Door County Trip

[Fastdoc98]

I took my first real trip with my Eclipse this week in Door County.  Monday morning at zero dark-thirty I took off from central Illinois and trailered up to Fish Creek, Wisconsin.  The trip up was truly a horrible experience - I think every road from 45 minutes north of me to just north of Milwaukee was under construction.  The roads were a bumpy disaster and beat the crap out of the boat (broke a tab off the front of the mast hinge and the mast came loose, license plate dangling by a single loose bolt), and I timed it perfectly to hit rush hour.  What should have been a 7-1/2 hour trip was 10 hours, but I made it there despite all that.  I checked in to Alibi Dock Marina and got my slip assignment and then rigged and launched the boat.  Tucked it into my slip and I was pretty tired/sore from the trip up, so rather than sail right away I relaxed and went out for a nice dinner.  Winds picked up pretty strong through the night so I didn't sleep all that well - lots of bumping against the wall and rocking pretty hard.  (Note to self: need to zip-tie the wires in the mast to quiet them down.)  Woke the next morning to 16-18 knot winds out of the west with whitecaps everywhere and 4-5ft waves so I decided to wait that out and went for a bike ride instead.  I brought my gravel bike with me so I rode the sunset path around Penninsula Park and maybe accidentally rode their mountain bike trails as well (you need a pass?  What??).  Came back and showered and by noon the winds calmed down to what looked like a nicer 12 knots.  Still some whitecaps but not near as bad.  I reefed the main at the dock and took off with that and a partially furled jib and it was fine.  Apparently when I looked out and decided to go I happened to catch a lull because pretty quickly it was back to blowing and big waves.  I looped around Adventure Island and headed southwest and it was a rocking good time.  Lots of water breaking over the bow and unfortunately more than once breaking over the cabin top and into the cockpit.  I got soaked several times and I don't think there was a part of the boat besides the cabin that didn't get washed thoroughly.  Sailed down south as far as Egg Harbor and then turned around and hugged the shoreline back northeast.  Sailed past Fish Creek and looped around Horsehoe Island and was going to tuck into Nicolet bay as I had seen a few boats anchored there when I was biking past and thought it would be a good time to anchor and grab a snack.  As it turned out the wind and waves between Horseshoe Island and the tip of the penninsula were really rough and I decided to forego anchoring in the bay and just keep sailing.  Rough ride out there with some big wind and 6 ft waves but the boat handled it well.  I definitely had a workout and was pretty beat up and headed back in to Fish Creek around 6 pm.  I was greeted at the dock by a nice couple who helped me since I had to spin the boat 180 to get against the wall and the wind was pushing me hard into it.  They couldn't believe I was out there in "that tiny boat" and I realized I was the only boat out on the water the whole day.  The guy said something about how he thought they should have called a small craft warning or something, but I was safe back at the dock, soaked and tired.  Cooked a lovely chicken Tikka Masala and naan on the boat and watched a movie on my iPad before turning in that night.
      Woke the next morning to almost the same conditions as the day before, solid winds and big waves and whitecaps everywhere and once again decided to wait it out as winds were predicted to mellow out later.  Quite a number of people came by and said hello that morning and I feel like I was a bit of a local celebrity!  I was referred to as 'That Guy'.  "Hey, remember that boat that we saw out yesterday?  He was that guy!"  Poked around some stores and shops, caught up on the Interwebz and by 10 am it looked much better out there.  Few whitecaps here and there but overall much calmer so I took off again, still out of the west/northwest.  No reef in the main this time and full jib and it was very nice.  Went between Jack Island and Little Strawberry Island and found the shallow shoal somebody told me about.  It dropped down to about 5-6 ft but with the board up I was fine.  Skirted along the east/southeast side of Chambers Island and then headed southwest again.  The winds picked back up once again and it was back to whitecaps and 6 ft + waves but I didn't reef the main and just soldiered through with the traveler out.  Definitely a few more soakings into the cockpit and over the cabin top.  Looped around Hat Island to see the pelicans hanging out with their seagull buddies and then headed back northeast.  Weather calmed down a bit and it was actually quite nice, probably around 10-12 knots, so I just kept going as I could lock the tiller and just enjoy the view.  Sailed past the Eagle Bluff lighthouse, up past Sister Bay and toward the west of the Sister Islands.  My plan was to sail up to Garret Bay and anchor and make some food, but the lake had other plans.  Not long after passing Sister bay a sudden gust came up.  Wow! I thought, surely this won't last long.  As I passed Sister Islands it was NOT just a gust but rather solid winds that were rapidly increasing.  The sky was clear blue with some clouds, didn't look like a front coming through or anything, but it was blowing hard and relentlessly.  I should have reefed earlier when it first started but it came up so fast it caught me off guard.  I swear the winds had to be close to 30, waves/swell was 8-10 feet or more and I was getting thrashed and bouncing like a rocking horse.  I was just coming to Ellison Bay but with the wind direction there would be no shelter there.  I dropped the motor and and fired it up (God bless Tohatsu for making a 1 pull motor!) and headed into the wind as best I could to get the main reefed.  I managed to get that done and the jib was just flogging fiercely.  I decided to turn back southwest as the wind was now from the north/northwest and there would be no protection at Garret Bay or Ellisons bay.  I was just downwind on a broad reach and I swear I was surfing more than sailing.  I tried to furl the jib but the line was jammed and I wouldn't budge.  I looked forward at the drum and I guess when it was flogging the furling line flipped forward and was over the little anchor arch.  It was just me, so I had to go forward and get it loose.  I held on to every hard part as I made my way forward and the boat was just rocking!  Managed to reach it, flipped it back over, and made it back to the cockpit and was able to cut down the jib.  I had at one point thought about just dropping sail and motoring, but I've read so many times that boats are meant to sail, even in rough seas, and outboard motors will keep popping out so I compromised and motor-sailed to try and cover ground back to safety as fast as I could.  The prop did pop out a few times, but less than I thought it would.  After about an hour of surfing it started to ease up so I chopped the motor and just kept going.  I was passing Sister Bay and making good headway, glad to have survived that nastiness, and just wanting to make it back to the safety of the marina.  As I sailed on the winds just steadily started dropping and as I was nearing Horseshoe Island I shook out the reef and unfurled the jib.  The winds just continued to drop off and by the time I was by the lighthouse it had just pooped out and I had to motor back to the marina!  I was exhausted, soaked, and fairly bruised and battered so I decided to just drop the mast at the slip and button things up then as I had to head out the next day.  Took a shower and went out for dinner, came back to the boat and chatted with a few other sailors (once again being known as That Guy That Went Out Tuesday!), and sacked out pretty quickly.  The morning was cool and quiet and essentially no breeze at all so all I had to do was motor around the corner to the dock and get it on the trailer.  Secured everything for the trip home and this time rerouted from Milwaukee southwest through Rockford and down.  A hundred times better in terms of traffic/construction and made it in about 8-1/2 hours instead of 10.
     Overall, I was glad I took the opportunity and went.  It ended up being a lot different than what I had imagined it would be though.  The weather was a lot rougher than I expected, and with west winds coming across Sturgeon Bay the waves were a lot bigger than I anticipated.  I think if the conditions were the same at my home lake I would have taken a pass on going out, but with it being a long way from home I just mustered on and went.  Also, the distances were more than I realized.  It's one thing to look on Google Maps and say "Hey, I could sail over here or over there" but then you get there and it's a whole lot bigger than you thought and you cover less distance.  It certainly taught me a lot - about my own abilities as a novice sailor, and a lot about the boat.  This Eclipse is one tough little boat, tougher than me for sure.  I also found a lot of things that I would change if I were to do something similar again.  First, my cooler sucks which changed my meal plans significantly as some things I brought went kinda bad.  If I were to stay out on the hook somewhere that would need some tweaking.  Secondly, I need to re-bed the teak rails and hatch slides as I found drips of water on the inside.  With all the water splashing over the bow and coach roof it revealed the leaks which I normally wouldn't find as the boat sits on my driveway under a tarp.  Third, I think I might try and get new foam for the cabin cushions.  They're pretty shot and my tailbone hurts from sitting on them all evening.  Fourth, I'd like to zip-tie the wires in the mast so they don't slap at night.  I know I was long-winded here, but just wanted to share my experience with everyone else here on this great forum! 

[Fastdoc98]

Just a couple more pics from the trip

[Cpy23ecl]

Sounds like quite the adventure, but she sure looks nice in the pic at the dock!  Looks like a beautiful area to sail.

Apparently roads are bad everywhere.  We towed our boat 400 miles north this spring to a marina on Lk Huron and I noticed another section of cracking in the companion way flange.  The horizontal section had a crack when the factory delivered the boat and now I have on the port side vertical section.  Just brought the boat home this last week but haven't checked it over closely enough to see if there's any more damage.

I think most boats will handle more than their crew as long as you don't make any mistakes.  I had one trip in my ODay 28 that I spent most of the trip with 8 foot waves and 42 kts apparent showing on the wind instrument while sailing straight down wind at 8 to 10 kts.

My experience has been that I usually have too much or too little wind.  Funny how that works.

Sounds like a good trip though in spite of everything.

Fred

[Fastdoc98]

Thanks, Fred, it was definitely a great trip even with some of the white-knuckled moments.  I really loved the area - I was up there 3 years ago with the family on vacation and thought at the time what a great place to go sailing but at the time had no boat.  It was really fun to actually make it back there with my new-to-me boat just like I had wished for back then.  I also was pleasantly surprised at how friendly everyone at the marina was.  I felt very out of place being on my tiny little trailer sailor with all these 35-45 ft yachts around, but the other sailors were very complimentary of my boat and seemed genuinely nice.  I'm not really used to that as some of my other hobbies/interests tend to be people who size you up and judge you by your equipment and aren't very kind.  I would definitely go back there again, maybe longer next time.  I'm also considering going back with my wife and staying at a condo or hotel and just having the boat in the marina to sail and not live on. 

[Christopher]

Hey Doc,
  Thanks for the detailed narrative.  I can relate to what you went through.  I have had a few similar challenges at Lake Erie.   

[Gerry]

Sounds like a great trip; once you got here.  I wish you would have posted before your visit so local CPers could have net you...like me.  I have been sailing these waters for 30 years as a resident of Fish Creek.  I am at both marinas everyday.  My CP16 is based on Adventure Is. 

You should edit your adventures and send them to Small Craft Advisor mag.  They love to publish stories like yours.

Gerry

[slode]

Regarding the wires in the mast.  I ended up running a 1/8" stainless cable from the top of the mast down to the hinge secured both ends with crimped eyelets and added a turnbuckle.  I tie strapped the wires to that and tightened the cable so it didn't interfere with the halyards.  It works great.  For the lower portion of the mast stub through to the cabin I stuffed some pipe insulation foam over and down the wires as they still clanked around in rough seas.

[Fastdoc98]

Sounds like a great trip; once you got here.  I wish you would have posted before your visit so local CPers could have net you...like me.  I have been sailing these waters for 30 years as a resident of Fish Creek.  I am at both marinas everyday.  My CP16 is based on Adventure Is. 

You should edit your adventures and send them to Small Craft Advisor mag.  They love to publish stories like yours.

Gerry

Wish I would have known anyone else was up there with what is clearly considered a "little boat"!  What an absolutely fantastic area to sail; I'm definitely going to get back up there again.  My other choice was the west arm of Traverse Bay and I'm very glad I picked Fish Creek. 

[Fastdoc98]

Regarding the wires in the mast.  I ended up running a 1/8" stainless cable from the top of the mast down to the hinge secured both ends with crimped eyelets and added a turnbuckle.  I tie strapped the wires to that and tightened the cable so it didn't interfere with the halyards.  It works great.  For the lower portion of the mast stub through to the cabin I stuffed some pipe insulation foam over and down the wires as they still clanked around in rough seas.

Slode, that sounds like a really solid idea.  I'd love to see some pictures of how you did that - I'm curious as to what you secured the line to at either end.  Also, how did you pull the wires from the mast?  From the bottom or the top?  With the masthead light and the steaming light part way up I wasn't sure the best way to pull them out.

[slode]

The top of the cable has a threaded rod swaged to it (I guess not a turnbuckle per say) that goes through one of the holes in the top of the mast.  That allows for tensioning of the cable.  I had the cable and parts left over from a cable deck railing project but you can buy the stuff here. 

https://stainlesscablerailing.com/?utm_source=google_ads&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=cable_rail&gclid=Cj0KCQjwguGYBhDRARIsAHgRm4-ODfm7NrZsvoNb5Y8nRvbDgqVyc4vvWjMefkN5qhmZMCYHaxIA5c0aAhJ5EALw_wcB

The bottom side has a ring terminal crimped on that is on one of the mast hinge bolts, you can see it on the right side of the picture.

I disconnected the masthead light wires and tied off a string to them before pulling them out the bottom of the mast.  I installed the anchor light at this same time so I ran stiff wire through each of the holes at the the top of the mast, one for the anchor light wires, and one for the cable, and guided them through the halyards to the bottom.  I then tied off string to those and ran them back through to the top and tied the bottoms to the cable and anchor light wires which was used to guide the wires and cable back to the top of the mast.  I measured out location for the masthead light wires and put the top cable tie for them just below the point where they exit the front of the mast so they could be pulled out back through the light fixture.

All this was done with the mast resting on sawhorses, and with the help of a buddy looking up the bottom of the mast to make sure everything was free of the halyards when running the snakes.

[DavidV]

We were up in Door County 9/2 till 9/7. Spotted a Compac 16 moored at Fish Creek.

[DavidV]

WOW!!

No idea that it would post such a huge photo!

[Fastdoc98]

When I was packing up to leave I had just put the boat on the trailer and was getting everything roadworthy when a real nice guy came over to talk to me (I have to say the Eclipse got a lot of attention from people!) and was telling me how he had a 16 so I wonder if that was his.  He said he also has a larger 30 something ft boat in a slip there and he pointed toward it but I couldn't see exactly what it was.  He told an interesting story of how right after he got divorced he trailered his ComPac 16 down to Florida and parked his vehicle and trailer somewhere near Bradenton and took off from there.  Said he sailed down the whole western coast, then headed out to the Keys, tracked them all the way up north to Miami over 5 weeks.  Said he got to Miami, took a bus back to Bradenton, got his vehicle and went back to Miami to pick the boat up.  Quite a character!

[Fastdoc98]

The top of the cable has a threaded rod swaged to it (I guess not a turnbuckle per say) that goes through one of the holes in the top of the mast.  That allows for tensioning of the cable.  I had the cable and parts left over from a cable deck railing project but you can buy the stuff here. 

https://stainlesscablerailing.com/?utm_source=google_ads&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=cable_rail&gclid=Cj0KCQjwguGYBhDRARIsAHgRm4-ODfm7NrZsvoNb5Y8nRvbDgqVyc4vvWjMefkN5qhmZMCYHaxIA5c0aAhJ5EALw_wcB

The bottom side has a ring terminal crimped on that is on one of the mast hinge bolts, you can see it on the right side of the picture.

I disconnected the masthead light wires and tied off a string to them before pulling them out the bottom of the mast.  I installed the anchor light at this same time so I ran stiff wire through each of the holes at the the top of the mast, one for the anchor light wires, and one for the cable, and guided them through the halyards to the bottom.  I then tied off string to those and ran them back through to the top and tied the bottoms to the cable and anchor light wires which was used to guide the wires and cable back to the top of the mast.  I measured out location for the masthead light wires and put the top cable tie for them just below the point where they exit the front of the mast so they could be pulled out back through the light fixture.

All this was done with the mast resting on sawhorses, and with the help of a buddy looking up the bottom of the mast to make sure everything was free of the halyards when running the snakes.

That's in interesting way of keeping things from slapping.  I wonder if I could cobble something together from the hardware store that is similar.