…. there just hasn’t been anything going on.
The weather has been brutal so I’ve been going to bed at 8/9 o clock every night with two hot water bottles and reading for a couple of hours, which is lovely but doesn’t lend itself to much boat stuff. Stuff was further derailed when I managed to roll my damn ankle AGAIN playing football, so that didn’t help. The short hours of daylight make getting motivated a real challenge. It seems to have been a really long winter, as it started raining in October and then was just downhill from there.
Also on the personal injury front I managed to slash my wrist on a saw I’d left upright. Fortunately not deep at all.
I’ve done bits and bobs here and there including more windvane work (almost the whole linkage is done), rigging up the emergency DSC antenna for the SSB, untwisting the backstay line (thanks Phil for point that out) and getting hold of the special cable/software to change the settings of the SSB but nothing really worth posting about until I get more done.
I DID manage to get out for the first sail of the year, in 5 knot winds for an hour or two when the temperature got above freezing for once.
This was short-lived as the next day it was super crappy again!
I’ve been reading Storm Tactics by the Pardeys and looking over my equipment. I have almost everything I need to heave-to under a drogue except a swivel, so will be getting one of those soon. I ordered some 2nd hand snatch blocks off ebay that I’m very excited about as well as some discount heavy foul weather gear (end of season so over 50% off!) and some new anchor rode. I’m going to 350 feet of rode which will replace the existing 200 ft I have (Which will be used as secondary backup rode).
I put an order down on 400AH of lithium cells, and am currently figuring out how to create a system so not to fry them. I think I will homebrew my own BMS system using a HouseBMS board, but more on that at a later date.
Oh, and my new sails arrive this month. I’m so excited, not only will I have sails that are not bedsheets but also I’ll have THREE reef points! A lot better than my current one. Should make sailing in marginal weather a lot less stressful. Also will be loose-footed which will be interesting.
Hopefully going to Orcas next weekend and I intend to try my hand at filming it and making a short film, so we will see how that goes.
WHERE’S THE SPRING AT!
(EDIT: this was originally called ‘I’m not dead’ but apparently I’d already used that title once so I had to called it something else. Sigh. Predicable already after only a few years!)
It sounds like our choice to overwinter in Victoria LAST year was the right one. I think we saw frost twice? Still, it’s -20° today here in Edmonton so I would still rather be there than here. And a walk in the snow just doesn’t hold a candle to a cruise to Portland Island. Nice to hear you got some sailing in at least.
Yes – last year was completely different. I often think fondly of it as I sit trying to get the chill out of my bones! When it’s not cold, it seems to be raining/snowing…
Oh ya, snatch blocks. On my trip down the coast on the Baltic I discovered that extra snatchblocks and a metal toerail made a lot of things a lot easier, from preventers to assymetricals…
I’m starting to get really jealous.
I actually don’t own any yet, so super pumped to get some! I got 3, 2 that handle 1/2″ line and then an oversized one I can use to heave to with a drouge
Your injury is small to mine. Do not have your drill attach your hand as I did. Surgery to repair nerves. Stay safe my friend with power tools.
Love hearing your progress. Soon to follow in your footsteps.
Oh no! That sounds awful! Mine was just a manual wood saw luckily that I didn’t bother putting away correctly – won’t do that again.
If it wasn’t for the description, that wrist photo looked like an attempt!
Dang, you guys have got it cold over there. Question… how “less cold” to you get your cabin temp up to and with which sources?
And now to bust your chops…. we had our C temps in the teens this weekend… and it was sweet after a couple of months!
I know right?! Got a couple of funny looks at work…
As for heat, the problem is that I work all day, so it’s not worth heating the cabin while I’m away, and same for while I’m sleeping, as I’m plenty warm with my down duvet and hot water bottles.
My Dickenson Newport diesel heater gets everything very toasty (23c on 3 out of 5 setting) BUT takes an hour or two to really get going. This makes it not really worth it on weekdays, so I just use a space heater on myself.
On weekends or when I have guests over I use the diesel heater.
The coldest is the mornings, when I’ve had the heat off and the hot water bottles are gone… but I’ve got it down to ten minutes routine (and I shower at work).
I’m jealous of your temps, we just got another dumping of snow!