2,500 nautical mile Cruise, May - September 2011 (Click thru the "Newer Posts" at Bottom)

This is the track for the entire cruise, over half was singlehanded.  The series of blogs begins here, below.

Two Great Lakes and a Great Canal, May 27–May 31, 2011

Jim Clark and Jack VanArsdale arrived Friday evening and we stowed our gear, a couple days' provisions, and made sure all was ready for our night sail from Erie, PA to Port Colborne, ON, about 60nm across Lake Erie to the southern end of the Welland Canal.  Our eventual destination for the

week was Toronto.  The weather forecast was for a less than 10 knot breeze from the NE, just the direction we were headed.  Fortunately, the waves were forecast to be less than two feet or rather calm.  Since Kelly IV is now a full-time cruising sailboat, she is focused on moving on to the next port as much as she is on sailing. 

Since we were all eager to get moving, we completed the last minute project of securing the dinghy with two PVC pipes across the forward and after lifting eyes.  These two pipes would prevent the lifting eyes from pulling inward towards each other and possibly distorting the

CaptMurph, Jack, Jim

inner sidewalls of the dinghy.  Once this last project was completed we raised the dinghy into the stern davits, tied off the two small spring lines for the dinghy and took a photo of the crew just before departure.

By this time it was 11pm.  What the weather forecast did NOT say was that we'd experience significant fog for the entire trip, especially for the first several miles as we left Presque Isle Bay and pressed forward through the channel.  As luck would have it, we had to share the channel with a large dredging vessel headed into the Bay, as we were finding our foggy way out.  We swapped single horn blasts to confirm we'd pass port to port, then each of us disappeared his own direction into the inky fog. 

Frankly, if we did not have the new radar, we would have delayed our departure.  Visibility was well under a quarter mile and the lights on the aids to navigation were the only things visible at that range.  Given the fog and darkness, we couldn't even make out the US Coast Guard Station less than 100 yards from us as we passed it by.  We departed at night so we'd arrive the next day in full daylight.  

Jim Clark

It is my very strong preference to arrive at our destinations in daylight, especially those that I have not been to recently or ever.  With the new radar telling us we had nothing except the land behind us, we motored off in to the wind and darkness.

Our watch schedule had me wrapping up my watch at midnight so Jim began his watch at that time.  Jack had gone to his bunk soon after we cleared the channel, since he'd have to be up and alert by 2am for his own watch.  My preferred watch schedule for a 3 man crew is for 3 hour watches from 6am through midnight, then 2 hour watches from midnight until 6am.  This gives the off watch 4 to 6 hours to rest or sleep and only a 2 hour watch during the wee hours of the morning when it is most difficult to remain awake and alert.  I had taken a nap during the afternoon while waiting for Jim and Jack to show up, so I found myself wide awake and enjoying Jim's company as he steered us through the small but quite bouncy waves and into the teeth of the northeasterly breeze.

With the fog and dark we couldn't see the stars or even the water very far from Kelly, but the radar assured us there was no one nearby as we gradually ticked off the miles towards Colborne.  Jack came on watch at his appointed time and Jim went below to enjoy a well-earned rest.  Unfortunately, we discovered that my efforts to seal the forward overhead hatch had failed as water was leaking profusely into the aft end of the v-berth, soaking the small cushion that covered the space between the port and starboard sides of the aft or “head” end of the berth, assuming you would place your feet into the pointy end at the forward end of the berth.  Thankfully that seemed the extent of the damage, so we directed the leaking water off the berth and directly into the bilge using a small tarp.  The second berth in the main cabin was still open so Jim was able to bunk there.

Instead, Jim decided to keep Jack company and the two stayed in the cockpit while I caught some rest before my watch began at 4am.  By the time I woke up, Jim had decided to get some rest himself and was climbing into the port-side main cabin berth for the night.  Jack also went below for some well-earned rest and I had the cockpit, fog and darkness to myself.  Fortunately, Kelly would hold her course pretty well when I locked the wheel, so I would do that regularly and stand above the bimini and dodger for a 360* look around.  Of course, with the very limited visibility, there was nothing to see, so the radar was very important. 

Dawn came early, but not the ability to see anything.  The dark gradually went away so that by 4:30am an even light gray made the small waves and water around us visible, but only for some small distance from Kelly IV, maybe a couple hundred yards or so.  The small breeze was even less by now, so the waves were disappearing to almost nothing.  This meant that no more water was forcing its way through the leaky forward hatch and things were already beginning to dry up in the v-berth.

Suddenly, I noticed a radar target NW of us and about 3.5 nautical miles away.  Since we were moving along our own course to the NE, it was important to allow for our own movement as we determined our Closest Point of Approach (CPA).  At first it seemed as though the target was not moving, then it appeared to be moving very slowly to the SW.  It finally dawned on me that the target was probably not moving, but rather we were moving past the target.  The radar image of the target seemed large to me, so my assumption was that we were passing a freighter that was at anchor for the night.

Jack prepared a great breakfast of hot tea, coffee, mocha with bananas and hot fruit turnovers of raspberry and cherry.  A few hours later we spotted another radar target, when Kelly was just 5 miles from Port Colborne.  This radar target was on the screen at a position about 4nm away NNE of Kelly.  Like the previous target, this one remained stationary as we passed it by.  This target was in the designated anchorage just south of Port Colborne, so it made sense that it was stationary.  Our closest approach of this target was 1.5nm, but even then, we never saw it visually.

As we approached the coastline, we first saw it on radar, but soon could make out the larger buildings and trees.  The fog was much thinner and easier to see through near the coast, so piloting into the

marina at Port Colborne was a very simple matter.  We checked into Canada Customs and were legally permitted to raise our Canada Courtesy Flag on our starboard spreader.

Jack and Jim both brought food, so we only needed some eggs & pretzels from the grocery store in Colborne.  A phone call to the Seaway Administration told us that if we were at the Colborne dock phone before 5am, then we might have a good chance of moving quickly through the Welland with minimal delays.

We accepted the challenge and were up at 4:15am, slipped our lines from the marina and were on the Seaway phone by 5am.  They told us to move to the first lift bridge and lock so we were

off!  The lift bridge is a girder bridge with two large towers at each end of the bridge.  Before 5:30am, the operator rang his sirens to begin our trek through the Welland, and to clear traffic (there wasn't any at this hour on a Sunday morning!) then the entire bridge span rose straight up climbing the two towers until it was well over the height of our mast (about 45 feet), creating a clearance over the water of maybe 75 feet.  We weren't permitted to use our sails at all so the sail was under its cover for the entire day.

We motored into the first lock which lowered us about 4 to 5 feet, a leveling lock.  The rest of the

locks, seven more, would drop us approximately 45 feet at each lock for a total drop of almost 350 feet!  It was great to have Jim and Jack to help out as it made it possible for me to steer Kelly into place at each lock, while Jack would get the bow line and Jim the
stern line from the lock attendants.  Then we'd push on our boat hooks if we drifted to close to the wall, or pull on the lines if we found ourselves drifting to far away from the wall.  It was quite the experience and all the personnel at the locks were very friendly, helpful and knowledgeable.  We had no trouble at all and cleared

through all the locks without a hitch.  We did pass a few large freighters as they made their way south and we pressed northward,
but there was plenty of room for us to move to the edge of the channel.  On a couple occasions, Kelly had to wait a few minutes, but we merely turned lazy circles at the side of the channel until the Seaway radio told us they were ready for us to continue on our way.

Our passage through the Welland may have been one of the quickest for a small recreational vessel.  We were through the entire canal, all 8 locks, in 6 hours, start to finish.

Once clear of Port Weller at the Lake Ontario end, we steered due west for Port Dalhousie, the nearest Canadian port with depth for a sailboat. 

Dalhousie proved to be a bit of a tourist town, and they were very boater friendly, with many transient slips along the seawall at the town park.  A walking harbormaster came over soon after we tied up and signed us up for the night.  He had his entire office in his backpack so the paperwork was all done in a few minutes.  We took a short walk through the town, ogled the sailboats and powerboats tied up, and had a drink at a local establishment.  We decided to have dinner on board as the menu for a Sunday evening was less enticing than our own provisions.

The forecast for Monday was calm and the trip across Lake Ontario proved to be one of the calmest rides we've ever taken.  The waters were “oily”

flat without the smallest of ripples for much of the trip.  We also had extremely thick fog, so the radar and fog signals were very important for the entire trip.  We passed a very large freighter, a small fishing boat and a small sailboat, and saw none of them except for a very brief glimpse of the sailboat when we closed to within ¾ nm. 

It wasn't until we were about four miles from Toronto that we could make out the 1800 feet tall CN Tower.  Gradually the city skyline

came to us through the mist and we made an uneventful landing among the islands of Toronto's Inner Harbour.

Lifeboat Tested - May 26, 2011

Keith Otto volunteered a day off from his work to help me with a very important task:  Setting up and testing the lifeboat functions of Kelly IV's Portland Pudgy dinghy.  Also, since I'll be departing on my first full-time cruise on Friday, May 27, I needed a ride to Erie, since I am leaving my car at home.  Keith was a terrific help on both counts.

We drove to Erie on Wednesday night, getting in late and stowing our gear in a rainstorm.  We were up early as Bob Arlet, Shipwright, came to the boat to get the fuel sender in the port fuel tank working properly.  While Bob tackled that task, Keith and I lowered the dinghy from the davits and

pulled all the exposure canopy pieces from their storage bags.  It took a little fussing with the clips, tabs, webbing and hand pump, but in short order we got the lifeboat exposure canopy in place properly.  Of course, we tried each step, then checked the instructions.  After a few false starts, It finally dawned on me that I should read the direction FIRST, then follow them actually setting up the lifeboat.  It is fascinating how well things work, when done that way.  :-)

Keith clamped the Torqeedo electric outboard onto the Pudgy, which work quite well even with the exposure canopy in place.  He took me for a spin, first on the calm waters by the Erie Library and Maritime Museum but into a stiff breeze, then out past Dobbins Landing on the open bay, bucking short, steep 1 foot waves and a 20 knot breeze.  The dinghy and Torqeedo both performed well and we returned to Kelly to find that Bob had successfully completed his work and presented me with two fully functioning fuel gauges.  If you have any shipwright boat projects, Bob is the man to call.  You can reach him at 814-449-3962 or rarlet@msn.com.

When Keith and I went to grab a bit of lunch, we also stopped at the store and got materials and numbers so we could display the newly acquired Pennsylvania registration numbers on the Pudgy.  In Pennsylvania it is required that all powered vessels be registered.  With her new Torqeedo outboard, the dinghy became a powered vessel and so I got her registered.  Keith did the work of applying the numbers and the special sticker from the state to the new plastic boards and I tied them into place at the port and starboard bow.  Now she looks official!  Also, it is another way to confirm that the Pudgy is in fact titled to me in the state of Pennsylvania.

Keith took the dinghy for another ride with the exposure canopy in place so I could get some photos, as you see here. 

Then we had an early dinner as Keith had to depart for home and work in the morning.  Once Keith left, it began to feel as if I'm really beginning my full-time cruising since I had no car and my only means of transportation is now Kelly IV or the Pudgy.  I took a few photos of Kelly from the dinghy so I could show the classy neighbors we have here in Erie, especially the tall-masted

brig, Niagara, the restoration of Perry's ship that enabled him to defeat the British on Lake Erie in 1813 and write his commanding officer:  “We have met the enemy and they are ours.”

Tomorrow evening my two crew for the leg to Toronto arrive and the weather seems in our favor for a night sail across Lake Erie to Port Colborne, the entrance to the Welland Canal.

Kelly IV Launched & Cruising - May 21-22, 2011

Bob Arlet and I tested the new fuel tanks and confirmed that all was well except for a fuel gauge sender.  We loaded all the diesel from the four jerry cans, 10 gallons into each new tank.  With fuel in both tanks, Bob showed me how to bleed the fuel lines, then we actually ran the engine by filling a bucket with water and sticking the engine water intake hose into the bucket.  A running hose from the boatyard kept the bucket full as the engine purred along with nary a glitch.  Bob will replace the faulty sender in a couple days when it ships here.

Late Friday night Guy Stewart drove to Erie and we bunked on board planning an early start as we were scheduled for a 9am launch at Bay Harbor Marina (BHM).  We still had a number of things to prepare:  moving a car to the LeClair Point Marina, filling the jerry cans with diesel, preparing dock lines & fenders, checking all the thru-hulls and removing the ladder from the boat.

Gerard and his helper were right on time and immediately began moving Kelly to the launch well at BHM.  The new radar unit atop its 8 foot pole provided a significant challenge to using the BHM travelift.  Fortunately, Gerard, Harbormaster Extraordinaire, found a solution by lowering Kelly and the radar post below the crossbar, then raising Kelly off the hydraulic lift with the radar unit aft of the crossbar and the backstay forward of the crossbar.  It required very careful handling as any fore & aft sway would have easily damaged both the radar and the backstay/rigging, but Gerard was cool and professional and accomplished the task with aplomb.

Once Kelly was floating and free of the travelift straps, Guy and I warped her quickly forward to a dock space well away from the busy launch well.  Once there we got to work confirming that all thru-hulls were doing their jobs keeping the lake on the outside.  With that priority handled, we methodically went through all the work, FUN WORK   :-)  , of getting Kelly ready to sail.  I truly enjoy the work of rigging the boat and getting her ready to sail.  Guy and I bent on the genny and mainsail, rigging the sheets, barber haulers, furling line, lazy jacks, and making all the lines shipshape coiling and hanking the tails.  After some past history I have where we needed the sails on an initial launch trip, I insisted that Kelly be fully rigged for sailing before we left the dock for her new slip at LeClair Point.

The trip out of BHM was very short as we immediately stopped next door at the fuel dock at  neighboring Perry's Landing Marina to top off both new fuel tanks.  Fortunately, the old problem of fuel bubbling out of the fill hose is now gone with all new fill and vent hoses, so the fueling was entirely uneventful.  Guy and I proceeded to the new slip where we tied up and I carefully reminded Guy to get his car keys so he could drive me back to pick up my car at BHM.  It is only a mile so Guy had me at my car in no time.  I hopped out and dug my hands into my pocket for the car keys that I conveniently left on board Kelly, back at LeClair Point!  Fortunately, Guy had a coat hanger and I had left the rear windows slightly open so I rigged a door lock opener and used the spare key I had left in my bag in the car to drive back to LeClair Point.

Just as we were driving away from LeClair Point to get my car, we saw Bill and Sarah Paviol arriving, so they were already loading gear on board for our overnight sail weekend.  That was done in a few minutes, so Guy and the Paviols left for food shopping while I continued with some last minute preparations for our weekend sail.  They stowed the food and off we went. 

 

“We're Sailing!”

“We're Sailing!”

Well actually, we were motoring so it might be more accurate to say “we're cruising”.  At least we were off the dock and enjoying the freedom of the unbounded waters and clean air.  Speaking of air, while clean, it was also quite calm.  The motoring was smooth and easy, so we took off through the channel, fiddling with the new radar to match the radar with the underlying chart features.  Once free of Presque Isle Bay, we set the sails, killed the motor and drifted quietly to nowhere.  There was absolutely no wind at all.  Nobody cared, as we were finally on Kelly, enjoying the beautiful day and each other's company.  So after 15 minutes of drifting aimlessly, we struck the sails, fired the motor and drove directly to Marina Lake within Presque Isle State Park.

The new anchor was connected to the old rode and lowered over the side to fix our spot for the night.  Bill, Guy, Sarah & I lowered the dinghy from the davits, clamped the new Torqeedo electric motor into place on the transom and we each spent significant time playing with the newly motored dinghy. 

You'll recall that her prior motive power had been limited to oars and sail.  With the electric motor, she zipped around the anchorage carrying Bill to anyone who might have some Grey Poupon!  Bill and Guy had their fishing licenses so they went off at dusk for a little recreation of the anglers' variety.

We easily fell into our routine of years past when Guy & Bill returned, fired up the propane grill and prepared a delicious dinner of grilled chicken wings and burgers.  I washed the few dishes quickly and we enjoyed our beers in the cockpit.  Guy & Sarah did damage to their root beer inventory while Bill & I made our mark on the supply of Yuengling.

Sunday morning dawned early when Guy & Bill went off at 6am to play with the dinghy & new motor.  They said they were fishing again, but I suspect they are merely suppressed power boaters!  :-)  

On their return to Kelly IV, they prepared a wonderful breakfast of eggs, toast, ham and juice.  As Sunday morning was cloudy and gray, we were slow to move and just hung out in the cockpit until

Sarah and I decided to do a little exploring in the dinghy putting the new motor through it's paces.  Sarah drove and took us under the fixed bridge into the beginning of Long Pond as I regaled Sarah with stories of my canoe trips with my family through these same waters many years ago.

Sarah's fun with the motorized dinghy was not to end anytime soon as she took me on a trip to dump our garbage in the proper bins at the park's fuel dock.  Then she took her dad and Guy on another trip into the ponds and marshes on Presque Isle.  When they finally returned, we had a tasty lunch and chased the newly minted sunshine across Presque Isle Bay to Kelly's new slip.  The Paviols departed for points south while Guy and I rigged the dinghy suspended from the davits with her boat cover, but hanging on her side to shed any rain and avoid any resulting puddles in the cover. 

Guy's commitments with his kids dragged him away to leave me to repack the v-berth to accommodate all the charts, books, sewing machine, and tools I had brought with me from home.  It took a few hours, but I finally got the two big plastic bins full of charts and books secured safely behind the new lee cloth in the v-berth.  I also got the first few bags of food stowed away. 

Monday began windy, cloudy, grey, and rainy, but that didn't stop my progress in the final preparations.  I took some measurements, bought a board, some u-bolts and eye screws, then built a spot for the 3 jerry cans to be lashed at the port bow.  Kelly had several pieces of chain in various places, fore and aft, so I took all of it off the boat, laid each length of chain side by side and measured them, so I'd know what we actually have.  It turns out that our chain inventory includes 35 feet and 10 feet lengths of 5/16” chain, 20 feet and 17 feet lengths of 3/8” chain, and 7 feet of 1/4” chain.  All of these fit nicely in the forward on deck anchor locker once I removed all the line.  I retied the new anchor so it should be secure on the bow and tied hanks of the other lines on the bow pulpit. The bow pulpit has two anchor lines (150 feet and 200 feet), 4 dock lines (75 feet each), 1 block and tackle with line for the crane (100 feet), and two bow dock lines (30 feet each) tied on both sides.  Once I refilled the water tank, Kelly IV was level on her waterline.  Previously, with all the new weight added to the stern (radar, solar panels, larger fuel tanks, jerry cans in aft starboard lazarette, dinghy and davits), Kelly was down a couple inches at the stern.  Shifting the chain, lines, jerry cans, and chain forward helped put Kelly back on her proper lines.

In other words, we're actually beginning the provisioning for the Big Cruise!  It is hard to believe that in less than a week our departure date will be here.

Polished and Prepped, Kelly's Almost Ready - May 14, 2011

These past three weeks we got a lot of additional work done, especially when Tom Raidna joined me for a very full day on Saturday, April 30th.  Tom and I de-winterized the plumbing system.  This

involved filling the water tank with clean water and flushing the pink glycerol mixture from both the hot & cold lines.  Once the anti-freeze was clear of the lines then we removed the hot water tank bypass and tested the water pressure throughout the entire system, including the hot water tank.  Of course this necessitates one person on deck filling the water tank while another person is 100 feet away to turn on and off the water as the water level reaches the top.  The next trick came when we had to empty, then crawl into, the starboard lazarette for removing the hot water tank bypass.  Of course, last fall I forgot to mark the lines so that we could easily identify how the lines were to be reattached to the hot water tank.  One line was to be attached to the cold water inlet, while the other connected to the hot water outlet.  Since the water pump pushed from the location of the main water storage tank, the pressure would push from the cold into the hot water tank.  So Tom would briefly turn on the water pressure until we could see where the pressure came from, fixing the identity of the cold water inlet.  That done, we merely had to run the clean, fresh water through the entire system, head and galley and water heater, to confirm that all worked as designed.  And it all did!  :-)

Since the boatyard's scaffolding wouldn't be available for a couple hours, Tom & I decided to tackle another task, removing the stern transom ladder.  Since this utilitarian stainless steel ladder would not be able to be used with the solar panel and dinghy in the way (on its new davits) we needed to remove the ladder and plug the bolt holes where it was held in place.  As with anything involving

boats this wasn't anything as simple as removing the 8 bolts that held it in place.  The bolts were all in the aft lazarette so all the gear had to be removed and I had to crawl into the space while Tom teetered on a wobbly ladder.  Bill recalls that great fun!  And we worked from our respective positions to loosen the bolts or nuts, depending on whether you were in the lazarette, remember this great joy, Guy?  :-)  or trying to keep the ladder on its feet while torquing a wrench.  Well, it took a couple hours, but the job was done, the ladder was stowed in the car for later storage at home and the nuts & bolts were stored in their respective spare parts bins.

The scaffolding was now available, so we began the simple and tedious effort to clean and wax the topsides (the outside hull above the waterline and below the deck).  It took a few hours of hosing, scrubbing, rubbing, waxing, and buffing, but finally Tom, seeing his reflection in the shiny blue topsides, declared "job well-done"!  Given that Kelly was now every bit as pretty as she was last year after the same waxing & buffing, I agreed.  We wrapped up the final mission by 8pm and grabbed a well-earned meal at Joe Roots, the local dining establishment on Peninsula Drive.

The installation of the new radar, depthsounder and chartplotter, was mostly done by Rich Keller, long-time boat service technician, based in Erie.  This past week Bob Arlet, Erie-based Shipwright and former Niagara crew member, led the work installing the two solar panels and the new MPPT charge controller that manages the battery charging of the solar panels.  While doing the work on the solar panels, we discovered that the 32 year old aluminum tank was leaking diesel fuel.  We couldn't launch until that was resolved, so Bob led the way as we removed the old tank, cutting away the fiberglass and marine plywood that held the old tank in place.  We'll be installing 2 new tanks in the place of the old tank so the fuel capacity for Kelly IV will increase from 22 gallons to 36 gallons!  That means our cruising range under power will increase from roughly 44 hours to about 72 hours.  When you add the 15 gallons additional diesel in the 3 jerry cans we carry, our range increases to almost 100 hours.  At our typical cruising speed of about 5 knots our motoring range is now over 400 nautical miles!  Of course, as a sailboat, we expect that means we'll be able to buy fuel less often and not worry about filling up at every diesel dock along the way.

Other tasks accomplished over the past couple weeks include building a new bag for stowing the dinghy anchor and rode, and sewing Velcro onto the cabin cushions so they stay put while we're underway.  We also installed a new outboard motor mount on the stern rail for storage of the new electric outboard while underway and replaced the old AC outlet in the galley with a GFCI outlet.  To get the galley in working order the propane bottles were filled and stowed, then the stove and oven were tested and they work as designed.  Several additional small, one pound propane bottles were stored on board for the trip, the two diesel jerry cans were filled and stowed, as well as the computer, printer, paper and DVD drive.  I'll be adding zippers to the bimini canvas so the Bimini can easily be removed or installed without removing the solar panels.  Once Kelly is launched next week, I'll be able to test the lifesaving features of the dinghy, use of the new dinghy davits, and complete the initial provisioning.

I have moved my clothing and toiletries on board, so I'm almost ready for the big cruise!