Transit Time? NY-FL

[lancelot9898]

Scoob, looking forward to reading your blog. Are your Canadian friends planning to cross the gulf stream or just stay inside around the cape? It was good to hear that you waited for slack water to enter the OC inlet.

[Delancey]

Originally Posted by bethflkys

Hi, again, scoobert,

Yes, you really do need to double-check everything. I do. My husband's great, knows engines, knows fishing, builds submarines for a living in fact, but he is new to sailing, new to cruising, and so I always am looking around and trying to be alert to things left undone. I used to handle all the lines myself, and coil and stow them while he was at the helm. He took some evening sailing lessons locally last summer, which was a big help to both of us. He can get annoyed when I ask if something routine (such as stowing lines!) was done, but I ask anyway. Or check on it myself. Even when he is totally familiar with this stuff, I will still be double-checking everything. As I hope he will.

You spent two days teaching them EVERYTHING, not just line stowage. That's a lot to absorb in two days. Some things won't sink in for awhile. I hope you don't blow the entire round the world adventure by belittling your crew from the get-go. I don't know if you are old enough to remember Reagan, but the one line I live by is TRUST, BUT VERIFY. It fits so many situations.

Ha, ha. Trust but verify. One of my all time favs!

[tomdidit]

Originally Posted by scoobert

That and i need to break my dogs into the sea.
They were quite sick the first 24 hours out here.
This boat can handle far more then the crew can. Its proven that.

One thing i was correct on is my watch ability.
30+ hours is easy for me. The wife insists ob doing a shift, as does she force her sister. But i dont sleep, every hour i at least get up and check the radar.

Don't put yourself and your family in jeopardy with the long watches. 30 hrs is a long watch in behign conditions, but remember that as the wind and waves build the fatigue grows exponetionally. That is why most have shifts of a much shorter duration.

[SailFastTri]

Originally Posted by scoobert

That and i need to break my dogs into the sea.
They were quite sick the first 24 hours out here.

Dramamine (original formula) is safe for dogs in proper dose. Depending on your dog size, you can divide a pill. Look at the safe human dose for 100 pounds and divide accordingly for your dog's weight.

It's got a bitter taste and they might reject it if you mix it with food, especially if your dog is a slow eater who chews every bite. I find it's best to fold it in cheese or meat. Here's my 1-2 method:
1) give a small taste without the pill, so dog knows what it is
2) give the hidden pill in another small treat, followed immediately (while still swallowing) by a third treat from the other hand.

The first and second must be small enough to swallow without chewing. When the dog sees the third taste coming it will gulp down the second without chewing -- to get the third ASAP. Dogs are stupid gluttons.

[scoobert]

Sitting in an oc dock

[Don1500]

30 hr watches are possible, but not on a 30 day run. Sleep 4, watch 4, work 4(Cook, plot, keep the other watch company) is a good practice. You can go quite a few days like this, and with a crew of 4 it works better, if the crew can be trusted. (I have yet to trust anyone at the helm for more than a few minutes unsupervised on the ICW. They just don't know my boat or the way the bottom can come up and bite you.) I'm sure there are plenty of you sailors that I would trust, but I haven't sailed with you.

Guess when I left the helm to set up the anchor lines.

[scuba0_1]

I always sail because I enjoy it and the company that goes with it. On our boat wet learned together and did it equally. Think about what your projecting to your help if your asked them to come and then don't let them do it. From what I can tell you all have the same experience. Share the responsibility with the crew. It's much more fun and relaxing that way..

[bill352]

Originally Posted by scoobert

Sitting in an oc dock

Which one?

[scoobert]

Sunset

[fjwiley1]

U R doin good Scoobert.......keep a Smilin.......

[johnmcntsh]

Scoot, If you are forced to take the ditch we are in Carolina Beach NC. At the mouth of the Cape Fear river. If you get tired or just need a break from the water I messaged you my phone number.

[evm1024]

Originally Posted by scoobert

So the skipper on a cruise boat checks each item?
Or are people trained to do a job?
Two days i had shown the new crew how to stow lines.
One was ignored.

You can delegate authority but not responsibility Captain.

[bill352]

Originally Posted by scoobert

Sunset

Nice.

[scoobert]

So! Here is the scoop, as our wifi is not working yet.

We came into the inlet in the most dense fog of my life, less then 50' viz. a nightmare.
Depth was fine. I never saw less then 12' at high tide.
No idea why anyone thought i would not make it in?????

Sunset is an awesome marina. Very clean.
Entrence is NOT on charts. I missed it in the fog and ended up in the commercial docks

Engine ran awesome. Changed the fuel filter. Didnt hiccup in over 20 hours.
Will update the blog with photos and all once the wifi is sorted.

[SailFastTri]

Scoob -- Glad you made it, especially considering the fog.

No doubt the crew and the dog needed to get ashore, but most sailors consider it unwise to enter unfamiliar harbors during reduced visibility (e.g fog, after dark, heavy rain/snow). Much better to hold off entering until improved visibility makes it safer.

Missing the entrance to Sunset Marina is an example of things gone wrong due to the visibility issue. Contrary to your statement, it is on the NOAA charts. This time you're OK but it could have endangered the crew and cost you the boat.

BTW you wrote at one time that you'd never get AIS. I bet you would have liked to have it in that dense fog.