Attempted Trip to Bermuda

[David_Old_Jersey]

........and hopefully also a chart!

IMO starting off with a Chart and a Pencil, whether or not aided by a simple GPS (numbers and no pics!) is the best way to learn navigation as when (not if!) you do later get a chartplotter you have at least some chance of actually being able to understand WTF it is telling you and why - and that whilst the information provided is mostly never wrong, it nonetheless is not always wise to follow blindly.

Plus starting with simple is also cheaper!

[tartansail]

Originally Posted by BlackOak

I have a Garmin 128, a Raymarine auto pilot, a depth finder, a cell phone, a dell laptop, a vhf radio, and a Am Fm 8 Track Stereo.

Damn, I knew I was missing something.

[goboatingnow]

Whether he is average I don't know. Perhaps I've hung around a select group for Paragon would likely not pass muster. As it is subjective to say he is average or not, it is just as subjective to say this based after seeing only through a small glass such as the one video afforded. I admit my error. I will try to watch his other videos and with an open, objective mind.

In my opinion having watched the videos, he did quite a good job, in fact he did very well in towing that other boat any distance at all, I certainly would have second thoughts about towing a boat that big with no rudder control.

All in all not a bad sailor, sure a few mistakes, but singlehandling a big valient like that , well done sir.

[BlackOak]

Oh, I have pencils, charts, parallel rule, protractor, compass, and Chapman's Piloting & Seamanship hardback. I use those to get my lats, longs, and bearing. Then plug those into the gps, and the bearing into the autopilot and watch my compass. Captain Shelly has had me do many hypothetical "Where's Waldo" scenerios on the charts. I was hopeing to get out today and try to make Anclote Key "N 28° 14 minutes by W 82° 50 minutes" but since Captain Shelly is headed to the Keys in a week, I thought I would just wait and follow her down....well sorta...since her Beneteau travels twice as fast as my Seafarer, I will be following at a distance, and catch her at Anclote Key. We are taking her Beneteau out today for a putt (biker vernacular for a little ride), which I am looking forward to. I will be bringing the camera, so I can post up Capitan Shelly and her boat.

we sat in her boat last night going over her many scrap/photo album. She showed me photos of how she used to do her own bottom jobs by bringing her old Irwin in on the high tide, dropping the anchor, then swinging the boom out port beam and when the tide went out, the boat would slowly heel over, so she could do one side, then rinse repeat for the other side. She showed me photos of the different places she visited in the carrib from back in the 70's. All her sailboats she has owned. There was a Tartan, a couple of Irwins, a mid 80's model Beneteau, and a Dory. She explained to me that there wasnt the electronics back then like today, so sailors had to be SAILORS to go from point A to point B. She used to be a feature writer for the various sailing magazines in the 70's and 80's, and showed me some of her article clippings. She said it was fun to see her name in print. It was a pleasant evening of hearing her tell of her adventures sailing, old photos, and the pot of chili she cooked up was awesome!
PS. my current location is N 28° 53.6 by W 82° 35.8

[Sumner]

Originally Posted by BlackOak

Oh, I have pencils, charts, parallel rule, protractor, compass, and Chapman's Piloting & Seamanship hardback. I use those to get my lats, longs, and bearing. Then plug those into the gps, and the bearing into the autopilot and watch my compass..

You are doing better than me there although we do carry full size charts. My main problem in Florida is that if you don't have some kind of fix it is very hard to tell where you are as all of the shoreline looks the same if you are away from a city. I could get us north of south on the west coast until we got near an identifiable location and then use the paper charts to get us in.

Here is something you might consider since you do have a laptop. You can download either OpenCPN or SeaClear II navigation programs for free and also the NOAA charts also free. With those and a $30 usp GPS attached to the laptop you have a great chartplotter. Then pick up a Garmin Map76S (B&W) off of e-bay for $60 or less and about $45 worth of cables (USB to Serial and a serial/power cable)to attach the handheld Garmin to the laptop.

You can then plot your course on the computer and download the waypoints in seconds to the handheld and use it in the cockpit to go waypoint to waypoint. You can even run the autopilot off of the laptop if you have power to keep it powered up.

We went over 400 miles down the west side of Florida and over to the Keys with the above never having been there with no problems. It will take you a couple nights to work the bugs out, but then you are good to go and just ask for help if you need it.

We used SeaClear for our trips, but are pretty much switching to OpenCPN as more and more features are being added to it all of the time.

Keep the reports coming Ruth and I really enjoy them and can relate,

Sumner and Ruth

[Dulcesuenos]

Awesome to hear your making great progress! We have some friends that circumnavigated back in the early 70's on a wooden boat and again in the late 70s on one they made out of fiberglass. His name is Carl Mosely. He and his wife are great people and to hear his stories is awe inspiring. And you are right back then if you couldn't use a sextant you went a sailor. I spell sextant GARMIN lol. Seriously though if you are around Anclote next weekend and staying out at the islands, and need anything let us know. Were planning on going out Sunday to check everything over before our trip.

[mbianka]

Originally Posted by BlackOak

Captain Shelly has had me do many hypothetical "Where's Waldo" scenerios on the charts. I was hopeing to get out today and try to make Anclote Key "N 28° 14 minutes by W 82° 50 minutes" but since Captain Shelly is headed to the Keys in a week, I thought I would just wait and follow her down....well sorta...since her Beneteau travels twice as fast as my Seafarer, I will be following at a distance, and catch her at Anclote Key.

Black Oak:

There is a saying "if you want to make God laugh tell him your dreams". Sounds like God (or insert your favorite omnipotent being or force here) had good laugh shaking you up in the Gulfstream. But, to make up for it he also sent you an angel in the form of Capt. Shelly. Sounds like you've got a great tutor there.

[cwyckham]

One thing about gybing: You say you're having trouble getting across gently like Capt Shelly does. I'd highly, highly recommend you change your technique. Capt Shelly has enough miles under her keel to do it any way she likes, but for the rest of us, this should be the technique for safety's sake:

1) Center boom using mainsheet (so mainsheet is nice and tight) while boat is still on a broad reach.
2) gybe boat to the other broad reach
3) gybe foresails before, after, or during 2) (foresails are pretty safe during a gybe)
4) let out boom nice and easy on new tack (and do up preventer if you're using it)

Totally controlled, totally safe. No reason to fear a gybe.

[GaryMayo]

Originally Posted by BlackOak

Oh, I have pencils, charts, parallel rule, protractor, compass, and Chapman's Piloting & Seamanship hardback. I use those to get my lats, longs, and bearing. Then plug those into the gps, and the bearing into the autopilot and watch my compass. Captain Shelly has had me do many hypothetical "Where's Waldo" scenerios on the charts. I was hopeing to get out today and try to make Anclote Key "N 28° 14 minutes by W 82° 50 minutes" but since Captain Shelly is headed to the Keys in a week, I thought I would just wait and follow her down....well sorta...since her Beneteau travels twice as fast as my Seafarer, I will be following at a distance, and catch her at Anclote Key. We are taking her Beneteau out today for a putt (biker vernacular for a little ride), which I am looking forward to. I will be bringing the camera, so I can post up Capitan Shelly and her boat.

we sat in her boat last night going over her many scrap/photo album. She showed me photos of how she used to do her own bottom jobs by bringing her old Irwin in on the high tide, dropping the anchor, then swinging the boom out port beam and when the tide went out, the boat would slowly heel over, so she could do one side, then rinse repeat for the other side. She showed me photos of the different places she visited in the carrib from back in the 70's. All her sailboats she has owned. There was a Tartan, a couple of Irwins, a mid 80's model Beneteau, and a Dory. She explained to me that there wasnt the electronics back then like today, so sailors had to be SAILORS to go from point A to point B. She used to be a feature writer for the various sailing magazines in the 70's and 80's, and showed me some of her article clippings. She said it was fun to see her name in print. It was a pleasant evening of hearing her tell of her adventures sailing, old photos, and the pot of chili she cooked up was awesome!
PS. my current location is N 28° 53.6 by W 82° 35.8

You are not getting romantically involved with your teacher are you? Lol

When you get to the big B, send me a postcard.

[GaryMayo]

Originally Posted by cwyckham

One thing about gybing: You say you're having trouble getting across gently like Capt Shelly does. I'd highly, highly recommend you change your technique. Capt Shelly has enough miles under her keel to do it any way she likes, but for the rest of us, this should be the technique for safety's sake:

1) Center boom using mainsheet (so mainsheet is nice and tight) while boat is still on a broad reach.
2) gybe boat to the other broad reach
3) gybe foresails before, after, or during 2) (foresails are pretty safe during a gybe)
4) let out boom nice and easy on new tack (and do up preventer if you're using it)

Totally controlled, totally safe. No reason to fear a gybe.

That is common sense for a controlled gybe. It is the sudden unexpected uncontrolled gybes that kill and cripple people. We have one experienced member here still healing up from one of those.

[cwyckham]

Originally Posted by Richard5

Whether he is average I don't know. Perhaps I've hung around a select group for Paragon would likely not pass muster. As it is subjective to say he is average or not, it is just as subjective to say this based after seeing only through a small glass such as the one video afforded. I admit my error. I will try to watch his other videos and with an open, objective mind.

As for manning the boat and camera simultaneously I am reminded of an adage from the aviation world; don't drop the airplane to fly the radio. It is a reminder of priorities. Is camera and helm evidence of true multitasking ability?

I've watched all the videos now, and I think Paragon did a great job. He has a well found boat, and plenty of sea miles. He has the skills. He made a couple of mistakes in the dark in a bad squall while sleep deprived. That doesn't make him a bad guy. He recovered well from those mistakes.

It was a fascinating series to see since you can see the massive effect that his inability to adapt to multiphasic sleep has on him. By the end, after days of extra time and stress towing a disabled boat that had no business being where it was and being damaged by the boat he was rescuing (which couldn't pay for the damages) you can see just how spent he is. And yet he's still hanging on, making sure everybody else is going to be ok before getting himself to Bermuda.

He did a great job under very trying circumstances, I think.

[BlackOak]

You are not getting romantically involved with your teacher are you? Lol
When you get to the big B, send me a postcard.

Not quite, being 15 years my senior an all, but I will tell ya, Capt Shelly was a hottie back in the 70's. Her photos sorta reminded me of Nancy Sinatra @ the 60ish era.

[520eek]

Whats the latest on your adventure Black Oak?

[BlackOak]

Originally Posted by 520eek

Whats the latest on your adventure Black Oak?

Funny you should ask. I am heading out in a couple of hours from Pete's Pier in Crystal River (N 28° 53' 36.6585 W 82° 35' 52.5646)for Anclote Key (N 28° 13' 50.1597 W 82° 50' 5.4749). I will have to go @ 10 miles out before I can start to make my turn because of the mucho foul areas and low water of the western florida coast.

I have been busy here in Crystal River for the last month. Learning to sail, learning how to read a chart, learning how to navigate, and learning more about my boat. I (with the help of Captain Fred, Captain Shelly, and Captain Bill) have made some improvements to my sail rigging. Adjustments to my roller furler on the jib, so now instead of 100% on the jib, I now have 120%. The mainsail wire halyard is now tied off and I have rigged a rope halyard to raise the main. Easier on the hands. I have installed new mainsail slides, and adjusted the shackleing so it doesnt bind when raising or lowering. Re-wired my navigation lights with the help of Skipper Kerry (works at West Marine here and former sailboat owner, now a trawler skipper). I pulled up the soul and checked the bildge area, emptied it, cleaned it and generously poured some Fabuloso lavender scented deoderizer. now my boat smells like a New Orleans CatHouse.

I have provisioned the boat with about 3 months of supplies, so I shouldnt be hungry (Progresso Soups) or thirsty(Mountain Dew's) for a while. My jumps will be roughly 30 miles apart, and I have listed all my "Duck-Ins", with Factory Bay in Marco being my last refueling spot before I head to Marathon, then Morrow pass to Hawks Channel, then Key West. I will be knocking around keys for awhile, then meander up the east coast till May to make my jump to Bermuda.

I am not ashamed to admit, as I sit here and type this, that it is with profound intrepidation that I loose myself from this dock, and head out into the Gulf again. As I think about that, I am headed to the marina's bathhouse for my last HOT shower and the used of a real toilet for awhile. Its funny how the little things in life like a hot shower and taking a dump in a real toilet is the highlite of my day!

[jeanathon]

Good luck and fair winds for the new leg of your journey.