January 2014 Sailing update

Everyone is most likely wondering what has happened to this blog.  It is now January 25, 2014 and there is snow on the ground and we are in a polar freeze. Not a time to think about sailing. Unless I look to the rear of the house to see Lil Provo waiting to be set up for the coming season. The problem is, it may not happen. During the sailing season last year I had an accident on my Harley and broke a number of bones. I need surgery, but due to my condition the could not do any surgery for twelve weeks following the accident. When finally having surgery, I was told it did not go as good as expected. Stainless steel plate, pins, and screws could not hold me together. I have been battling intense pain for months and really have not though too much about this blog.  However, after looking out back and seeing Lil Provo sitting and waiting for the season, it has given me hope my bones will mend soon.

I just watched the movie ALL IS LOST.  I do enjoy any movie that has sailboats in it.  However, while watch this movie, I just keep saying "what the hell are you doing?".

I found ALL IS LOST was a far from the normal reactions of a sailor. After the accident there were no signs of urgency Robert Redford's part. Though he did many things correct, he did many things wrong. Being the hole was just above water line, he could have stopped water from coming in with a simple patch of pillows, anything playable, a cabinet door and a mop handle to keep these things under pressure. There was also an emergency location Becan on the back of the boat. That red thing with the short antenna. Why did he not take and attach to the raft, or better yet on a blue water vessel, the life boat usually contains one.  Also, where was his handheld VHF? Seems to be lacking equipment to be a blue water vessel. The lack of urgency was the same throughout the movie.  I did enjoy it just because it was about sailing as many will. Just realize this is not a movie directed by a sailor.

We visited the bay last weekend and saw lots of ice floating out there.  No fishermen, boaters, or sightseers around. Hoping to start posts on a regular basis and hoping my health holds out to allow me to do so.

First Sailing of the Season

6/16/2013
We got up early and loaded the dinghy onto the top of the truck.  I had already loaded everything else we needed and was just waiting for a hand in getting the dinghy on top.  We got her sitting there and used the tie downs to lock her into position for the drive to the bay.  We arrived in Keyport about a half hour later and proceeded to remove the dinghy from the top of the truck.  Lil Provo was sitting in her annual spot and sitting high in the water.  I could tell this as the water line was about 6" above the water. This is due to a couple things.  First off there really isn't much inside yet.  That will change over the next few weeks.  Today we brought fishing poles and tackle, the cooler, and our bag with GPS and VHF, plus some tools.  That is just the beginning of things to get on board.  I will have a couple cases of water, changes of clothing, rain gear, wetsuit, etc... The list goes on. At the end of the first few seasons I said I don't need all of this stuff on board, but by the end of every season it is all back on board.  That tells me I need it on board.

I went and installed a new line on the rolling furling, changed the position on the boom halyard to not keep wearing the same spot, and checked the rigging.  The rigging is in real need to be tuned.  Last year was the first year I did the tuning myself and it was better than any year in the past.  I guess because I put more time into it and made sure it was to the specs.  I will tune the rigging when down by myself working on the boat.

Our mooring ball is setup with a chain and a pendant and our float has a five foot fiberglass whip with reflectors on the top.  This will help making it easier to identify as we pull into the mooring field.  I believe I have the best position in the mooring field as I am straight out from the ramp and the first boat in the mooring field. 

I started up the motor and had Blue drop the mooring, we were off in a flash.  It was like we never had a winter and we were just continuing where we left off last season. We even tried some fishing and caught one fluke.  It was after twelve and I needed to get home for my Father's Day dinner.  We got back to the mooring and secured everything, jumped into the dinghy and motored to the ramp.  The wheels worked great and there was spot at the top of the ramp where we parked her. 

It was a pleasant day and we are looking forward to next weekend.

Finishing the Dinghy

Today we have to finish up the dinghy.

Blue and I turned her over and I cut a hole in the face of the bench seat large enough to get my arm I side with a wrench.  I figured out where I wanted the wheels to be ans marked the transom. The bolts you get with the wheel kit are not long enough to make an easy installation.  I used a drill the next size smaller than what the bolt would require and screwed the bolts into the transom. After screwing a bolt into each hole I removed the bolts and pumped silicon into the holes.  With the kit they give you o-rings and washers to help seal out any water. Being I had no room for washers or o-rings, placed a glob of silicone on each hole. I placed the wheels on and screwed in the bolts which tighter right up.  I then went inside and put the self locking nuts on each bolt.  I was really surprised how much silicone came through each hole.  After all the nuts were tighter I ran a bead of silicone around each wheel plate to give some added protection from leaking.

Later on after the silicon had dried, I put a coat of paint on the transom.  And other fiberglass work I had done.  The dinghy is now ready and rolls along perfectly. Just the way I planned.

We will bring the dinghy down next week in hopes there is some room.  Today the place was still a zoo with absolutely no place to store the dinghy. Maybe with high tide during the mid-day time this week they will get more boats in the water and giving us some room for the dinghy.

Bringing Lil Provo to her summer home

6/1/2013

As i sit in front of the gym waiting for them to open this morning, I am starting today's blog. It will be a busy day and this is the best way to do a brain drain prior to actually starting things. 

Today is the day where Lil Provo heads down to her summer home sitting on the water in Keyport Harbor.  She is all clean in and out, has the basic required gear on board, and is packaged up and ready for the trip east.  I have to pick up my salty dog buddy Blue and bring him back to verify the tail lights are working and just in case there are any issues on the trip, it will be nice to have someone who can help or share the pain.

Need to verify we have the right ball on the hitch as we tow a few different trailers.  Check the lights and make sure they are working properly. Run over the tie downs and load straps making sure they are secured and tight. Throw a couple extra ropes on the mast just to make sure it doesn't go anyplace. Make sure we have gas and oil in the back of the truck, a case of bottled water, and tools. 

In looking at the boat the other day I noticed the boat was not all the way forward to the stop by the winch.  Nothing I can do about this at this point, she must have slide back an inch or so on the trip home. We'll just make sure we have her secured pretty good.

It may be a challenge to find a home for her at the boat yard as it was still packed with boats last week with very little available room.  If there are people working on their boats, the little space available will be used for parked cars. We have to get there early to beat this possibility. Then take off the tie downs, remove the ropes, get the boom out of the cabin, and make sure they have everything they need out and ready to raise the mast with the hoist on top of the building.  Then she can be placed on her mooring which is about 100 yards off the KYC dock. 

Over the next couple weeks as I come down to take her out, I will bring more of the summer supplies down.  Things like the fishing tackle, snorkel or dive gear, portable radio, DVD player, cooler,  change of clothes, and whatever else I remember.

It is now time to pick up  Blue and start this mornings adventure.  First thing is to hook up the trailer to the truck and inspect everything TWICE.  I back up to the hitch and make sure we have the right size ball and plug in the wiring.  No tail lights!  Time to now see where the problem is. I pull out the back up wire from the back of the truck and change to a new trailer wire hookup. Ahhhh, some lights are working. Time to check bulbs.  Another 5 minutes and all seems fine with the lights.  Time to jump in and take our time towing the boat to the bay.  No rush!

The ride is uneventful. Thank goodness.  We pull in and look for a place to park the boat.  Blue gets out and helps with directions as I try backing her in and getting her in a safe spot.  Sometimes leaving her in the way makes them put you in right away. Hmmmm, should we?  I back her in and then take a walk to the office to confirm she is fine where she is and John tells me that is fine.

I have Blue grab a nearby ladder and I climb on board to remove all the lines I have holding the mast in place. Blue removes the tie downs and load straps. I go into the cabin and bring out stage boom which I leave in the cockpit along with a baggy of Clevis pins and round cotter pins I case they need an extra.  Next we get the rudder attached to the back and are pretty much done at this point.  We undo the hitch and I move the truck up a little to we can load the truck with items taken off the boat. I then walk around the boat and take my annual pictures of boat as dropped off.  This is a good practice to get into! 

Instead of lea ing we take a walk down to the ramp and notice there are now about 20 boats in the mooring field and KYC dock is finished and the launch is an horde right off the dock.  This means the mooring field will begin to fill over the next week or so. I take a few pictures out into the harbor and we return to the truck and boat.  Blue puts a cinder block under the front of the trailer so we don't have to reply on the crackdown wheel.  I go the fridge in the back of the truck and pull out a couple nice cold waters for Blue and I.  We head on back and detour along the Keyport water front which is very active.  We notice that Pedersen's has put in a bunch of new docks on the old pilings and still adding more.

Another successful beginning to another season.  We head home.

Next project is to finish the dinghy.  She's pretty much ready, but I want to replace the wheels on the transom with new wheels and relocate them so we don't have to turn her upside down like we have for years.  The idea is to set the wheels up so we can just pull her up the ramp with everything still inside.  Previously, we would unload her and turn her over and pull her up the ramp.  I began to think how inconsiderate this was for others waiting to use the ramp. So I plan to change that this year.  It will require some major work on the transom and rear bench seat, but it will be worth it.

First thing to due is turn her over and cut some holes in the front face of the bench seat so I can use bolts and not self tapping screws.  This will also allow me to back it with an aluminum plate to add strength. When done I can fill with foam.

This method will allow me to turn the boat upside down when I get her up to the spot I store her in the boat yard.

GETTING READY

Mother's Day weekend is here and Lil Provo is still sitting on the Hard.  The inside has been cleaned out and really just needs a cleaning which has been partially done, but getting in and out leaves dirty footprints on the cockpit and cabin sole.  So this will wait till she is on the water where I can clean her good without the worry of tracking in more dirt. She needs the bottom paint finished and then she will be ready to go to her summer home sitting on the water and bringing with her our million dollar view.

The fish are here and I need to become part of the fishing fleet. This is the prime season with bunker flowing into the bay and stripers, blues, and fluke feeding.  The cast net is ready and so am I.  Last year the bunker were so thick you could walk on the water.  I learned a lot about catching them last year and could catch them for bait.  However, they stink and make a mess in the boat.  The peanut bunker are great to keep in a live well and as long as you circulate the water they will last a long time.

Last year our movie camera could not take being around salt water any longer and bit the dust. I am hoping I can find a replacement at the flea market. It was great taking video on the water and the regular digital cameras just seem to give me the same results.  I have found the IPAD to me a valuable tool on the water, it just bothers me taking such an expensive piece of equipment on board and subjecting it to the salt water elements.

The weather is rainy this morning and maybe we will not be able to finish the bottom.  Sand paper doesn't work well when it gets wet.  If that is the case I will check out the wiring on the trailer and see about a new cover for the gas tank locker.  If it is raining it might be a good time to use comet on all the teak trim.  It brings the color back and gives it a new look.

The water line of the boat gets heavy brown stains every year and I have tried everything to get these stains off, but have not found that magic solution that you can spray on and rinse off taking the stains with it.  This year we tried ZEP and ended up with bleached shorts and shirt, but the stains remained.   I then used a scrubby with the ZEP and after letting it sit for a while it did remove some of it.  So far Comet bathroom spray has worked the best.  I was thinking about the Mr Clean Eraser pads they advertise.  Simple Green works when the boat is in the water and has been kept wet.  It is just such a hassle while on the water.  The ZEP works excellent on the inside removing any mildew and leaves a nice clean finish when wiped off.  This is where I can really recommend the product. It cleaned whatever I sprayed it on inside the cabin.

I need to bore a hole in the mast to run the anchor light wires and VHF wire through. Every year the wires seem to get pinched from running under the bottom of the mast.  You get sick of replacing wires every year so I am hoping this will be a fix that will last for years.  Plus if you turn on the anchor light and the wire has been pinched it pops the breaker letting you know of a problem.  if you are on a trip and need that light your may be out of luck in repairing it while on anchor.  what i've done before is to grab a LED flash light and haul it up on the halyard for the night.  It usually lasts the entire night.  Two 12 volt wires and a RG58 cable should not require too large of a hole.

A quick wax job on the hull and Lil Provo will be ready.

Recovery from Sandy

Many of those who sailed last year will not be sailing this season. There has been no posts on this blog in a few months. Some of this is related to the storm, some related to no sailing, no work on the boat, and busy with many other things.  I have been visiting the shores of Raritan Bay tracking the recovery of the storm.  Many, many boats will be in for repair, many  have been damaged beyond repair, and many will just throw in the towel.  There are areas still devastated from the storm with most marinas in the rebuild mode. Some areas have done little to rebuild and some have already rebuilt.

I decided to start a blog about Raritan Bay. Yes we will keep going with this blog about Lil Provo, which will begin shortly for the 2013 season.  She is getting moved to my driveway to begin this seasons preparation.  This should happen Monday or Tuesday of this week.  So if you would like to get filled in on the past few months, visit us at http://raritanbaysailing.blogspot.com .

This will give a good idea where my time has gone.  Enjoy and we will begin Lil Brovo blogs again this month.

Follow us for 2013.

Hurricane Sandy's Rampage

It is now weeks since the hurricane hit us, most the towns have power back nd are business as usual.  The DPW trucks are still out taking care of branches and such, the Police are back to normal patrols, the fire departments have all the trucks back in their building, most are back to work, but the residents near our shore waters are still dealing with many problems and some without a home.  Then there are those that had their love of the water damaged, wrecked, or gone.  It is ll a terrible loss and I believe this has caused many to join together in order to deal with this disaster.  My heart goes out to those that lost their home, belongings, or just damage from the storm.  Excuse me, was it Super Storm, Mega Storm, hurricane, tropical storm, but the consistent fact with all the names was SANDY.  She hammered us like no other storm with damages exceeding billions of dollars.  It is the storm we will all remember.

What happens going forward?  Will they stop the rebuilding of those homes along the coast? How many years will it take for us to rebuild? Though we will never be the same due to the loss of many landmarks along the coast, it did teach us a very valuable lesson about respecting Mother Nature when building.  In Mantolokin they used a steel bulkhead after the storm to stop the ocean from passing through to the bay. How many other places had to go to these extremes?  Now we have a huge challenge coming next spring.  It is the challenge of sunken vessels that have not been found.  Most wouldn't think too much about this, but those of us who have a keel hanging below our boats must think about this.  Raritan Bay is a shallow body of water with a few channels for larger vessel traffic.  In speaking with many officials over the past few weeks, most advised the changes that took place in the depths of water along our coast.  They have changed!  Going forward we will all need to tread lightly until we feel out our sailing grounds.

Hurricane Sandy Ravages Raritan Bay

I left for Asia on October 28th, a day before hurricane Sandy hit the New Jersey coast.  I was in Seoul Korea  when the hurricane hit.  With the onset of the storm I was able to get a call in, but the worse had not hit yet.  Thereafter, I had no communication with my friends or family.  Feeling helpless I sat and worried about what could be happening at home.  I finally returned on November 2nd in the early AM hours.  The devastation seen on my way home was truly shocking.  Being there was no electricity, the areas I knew no longer were familiar. It appeared as if we entered a war zone.  My home and boat were pretty much okay.  The Jersey shore was changed and will never be the same.  Thousands of boats wrecked, sank, or damaged.

There were bridges with boats hanging on the,, businesses destroyed, houses wrecked, debris all over the place. The dame was billions and billions.  The boat yard where I kept Lil Provo survived with minimal damage.  They did have about 30 boats pile up, but most boats above the 15' bulk head survived.  It made out much better than others in the area.

You can also find videos on my Youtube Channel http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=UUBJz56-QPaQCyJ-iPCxgCag .  There is also the Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/ashworthsailing.raritanbay and our website www.ashworthdive.com.

I took many pictures this day, but they were all the same.  The biggest surprise was that 5 boats decided to hold out on their mooring and survived the storm.  Amazing is the word I would use for such a feat.

Lil Provo sits home in the back yard and will be ready to sail another season.  We will keep the blog going through the winter as we work on some projects. 

The Season has Ended

Every year I get to this point and it seems like it came faster than the year before.  I so enjoy the sailing on the bay that I find myself preparing my weeks 5 days before they get here.   Planning is half the fun of a day on the water.  Just running down to the boar yard and out to our boat in the dinghy without any plan seems to just be a waste of good time.  Don't get me wrong, I have done it may times, but you really don't get much out of the event except more time on the water.  Having a destination or trip planned is very important to you and your family.  Having a float plan is important as well.  Yes, even while sailing in Raritan Bay!  Who knows what could happen while you are out sailing. I have been knocked down, got caught up in the wind to where we could not turn back or even lower the sails with the two of us on deck to lower the sails while almost getting knocked off and into the water.  Man over board drills are not a good thing when it is rough and windy. But we survived and it does open your eyes.  So in the past weeks prior to leaving home I would post my float plan on the refridge, just in case.  I think this is a good practice to get into for everyone going out in the bay or anyplace for that mater.

I am saddened by the fact that Lil Provo is on the hard for the next 7 months.  But my way around this is to work on her all winter to make her a better vessel the next season.  And boy, do I have plans this winter.

Being out off of Long Island on a calm day is great, even if you can't see the shore. But when the weather cooperates with you it is amazing the sailing you can get in.  Call it the little kid inside of all of us.  It is just down right fun.

Getting close enough to shore is always a comforting feeling  and gives you the feeling of a little more control.  Out in the ocean, you must roll with the punches mother nature throws at you, so planning good weather for a ocean trip is important and comforting.

 This past weekend was the end of our sailing season.  Yes, I have John Olsen pull out Lil Provo and prepare her for the half hour trip home.  The first step to this ritual is to load up the dingy on top of the truck and get that all secured.  Our dinghy is the larger dinghy bottom up.  This is an old fiberglass dinghy that is from the late sixties or early seventies.  It has to weight about 150 pounds and all the repairs over the years maybe another 25 pounds.  So it is not something you can throw around like the one on it's side next to ours.  The new plastic dinghies are really light.  Gary and I loaded up the dinghy and then moved on to secure Lil Provo, remove the motor, secure the mast, remove the rudder, and strap her down to her trailer.

This dinghy has paid for itself more times than I can imagine.  I rebuilt the small keel on the bottom from IPE wood.  All that dragging onto the concrete ramp every time you sail really takes it toll on the small keel.  This year we had minimal wear but still wore right through the fiberglass.  This winter we will add an aluminum plate along the bottom of the keel for longer life.

With the dinghy secured on the roof of the truck it was now time to get Lil Provo ready for her ride home.  It was great the way John had her sitting there very accessible for us.  I backed up opened the rear hatch to the truck and loaded the rudder and outboard.  We then added my mast supports used for transportation and tied down the mast securely to the boat.  I have a bunch of cargo straps that we use.  Yes some of them are made for really big things and I feel much more secure with a 3-1/2" strap ratcheted down than I would one that is only an inch. While we were securing Lil Provo we hear a lot of yelling and when we walked out into the parking we saw John's pickup in the water, but hold it, John was not home and no workers were in the yard! 

It seems someone decided to use John's truck to pull their boat out of the water and not familiar with truck they slide right down into the bay. They had their boat on the trailer and the weight pulled the truck and trailer down into the water.  When we got close enough to take a look, the truck was floating nose down as the trailer was still hooked to the nose ball on the truck.  This was not a good thing as this is the truck that is used to pull the boats out of the water and to move them around the property.  This time of year it is essential to have this truck working.  One of the guys who allowed the truck to make it to the water was now scrambling for the old international pickup to pull the other pickup and trailer from the water.  The roar of that old flat hear firing up is a distinguishable sound and after years at the yard, you just know when the have to start the old tank up.  Actually the old International is still the workhorse of the boat yard.

 The hooked a cable to the rear of the truck from the winch in the back of the International.  They had a hard time getting the cable to lay right when they began pulling it up and had to use their hands to guide the cable.  At least they smartened up and used the ground tackle secured into the parking lot to make sure another pickup did not make it's way to the water.

 This old International has fenders of such heavy steel, you could hit them with a hammer without making a dent.  There are many people who would like to get hold of this old truck, but it has been in the family for a long time and John will not part with it.  

 What a great piece of nostalgia!

 With Lil Provo all secured, it was time to head on home to her resting spot for the next seven months. To the left in this photo is an old Olsen wooden boat that is still used.  The yards has quite a few of these hanging around and they are really a great riding boat with plenty of room.

We got the boat home without any problems and placed her in her winter home.  I still need to jack up the trailer and take the load off the springs and tires.  This will be done over the next month.  She also will be stripped clean on the inside so I have a clean slate to work on.   She will be ready come next May. 

During the next few months we hope to share some of the things we have planned for Lil Provo this winter.

Where has the summer gone?

This year has been so much different than the others. I have not been able to take full days off so I have had to work a half day and then run down to the boat to have some fun. We have done some really great sailing this year and traveled man miles. We seem to find ourselves in New York waters much more than New Jersey. Long Island and Staten Island just seem to have so much to offer. There are harbors, inlets, islands, amusement parks, and just better sailing due to the way the wind comes in. We have had one of the best years yet fishing and some of the most challenging sailing as well. To date we have over 47 days in on the water and we easily break the 50 mark this year. The maintenance has been minimal with only replacing the float on the bilge pump this year. We set our own standing rigging and have been going all season, non stop. The interior has had more cleanings than I care to note, but that is only because the boat has mainly been a guy boat all season with only two trips with women on board. Not that we don't want women on board, it's just that the fishing has been so damn good this year. I really have to make it a point to get here weekly to enter things. We will have to add a lot of pictures once we have time this winter.

Time to head for the water

It is mid May and all that is left before Lil Provo can head for the bay is to finish the bottom paint. I expect to finish that one evening this week. A quick trip to west Marine for a new trailer winch cable and new gas tank will have Lil Provo in good shape. Due to the lack of help preparing the boat this year I have had to put some things on the back burner. This would be varnishing the teak, polishing the stainless, and finishing the wood sole floor in the cabin. Maybe I can finish these while on the water. I expect to bring her down the shore either Sunday or one day during the week. In any case she must be in the water for Memorial Day. I will keep you posted.

Moved to the Driveway

Lil Provo has been moved to the driveway where we can work on her more easily. After uncovering her I realized I did not do as good a job as I thought on removing the water stains from last season. I will have to take the buffer out and work on the hull to get her nice and clean. I have three pages of things that must be done before she is placed in the water for the summer. Most are really cleaning items, but there are a few construction projects, a couple convenience items, some electrical, a flag line, and to replace the water pump in the engine. This gives me seven weeks to get everything done. I will be doing a lot of documentation this year to getting her ready and much more once she is on the water. We will keep you up to date.

2012 Work Begins

I have made lists of the work I would like to accomplish on Lil Provo before we put her in the water this May. There are many things to do to the boat, motor, and trailer. This coming weekend will be the beginning of all of that work. This weekend we will pull all of the things that are still left in the boat out, give all the cushions to the wife to wash the covers, and take some measurements for the new sole wood floor I am planning on installing. This will add more to the nautical look inside the cabin. I am also building a step from the companionway to the sole. When the boat was new, it had a small cooler that was the step. We have had no step for years and think it is about time we make it easier to get in and out of the cabin. Next we will move her into the driveway where I will check all deck mounted items to make sure they are tight and sealed from the weather. That is just a start. We'll keep you posted as we progress.

Winterizing Lil Provo

As most are aware, we have had some pretty crazy weather lately. We have had earthquakes, hurricanes, and early snow falls. What else has mother nature got in store for us. Before it gets to late into the season it was time to winterize Lil Provo. When I say winterize, it isn't the same as filling toilets with antifreeze or stuff like that, it is removing the bottled water and other drinks from the cabin. Anything that is liquid, like the spray cleaners under the sink. They will also freeze and can create a mess to clean in the spring. Have to move the porti potti to the basement along with the outboard. Anything that cold might bother gets moved into the basement. Later I will remove all the cushions and just about everything else in the cabin and lockers. I like to start each season clean, but by the end of the season, most the same junk is back on board. Why do I need four fishing poles, two tackle boxes, eight life jackets, 2 sets of rain gear, a tool box, had pumps, nets, boat poles, paddles, two GPS units, and much more. I try to get away with out some of it, but it always ends up back on the boat. Maybe I'm a hoarder sailor?

The end of the season

This season was trying. We had problems with the boat leaking, a hurricane, and the spreader falling apart once again. Most of the problems were covered in past posts. The season came about two weeks early for us and Lil Provo. We went to go sailing on Sunday the 9th of October. I arrived at the boat yard, found some idiot ran over the back corner of my dinghy cracking the fiberglass and breaking off the wood trim. The dinghy looked strong enough to get out to Lil Provo so we loaded her up and headed out for the boat. When we got about halfway there we noticed the spreader was apart, hanging, and the mast was woobling around. We had a cable holding it on three of the four sides, so I took one of my halyards and hooked it to the deck and then tightened it up to try to act as the cable. It seemed to work. In any case we did not go out and instead, we loaded up some of the things from Lil Provo into the dinghy to take home. We proceed back to the ramp and loaded the truck.

Before leaving, I thought it would be a good idea to take a look at the HMS23 Pilothouse sailboat I had been admiring for the past year. I had contacted the owner and he offered her to me at a great price. I went to the office to get the key and returned to find Gary had already placed a ladder along side of her. I climbed in and opened the lock. When I open the cabin door expecting a nice cabin with six foot head room I was greeted with a cabin full of water. This boat has been sitting for 2 to 3 years. It means the motor has been underwater for some time now, plus the wiring. It would have been a great deal, but the flooded cabin made it a no deal. I'm not looking for any major projects and just want to sail.

This is the second time the grass looked greener on the other side of the fence. In both cases I look back and am thankful that I have a boat like Lil Provo.

It has been a trying month

After we pumped out the basement, threw out all the junk that got wet and cleaned out work, we were able to get down to the boat. Before I get that far I need to say that Lil Provo came through fine up on land. No problems that I am aware of. When I called the boat yard and asked how things were going I was told that Lil Provo was sitting on her mooring. WHAT! What about the leak on the lower tiller bracket? The other end of the phone lite up with him calling himself dumb and stupid, etc. I assume after I hung up he went right out to bring Lil Provo back to shore to repair the leak. A couple weeks have gone by and I went down to check on her only to find her on the mooring. When I opened the companionway, the cabin had about 3" of water sloshing around the floor. I immediately went to the cockpit locker to open it up to see if there was water in the rear bilge from the lose tiller bracket. It was bone dry. Stupid me, I opened the floor inspection cover and more water came pushing into the cabin. I thought maybe the battery had died due to Tropical Storm Lee dumping so much rain on us. I pulled the battery from the dinghy and replaced the one in the cockpit compartment. I then went into the cabin and pulled the bilge pump from her stand down in the bilge. When I turned it on, it was barely moving. I came to the conclusion that the pump was shot. I pumped her dry with the hand pump and took a ride to West Marine where I picked up another pump. I got back to the yard and back out to Lil Provo where I changed the pump. It wasn't much fun laying on my stomach to get to the terminal strip under the cockpit. I did lay down some life jackets, but still got soaked. The test went fine and the pump was working well. I had killed most of my sailing time. The water was loaded with debri anyway, so I decided to sit it out and clean up the boat. Hopefully everything will remain in good shape until by return from China.

Ending August with Hurricane Irene

August went out with a bang here in Jersey, thanks to hurricane Irene.

We went sailing a few times the week before and had a great time sailing and fishing. The weather was warm and the fishing was pretty good. On August 26th I went down to take a sail and hopefully pull the boat out before the storm, but the boat yard had already taken her out and had her on dry land. Being I couldn't sail, I hung around the yard for a while and this is where I met Keith. The boat yard was full of boats on land and room was becoming a scarce thing. The harbor was like glass and there was virtually no wind. This was exactly what I picture when you hear the calm before the storm. As I looked out upon the bay I saw this boat moving around that looked like it belonged in a story book someplace. I have admired this cute little boat every time I pass her on the way out. Well I finally got a good look at her and met the owner. The boat took a long turn through the mooring field and headed right for the boat yard's ramp. I stood up on the bulk head about ten feet above the water and watched. Keith brought the boat in and tied her up while he got his truck and trailer ready to receive her. Putting a sailboat on a trailer can be tough sometimes when doing it by yourself. He backed the trailer into the water and the boat was drifting to the side as tides were changing. I jumped down to the cat walk along the bulkhead and gave him a hand pushing the boat sideways with my feet so he could winch her onto the trailer. With the little help I gave he was able to get her on the trailer. However, he couldn't pull her up the ramp as it was slippery from the changing tide. He eventually had to have the boat yard truck come over and pull his truck and boat up the ramp.

I now had a chance to look over Lil Provo to see how the bottom was. She was pretty clean with the exception of the slim coating the bottom. I now looked to see where we were taking on water as I have been looking for a leak for weeks. Well I finally found it. The bottom tiller bracket was loose allowing the water to seep in along side of the bolts. I brought the yard owner over to show him and ask if it could be repaired before putting her back in the water. He assured me that would not be a problem. I left the boat yard feeling comfortable the boat would be safe during the storm and that the leak I had been dealing with would be fixed. No I could go home and deal with preparing for the hurricane.

I won't bore you with the flooding that attacked my home home and business, requiring days of cleaning, sorting, and getting rid of so much stuff. I finally had a chance to call the boat yard to check on the boat and how they did with the hurricane. I called and was told that they made out okay and Lil Provo was on her mooring. I immediately questioned the repair of the leak and John had forgotten. Easily understood based on all the things he had to take care of. He said he would take care of it. On Saturday I took a ride down to the boat yard with a fresh battery for the bilge pump. I found Lil Provo sitting on her mooring and her water line was sitting high. We took a trip out with the dinghy to replace the battery and found the tiller bracket was fixed and that the rear bilge was bone dry. There was a little water on the cabin floor which I mopped up so I could see if she was still leaking on my next visit. We left with a feeling that everything was okay and went home to deal with more of the flood damage at work and at home.

Sailing on my Birthday

Yesterday was one of the best sailing days I have had in a couple years. The weather was perfect with the wind from the Northeast, a few puffy cumulus clouds, nice sun between the clouds, and only about 80 degrees. The water temperature was 77 degrees according to the electronics. Everything was perfect. I raised both sails as soon as we were out of the mooring field and were off headed to Long Island New York. I let the sails out a little as to reduce the heal, but tried to maintain our speed and direction. We were cruising! When the boat hooks up with the wind, you can feel the boat tighten up and the tiller get hard to move. This is always a great feeling. Trying to keep the boat in this position is always a challenge. Every now and then one of the larger waves would come rolling over the bow and bring us a chill back in the cockpit. We had no tacking today, a straight shot there and back....perfect. We ended with us back on our mooring in Keyport Harbor feeling good about where we had been and the distance traveled. It was a great day for sailing!

Fishing From A Sailboat

The past couple weekends the summer flounder have been biting very well. We decided to sail on out to the channel and try our luck at a few of these good tasting flatties. We left and headed to the area that had the best write ups in the local fishing news. However, there were so many boats and large vessels moving around, I couldn't believe there would be good fishing with so much activity going on. We gave it a try for an hour or so and moved away from the congestion to a spot where we caught a bunch of fluke.


Once we got to an area that had less traffic we were able to get some strikes on our baits. The first mate "Blue" caught the first two fish and some nice fish he caught. We fished on a drift that took us almost two miles. It was busy with hits and fish along this great drift.


We called it a day and went back to the mooring a couple of happy sailing fishermen.

July 3rd and 4th

This holiday weekend started with some great thoughts of sailing everyday, however, mother nature had other ideas. I had to tend bar on Saturday, so that wasn't mother nature's fault, but it started everything in the wrong direction. The weather channel changed it's weekend forecast to rain on Sunday. How dare they do that to me! We still made an attempt to go sailing. We got down to the boat yard around 10:00am and it was raining pretty hard. I suggested we take a ride to Fair Haven to look at another boat I have been eyeing. We got to Fair Haven and the rain had stopped, it even looked like it was beginning to clear. As we stood next to the boat Gary said that this looks a lot bigger than your boat. I said' "Yessssss". It was another ODay, but this one has something called sail drive. It looks like the bottom of an outboard sticking out the bottom of the hull. I need to do some research before I do anything further regarding this boat.

We then drove back to Keyport and stood at the top of the boat ramp looking out at Lil Provo. It was then I noticed one of the guys I had met at the yard standing on his boat in the pouring rain looking around. I immediately noticed he had a white dinghy, not the red one he usually uses. While we stood under the make lift gate of my truck, blocking us from the rain, we watched him come back to shore. When he arrived to the boat ramp he was screaming and yelling about someone had stolen his hand made dinghy last night. We hate to hear things like this! We stood around a little while longer hoping for the rain to stop, but it didn't so we headed home.

Monday was suppose to me a great day. We packed up and left early on Monday and got down to the boat to find the mooring field sitting in a big bowl of pea soup. There was fog, heavy fog! By the time we got the dinghy in the water and loaded up, the fog had begun to thin out. We went a couple miles out and baited some hooks and threw them over the side. We had a great time catching Fluke. We only had two keepers, but it was a fun day fishing. Later on, the sun came up, but the wind stayed at a low breeze. We finished up our day around 2:00 and headed home to take care of our picnic appointments. It turned out to be a really fun day.