The last hurrah

Well, I can't believe the season has come to a close.  Ed and I went out for a short sail this afternoon - the last of the season.  It was a sunny day, but a little cool, after yesterday's storm blew through.  When we got back to our temporary dock, we took the sails and the boom off.  Now we need to get the mast down, top up the fuel tanks, and empty the holding tank, and we'll be ready to haul out.


This felt like a very short season, probably because we didn't start sailing until the middle of June.  When I went through our log and counted the number of outings we had, though, it was several more than last year.  I look forward to the day when our sailing doesn't revolve primarily around weekends.

Labour Day weekend 2015

The weather in Toronto was hot and muggy for several days, including the last long weekend of the summer.  Where has the season gone!  Friday began with the traditional Corn & Weenie roast, where we stuffed ourselves with beautiful Ontario corn, and watched the pigs being prepared for the big day on Saturday.  Next day, Emily and her friend Steve came for a sail during the CNE Air Show, and stayed for the popular pig roast at QCYC.  Visiting boats were rafted up several deep in the lagoon, and enjoyed a great dinner courtesy of the crew of seasoned volunteers. 

On Sunday, as some people started projects in the boat yard, we lounged around on the lawn in the shade of a tree, reading, snacking, and enjoying a little wine.  What a completely relaxing day.

We had a big crowd over on Monday - Jenn, Helen and Lynne, who I worked with over 20 years ago, together with their families.  We motored out for the last part of the Air Show, and avoided the brisk upwind sail.  When it was time to head home, we raised sail for the downwind leg. 

We've had some trouble with the transmission the last couple of times we were out.  That will be something to check when we haul the boat in a few weeks.     

Hazy day

Kate and her friend Trevor came out for a sail on a hazy evening.  I don't think Katie has actually been sailing with us for a couple of years.  She's there so rarely, that she even signed the guest book.

Trevor was taking photos with a nice camera his sister had given him, until we entered "The Twilight Zone". Trevor's camera unexpectedly stopped working, and when Katie tried to look up the error on her phone, the phone stopped working too!  All was soon resolved, but the timing sure was weird.

It had been a hot day, but was surprisingly cool on the water.  The haze made the other boats on the lake, and the city, look a little eerie.  We actually managed to sail for a while, but with another day of light winds, this was no thrill ride.  No matter.  We enjoyed a great dinner on the balcony at the club, and the lights of the skyline after dark.  

Guests aboard

With a cool spring, vacations, and various family responsibilities, we haven't had many guests aboard this season.  With only a few weeks left to the season, it was time to remedy that.

Saul and Simona, friends of Ed's from work, came for a sail on a beautiful Sunday afternoon.  There was a pretty brisk breeze, but our first-time sailors did well.  Maybe we've even convinced them to take up sailing.

A few days later, Marysia, Lucie and Alienor came out for a sail after work.  Alienor was here visiting from France for a few weeks.  She was staying with Jack & Chrissy, and although they couldn't come sailing with Alienor, they came out a few days later with Jacob and Lilah.  

The kids were pretty excited, but with no wind, it turned into a motor around the island.  "Captain Ed" helped the mini-captains stay focused for their turns at the wheel.  It's hard to concentrate when you have to choose between steering and having snacks :-)

No flag this year

The weather for the Women Skippers Race had been forecast to be sunny and warm.  Instead, we got a little sprinkle of rain in the morning, and a brisk wind.  With no guests aboard this year, it was just me and Ed.  I didn't get a very good start.  I don't like to be in the fray at the start line, but I ended up so far back, that I was having to dodge the smaller boats from the second start.  Then, just before we got to the channel, a small boat was just in front of me, and I had to tack to get out of their way.  We got close to the pack at the turn around mark, but finished well back of the fleet.  With our boat's rating, I think I'll have to wait for another year when there aren't so many racers, to have a chance at another flag.

Sistership

On Friday, I was sitting in the cockpit having my dinner, when I noticed a C&C Landfall 38 in the lagoon.  I noticed it because there was no water coming out of their exhaust, just smoke. (See Sunrise, Sunset entry from a couple of weeks ago.)  They looked like they were looking for a spot to dock, and I assumed it was because of the exhaust problem.  Our boat neighbours were just leaving for the weekend, so the visiting boat docked next to us.  Steve and his son Cam, from Ashbridges Bay Yacht Club, had just stopped by QCYC for dinner at our restaurant.  They didn't seem too worried about the exhaust.  By the time they were back from dinner, Ed had arrived, and gave them a tour of our boat, and went aboard theirs.  As seems to happen a lot in the boating community, we had mutual friends.  Steve is an instructor at Humber, and knows Andrew.  We'll have to visit ABYC some time.

Home

We left Frenchman's Bay after a great long weekend.  The wind was forecast to be on the nose, and quite brisk, so we left by 9:00 and motored home.  It was surprisingly cold on the water, but warm once we made it back to our dock.  Several QCYC boats sailed back, and by the time they arrived, we were enjoying dinner on the balcony.

Frenchman's Bay

We finished our cruising vacation this year at Frenchman's Bay in Pickering.  What a gem!  We've never been here, because the water levels have sometimes been an issue in the Bay.  This year, though, QCYC arranged a cruise to Frenchman's Bay Yacht Club.  The city of Pickering completed a new entrance channel to the bay this spring, and FBYC has dredged the approach channel to their club.
With only 8 miles to go from Whitby to Frenchman's Bay, we arrived very early in the afternoon, and were able to help other arriving QCYC boats dock in the windy bay.  Halszka, the cruise organizer, had planned a pot luck happy hour once everyone had arrived.  Later, a group of us went across the bay to the Waterfront Restaurant for dinner.  One group opted to take their dinghy, but the rest of us arrived by taxi.
Sunday was a breezy day, and the kite boarders were out on the lake.  We walked out to the beach. Except for the windmill and power plant, we could have been on Georgian Bay.  

Later a line of storms blew through.  The sky got dark, and the rain poured for a little while - just as Ed was barbequing dinner.  The weather wasn't quite as bad as in Toronto. but still pretty dramatic.

Watching the weather

 With 35 miles to go from Cobourg to Whitby, wind on the nose, and thunderstorms forecast for the afternoon, we raised a double reefed mainsail, and motorsailed the whole way.  The first bit was a little choppy as we hobby-horsed through the waves.  We arrived in Whitby in the early afternoon, and made a trip to the nearby shopping centre for supplies.  Our next stop will be a little isolated, so we needed to have some meals available onboard.
The forecast rain did arrive just before dinner time, and we watched storm clouds to the east and south of us.  Then, just before sunset, a huge full moon rose over the lake.  Our first view was between the masts at the marina, and we walked over to the clubhouse, as the moon played hide and seek behind clouds.  

Pretty in pink

As sometimes happens, Ed and I were dressed in similar colours.  Today, we were both in pink shirts.  On our way down the dock in the morning, another boater asked whether we planned that.  Of course, doesn't everyone? 

We took a walk to Dean Marine, which has conveniently moved their store closer to the marina, to see if they had anything interesting.  I was looking for a particular kind of ruler to help me plot positions on a chart.  I had forgotten my plotting tools at home, where I had used them this past winter for my Celestial Navigation course.  They didn't have the kind of ruler I wanted, but Ed picked up a part to change the engine intake valve connection.  The straight connector would make it easier to clear blockages, than the current connector which has an elbow.
Sure enough, Ed was able to clear about a pound of seaweed from the engine intake valve, while I went for a pedicure at the salon right beside the marina.  Pink, please.

Sunrise, sunset

Sodus Bay, NY sunrise

We planned to leave Sodus Bay to cross over to Cobourg on either Tuesday night or Wednesday morning, depending on the weather forecast.  With no wind expected at either time, we knew we'd likely be motoring, so chose to do it in daylight.  We left Sodus Bay just before sunrise.  While still in the bay, as we were approaching the channel, I thought the engine sounded funny and checked to make sure water was coming out of the engine exhaust.  No water, only smoke.  Since there was no wind, and no one else on the water at 0530, Ed shut down the engine, and I had a look at the water filter.  It was full of weeds, but when I cleared those, there was still no water coming in the intake valve.  I guess we had a bunch of weeds stuck in there, thanks to the weedy marina.  Ed tried clearing the intake, but was unable to get the weeds out.  Instead, he disconnected the house water hose, and moved the engine intake hose to the house intake valve.  We were back in business.  I'm lucky to have such a smart husband!    

no wind, glassy lake

Several hours later, in the middle of the lake, with no wind, we turned off the engine to switch from one fuel tank to another, and Ed again tried to clear the valve, again with no luck.  No problem.  The current set up was working, and would get us to our destination.

Cobourg, ON sunset

The lake was completely flat and glassy, so at least the motoring was easy.  Every now and again we'd see a few ripples, but mostly it was calm, flat water, and hot, hazy, humid air.  About 11 hours after we left Sodus Bay, we were docked at the Cobourg fuel dock.  
Cobourg Marina has made some changes to their docks, reconfiguring F dock and adding a G dock.  Business must be good.  This is a real crossroads for boats heading in every direction, and when we're here, we always keep an eye out for familiar boats.

Katlynn Marina

Monday we headed out for Sodus Bay.  We optimistically raised the mainsail, but only actually sailed for about half an hour.  The wind was very light, and too far forward to use the spinnaker, so we motor sailed all the way to Sodus Bay. Unfortunately, the club was hosting a LYRA regatta, and was full, so once again, we stayed at a marina - Katlynn Marina - just west of the Sodus Bay Yacht Club.

Protective mother 

The marina facilities are beautiful and air conditioned, so once again I did laundry.  They have an interesting building access card system.  They put the access info onto any card you have with a mag stripe.  I used my Air Miles card.  Unfortunately, the system didn't work that well, and while we could use the card before dinner, it never worked later in the evening.  Very frustrating.

We were hoping to have dinner at the Bay Street Inn, but they are closed Mondays and Tuesdays, like so many restaurant facilities.  Monday we ate at Captain Jack's, and Tuesday, we headed over to the yacht club, which had their bar menu available until 7:00.  We ran into Terry and Nancy (Mi Vida Loca), from QCYC.  We had seen their boat on a mooring ball when we arrived.  Nancy told us their engine had failed a couple of days earlier, so they sailed overnight from Sacket's Harbour, and picked up a ball at SBYC.  A mechanic had a look, and thought they probably needed to replace the engine.  They were planning to leave Sodus Bay on Wednesday, hoping to sail back to QCYC or Whitby.  With no wind forecast for Wednesday, I think they were going to be in for a long couple of days. 

Sara's new skills

We always enjoy visiting with Ajay and Kathy and their daughter Sara, when we're in the Rochester area.  Because we only see them once a year, we really notice how Sara is growing.  This spring, she started taking swimming lessons at a new place, and her confidence and skill level are just soaring.  She had a great time at the Rochester Yacht Club pool, diving to the bottom to pick up toys, and doing handstands.

Oh deer!

After a great sail to Rochester, we made our way to Schooners for dinner.  Unfortunately, we headed out a little later than usual, and the place was packed, so rather than wait for over an hour and a half, we made other arrangements for dinner.  On our way there, just beyond the Shumway gate, there is an open field, and we saw a couple of deer.  On the way back, about an hour later, there was a whole herd - 8 or 9 at least.  They didn't seem to be bothered at all by the cars parking near the marina.  The next morning, I saw another deer in the same field.  Later when we were at Kathy and Ajay's in Webster, NY, we looked out into the yard, and there were another couple of deer in the neighbour's yard.  Very cool.

The forecast was for rain in the evening, so we took an early trip into town for the Webster Jazz Festival.  The music wasn't bad, but I don't know that you could actually call it jazz.  No matter.  Everyone was having a good time, and the band and crowds were captured on film by a drone flying overhead.  I think that's the first time I've really seen one in action.  It's a little weird, but probably a sign of things to come.

We're flying.....

...our spinnaker, that is.  We brought the spinnaker with us this year, in hopes of being to be able to sail when the winds were light.  Friday we had perfect conditions - light wind from our stern, and no waves.  The first time we hoisted the sail, we discovered that I had used the wrong halyard to raise it, and it sort of got jammed against the forestay.  When we needed to tack, we lowered the sail, readjusted the lines, and raised the sail with the right halyard.  In all, we sailed with it for about 4 hours, making much better time than we would have with the genoa.  

We passed a Canadian sailboat, Halcyon, which was trying to hail 4Cs Marina.  We called them on the radio, but I don't think they heard us.  A couple of minutes later, they hailed 'the sailboat flying the red and white spinnaker', to let let us know they got some good photos of our boat flying the spinnaker.  I gave them our e-mail.  When the photos come, I'll add one here.  I told them about the ownership change at the marina.  I hope they were able to get a spot.

When the wind started to pick up, we decided to drop the sail.  Thinking that it would be easier to drop it if I headed into the wind, I started to turn the boat upwind, but this was obviously not the right thing to do, as the boat started heeling terribly, and the spinnaker was flying farther from the boat.  Lesson learned.  After a little wresting with the sail, Ed got it stuffed into its bag and we sailed the rest of the way to Rochester under genoa.

August 25, 2015 update:  We received an e-mail from Halcyon with some photos of our boat.  How nice of them to pass them along.

     

"We have no depth"

 With no wind, we motored from Wilson to Oak Orchard, arriving early in the afternoon.  When Ed called the 4C's marina, where we've always stayed, he was told they could no longer take sailboats as they have no depth, and we should call Lake Breeze Marina.  We wondered what could have happened to the depth at the docks in the creek - maybe heavy silting.  In hindsight, they may have said that they have no docks.  4Cs was purchased last year by the same guy who bought Lake Breeze Marina earlier that year.
When we checked in at the office, we asked whether the 1-lane bridge just south of the marina had been repaired.  It was gone last year, and there are apparently no plans to replace it.  That's too bad, since we took that road when we went to Brown's Berry Patch for fruit and ice cream.  Well, it turns out that Brown's has closed their retail operation, and now just have their commercial orchards.  
We did take a short walk to see which night concerts were held in the county park down the road.  Tuesday - no music for us tonight.  We saw a sign for the Point Breeze Yacht Club, which I didn't remember being there.  We walked down to the docks and chatted with a woman on her sailboat.  Turns out she is the commodore of the PBYC.  They had moved their moorings from further up the river, to the moorings at the county park.  This might be an option for us some other time, since they have lots of docks before the bridge.

Baby bear

On Tuesday we had a great sail from Port Dalhousie to Wilson, NY.  We had hoped to go to Niagara on the Lake Sailing Club, but they were full, and since the sailing conditions were good, we carried on to Wilson, NY.  We docked by the state park, and checked into the US, then contacted the marina to look for a place to stay.  We had stayed at the Sunset Bay Marina last year, when we visited the Island Yacht Club.   The marina was sold and is now owned by Bootleggers Cove Marina. We got a spot between 2 huge power boats, and I felt like baby bear, stuck between mama and papa bears.  It turned out that the one to the left of us is owned by the brother of the woman who runs the Sunset Grille restaurant, and the marina.  I guess it's something of a family business, as they also own the Boat House restaurant at the other end of the bay.  Plans are to make improvements to the facilities, and to build a distillery on-site.  Interesting.  Not sure how this impacts IYC, but we certainly didn't see many sailboats at the marina.  
Wednesday was quite windy, and since we had already planned to stay a second night, we walked to the grocery store to check out what was new in town.  The laundromat has reopened - hurray!  I took the opportunity to do a couple of loads.  I spent the time reading, and trying not to listen in on the group of ladies who were using the laundry as a meeting room. 

Long walk on a short pier

Beautiful sailing day

We arrived in Port Dalhousie after a good trip from Bronte.  We sailed for the first couple of hours, then motored on a flat lake when the wind died down.  We spent several days on the wall in front of Dalhousie Yacht Club last year, and our initial plan was to dock in the same place, in case there were other boats docked in front of the clubhouse.  As we approached the pier, I realized there no cleats to tie up to!  Fortunately there weren't any other boats on the wall, so Ed motored forward until we found a spot which looked available.  The 'No Docking' sign painted on the ground near the dinghy crane confused us a little, but the dock master came out and assured us we could dock.  We pulled up as close as we could to the fuel dock, and got lots of fenders out as the wind and current were both pushing us onto the pier.

Pedestrian bridge from Lakeport to Pier 61 restaurant

The dockmaster told us that both the east and west piers have been fenced off as they are structurally unsound.  The club had to remove all the cleats to prevent boats from docking.  Where they used to be able to accommodate 60-70 boats, they can now take 6 or 7.  The piers were a favourite spot for locals to walk, and take in the beautiful sunset.  I hope they are repaired soon!    

Wild at Heart

Last year, Andrew and Deb bought a Hanse 37 named Delta G.  The name didn't really suit them, and when we met Andrew in Mimico, we noticed that the boat had been renamed to Wild at Heart.  
Andrew assured us that he followed an appropriate renaming ceremony (you can find anything on the internet), and made the required offering to Neptune, so can now safely sail under the new name :-)

Sexy pictures

On Saturday, we sailed to Bronte in company with Andrew and Chris.  One of the advantages of sailing with a buddy boat, is that you get to take photos of each other's boats.  It was foggy when we left, so we motored side by side for the first hour or so, but then we noticed that the visibility was improving and wind picking pick, and we raised sail.  

Prime Interest and Wild at Heart crisscrossed paths several times over the next few hours, looking for those sexy boat shots - you know, when the boat is heeling over, sails are full - boat looks great!

2015 Sailing Vacation begins in Mimico

This year, we started our vacation close to home.  We didn't have far to go to get to the Mimico Cruising Club, so the light rain which was falling on our departure didn't worry us.  We motored out the western gap, and then enjoyed a downwind sail to the entrance to the the yacht club.  
By the time we arrived, the rain was pretty steady, but we were settled before the possible thunderstorms which were forecast for later in the day.  Thankfully, thunderstorms didn't materialize, and we spent a cool, rainy afternoon watching the PanAm Games on TV.  Katie is working in the kitchen at MCC, so we had dinner at the club.
Later, (much later - well after dark) Andrew and his friend Chris arrived from Bronte aboard Wild at Heart, and we joined them for a nightcap and snacks. 

Let the games begin

Ed and I went out for a sail on one of the first really warm, nice summer days.  We saw several boats heading out onto the lake to take part in the first of the PanAm Games sailing events.  There were three different courses out on the lake.  Lots of spectator boats were heading out to watch, but with such nice sailing conditions, we opted to sail.

TD team goes for a sail

One of Ed's colleagues was visiting from London, ON, so Ed invited a group from work out for a sail. Tim, his girlfriend Marta, Doug and John joined us.

We had a nice evening with enough wind to have a good sail, but not so much to make new sailors nervous.

A couple of days later, Tim and Marta were riding their bikes on the island and stopped by for a visit and refreshment.  It was a welcome break from our boat job that day - refinishing the teak toe rail on a hot day.

And we're off....

Sailpast 2015 turned out to be a lovely warm day, with minimal wind. After a short outing in the harbour, we enjoyed refreshments with Roel and Amy aboard their new boat, Amelia, along with Keith and Madeleine from Elan.  Amy and Roel had actually owned Amelia for many years, and sold it before moving abroad.  It came up for sale again, and they bought her back!

Woman driver!

A couple of weeks ago, as we were heading over to the island to prep the boat for launch, Jim asked Ed if he'd like to learn to drive the winch.  Jim looks after training new drivers, and with an aging membership, he's looking for 'young' drivers.  Nice to hear that in our 50's, we're young!  Anyway, Ed wasn't too keen, but I said I'd like to learn.  After a short silence, Jim asked whether I was serious.  Of course I was serious.  My only concern was whether it required a lot of physical strength.  Jim assured me that it didn't really require strength - just some coordination.  

I wondered how the training would go, since I wouldn't be at the club until launch day.  Early on the first day of launch, Eriks gave me the very serious safety briefing, and explained how the transmission on the engine works and what to watch for when I was driving.  Then Jim called me into the winch house to watch the driver, and to show me around the huge diesel engine. Next shift, it was my turn.  At first, I just drove the boats towards the water, and as we got close, I would stop the car, and Jim would actually launch the boat.  Then it was my turn.  I launched three boats that shift, then got to drive again later in the afternoon.  The next day, I signed up for another shift to practice my new skills.  I can understand why drivers only work in 1 hour shifts.  It takes a lot of concentration, and is a little stressful, but what a cool thing to learn to do.  My training will continue at haul out.

Pacific Ocean Sailing

Approx 19 40.1 N  156 1.5 W

Ed and I just got back from our first trip to Hawai'i - beautiful! We took the opportunity to sail on the Pacific for the first time.


On the Big Island of Hawai'i, we took a snorkeling trip aboard sailing catamaran Kamanu, out of the marina just north of Kailua-Kona.  We had lights winds, and perfect warm weather. The snorkeling was great with lots of fish and a live reef.  A few days later, we stopped by the Hilo Yacht Club on the east side of the island, and spoke to the manager.  Unfortunately, we hadn't thought to bring our QCYC membership cards, so couldn't enjoy a drink at their bar.  Interestingly, almost none of their members have boats, since mooring spaces are few and far between in Hilo.  The club is mainly a dining and sports facility.

Approx. 20.8 N 156.7 W

On Maui, we came upon a Santa Cruise 50, Scotch Mist II, in Lahaina, and had such a great time on the whale watching sail, that we went back the next day for the sunset sail.  We saw lots of humpback whales both times, and in the afternoon, had a boisterous sail, heeling well over when going to windward. Once again, we couldn't enjoy the Lahaina Yacht Club's facilities for lack of our membership cards.  Have to remember to always carry those!  

From Sail to Bag

Ed got an e-mail a couple of days ago from David in Ottawa who received a messenger bag for Christmas, made of an old sail - our old 130% headsail. 
We met Pauline from Windbag Company of NS, at the Toronto Boat show a couple of years ago.  The company makes all sorts of bags from old sails.  When we had a new headsail made in 2013, we donated the old one to Pauline when she came to the 2014 boat show.  In exchange for the sail, she gave us a choice of bag, and we had a duffle bag made with one of the numbers from our sail.  Bags made with donated sails have a tag attached with a brief history of the boat the sail comes from, which is how David was able to contact Ed.
Firmly in the 'small world' category, David's brother Jeff also sails a C&C 38 Landfall, and Ed and Jeff had previously exchanged e-mails though the C&C listserv, and Ed had followed Masala's blog on its travels.