The Big Water

On June 16^th I launched the Flying Fish at the Sanibel Causeway and proceeded to experience my first time out in warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.  I was very excited; I had been Fort Myers for about six weeks and had been chomping at the bit to get out on the water. 

Fort Myers Area Near Boat Ramp

            No sooner than I was motoring out into the channel that I grounded the boat for the first of many such occurrences that that weekend.  The water was murky unlike the pristine clear waters of Lake Superior of which I was use to.  I quickly pulled up my rudder, which had just lowered and I’m sure uttered some explanative.

            I quickly learned to motor out into the main channel before lowering the rudder and keel.  That didn’t save me though.  Within minutes I was grounded again on the other side of the channel and wondering where it would be safe.  I actually looked down and saw the bottom was about a foot under the boat and I could see grass; sea grass that is.  There was also a sign close by indicating as much with a picture of a manatee on it.  That was new and different.

            Once I had motored my way to freedom I surveyed my options.  They were few.  I could either go up river in the channel or out to sea.  I chose the later.  I was careful to stay within the markers not wanting to ground out again.  It worked for awhile and I was able to get all the sails up and start enjoying my outing. 

            About and hour later I ran aground on a sand bar a mile or so off of Sanibel Island.  Fortunately, it was sand and not rocks.  Wow, I had tied my record the previous year in one afternoon.  I was doing pretty good; at this rate I would have the boat sunk by the end of June. 

            I sailed the next two days and managed to get the Flying Fish stuck each day, usually right by the boat ramp.  I hit rocks or coral on the third day and the boat made an eerie grinding noise as it moved over the shallow spot.  No worries, it only scraped the keel and rudder.  Both will need some paint.  I have to admit, I probably should have known something was amiss when I saw a bird standing in the water about a 100 yards from my location. 

            After my first adventure out at sea I came to one conclusion.  I needed decent charts for my GPS!  I couldn’t keep running into things, which would eventually be a bad thing.  Like, sink the boat bad.  Not good. 

            On Monday I went to a local Bass Pro Shop and inquired if they had the proper data chip with the charts I wanted.  They did.  I whipped out my credit card and bought the pinky sized chip with the entire US coastal water way data on it. 

           

            Two weeks later on July 1^st I went out again.  This time accompanied by my family.  It was a great sail, very relaxing.  I got the worst sunburn I’ve had in awhile, but am no worse for wear.

            The good news; I hit not a single rock or sand bar the entire day.  My purchase did as promised and guided my safely over the calm waters of San Carlos Bay.

The Ides of March

Wow that water’s cold! Not that I fell in or went swimming, I just put my hand in it.  That is what you get when you go sailing on Lake Superior in March, cold, cold water.  However, with temperatures in the 70’s I couldn’t resist.   Every other sailboat out of Marquette won’t be launched until Late April or May; some of them not until June.   It is kind of sad really.  Summers are fleeting here, so when the weather permits, one should take advantage of it.

At least this year I haven’t fallen in the lake.  Let me go find some wood to knock on.  Okay, much better.  Not that I plan on it either.   Technically it is still winter, but I managed to get the boat in on March 14^th, and then again yesterday, which was the 18^th.  Wow, two times so far.  If I was retired or actually had money, I would be well on my way to beating my own record of 61 days (on my boat). 

The Flying Fish (my boat) is in pretty good shape.  There are some maintenance issues I had to take care of, but nothing that would stop me from taking her out.  The biggest issue was the rudder.  It needed some repairs and a new coat of paint.  I did some fiberglass work on it and replaced all of the bolts at the hinge plate (they were rusting).   It is as good as the day I made it. 

The boat, after an extensive day on the water, leaks.  That is I noticed it was leaking on the rivet line.  Apparently, I will need to apply copious amounts of silicone, or spooge as Tim refers to it, to those areas.  That should take care of the problem.   After all, no one likes a leaky boat, especially me, and especially when it’s my boat that is leaking.  Looks like a job for a couple tubes of silicone and a 6 pack.  Ah, viva la boat repair.

As far as sailing went, yesterday was great.  Tim and I sailed towards Shot point, beating our way the whole time.  There were no issues and it was a fun ride.  We healed quite a bit due to the wind and that’s how I came to find out the boat needed some silicone.  We were using the storm jib as to not get over powered.  The wind was strong enough to warrant it.  Once we turned back I decided to put up my large Genoa….. I like to haul ass.  The sail did not disappoint.  We were doing at least 7 knots for most of the reach back, and I believe we pushed above 8 knots a few times.  I think water skiing would have worked with those speeds.  She almost planed, or at least she wanted to.  One day.  Hum, maybe a bigger sail?