing the sun so we headed northeast and pulled up to the dock and touched it ever so gently.   An older gentleman and his wife were sitting in their pontoon boat in a rented slip and remarked they had been watching me out there and how expertly I handled the boat and docking.  My response...  "Thank you, but please look the other way when I pull her out, as you'll quickly change your mind"!  Well, Neptune was still smiling on me and the retrieval was one of the easiest I've ever had.

This day was one the best sailing days I've had in long time.  Except for leaving the sunscreen in the truck and burning my neck and arms to a very bright red, the weather, the temperature, and especially the wind, were perfect.