Blake Island Camping: Day 3

Departure: 11:30 am
Return: 3:30 pm
Weather conditions: Cloudy and calm
Tide: flood tide
Boat: Blue Club Boat
Crew: Family (6)

This is it! D-day. Departure day. Our oldest is anxious to get going and really jumps in to help. She folded up all the bedding deflated the mattresses and swept out the tent. She was in a hurry, but not the rest of us.

Picture 1: If you enlarge the photo, you can see the "wildlife cans" near our tent. This is where we kept the raccoons and deer during the night. Okay, actually, that's where we kept our food so they raccoons wouldn't get into it.

We still took time for food. We had a great breakfast of pancakes, sausages and eggs. We also prepared sandwiches, chips and treats for our lunch on the way back. Everything was cleaned and then we were ready to pack.

At least when I pack, I have the excitement of the trip to encourage me. Nothing is more tedious than packing after an adventure to go home. By the time we were done, it was almost lunch time. We left the dock at 11:30.

I should mention that the weather was gray and overcast, but not foggy luckily. There was a slight breeze blowing across the island all morning, but there wasn't much to it when we finally left.

I decided to loop around the western side of the island since we'd never been that way by boat before. I found it interesting, but the others were too busy huddling under blankets and sleeping bags to notice or care. When we rounded the northwester corner of the island we picked up some good wind so we cut the motor and proceeded under sail. This only lasted about a mile however, before we were back to the "iron genny" (sailing slang for a boat motor. A genoa is a large foresail and is sometimes called the genny. Thus, an iron genny would be the motor). It stayed completely calm all the way down colvos passage until we rounded on the entrance to the harbor.

As we rounded on the entrace, we hit a strong westerly, with some large choppy waves. It was exciting, if not brief. By the time we entered the harbor, it was calm again.

Once in the harbor, we were all ready to be finished. We did stop at the public dock to use the restrooms, and to put two of the girls in the dinghy for a tow. Near our dock, we cut them loose and let them row in. It was definately worth the entertainment. We circled around outside the docking area until we could see they were safely in and then we were done. Another adventure.

I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Blake Island Camping: Day 2

Ahhhh. A fresh new day. Last nights sleep was probably the best I've ever had on a campout, and to awaken and an inflated air-mattress with my family snuggled close around me, really couldn't be beat. I was the first to awaken, and I enjoyed laying there listening to the tiny little snores that filled the tent. We had bought the tent especially for this trip so we could all be together and it was worth every penny. Eventually, nature called, and the moment was lost, but it was a good moment.

Picture 1: The same view from our campsite, but where are we now?

Picture 2: A foggy moorage.

It had been a very wet evening. The blankets and pillows in the tent were damp, and outside a thick layer of moisture had soaked everything. Heavy fog rolled around the island carrying us along on our adventure. It felt like we were truly roughing it on some uncharted island. It burned away as gently as it came.

Picture 3: Tiffany lit the morning fire with no matches; only old coals from the previous night.

Pictures 4& 5: The racoon in the tree and the racoon on the trial. Click the picture to see a larger version.

The think Monica and I love so much about the 2nd day on the island is probably what the kids don't - there isn't much to do if you don't want to. We cooked a fancy breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage, juice, pancakes and fruit.

Picture 6: New found friends on the beach.

The younger girls and I took a brief hike up one of the trails. I don't think we went very far, but we still had fun. We visited the old ruins of the mansion that used to be on the island. A fat old racoon escorted us along the path (about 50 yards in front of us) and we stopped to watch another one eat wild cherries in a tree just overhead. I tried the cherries but they were much too tart.

Picture 7: Building forts in the driftwood was a favorite pasttime.

The older girls and Monica stayed in camp. I think they got a little bored; though, eventually in the late afternoon they met another girl and played on the beach for a while.

We enjoyed more walks and more good meals; BBQ beef sandwiches & baked beans, foil dinners, roasted marshmallows, s'mores. Of course, we made a run on the concession stand for ice cream cones, and Camille played on the play set A LOT. Monica even ran into one of her old friends from long ago. It was a very pleasant, mellow day. I think our oldest struggles to find things to do in a nature environment; she was ready to go home.

Picture 8: Still playing with friends.

And so, we went to bed, dreaming of clean clothes, cushy beds and nintendo.

Picture 9: We quickly slide into an animal state when we camp.

Blake Island Camping: Day 1

Departure: 11:30am August 23rd, 2007
Return: 3:30pm Auguest 25th, 2007
Weather conditions: Sunny, cloudy, windy, calm, foggy, overcast, you name it
Boat: Blue Club Boat
Crew: 6 (Woody& Family)

So sit right and I'll tell a tale
a tale of a fateful trip,
that started on these tropic shores
aboard this tiny ship....

Figure 1: Strange Tall ship

I'm not sure why the Gilligans Island theme song runs through my mind as I prepare to share our latest family adventure. Maybe it's the size of the boat, or the length of the stay, or maybe it's the simple madness of press-ganging one's family onto a long voyage along with all the gear and supplies requisite for family camping.

This was our 2nd "annual" Blake Island camping trip. "Annual" has such a nice ring to it doesn't it? Like it's a tradition. And yet, it's not quite a tradition. I think there is a threshold that must be passed before a regular even becomes a true tradition. I don't know what that is, but we're not there yet. It takes more than 2 times; I know that. The real question is, will we do it next year?



The adventure entails "sailing" from Gig Harbor to Blake Island and camping for two nights - returning on the third day. I'm going to break my report on the trip into 3 entries. This first entry describes the preparations and trip on the first day.

Figure 2: Wow! A lot of stuff.

Preparations
If I had a strength, I would say it is the ability to make a plan. I like to plan and organize, and so planning a trip like this is almost fun for me. It's still work though! Last year when we went, I created a document that described everything we needed so I was able to leverage from that to create a new one this year. HEre's a link if you are curious
Blake Island Excursion 2007.pdf

It's a working document so I won't make any apologies about layout, organization or syntax. It was useful to have. It has a menu, packing list, 3 day agenda and travel plan, activities we can do, tides, weather forecasts and maps of the island and harbor. I'll let you link to it if you care.



Okay, this is getting boring, I'll speed up. We packed, we packed and we packed some more. Six people need a lot of junk for a trip like this. It got a little stressful at the end. One of the other adults in our group "checked out" because of the stress and a couple of work assignments popped up at the last minute. Still, it eventually started coming together. Our AWOL member revived, I finished my work tasks and we got the boat packed and ourselves ready.

A part of our tradition for this trip is completely calm waters when we leave, and this time was no different. We had no illusions, we rigged the sails, but we immediately fired up the iron genny and motored out of the harbor.

Immediately outside the harbor we saw an interesting tall ship. It was larger than the Amazing grace. It had two masts, but I don't think it was a schooner as both masts appeared to be the same size. A stream if thick black smoke was streaming away from their smokestack (yes a smokestack on a sailboat) as they motored across the narrows. We entertained the idea of motoring closer, but they really took off and were gone. It was amazing to see an old ship like that move so quickly. After that we continued north up Colvos Passage.



Time passes.

WE finally hit a good patch of wind off Richmond Pt., or maybe it's Pt. Richmond, so we turned off the motor. We had a very pleasant sail for probably about two hours as we sailed from Pt. Richmond almost to the end of the passage. At that point we realized we needed to just get there. Everyone was tired of being on the boat, and the final straw, was the departure of the wind itself.

The marina at the island was full so we unloaded in the temporary zone before moving the boat out to a mooring ball. It's always a little embarrassing to haul so much stuff out of the boat, but we needed it. What can I say.


Setting up camp is always the fun part for me. I also like moving into a new home, and rearranging the rooms in an old one. Maybe I'm just a homemaker at heart. The girls helped by building a fire and setting up the bedding in the tent. This tent was a brand new 8 person tent. Monica pointed out that it's still a "one man tent". Being traditionalists, we brought 5 bundles of firewood with us ($5 here vs. $9 at the concession stand on the island); one for each meal. The first meal was foil dinners which everyone usually loves. They weren't quite as popular with everyone as last year though.


And that, my friends was Day 1 of our adventure. Stay tuned for Day 2.

Just call me Charlie Brown

Departure: 5:30pm
Return: 8:00pm
Weather conditions: puffy clouds, light winds
Tide: high
Boat: Club Dinghy (Walker Bay)
Crew: 1 (Woody)

Do you remember how Charlie Brown gets suckered into trying to kick the football while Lucy holds it for him? Every time, she pulls the ball away and he flies through the air landing on his back. I'm the Charlie Brown of sailing.

I get ideas from all my reading and daydreaming and they just don't pan out. Take sailboat racing for instance. We all recall the fiasco in May and June when I tried to race my home-built boat in the dinghy races. If you don't, go back and read my posts; I'm not going to waste time here repeating the details.

Well as luck would have it (bad luck), they had another series of races in August. I didn't find out about it until three had passed and I'll miss the last. Not being well served by memory, I got to thinking. I thought that maybe, if I used another boat, I could do better. The only other dinghy I have access to is the club dinghy - an 8' walker bay. Theoretically it should point closer to the wind, and it has a center board instead of a lee-board so both tacks would be equal. Hey! Maybe I could be a bit more competitive so I signed up.

The day of the race was looking really good. The sky was cloudy but there was a good steady wind throughout the day. I didn't care if I won, I just wanted to finish respectfully and with a wind like this and a legitimate boat, I could do it.

Or could I?

The wind dropped off a bit as I motored down to the marina, but it was still blowing and I was still hopeful. However, by the time I'd rigged the boat it was feeling pretty light and looking patchy out on the water. It was downhill from there.

By the time the races started, it was quite calm. The races started later than I'd thought and I was already tired of twisting around in the tiny cockpit of the boat. An 8' dinghy is not a large boat for a man who's 6'5" tall and weighs about 250lbs. Add a sail to that and it's downright awkward. To avoid the boom while taking, I had to double over and my choices for sitting were to sit on my shins with an arm twisted behind my back to guide the tiller or to lay over the thwart on one side. It got old.

The light winds made my start difficult and I was the only 8' dinghy racing. The other boats were all larger lasers or regular sailboats. The wind continued to get lighter until I finally quite and drifted home.

I was very frustrated as you can tell from the tone of the entry (and that's after a day to recover).

38' Charter

Departure: 2:00pm
Return: 4:00pm
Weather conditions: Clear and breezy
Tide: Strong Flood
Boat: Charter Club Boat
Crew: 4 (Tom, Woody, Dave & 6 guests)

Dave (our club manager) invited me to help crew a charter he was doing or a group of 6. It was a chance to get some experience with the big boat that I couldn't pass up.

The winds were light, but we managed to move some. We motored out of the harbor to see if there was anything better and eventually found ourselves downstream (ie in the narrows). A strong flood tide was coming in. We passed within hailing distance of a smaller 22' craft that was struggling in the current. He asked how he could get out of the current. We told him and moved on, but after some discussion with our guests, we went back and towed him out. The guy hadn't done his homework; the boat had a 3hp engine that didn't have a chance of getting him out of trouble.

It was only a 2 hour charter so we were soon back in the harbor where the winds were much better. It was too bad we didn't have time to take advantage, but both Dave and I figure we were probably meant to be out there so we could help that poor little boat.

It sounds like the charters are going to be happening more often. Cool.

July Club Sail

Departure: 1:00pm
Return: 5:00pm
Weather conditions: Partly Cloudy and breezy
Tide: Slack tide??
Boat: Club Boat
Crew: 3 (Woody, Tom & Paul)

This was nice club sail thought it felt a little short. The winds were light, and we were all looking for something a little new, so we decided to motor up Colvos Passage a bit before we started sailing.

I don't remember exactly what the tides were doing, but we saw the most amazing rip tides I've seen so far. Lots of clearly defined whirlpools and up swells tried to spin us round and about. I think a high tide was coming in and that northward currents were hitting southward currents. I remember how alarming it was when I first encountered rip tides. To feel the tiller go slack in your hand, and the boat turn of it's own volition is similar to the dropping feeling you get in a small aircraft or a swing.

There isn't much to see up colvos passage, but I did my best to look for something new. I discovered a beautiful home tucked away in it's own valley.
In style, it reminded me of a roman villa, two story with a broad facade, arches and ballistrades. Large potted plants (many flowering) lined the walkways and terraces. The picture doesn't really do it justice. They have a nice situation.

After motoring to Richmond Pt, we killed the motor and practiced our light sailing techniques. It was relaxing and time slipped by faster than the water. A couple of boats motored by included a large transport with dump truck beds fastened to it - very curious. Eventually time got short and we had to start motoring back. A couple of times we killed the motor when we thought the wind was picking up, but for the most part there wasn't much.

Night Sail

Departure: 8:30pm
Return: 10:30pm
Weather conditions: Clear skies & small sniffs of air
Tide: High Flood
Boat: Wee Blow
Crew: Woody

I've heard it said that you can tell a mans true character by what they do when no one is around so you might say this was a test of character. My wife and the girls were out of town for several days and I was on my own. I was still working full days so it wasn't like I had oceans of time. Get it, sailing <-> oceans.... Anyway I still had the evenings so what to do, what to do?

I could choose a task from our endless list of tasks. I could read a book (something I would do regardless), or I could go sailing. Something I've been wanting to do forever is take a boat out at night and watch the lights in the harbor come on as the son sets. I've never gotten to because it feels strange to do so without the family. But, for the family to come it has to get dark early enough. In the summer, it doesn't get dark until very late and in the winter (when it gets dark really early) it's too cold. Now was my chance.

I paid attention to the time of sunset so I wouldn't show up too early and get bored. Eight O'clock looked like a good time. The evening was quite calm when I set out. It didn't look very promising for a sail, but it was beautiful. The sky was clear and the water glassy. I rigged the sail anyway and hoped for the best. I slowly drifted around and enjoyed milking micro-movements from the very VERY light puffs, but after a while that got a little old. I eventually took it back in under oar power and took off the sails. But I wasn't done yet. I headed back out under oar power.

The lights winking awake as the sun set over the hill was everything I'd dreamed it would be. And really, having the calm waters was a lot of fun. The current was coming in just slightly so I'd row up-current and then drift towards my marina. I was very careful to keep an eye out for other boats since I was essentially invisible to everyone.

There is something magical about being on the water at night when there's no wind and the water is glassy. It feels cozy. There was no noise and almost no one about. Everyone once in a while a boat would motor in and tie up for the night. A large crane glided past me in alighted on a nearby piling; it made no sound. Lights were on inside some of the anchored boats and I imagined sailors settling down for the evening in cozy cabins; small beds, dollhouse kitchens and port-a-potties.

And the temperature... did I mention the temperature? It was so nice that I was comfortable the entire evening in my t-shirt and shorts.

I wish I had pictures, but maybe it'll be more fun imagining it for yourselves.

Until next time.

June Club Sail

Departure: 1:00pm
Return: 4:30pm
Weather conditions: Partly Cloudy and strong wind
Tide: flood
Boat: Red Club Boat
Crew: 3 (Woody, Paul & Greg)

I thought for kicks, I'd use a different format. It might make you feel like you're getting something new in this post. Let's face it; these club sails are all generally the same. I'm sure I've said it before; you can only sail so far in a 4 hour block of time. Thus, the accounts of the club sails will rarely cover anything different. And thus, cheap tricks like centered text to stimulate the mind.

And yet.... This time was so awesome! You can see from the picture how blue the skies were, and how white the clouds. The wind was warm and brisk, and with the tide flood just reaching it's ebb, we were masters of the sea. We could go where we wanted, when we wanted. Add to that the fact that both club boats were out - that's right both boats - and you have a nice outting.

We had six members show up for the sail which is why Dave let us take both boats out. I went with Paul and his guest Greg in the red boat while Tom, Carol and a new member, whose name I can't recall, went in the blue boat. We agreed before we left that we'd have a race or two. Because our main was slightly larger than theirs, we chose our smaller jib in order to be fair.

These races were much more exciting than my previous races. Now we had two equally matched boats with two equally matched crews. This was going to be a contest of skill and wit, and I was ready. We chose our marks and set our start times. It's important to understand how critical the start of a sailboat race is (something I don't think my crew appreciated). If the skills and boats are closely matched, the start can make or break the race. The trick is to be crossing the line as fast as possible right when the horn blows without crossing too soon. If you cross too soon, you are penalized.

We had a good start, but they were first. It wasn't long, however, before passed them eventually beating them by a good margin. They made a tactical error on the upward leg, and we were the superior sailors of the hour. We had a second race as well. The crew wanted to give them a head start to be nice so we did. They ended up beating us, but I think it would have been very close if we'd started the race properly. Still, one win each left everyone feeling happy so we agreed to "race" out of the harbor.


What can I say? Again, we dominated. We kept the lead until the very mouth of the harbor when the wind completely died on us. The other boat lost patience after just a short while and cranked up the motor; but, it was their loss. As soon as they motored past, the wind came back and we sailed out of the harbor about as fast as they motored out. Once outside the harbor we gave chase for a while. I have to admit it was thrilling to overtake them. We caught up enough to offer them donuts, but they declined and we went our separate ways.

I have to say a bit about heeling. The boat heels when it tips because of the wind working on the sails. When the boat is sailing close to the wind, it heels the most. The point of sail closest to the wind also tends to feel the most exhilerating and fast. This is because 1) the boat is heeling so there's a sense of alarm 2) the boat is cutting into the waves causing spray and splash 3) the apparent wind is felt directly on the fast. The apparent wind is the combination of the natural wind and the movement of the sailboat through the wind. This is great fun, but it leads to a point of confusion. Inexperienced sailors can often mistake the heeling for sailing action i.e. "if we're heeling more, we must be sailing faster or sailing closer to the wind". This is not the case. The truth is, a poorly trimmed boat can heel just as well as a properly trimmed boat. It is inefficient and even dangerous to heel the boat excessively just to heel the boat.

The reason for my rant? I like to trim the sails for maximum speed and not for heel and sometimes I get annoyed when I sail with others who differ. Enough said.

All in all, it was a great sail.

3rd Times a charm or 3 Strikes You're Out

Departure: 1:00pm 6/2/2007
Return: 5:00pm
Weather conditions: Blue and Breezy
Tide: Flood
Boat: Wee Blow
Crew: 2 (Woody, Rob & Aubrey-Anne)

Hmmmm. For some reason, this has been a really hard post to get out. I'm not sure what the problem is. It's now been 3 weeks since the event and, well, here I am; still writing.

From the title you can probably guess that I participated in my 3rd (and final ever) dinghy race. I used my homemade boat, the Wee Blow, again, and I lost miserably, again. I've accepted the fact that my boat is not fast enough to compete in these races which is why it was the last race. I'm satisfied though. I had a goal to compete with my boat in the Maritime race and I did.

The Maritime Regatta (confusing term for sailboat race) is one of the events in the Gig Harbor Maritime festival; a great festival full of activities, food and a spirited small-town parade. I watched the parade with my children and their friends in the morning. At noon I handed the kids off to Monica and set out for my racing adventure.

My friend Rob raced with me. The boat is easier to manage with two people as it is rigged now. I was also hoping we could trim the boat a bit more evenly with a better distribution of weight. Rob was excited because he'd never participated in a sailing race before. Depending on how you look at it, you could say he still hasn't :).

The weather for the race and the festival could not have been better. The temperature was in the 80's with a pleasant warm breeze. Comfortable enough for the landlubbers yet windy enough for the sailors. The skies were blue with the occasional puffy white cloud, and the air was festive.

We registered for the race and practiced without incident. I was really glad I'd participated in the other two races. I felt much more relaxed and we made a good start when the horn blew. That was about all we had to feel good about though. The other boats quickly left us behind as we tacked toward the first buoy. In fact, two smaller boats (8 feet) started the race late and still passed us to finish much sooner. Yet we pressed on.

We couldn't tack as close to the wind, nor as fast, but we made progress. It was fun to pass the festival, which is on the waters front. People milled about, and we could hear the band playing, and smell the foods cooking on the grills. I felt like we were in the middle of it all even though most of the landlubbers aren't even aware that there's a race going on.

We continued past the festival and started to find our groove. We even started gaining a little on the second to last boat. We were doing pretty good until we were just short of the first buoy. And then... I can't explain what happened next. All of a sudden we couldn't control the boat. It was tacking when we didn't want to tack, and the helm wasn't responding. It was very frustrating to have gotten so close and then flounder such as we were. We eventually straightened out and rounded the buoy, but we'd lost any ground we'd gained earlier. We were the undisputed losers.

I think it was at this point that Rob was realizing what a time commitment a sailboat race can be. He tactfully wondered if we could be dropped off early. I was determined to finish the race, and a stop would only make our loss more acute. A lesser man may have enjoyed tormenting him by dragging out the race, but, being a better man, I didn't see the point. I suggested I drop him off at the city dock which we would be passing anyway; the dock is dock is right on the park where the festival was as well.


The dock rode low in the water, and not quite level, from all the people standing on it. We headed for the loading/unloading zone at the end which is always clear of boats. This is the moment of the day which amazes me the most because there is no way Monica and I could ever have planned a meeting like this. As we pulled up to the dock there was Rob's family waiting for him and there was my family waiting for me. You would think it was all well planned, but it was all complete coincidence. I traded Rob for Aubrey-Anne, said hello to everyone and then took off to finish the race.

The beautiful schooner under full sail caught our eye and tempted us to give chase (ha), but we stuck with it. We'd have time to deal with the Amazing Grace later; and we did. We finished the race just as everyone else was getting ready to start the second race. The judge boat gave us a cheer which I appreciated. I don't think it was in mockery; they knew who we were from the previous races and had been very encouraging.

With the race finished, we left our shame behind with all speed, and went in search of the Grace. She isn't hard to find in our little harbor, and we had a couple of nice passes with her before we parted ways. I enjoyed having Aubrey-Anne on board; she acted as figurehead and photographer and generally kept me company.

The rest of the day was just as nice as the first. We stowed the boat and walked over to the festival where we met family and friends, had some snacks and headed home.

All in all it was a great day. Enjoy Aubrey's pictures.

Race #2

Departure: 6:00pm
Return: 8:00pm
Weather conditions: Clear & calm
Tide: ??
Boat: Wee Blow
Crew: 1 (Woody)

I feel spent. I'm sitting here in my chair trying to work up the energy to write this entry, and it's a struggle. Yesterday, I raced again, and that is tiring all by itself. Besides the race my wife and I stayed up until 11:00 painting. Later, after going to bed, my daughter woke us up complaining about a stomach ache, and then after that we were awakened again by a strange cat running around our bedroom in a panic. Apparently it had crawled in through the window we left open and couldn't remember how to get out. So yes, I'm tired, but that's not what this blog is about. You want another thrilling tale of the drama and adventure on the high seas, and I want to deliver.

Today's, actually yesterday's, drama is racing, and it started with the kind of drama that only mother nature can deliver. The temperature was warm (70), white puffy clouds raced above in their own sea of blue, and a gentle wind pushed form the south. Okay it was a little too gentle sometimes, but it was better than the week before, and I'm trying to paint a poetic picture here. Toward the end of the race, the glow of a beautiful sunset reflected off a very crisp looking Mt. Rainier. You couldn't lose being out on a day like this.

I was more prepared this time. None of my children wanted to come which was a bit of a bummer. It's more fun with one of them along. Even one of the other boats asked where my helmsman was. But, without a passenger to coach, I did have more time to study the conditions and prepare my strategy. First, I noted that the wind was from the south, and therefore, I'd be tacking all the way to the first mark at the far southern end of the harbor. My rigging (lug sail) does not do well close to the wind which means I have to zig and zag more often than the boats with the triangular sails (bermuda rigs). Second, the wind was light; another disadvantage. The curve of my homemade sail is not as ideal as it could be. Also, somehow I'd rigged flatter than usual. I wasn't sure what I'd done differently so I had to leave it. In light winds, it's better to have more curve in the sail than less. My strategy was going to be to watch what other good sailors were doing, and to allow for the broader tacks; hopefully making up for distance with speed. My final strategy was to make a better start, and I'm proud to say this turned out all right.

I milled around the starting line with everyone else and timed it so I was doing a beam reach along the starting line when the horn went off. It was a good start, but futile. An important truth blew across my brow; my boat is not fast. Everyone zipped past me on their first tack, and there was no denying I couldn't keep up. This was a little discouraging. I'd hoped, deep down in my heart, that at least in some conditions my boat could be competitive. It didn't matter though; it was still a beautiful evening and I wanted to complete the course. And, there was one boat that wasn't that much faster than me. It took them quite a while to get a good lead on me. It was the same boat I was behind last time.

The time to the first mark seemed to last forever. I hit good patches of wind at times and almost dead calm at others. I crawled past the Tides Tavern in shame while everyone got a good loooooonnng look at me. By the time I reached the first bouy, I was alone. I had a good breeze finally and was able to make the turn and run with the wind. I should point out that sailing close hauled, into the wind can be tiring. I think it's called beating to weather in sailing terms; I sure felt beaten. It wasn't the sea beating me though, it was the rigging. I have no cleats for my main sheet and my rudder is a little too short so I end up using brute force to bring the main in close while keeping the tiller steady behind my back. Even in light wind, this got old. I have some ideas for improving the rigging to make it easier. Leaving the first buoy, also meant leaving the beating behind.

Running with the wind was a nice break. I could hardly feel the wind because I was moving with it, and it was steady enough that I didn't have to jibe once. In fact, I tied off the main sheet, set the tiller and let the boat sail herself. I noticed that my shifting my weight I could make micro-adjustments to the direction without touching the sail or the tiller. I was able to stretch my legs and straighten my back, put on my sweatshirt and generally relax a bit. I feel I caught up a bit at this point because running with the wind is all about sail area and not so much sail curve. this put my boat on more equal terms with the others.

I reached the second mark (across from the starting line) in half the time it took me to reach the first; maybe even less. The wind served me well for a little while longer before it fizzled and I was left inching my way toward the third, and last, bouy. I did it though; I rounded the final buoy and headed back. I didn't actually go through the finish line. I turned in at my dock which was halfway between the third buoy and the finish. I didn't see the point really. Sure it would have been nice to finish, but the judge boat was gone, most of the other boats had gone in, it was getting dark, and I knew I needed to do my share of the painting at home. I felt good about rounding all three buoys and that was enough for me.

I plan on participating in the Gig Harbor Maritime Festival Dinghy races, but with my performance so far, I'm not sure it'd be worth it. I'll have to think about it. I have one week.

Until then.
Sail on.

Racing day

Departure: 6:00pm
Return: 8:10pm
Weather conditions: Partly Cloudy and light breezes
Tide: High
Boat: Wee Blow
Crew: 2 (Woody & Sophia)

I am flying so high from our experience racing yesterday; it was so fun. I'm tempted to give you a blow by blow account of the entire evening, but that could be hard since there wasn't much blow at all. The wind turned extremely faint of heart. It all started out well enough.

First of all, my daughter wanted to come along. My families interest in sailing is fair-weather at best so this was exciting. It was also necessary because this race was for women and kids 18 and under. I'm not sure how PC (politically correct) that is, but I didn't make the rules.

Second of all, I discovered a really slick knot to use to improve my handling of the main sheet on the boat. The knot is called the topsail halyard hitch and I used it to attach the main to them middle of the boom so I could manage it with Sophia at the tiller. It worked really well.

We were pretty nervous as we walked down to the boat. We could see a host of white sails milling about on the water. Sophia started losing her nerve and several times proposed we go home. I was scared myself, but I really wanted to try it out so I wouldn't hear of it. We rigged the boat quickly enough and we were on our way.

Sophia is a great sailor. The rules of the race required that she man the helm at all times. She quickly started remembering how to move the tiller to steer the boat. We had to paddle out of our little cove because the wind wasn't reaching us there - or so we thought. In reality, there probably wasn't much wind at that point either and would have served as a good omen.

My first point of anxiety was finding the start boat and turning in our paperwork. I'm sure we could have just started racing, but I wanted it to be official. We found the boat easily enough and got everything arranged. After that it was practice. We needed to get comfortable steering, trimming and working together.

The race started in 3 phases. The bigger boats go first, then the lasers, and finally the dinghies. Each start signal is sounded at 5 minute intervals with warning signals at 4 minutes and 1 minutes. The triangular course consisted of 3 marks around which we needed to sail keeping the marks to starboard. The first mark was at the northwest end of the harbor, the second mark was midway down the harbor on the east side, and the 3rd mark was at the south end of the harbor. The starting point was in the middle of the harbor on the west side - across from the 2nd mark.

Before the race, the wind was decent and we had fun identifying right of way and getting used to everything. However, about 5 minutes before the race, the wind got quite light, and we found ourselves sitting in a dead spot. When the starting signal sounded, we were still fighting our way out and hadn't passed the starting line. Even for a fast boat, starting last, doesn't help. For is, it was the end of the race. We started last, and we stayed last. The wind continued to get lighter and lighter. Several times we found we weren't sailing at all, and once we started moving backwards. In the end we spent 2 hours rounding the first mark; we felt good calling that our race and headed back in under oar power.

Other highlights of the voyage were the snacks, the many compliments we got on the Wee Blow and her sail & the drunken sailor in front of us who kept laughing at everything.

Would I do it again? Absolutely... next week.

Until then.

Racing practice (dinghy)

Departure: 1:00pm 5/15/2007
Return: 2:00pm
Weather conditions: Sunny, warm and windy
Tide: ebb??
Boat: Wee Blow
Crew: 1 Woody

Wow! That's just about all I can say about Tuesday's weather. Wow!

This area is a great area to sail, but it's not perfect. It's often cold, sometimes wet and the winds can be fluky. But sometimes....

Sometimes, everything can come together just right to make for a gorgeous day - perfect for sailing. That's what it was like on Tuesday. The temperatures were reaching into the upper 80's. The skies were clear and blue and the wind was nice and steady (probably around 7-10 knots). When days like this come along, I'm usually not expecting them and they quickly slip away like water from my hand.

But as luck, or fate, would have it, I'd chosen this particular day to practice sailing the Wee Blow for her first race. And so, I stumbled into the nicest sailing experience I could have hoped for. And I needed it.

Sailing a dinghy is quite different from sailing a larger keelboat. The center of gravity is higher, and without the additional ballast, the dinghy feels more unstable. It tips and wobbles about, and every time a gust of wind hits, you think you're about to go overboard. The Wee Blow is a good boat though. She's pretty stable for a dinghy, and she's roomy so moving around isn't as difficult as a smaller dinghy would be. Stability is only one difference however.

The Wee blow has a leeboard instead of a center board and so the forces acting on her don't line up in quite the same way. (A leeboard hangs off the side of the boat to act as a keel instead of sticking down from the middle). The result is a tendency to favor starboard tacks over port tacks. I also have trouble pointing as close to the wind as I would in a larger keelboat. The rigging could also use some improvements. Right now the main sheets leads from the tack of the sail (back lower corner) directly to my hand. I don't mind trimming the sail by brute force; that's sort of how dinghy's are. But, the angle of the sheet to the yard can sometimes be extreme and that multiplies the force needed to trim. I'm going to try and rig something better before the race.

Speaking of the race, I should probably share the details. It's a monthly series every Thursday in May at 6:25 sponsored by the Gig Harbor yacht Club (GHYC). They are just for fun, and open to all classes of boats. Sophia and I are going to race the Wee Blow this evening if our courage doesn't fail us.

We've never raced before. Well, actually two times with club boats and club members, but that was so casual it was hardly a race. it also involved only two boats. This will be many more. I've been reviewing racing rules, but there are too many. I'll never remember any of them.


I'll report on how it goes. In the meantime, enjoy the photos of the Wee Blow sailing.


The above image is supposed to be an animated picture of me leaving. it's not working on my browser, but I'm leaving it in for a bit in case others report that it's working for them. You'll know it's working if you see movement.

A note about pictures

Most of the pictures I upload have larger versions. To view the larger versions, just click on the image.

Dinghy racing

I wanted to officially announce that I'm going to participate in the Gig Harbor, Maritime Festival annual dinghy race. I have never raced before and I'm terrified and excited.

There is a weekly race happening every Thursday in the Harbor, and I'm hoping to use that for some practice as well. I will post pictures and comments as they happen.

Early Rowing

I may be compromising my entire blog by doing this, but I'm going to post a NON-SAILING entry. The reason? I have a nice picture I want to upload. And... it does involve the sailing dinghy I built.

Last week I found a spot in the harbor to keep my dinghy for the summer, and it only costs $20/month. This has opened up all sorts of possibilities for using the dinghy. Now it's only a matter of minutes to get the dinghy in the water and ready to go whereas before it was a big hassle just getting it into the water.

Two times in the past week I' awakened extra early to row around the harbor. It's usually calm in the harbor in the early morning and when it is, it's very serene and picturesque. On the first row, I went by myself; on the second row, my wife came along for the ride. We finished our morning with a cinnemon roll from the bakery and some hot chocolate. It was a fun morning date. It was so much more fun to have her along. Hopefully, I'll get her to come again.

I won't post my rows any more unless something exceptional happens.

Nothing to report

Departure: 1:00pm 5/7/2007
Return: 5:00pm
Weather conditions: Partly Cloudy and breezy
Tide: Ebb??
Boat: Blue Club Boat
Crew: 3 (Woody, Tom & Carol)

I need to catch up; it's already been a week since the May club sail happened. Time flies, and I've been distracted by more important things (yes, as much as I love sailing, I have to admit there are more important things in life). But this is not the place to discuss other "important things"; this is the place to discuss sailing.

Our club sail was as fun as it usually is. Only 3 of us showed up, and the wind was light with periods of calm. The temperature was warm and the sun was out. It was a very pleasant, if a bit too relaxed, afternoon.

One funny thing we discovered was that none of us came on the cruise with a watch or a cell phone. I discovered this when I needed to check the time to make sure we returned home at a decent hour.

We sailed as far as the Tacoma ferry dock before turning back home.

Really, that's about it. No pictures either - how boring!

He's Dinghy

Departure: 3:00pm 4/28/2007
Return: 5:00pm
Weather conditions: Clear and breezy
Tide: Ebbing
Boat: Club Dingy (Walker Bay)
Crew: 1 (Woody)

One of the things I really like about sailing is how it all seems to come together when I go. That's how I know it's right for me. Take last Saturday for instance. I had it in my head that I'd like to go. Several weeks earlier, I had been asking men to join me in renting a boat and we had planned for Saturday. But, as the day approached, I couldn't find enough men available. I was also a volunteer site leader in our community "Parks Appreciation Day" and would be spending the morning doing that. Monica was out of town buying a new car for the family so I had all four children in tow. In other words, it didn't look like I'd be going sailing. But, it was still on my mind; I left a tiny window of hope open in my mind and waited to see what happened.

I decided I'd take the club dinghy out instead. It's free, and a one man job. However, after the park stuff, the kids and I needed to get a couple of things done before I could justify it. The fact that I'm making an entry should have been clue enough that I did end up going. In fact, it was funny that a friend of mine called me up that afternoon and wanted to know if I wanted to go out on the harbor. I was already going so, we planned to hook up.

Sailing a dinghy is nothing like sailing a larger boat. For one thing, it responds to forces much more quickly. Winds, tides and weight shifts all have an immediate effect. For another thing, they are small. The club's Walker Bay is 8' long. I'm a large 6'5" man who weights around 250lbs. TAcking and jibing and steering (with my hand behind my back on the tiller) is akin to changing clothes in a small closet. If you've ever had to do that, you know what I'm talking about.

Still, it was fun. The sky was a happy blue, dimpled with puffy white clouds. The breeze was nice and steady. The currents were negligable as well. It was especially fun to meet friends.

It's funny. I'm always wanting to have other's join me in their boats on the water, and yet, it's really not a good way to socialize. You can see each other, but other than that you're sort of doing your own thing. My friend brought his canoe, 5 children and a puppy with him while I was sailing solo. We chatted a bit when I sailed close, but in general I was faster than they were. When they paddled in to explore the estuary, I couldn't follow because I didn't want to risk getting pinned in by the wind. In order to go int othe estuary, I'd have had to raise my center board and depower the sails.

We didn't do much interacting, but it was fun to be out there together. It was hard not to feel slightly superior as I circled the canoe in order to chat. Every now and then the wind would let up to remind me of my fallibility.

I don't know how much this is making sense, but I did want to record that I went out. Have a nice week.

Wheel of fortune

Departure: 1:00pm 4/23/2007
Return: 5:00pm
Weather conditions: Partly Cloudy and breezy
Tide: ebb tide
Boat: 30' Catalina
Crew: 4 (Woody, Tom, Paul & Carol)

Okay, it's a stupid title, but I loved using a wheel at the helm instead of a tiller. Don't get me wrong, I love tillers. They're simple and elegant and I feel more connect with what the boat is doing when I use one....
However, they require more free space in the cockpit and even worse, they require you to sit facing 90 degrees away from the direction being steering. After a while, I get tired of torquing around to look ahead. The wheel was very comfortable, and, what can I say, it made me feel authentic.
Picture 1: At first glance, this picture seems pretty lame. However, it illustrates an important fact. Most people think of wide open spaces when they think of sailing, but a good portion of interacting with a boat is spent in small cramp, dark, smelly compartments. Even here in the cockpit, Paul is reduced to crouching over the starter buttons trying to get the motor to turn. He was in this posture for quite a while.



You may be asking yourself "What wheel? Is it a toy boat? Is he sailing his car? Is he mad?" No, Nothing so interesting. Instead, this was a boat the four of us rented. At 30 feet, it was larger than what we usually sail. It's a nice boat with a roomy cabin that would sleep up to 6. It had a head (sailor talk for toilet) that flushes, a sink with running water, a range, stove and cooler. It also had a heater for the dainty sailors. And of course, it had the wheel. We wanted to practice our skills on a larger boat in preparation for the cruising class. Paul has already taken the class and wanted a review.

Picture 2: Most of the waterfront in Gig Harbor is crowded with structures: ramps, docks, sheds, pilings, homes and whatnot. And yet, this little house sits in it's own little world; holding it at bay . It always catches my eye when I leave the harbor.

Hmmm. Now you're probably asking yourself who "we" is. I guess I'm not being very cohesive here. The "we" was the usual "we" as in Tom, Paul, Carol and myself. I should probably come up with a name for our group since we seem to be the core of the sailing club. I'm too tired to do that now though. I should just finish up so I can get to bed instead.

The check-out was a bit of a drag. It ended up taking 2 hours to get the boat out of the slip. The cause? dead batteries. We finally had to call the owner and have him come help us out. And this was with Dave helping. Dave indicated we could take her out longer, but I needed to be home by 5pm to be with the family. We were cut short on time, but other than that, it was a great sail. We had a nice breeze and enjoyed taking turns at the helm, trimming sails and chatting - always plenty of chatting.

Picture 3: This picture caught my eye because it made our lighthouse seem so noble and strong; not the minimal structure that it actually is.

We did have a moment of two of excitement. As we chatted, we noticed another, similarly sized, sailboat off the port bow. We'd seen them earlier, but it appeared to us that they'd purposefully changed their tack in order to pass us by. Clearly this was a challenge, and so we wheeled around and gave chase.

Naturally, we started gaining on them; it wouldn't have been long before they learned their lesson when disaster struck. Someone, and I won't say who... well okay, I will so you don't think it was me. Tom, accidentally kicked an instrument cover out of the cockpit into the water. This happened as we were changing posts. I had just taken the helm when the call went out - "item overboard". Paul did a great job of keeping the item in sight, but I had trouble getting my bearings. By the time, I brought us about to begin the rescue maneuver, we'd lost site of the victim. In our defense, I want to point out that this cover was about 4" x 6" x 1" in size so we're not talking about a large item. However, this illustrates when such accidents are going to occur - when the crew is preoccupied or there is some disturbance distracting everyone, or the weather is challenging. I'll have to practice some more. In the meantime, we'd lost the "race".

Picture 4: What do you get when there's more than one sailboat on the water? A race!

There is a happy ending though. As we were heading back to the harbor, we came across our plastic item floating in the water. This time, Paul was at the helm and he struggled with the rescue as well. In fact, I think he finally cranked up the motor. After several tries, Tom managed to hook it with a pole and drag it aboard. Talk about luck.

Until next time.

April's Club Sail

Departure: 1:00pm 4/9/2007
Return: 5:00pm
Weather conditions: Stormy, blustery 15+ winds
Tide: Ebbing Tide
Boat: BlueClub Boat
Crew: 4 (Woody, Tom, George & Carol)

I'm always saying I'll be brief because theirs nothing to tell, and then I end up going on and on and on. Today I'll try some reverse psychology by stating up front that I'm going to go on and on and on. Maybe I'll be more brief.

Photo 1: A stormy departure.

First of all the weather... WOW! Rain, clouds and plenty of wind. The wind measured up to 18mph while we were out. Trust me, that's enough wind for our little boat. We started out with a reefed main and the smallest jib and never felt any inclination to swap up.

Photo 2: It rained in Gig Harbor, but not on us!

It was raining when I walked out the door, and I wondered what in the world I thought I was doing. I anticipated being drenched before we even left the dock, but by the time I reached the it, the rain had stopped. Tom was already there and together we began rigging the boat. By the time we were done, Carol and George had arrived as well and we were soon on our way. It hadn't rained while we preparing the boat, but something nasty was obviously blowing in as we motored out of the slip. Before we'd even finished backing out, a healthy downpour had blown in. We struggled to get the sails up. I had to keep the motor revving more than usual in order to control the boat against the wind; the result was that we quickly ran out of room while raising the sails. In the end, we mastered the situation without too much trouble and got the sails up. Naturally the rain stopped at this point. Carol admitted later that had it rained longer, she would have been done in. We made a brief tour of the north end of the harbor and then headed out to the big waters under sail.

Photo 3: Leaving stormy weather behind.

By the time we'd gotten the sails up, the rain had stopped. We didn't have any rain for the remainder of the day. The wind stayed strong throughout the day with plenty of gusts.

With the strong winds, we were able to sail against the current toward the bridge. We almost made it to the bridge before we needed to head back. We saw 3 tugboats towing barges. One barge was beached outside the harbor and it's load of sand was tipped into the water - not a happy day for someone.

Photo 4: A Barge beached outside the harbor.

We saw plenty of wildlife. A left a large bald eagle circling the north end of the harbor. A large flock of white birds were congregated around the point and lifted in one large cloud of white as we shot through them. Two large seals also passed fairly close.


It was a thrilling day for sailing. The small jib balanced nicely with the reefed main; only the smallest touch was required to steer the boat. At one point, I had the boat heeled so that I was more standing against the hull opposite than sitting. We even dipped the foot of the mainsail into the water when letting it out. It was all controlled too. It wasn't as though we were being pushed about at the weather's leisure.

Photo 5: Sunny Skies in the Harbor.

One of the best days so far.

March Club Sail 2007

Departure: 1:00pm
Return: 5:30pm
Weather conditions: Strong winds, mostly clear (48deg)
Tide: strong ebb
Boat: Blue Club Boat
Crew: 6 (Woody, Tom, Carol, George, Frederick & Andrew)

I've mentioned before; the sad irony that the best sailing weather is often the worst weather. Or at least windy , and in the Northwest, windy happens in the spring and fall when it's still cold. Yesterday was a great sailing day, and we had a great trip. The skies were clear and sunny for the first half and the winds were very strong.

We had a large crew this time. Besides the regulars Tom, Carol and myself, there were George and Frederick (newer members) and Andrew, Tom's son.

There's not a lot to say, that I haven't said before, so I won't. There also wasn't anything new that I haven't photographed before so I don't know if I'll post a picture or not. I'll just briefly describe where we went and what we did and be done.

Because the tides were going out, it seemed appropriate to head south towards the bridge. Even with currents we made good time because of the wind. We probably would have made the bridge, but at some point, a new helmsperson, decided to head north and so we zipped (literally) north towards the junction of Colvos, the narrows and Dalco passages. We then headed east for maybe a third of a mile and then north again. This seemed like a bit of a poor choice to me because a) the wind was at our backs which meant we'd be tacking home, and b) even thought it's slight, there is still a northern current in Colvos passage which was where we were heading. We'd be fighting the current back as well. This brings up an interesting point though...

Why didn't I say anything? Why would I let us take a course that I felt was maybe not so wise (not that there's anything wrong with a slow return, but it usually means we're late)? I think the reason is that we have no designated captain on these trips. And, we are all so deathly nice, none of us seems to feel comfortable taking charge. I say deathly because I sometimes wonder if, in a crisis, we'd end up killing ourselves because we hesitate to take charge. To be fair, I think we all recognize that none of us are necessarily better or worse than the others at sailing. Sailing by consensus! I sometimes chuckle at the way we come to decisions, but it's all very pleasant because everyone is so respectful and considerate. It makes for a great trip every time, even when we do get in late.

While we were out, we practiced several man overboard recoveries and reefing the sails.


A good day.