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Captains Log Notes From a Beginning Sailor By Dave Stearns As a perpetually broke, single, full-time father of 2 great kids, I'm usually on the look out for a great deal. Particularly when it's something that I can do to have fun with my kids. This last winter I found it. Last winter we, in Central Washington State, were hit with one of the deepest snowfalls that I can ever remember here. And I've lived here pretty much all my life. Almost 5 feet of the heavy white crap. (Can you tell I long to live in a milder climate?) I've noticed that one of the things that happens when there's a really deep snow, is that people are more prone to help each other out. Which is what I was doing for my neighbor across the street. Steve and Sue needed to have their driveway blown out, just to try and get their car to the street. I volunteered the first time of doing this, for the measly cost of one home-brewed dark beer. The Second time around, my fee went up. I'd noticed that Steve was the owner of a Hobie 16'. I told him that I wanted to get a ride on his boat in the spring, for me blowing out his driveway. He'd informed me that he was thinking of selling her that coming spring for $500. SOLD!" I yelled. It'd been almost 15 years since I owned a sailboat. And I'd never sailed a ‘cat' before. The kids would love it, I thought. They'd only been out once before on a friends 14' Lido. At that time I had NO idea how to pay for her. I just had to get it. With the help of Uncle Sam's annual refund, I was able to take possession of her in April. In May, work started to patch the bottom of one of the hulls. (Hey, it's a $500 boat, what kind of shape could she be in?) What follows are my Captain's Logs, which I dutifully wrote down upon arriving back from each of our excursions with Cinnamon Girl" so far. Captains Log 6-7-97 Previous Capt. of "Cinnamon Girl" asked me today from his front porch, Where are you taking your boat today, Captain ?" I pointed to the rear end of my car, and informed him there was still no trailer hitch. His response was "So what, I told you when you bought the boat that you could take my car anytime you wanted! So Captain, my question stands. Where are you sailing today?" (I had forgotten about this generous offer) "Lake Entiat" I yelled back from across the street. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with Eastern Washington topology, Lake Entiat isn't "really" a lake at all, but rather a deceptively calm portion of the Columbia River, where the Entiat River empties into the Columbia above Rocky Reach Dam, with sometimes, VERY erratic winds. But today seemed very calm. The deception was beginning. I packed Crew and gear into said, borrowed Oldsmobile and headed north about 16 miles from Wenatchee to Lake Entiat. The crew was upbeat, though the "First Officer" didn't really have her heart into completing the maiden voyage. The "Second Officer" acquired an acquaintance to accompany us on this prestigious voyage. This Captain's first mistake, I believe, was to put the boat into the water first. Before she was inspected and the mast setup. I found it's very difficult to place the rudders on the boat WHILE it's in the water. Upon 'stepping the mast' the 'first time' I discovered that the Jib line (The cable attaching the mast to the front of the boat and KEEPING it up), was fouled and wrapped around the mast. It had to come down, be straightened out and re-stepped. So that's what crew and I did. The mast seemed even heavier the second time around. It was, it had taken on MORE water. But we got it up! Upon getting the sails ready to set, and get under way, I unfortunately discovered, that the 'Main sail' cable had been fouled too, and was also wrapped around the mast. We had to step the mast a THIRD time! By this time, I had lost all energy in order to get the mast up again. So crew and I played in the water, laid on the boat just to get the feel of it, on water, instead of on a driveway. So we took 'Cinnamon Girl' back out of the water and headed home after fighting with fouled lines for a total of about two hours + . But the trip was not for naught. This Captain did learn some valuable lessons on his 'first' voyage. First, make damn sure everything is setup BEFORE you put the boat in the water! Second, Don't forget the oars at home! (I'd forgotten that from my earlier sailing experiences) And Third, Be sure to take along 'something/anything' to drink and/or munch on. Right now as I write this, the boat is still attacked to the 'Oldsmobile' in front of the house, ready to go out again for her 'real' maiden voyage tomorrow. Which she will, finally, go on. God willing. Captain's Log 6-8-97 After 7-8 months of daydreaming of this day, "Cinnamon Girl" finally had her maiden voyage today on Lake Entiat, along the Columbia River. Mr. Steve Yunker, Fellow Greener Grad. (For those uninitiated, that is someone who has attended, not necessarily graduated from The Evergreen State College" in Olympia, WA.), and Former Captain of "Cinnamon Girl" was interested in hopping aboard with us, but decided against it at the very last minute. Funny, how self preservation kicks in sometimes... We left Wenatchee at about 1:00pm in the afternoon for what was 'supposed' to be a short afternoon jaunt around the lake. (I begin to hear strains of the theme to Gilligan's Island" going around in my head.) At least that was "The Plan"! The winds were very calm, 5-10 miles per hour, if that. And the water temperature (at least from the previous day) still felt like a balmy 51 degrees F. We arrived at the Lake at about 1:30 and were able to get the boat rigged and ready within 40 minutes! Despite attempts of in-fighting among the crew. Which consisted of First Officer Cassie (age 12, going on 31), Second Officer Tad (age 9, going on 4) and his Guest Matt (age, unsure at this point in time). There were no adult takers on our invitations to attend the prestigious event. By 2:30 we were at the dock and ready to set sail. Thought for a few moments that the Main sail cable was fouled at the top of the mast again, however the Captain was able to fix the problem, without re-stepping the mast yet again. With the boat in the water, crew squabbling brought to a (hopefully) stop, and the sails ready, we set sail on Lake Entiat at about 2:45pm. First Officer Cassie took the tiller, and was informed of the Captain's desire to head UP the river while he attended to trimming the sails and getting them completely set. So much for the best laid plans... ;-) By the time the Captain had finished helping the rest of the crew set the sails and double checking the rigging, the captain had discovered that the vessel was heading in the WRONG direction, and going DOWN river. However, winds were still very mild and we continued to head across the river in a straight shot across from the dock. Though there were still some continued grumblings from the crew, particularly the First Officer, we attempted to make the best of the voyage. The Second Officer did manage to lose one of our two oars that we took with us. It is now probably being chewed into plastic pulp by the turbines of Rocky Reach Dam as we speak. At least it was a cheap oar. And the Captain really wasn't upset about it, yet. This Captain is happy to report that the boat handled very well. In light winds, she seems very responsive, yet will still move with a minimum of wind. However, being on Lake Entiat, and having a novice crew, the current began to take us down river. After about 40-45 minutes of sailing in this light wind, and being a long way down river from the dock, the worst thing that can happen to a sailor happened. The wind died. It was at this point the the Second Officer decided that the best course of action, was to PANIC! It took us about an hour to get back to shore on the correct side of the Columbia River/Lake Entiat. When we finally reached the shore, we were about a mile down river from the dock. (At least we were on the correct side!) However, we also still had to cross the Entiat river, which empties into the Columbia, before we could get back to the dock. Our Second Officer continued to work himself up into a panicked frenzy. By this time it was after 5:pm. He started screaming for help from passing motorboats. ;-) The Captain went ashore and started to take the docking line and walk along the shoreline with boat in tow. That's when the Captain lost the docking line and the current started to take the boat and crew further down river. This is when the Panic frenzy of the Second Officer went from mild to full steam, and the First Officer's attitude was to become considerably more helpful. She started rowing. They were able to bring the boat back into shore to the Captain, and get the attention of a passing boat. Which came in and began to tow us back to the dock. Though it did take almost an hour to get back there. We took down the main sail and left the jib up, while the Captain took the tiller and attempted to keep the boat straight behind the tow boat. He has blisters on his hands as he writes this, due to fighting the tiller. NOTE: Future tow lines should be attached to the front Jib cables on the boat, not on to Port or Starboard Trampoline pillar. Don't let the Captain forget this. Upon our arrival back to the dock, we ended up waiting a little over an hour in order to get to the car and trailer to get the boat out. The reason was because at that time there were a lot of motor/ski boats coming in and wanting to load up on their trailers. I let them, thinking that it was going to take me longer to get my boat out of the water by myself then it would for the rest of these folks. By the time the line cleared out it was 7:30pm! Not everything that could go wrong yet though was done. In his over-zealous glee on seeing dry land and the beloved dock, Second Officer Tad tried to jump from the Starboard bow onto the Dock. He missed. Went straight into the drink. Fortunately right in front of the Captain, who hoisted him out of the 51 degree water. Upon taking the mast down, the Captain lost control of it and the mast fell, taking the Captain with it as it fell backwards onto the trampoline and the asphalt. Lesson #43 Learned: NEVER take the mast down on ANY kind of INCLINE! Fortunately the mast and the Captain were none to worse for the experience. Though it was a bit scary falling backwards onto the Trampoline. And the resulting collision between asphalt and mast was quite loud. By the time we were able to get the boat tied down. All gear packed up and ready, it was now after 8:00pm! And the wind still hadn't been started blowing. If we hadn't been towed, we might still be out there. The Captain is considering a small electric motor attachment that the Hobie Corporation has for this model of boat. ;-) We finally got home a little after 8:30! So much for a short little cruise. Captain and Crew are very thankful that the First Officer was thoughtful enough to pack up a lunch. Glad that this boat is a continual learning experience! ;-) May Your Sails always be FULL! Take care and God Bless Captain's Log 6-15-97 "The Voyage of Blood" Father's Day. The children asked me what I wanted for the traditional Father's Day Present. I said a clean house. Did I get it??? Of COURSE not. These are MY kids we're talking about, not regular children. After our last/maiden voyage, both of my crew were rather, shall we say, hesitant, about the idea of EVER sailing aboard that monstrosity in the back yard EVER again. I persevered. I knew that I could sway them in the right direction, if we could have a good time, somehow. At precisely 11:30 this morning with nothing looking in front of me except continual house work, laundry and dishes, I started looking outside and the WIND and SUN overcame me. I had to take "Cinnamon Girl" out again. The winds weren't terribly strong, but they were better then the last voyage. And this time it had to be somewhere, where there was no current. I made several calls about to local friends and had no takers for a cruise. The Crew was still hesitant. Finally I found someone who was going to Lake Chelan (PERFECT, no CURRENTS!) and they weren't really looking forward to going up and just spending time with their family... So we joined Jess & Sue Widby and their two children and headed for Mill Bay Resort on Lake Chelan. Made the obligatory stops on the way for gas, more oars, and cash. Also packed a worthy lumberjack style lunch with several Tuna fish sandwiches, the ‘largest Papaya that God Ever created', juice, pop, three beers, and sunscreen. Left at 1:15pm. Arrived at the Lake around 2:30. Had the boat in the water by 3:00pm. With a little adult assistance, I've found, launch times are cut DRASTICALLY! The wind was blowing considerably through the Columbia River Valley on the way up. Enough to give white-caps on the river. This caused me some consternation. I was hoping that they wouldn't be quite so strong at the Lake once we got there. And thankfully they were not. But much stronger then they were on our maiden voyage. Just before launching, Cassie, who was barefoot, got one of the largest slivers in her foot that I'd ever seen. (I told her not to walk barefoot on the dock! But then again I'm the father, do I EVER get listened to ? Of Course not, I know NOTHING!) I think that it was an omen. I should've taken it that way. We left the dock with only the jib sail up and running. We started to take the main up, but as fast as we were going with only the jib, We decided against it. The plan was for us to sail the boat up the lake a ways to a nice beach where we'd meet up with the Widby family. What would've been a 10-15 minute walk took about 45 minutes to sail. Having just the jib up made it difficult to sail directly up wind which is where we needed to go, of course. About 15 minutes into our sail up lake, the wind caught the main, which we had on deck and one of the battens hit our Second Mate, Tad squarely in the face, resulting in a bloody nose. The First Mate and the Capt. had him lie down on the deck, and wash his face off. Twice. By the time that we finally 'beached' somewhat close to the dock near the Widby's camp ground Tad's nose had stopped bleeding. The kids joined the Widby Kids, Jaxom and Kayla in the nearby swimming pool, while I joined Jess in having a beer and relaxing at their campground/RV. After our first beer, Jess suggested that we take "Cinnamon Girl" out again with just he and I at the helm, no kids, and raise the main. Figuring that the worst that could happen was that we'd get wet...and having one beer on an empty stomach, I agreed. This is when I think I found sailing nirvana! The boat handled very well. We came within just an inch or two from flying a hull. Waves were about a foot or more in some places on the lake. So we got hit with quite a bit of spray. We did end up loosing a few items that just flew right off the boat. Jess had lost his beer, with insulating beer cup/wrap (his only Father's Day gift!), My blue Denim ‘Televar' cap, and one life jacket. We were able to come about and grab the lifejacket... But couldn't find anything else. In no time we lost sight of the camp sight. Our wake, for being in a sailboat, was quite big. And I swear that, as fast as we were going, we could've EASILY been pulling a water skier! Jess and I had her out for about an hour all tolled. And as we came back into the beach, we had a picture perfect, textbook case, soft beaching, right by the RV. His parents (Dad and Step-Mom) started up the barbecue and made up hamburgers for the kids. All the adults had a GREAT New York Steak. It was a great meal. We really appreciated their hospitality. After stuffing our faces, it was finally about 8:00pm and it was getting late. We had to pack up and get going home. The winds had died down considerably. So Jess and I decided to take the two boys, and row the boat, with the jib up, back down to the dock. Took about a half an hour. As we approached the dock, the winds picked up, taking us in again to another picture perfect beaching right between two docks. And by that time there was no more people waiting in lines to either get their boats in or out of the water. As we got the boat out of the water, and took the mast down, I did a stupid thing....I jumped off the front of the boat and walked to the car, without looking, and ran right into the bow-line cable, hitting square right on my upper lip. So as I wrap up this installment of the Capt.'s Log, I sit here with a good sun-burn on my legs, a fat lip, and I ache all over my body (oh, to be 18 and indestructible again!)...But as we were driving home last night, both of the Kids/Crew were telling me how much fun they'd had, despite their injuries...and they couldn't wait to go out on "Cinnamon Girl" again...This voyage made up for the fiasco of our last/maiden voyage. I guess that you need to get a little beaten up in order to have a good time these days. That's the best I can figure. That made for the best Father's Day gift. ;-) Now the only thing I need for complete contentment and inner peace, is a trailer hitch for an 86' Ford Tempo, so I don't have to borrow my neighbor's car anymore…well, maybe a better job too, that wouldn't hurt.. So until next time all.....May the wind always fill your sails, and May the Son always shine for you... ;-) Capt. Sterno and His Fearless Crew Dave Stearns sterno@televar.com www.televar.com/~sterno "With the thoughts I was thinkin' I could be another Lincoln, If I only had a brain" Back to Features |