CHICAGO, IL USA
So it isn't officially the 365th day, but I think that happened awhile ago, and I must have been off on my math throughout the past year (what a surprise).
The final blog post comes a little by force, but it needs to be done.
Exactly one year ago today Sound Waves pulled back from the docks and headed south. I would have been sitting in Hammond, IN tonight, anticipating tomorrows arrival to the rivers that would eventually lead us to Florida and the Gulf of Mexico.
First off I have to say that the previous 365 days of my life have gone by way too fast. I have seen some cool places, and learned a lot. Most of all, I have met so many cool people that I will never forget. From my yachting friends in Chicago, to the rivers, to Florida, to the Bahamas and back again. After you sit somewhere for awhile you become more than a tourist, you start to blend in. Specifically, Chicago, Sarasota, Key West, Ft. Lauderdale, and Staniel Cay.
What is the next step? Well no one really knows. With no boat heading south this winter, I plan to head to Europe for three weeks with Jessie. After that, the gates are wide open. Do I stay in the yachting industry? Do I go back to my engineering degree? Do I hang out all winter and wait for next spring and the 2012 Great Lakes cruising season? Or do I win the lottery? I am banking on the final option, so we will see what happens.
What an experience, it is something I will never forget and now will always have to look back on. For now, base camp is again Chicago, and I would be lying if I said I didn't love it here. Looking back, I'll never forget loosing the sky line on the horizon, clearing in to the muddy waters of the rivers and motoring under the chicago skyway as we pointed south, the locks of the rivers, and amazing small towns we saw on the way. From Henry Illinois to Bobbie's Fish Camp in (Mississippi/Alabama) all the way to wild wild Key West and into the crystal clear waters of the Bahamas. Spear fishing with Big Ben and Bushman and endless nights at the staniel cay yacht club. Sailing in a Bahamian Regatta and ending it all in a heartbeat as the wheels lift off the run way in Great Exuma. Cruising the Great Lakes, and seeing some of the most beautiful spots America has to offer.
365 days and a lifetime, the only question now, what adventure is next? Well... I guess I know that answer... three weeks in Europe!!
This is Captain Eric Adamczyk
Over and OUT
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Day 290 - 310: Sorry!
CHICAGO, IL USA
Well I dropped the ball on this blog, I'm sorry! Lets just start off from where we left off shall we?
After the dune buggy rides in Pentwater I had the boat running and ready to leave the docks. We took off for Grand Haven and hoped that we would be able to find a spot on the wall. It was another beautiful day and the seas were fairly calm. Once outside of Grand Haven we got word that there was still some room on the wall so we tried our hand at fishing.....absolutely no luck at all. Salt water fishing is a bit friendlier to cruising because we troll at 7 knots or so. This way we can still make a little way. Freshwater fishing is different. We have to troll at about 2 knots, which means we aren't going anywhere while we fish. After about an hour we heard that the wall was in fact filling up so we decided to get in to port. Its always fun to dock on the wall (or completely annoying) in Grand Haven because everyone walking down the "boardwalk" wants to help grab the lines for this 90 foot boat. That night was fun in Grand Haven but it would be short lived as the following morning we left for Saugatuck....evil Saugatuck.
Venetian festival was going on in Saugatuck and it was packed. The river was jammed with small boats, big boats, dinghies, and kayaks. It was happy hour and I was on highest alert as I maneuvered up the river. Our slip was still occupied when we showed up but the boat was in the process of pulling out. As I was sitting in the middle of the river doing my best to stay in one spot and stay out of the way a Michigan Conservation Officer came up behind us. It was a busy river, there were boats everywhere so I ignored him. No sooner an officer showed himself on the fly bridge, asking for the captain. The spark of anger began. Not only did an officer board the vessel I was in command of without asking permission, but he had his nice big black soled boots on as well. They are lucky I didn't put the boat in reverse because I would have backed right in to there boat. He demanded that I show him the ships papers and our registration numbers and I advised him that we are a documented vessel with the U.S.C.G. and need not display numbers. He asked me again and I simply stated that I would not continue any conversation until I deemed the vessel in a safe location. I told him that I would be more than happy to turn over command of the vessel to him while I retrieved the ships documents and that anything that happened while under his command was his responsibility. Well being that these two officers could barely handle their 20 foot fishing boat he respectfully declined my offer. He said that we could wait until we got the boat in to the slip. A few seconds went by, I turned around to him and asked that he disembark this vessel while we dock. At this point I think I had him on his heels to say the least, as he scurried down to the aft swim platform and called on his fellow officer quickly. Once at the dock he asked for my license and ships papers. I presented him both. He stated "I don't know what this is, I need your drivers license."
"Sir that is a United States Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Credential."
"Well I'm not sure what it is, drivers license please."
"We aren't in a car sir, I don't believe a police officer would ask for my pilots license if I were driving a car."
....The guy was an idiot and to make a long story a bit shorter there were no tickets given to me or the vessel. Just a good way to get Captain Eric all fired up for a few hours thats all.
Saugatuck was....well what you would expect Saugatuck to be....crazy. It was a good three nights of fun and I even got to play some golf with my girlfriends parents which was very nice. My girlfriend came home for the weekend (She is from Saugatuck) and it was nice to see her as well.
Tuesday morning came all to fast and the summer trip came to an end as I cleared the pier of the Kalamazoo River and put the bow on Chicago. Some eight hours later the skyline appeared in a hazy fog and just as soon as it began, it was over. The owner greeted us at the dock and before I knew it the boat was empty again.
The following day the owners daughter brought in four cleaning ladies and they did a number on the inside of the boat. For eight hours they cleaned, scrubbed, organized, polished, and the boat looked the best it has ever looked. I can not say thank you enough to the owners daughter for pitching in and bringing in that service, what a life saver!
The last two weeks have been slow, and small projects here and there get completed, but for the most part the boat is in great shape. The Air and Water Show is this weekend and Chicago as I anticipate guests for the weekend. The Jets have been flying over the last few days practicing and it is always amazing to me that anyone would ever want to put up a fight against us. Why would you ever try and defeat that? The summer will be drawing to a close all too quickly, but I plan to keep the blog up and running for awhile anyways as a trip to Europe is penciled in for late October. I am debating keeping a separate blog or just continuing this one. If I do start another one I will be sure to post the link on here for everyone to see! Until then, I am sorry I have not been posting but will try and do a better job in the future!
Bonita Out
Well I dropped the ball on this blog, I'm sorry! Lets just start off from where we left off shall we?
After the dune buggy rides in Pentwater I had the boat running and ready to leave the docks. We took off for Grand Haven and hoped that we would be able to find a spot on the wall. It was another beautiful day and the seas were fairly calm. Once outside of Grand Haven we got word that there was still some room on the wall so we tried our hand at fishing.....absolutely no luck at all. Salt water fishing is a bit friendlier to cruising because we troll at 7 knots or so. This way we can still make a little way. Freshwater fishing is different. We have to troll at about 2 knots, which means we aren't going anywhere while we fish. After about an hour we heard that the wall was in fact filling up so we decided to get in to port. Its always fun to dock on the wall (or completely annoying) in Grand Haven because everyone walking down the "boardwalk" wants to help grab the lines for this 90 foot boat. That night was fun in Grand Haven but it would be short lived as the following morning we left for Saugatuck....evil Saugatuck.
Venetian festival was going on in Saugatuck and it was packed. The river was jammed with small boats, big boats, dinghies, and kayaks. It was happy hour and I was on highest alert as I maneuvered up the river. Our slip was still occupied when we showed up but the boat was in the process of pulling out. As I was sitting in the middle of the river doing my best to stay in one spot and stay out of the way a Michigan Conservation Officer came up behind us. It was a busy river, there were boats everywhere so I ignored him. No sooner an officer showed himself on the fly bridge, asking for the captain. The spark of anger began. Not only did an officer board the vessel I was in command of without asking permission, but he had his nice big black soled boots on as well. They are lucky I didn't put the boat in reverse because I would have backed right in to there boat. He demanded that I show him the ships papers and our registration numbers and I advised him that we are a documented vessel with the U.S.C.G. and need not display numbers. He asked me again and I simply stated that I would not continue any conversation until I deemed the vessel in a safe location. I told him that I would be more than happy to turn over command of the vessel to him while I retrieved the ships documents and that anything that happened while under his command was his responsibility. Well being that these two officers could barely handle their 20 foot fishing boat he respectfully declined my offer. He said that we could wait until we got the boat in to the slip. A few seconds went by, I turned around to him and asked that he disembark this vessel while we dock. At this point I think I had him on his heels to say the least, as he scurried down to the aft swim platform and called on his fellow officer quickly. Once at the dock he asked for my license and ships papers. I presented him both. He stated "I don't know what this is, I need your drivers license."
"Sir that is a United States Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Credential."
"Well I'm not sure what it is, drivers license please."
"We aren't in a car sir, I don't believe a police officer would ask for my pilots license if I were driving a car."
....The guy was an idiot and to make a long story a bit shorter there were no tickets given to me or the vessel. Just a good way to get Captain Eric all fired up for a few hours thats all.
Saugatuck was....well what you would expect Saugatuck to be....crazy. It was a good three nights of fun and I even got to play some golf with my girlfriends parents which was very nice. My girlfriend came home for the weekend (She is from Saugatuck) and it was nice to see her as well.
Tuesday morning came all to fast and the summer trip came to an end as I cleared the pier of the Kalamazoo River and put the bow on Chicago. Some eight hours later the skyline appeared in a hazy fog and just as soon as it began, it was over. The owner greeted us at the dock and before I knew it the boat was empty again.
The following day the owners daughter brought in four cleaning ladies and they did a number on the inside of the boat. For eight hours they cleaned, scrubbed, organized, polished, and the boat looked the best it has ever looked. I can not say thank you enough to the owners daughter for pitching in and bringing in that service, what a life saver!
The last two weeks have been slow, and small projects here and there get completed, but for the most part the boat is in great shape. The Air and Water Show is this weekend and Chicago as I anticipate guests for the weekend. The Jets have been flying over the last few days practicing and it is always amazing to me that anyone would ever want to put up a fight against us. Why would you ever try and defeat that? The summer will be drawing to a close all too quickly, but I plan to keep the blog up and running for awhile anyways as a trip to Europe is penciled in for late October. I am debating keeping a separate blog or just continuing this one. If I do start another one I will be sure to post the link on here for everyone to see! Until then, I am sorry I have not been posting but will try and do a better job in the future!
Bonita Out
Friday, July 29, 2011
Day 285- 289: Loud Noises!!!!!
PENTWATER, MI USA
Well the peace and quiet came to a screeching halt on Monday morning. It all started with the sound of the jets wheels hitting the runway. The owners daughter, her husband, and their four young kids sprung out of the airplane like there was a fire on board. They enjoyed the afternoon on the boat with the owner before the owner and his wife took off out of harbor springs to head back to Chicago. We stayed in Harbor Springs for another day and I had the opportunity to finally get away for a few hours and play a round of golf. One of the guests and I played at True North, which was a nice course. We took the two younger boys along as our "caddies". Their interest came and left as they learned a bit here and there about golf etiquette. I didn't play very well but I didn't care, I was away from the boat and golfing at this beautiful course. After golf I had to find a way to get the rental car back to Petoskey because we were leaving early in the morning for the next port. Good friend Mark Palma was in town delivering a far 40 sailboat called Heart Breaker. I called him and he had access to a car and could come pick me up at the rental company. He also needed a ride in to shore as his boat was on a mooring ball so we ended up helping each other out. That is the great thing about this family of yacht crew around the world. I moved the boat for him earlier in the week when he wasn't here, he picked me up at the rental car place 20 minutes away, and neither of us thought twice about helping each other out. It's amazing at how often we run into fellow crew in different ports and its great to have someone there that will pitch in and help if you need it.
We ended up waiting for the fuel dock to open on Wednesday so that we could get a pump out before leaving for Frankfort. It was around 0930 by the time we got away from the dock. It was a bit of a gloomy day but the seas were flat. I knew this would probably be changing throughout the day though as we went further south. Just after Charlevoix we passed Mark on Heart Breaker (now called Heritage). He was turned to weather and working on putting up a headsail in an attempt to squeeze out an extra knot or two. The closer we got to Frankfort the bigger the waves got and by the time we were on our final approach the waves were 1-3 on the nose. I figured there was a good chance that we would be seeing Mark in Frankfort later in the day considering making way in a sailboat would get harder and harder with the waves on the bow. Sure enough he showed up around 2030. I laid low in Frankfort and tried to relax a little bit, but sure enough I was brought out of my nap being poked by a plastic sword....it was going to be a long week.
We left for Pentwater on Thursday around noon and even though it was a gloomy foggy ride the seas were flat. Mark left in front of us again, but with the fog we never saw him. I somehow found myself on the Lake Michigan highway as I was changing course every two miles to avoid a collision. The log book was full of "1144 Confirm Collision course via radar at 354R unknown vessel. 1146 sound one whistle, assume no answer, turn 020R to avoid collision. 1147 Clear s/v to port steer 340R b.o.c C204M" This happened about 8 times. It looks as if we have some bad fuel in the port side tank. I have spent time in the engine room twice now, draining the racors of sledge. The filters look fine, but there is definitely bad fuel being sent through. I assumed this may happen as we just transferred old fuel from the aft tanks. We should be able to get by without polishing the tanks but I will certainly be keeping a close eye on the situation.
Now as I sit here in Pentwater we are on the verge of absolute chaos on board. Two of the boys are yelling back and forth about how easy it is to cut a waffle as the younger one yells continuously for his mom. Mom yells down the stairs trying to rally the girls and they yell back that they don't want to go on a dune buggy ride. It's more fun to sit in their room all day and play games on the iPad. The logistics are an absolute nightmare and I simply stay out of everything. I could tell you how far it is to every port south of here as I constantly get asked as they try and decide how long they actually want to be on the water today. 36 nm to Muskegon, 47 nm to Grand Haven, another 17 nm to Holland from there or 22 nm to Saugatuck from Grand Haven.....all from memory by now. Where do we go today? Who knows, hopefully Grand Haven but the longer we wait the more and more the wall will fill up on a Friday night, and with no room at the municipal marina its all a big gamble... giddy up.
Peace and quiet again as they all leave to go for a dune buggy ride at Silver Lake. The washing machine churns away and banana nut bread coffee fills the air. I hear the leaves from the trees outside in the wind as the boat rocks back in forth gently tucked up against a wall. This feeling will come to an end all too soon, replaced by kids fighting over who gets to play with a rubber band, crying by the one who looses the fight, and an argument over who played with it last time. Let me enjoy the first part of this paragraph as long as I can!
Bonita Out
Well the peace and quiet came to a screeching halt on Monday morning. It all started with the sound of the jets wheels hitting the runway. The owners daughter, her husband, and their four young kids sprung out of the airplane like there was a fire on board. They enjoyed the afternoon on the boat with the owner before the owner and his wife took off out of harbor springs to head back to Chicago. We stayed in Harbor Springs for another day and I had the opportunity to finally get away for a few hours and play a round of golf. One of the guests and I played at True North, which was a nice course. We took the two younger boys along as our "caddies". Their interest came and left as they learned a bit here and there about golf etiquette. I didn't play very well but I didn't care, I was away from the boat and golfing at this beautiful course. After golf I had to find a way to get the rental car back to Petoskey because we were leaving early in the morning for the next port. Good friend Mark Palma was in town delivering a far 40 sailboat called Heart Breaker. I called him and he had access to a car and could come pick me up at the rental company. He also needed a ride in to shore as his boat was on a mooring ball so we ended up helping each other out. That is the great thing about this family of yacht crew around the world. I moved the boat for him earlier in the week when he wasn't here, he picked me up at the rental car place 20 minutes away, and neither of us thought twice about helping each other out. It's amazing at how often we run into fellow crew in different ports and its great to have someone there that will pitch in and help if you need it.
We ended up waiting for the fuel dock to open on Wednesday so that we could get a pump out before leaving for Frankfort. It was around 0930 by the time we got away from the dock. It was a bit of a gloomy day but the seas were flat. I knew this would probably be changing throughout the day though as we went further south. Just after Charlevoix we passed Mark on Heart Breaker (now called Heritage). He was turned to weather and working on putting up a headsail in an attempt to squeeze out an extra knot or two. The closer we got to Frankfort the bigger the waves got and by the time we were on our final approach the waves were 1-3 on the nose. I figured there was a good chance that we would be seeing Mark in Frankfort later in the day considering making way in a sailboat would get harder and harder with the waves on the bow. Sure enough he showed up around 2030. I laid low in Frankfort and tried to relax a little bit, but sure enough I was brought out of my nap being poked by a plastic sword....it was going to be a long week.
We left for Pentwater on Thursday around noon and even though it was a gloomy foggy ride the seas were flat. Mark left in front of us again, but with the fog we never saw him. I somehow found myself on the Lake Michigan highway as I was changing course every two miles to avoid a collision. The log book was full of "1144 Confirm Collision course via radar at 354R unknown vessel. 1146 sound one whistle, assume no answer, turn 020R to avoid collision. 1147 Clear s/v to port steer 340R b.o.c C204M" This happened about 8 times. It looks as if we have some bad fuel in the port side tank. I have spent time in the engine room twice now, draining the racors of sledge. The filters look fine, but there is definitely bad fuel being sent through. I assumed this may happen as we just transferred old fuel from the aft tanks. We should be able to get by without polishing the tanks but I will certainly be keeping a close eye on the situation.
Now as I sit here in Pentwater we are on the verge of absolute chaos on board. Two of the boys are yelling back and forth about how easy it is to cut a waffle as the younger one yells continuously for his mom. Mom yells down the stairs trying to rally the girls and they yell back that they don't want to go on a dune buggy ride. It's more fun to sit in their room all day and play games on the iPad. The logistics are an absolute nightmare and I simply stay out of everything. I could tell you how far it is to every port south of here as I constantly get asked as they try and decide how long they actually want to be on the water today. 36 nm to Muskegon, 47 nm to Grand Haven, another 17 nm to Holland from there or 22 nm to Saugatuck from Grand Haven.....all from memory by now. Where do we go today? Who knows, hopefully Grand Haven but the longer we wait the more and more the wall will fill up on a Friday night, and with no room at the municipal marina its all a big gamble... giddy up.
Peace and quiet again as they all leave to go for a dune buggy ride at Silver Lake. The washing machine churns away and banana nut bread coffee fills the air. I hear the leaves from the trees outside in the wind as the boat rocks back in forth gently tucked up against a wall. This feeling will come to an end all too soon, replaced by kids fighting over who gets to play with a rubber band, crying by the one who looses the fight, and an argument over who played with it last time. Let me enjoy the first part of this paragraph as long as I can!
Bonita Out
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Day 277 - 284: Peace and Projects
HARBOR SPRINGS, MI USA
When I woke up Sunday morning in Fish Creek our toilets weren't flushing. We knew that we were going to be close but thought we could make it to Michigan before we got a pump out. With that being said we decided to wait until the marina at Fish Creek opened up at 0800 so we could get a pump out. By the time I got the dockhands to get their butts in gear to give us a pump out we got off the dock around 0900. We were off the dock and motoring away before the dockhand could coil up the pump out hose on the dock.
We idled for a lot of the trip and it wasn't until we were well out in to Lake Michigan that I picked up the speed in an attempt to give us a smoother ride. The waves kept building, as I knew they would and as we reached the location where I predicted them to be the largest we were seeing 2-3 footers. No big deal right? Well they were hitting us a bit aft of the beam which was not helping. Also, the stabilizer fins are very far forward on this boat, and the hull seems to be relatively flat for its size. The boat tends to skip across the water like an empty clorox bottle. A few times the boat heeled up as it would pitch and yaw and finally did so in a manner that I had to reach for the wheel, disable the autopilot and turn hard to starboard. I think it scared the owner a bit as he retired to the salon. I decided to hand steer for the remainder of the trip, or at least until it calmed down. I played the waves and adjusted the speed of the boat for comfort not fuel efficiency. We finally caught a little lee from north Manitou Island and while the island caused the swell to wrap around more to our stern it still broke up much of the chop. The rest of the ride in to Bay Harbor was uneventful as we only spotted a few Chicago to Mackinac race boats.
Bay Harbor is proper, stuffy, and ....boring, for the most part. It is a very nice facility with not much to do. That night I noticed lightning off on the horizon and decided it would be best to cover all of the seats. While laying in bed around 0030 the storm finally hit. It was a good storm with tons of lightning and 50-60 knots of wind. All I could think about were the sailors out on Lake Michigan participating in the Chicago to Mackinac race. I had family out there and while I sat snug on the dock in the protected marina of Bay Harbor I suddenly started to feel a bit helpless. I've always had respect for the sea and my bosses will tell you that I am a very conservative captain. I can't say that I have ever been afraid of the sea, I've simply always held an upmost respect to it. I couldn't sleep. My mind was racing, I found myself checking docklines over and over even though I knew everything was holding on fine. The next morning I checked the news and found that a sailboat had capsized and two of the eight crew were still missing. I couldn't get a hold of any of my uncles in the race but when I didn't recognize the name of the boat it brought a bit of ease to my mind. I still found myself getting a bit worked up about the whole situation. I was scared. I had an emotional gut wrench twisting away at my stomach and a walnut growing in my throat. Literally four hours before the storm capsized this boat I grabbed the wheel of Bonita, disengaged the autopilot and was forced to turn hard to starboard....in the same exact location of the sailboat accident. I sat there in the harbor and watched the exact storm that claimed the lives of two sailors. I finally got to talk to my uncles and found out that they were O.K. but I still was just a little bit freaked out. I don't know why, and I still can't explain my feelings. Some tell me that I must now have more respect, but I've always had a ton of respect. I believe that there is a difference between having respect for the sea and being scared. I was scared. It still does freak me out when I think about it, and I don't know why. It was the storm that rubbed me the wrong way and I hope that it does not affect my decision making next time I am approaching a storm while on the water.
We spent a few days in Bay Harbor and I even managed to sneak away to the driving range one evening to hit some balls. On Wednesday we left for our long 4 mile journey across Little Traverse Bay to Harbor Springs. The boat that was in our spot had told Mike, the Harbor Master, that they would be leaving at 1000. They were still at the dock when we pulled up at 1015. With a storm approaching I knew that they most definitely would not be leaving anytime soon. I decided to tuck the boat up in to the bay as far as we could and leave the engines on and anchor up for the storm. I wanted to tuck in close to shore and not have to worry about getting a wind shift if the anchor was down. Thankfully the storm did not bring much wind, just a lot of rain and lightning. It was over in about 10 minutes. I got word that the boat sitting at our dock space was having car troubles and would not be off the dock until later in the afternoon. I spun the boat around in the bay, dropped the anchor, turned off the engines, and advised everyone to relax and enjoy the beautiful sites. They did just that while having lunch.
The bay was silent. There was not a breath of wind or a single ripple on the water. Lightning strikes could still be seen off to the east as the storm pushed further in land. The sun was already working its way back out from behind the clouds as it cranked up the heat and humidity. You could slice the air with a knife as the temperature went from 80 to 90 to 100. It was beautiful out as the town came back alive after its brief storm.
We finally got in to the dock and shortly after the owners son and girlfriend left to head home. It was now just me, the owner and his wife on board which was an even more silent relief. It gave me time to get a lot of projects done and really clean up the boat and get it back in order.
The owner and his wife invited me out to dinner one night and we went to the dam site inn which had a great family, home cooked, chicken dinner.
I got to hang out with my Uncle David a few nights and had a fun night at the bar last night with cousin Ryan. Today, Sunday, has been very gloomy and town has been quiet. It has been raining on and off and my project list has slowed for today anyway. Tomorrow I again shift gears as the owners daughter and her four small kids head back up to be on the boat with me until Chicago. Let the games begin.
I hope to have the boat back to Chicago around August 1st or shortly there after. With only a few more stops on the Michigan side I can not believe that July is already almost over. More so, I can not believe that I am posting day 284. Only 76 more days until my 365 days of blogging is over.
Bonita Out
When I woke up Sunday morning in Fish Creek our toilets weren't flushing. We knew that we were going to be close but thought we could make it to Michigan before we got a pump out. With that being said we decided to wait until the marina at Fish Creek opened up at 0800 so we could get a pump out. By the time I got the dockhands to get their butts in gear to give us a pump out we got off the dock around 0900. We were off the dock and motoring away before the dockhand could coil up the pump out hose on the dock.
We idled for a lot of the trip and it wasn't until we were well out in to Lake Michigan that I picked up the speed in an attempt to give us a smoother ride. The waves kept building, as I knew they would and as we reached the location where I predicted them to be the largest we were seeing 2-3 footers. No big deal right? Well they were hitting us a bit aft of the beam which was not helping. Also, the stabilizer fins are very far forward on this boat, and the hull seems to be relatively flat for its size. The boat tends to skip across the water like an empty clorox bottle. A few times the boat heeled up as it would pitch and yaw and finally did so in a manner that I had to reach for the wheel, disable the autopilot and turn hard to starboard. I think it scared the owner a bit as he retired to the salon. I decided to hand steer for the remainder of the trip, or at least until it calmed down. I played the waves and adjusted the speed of the boat for comfort not fuel efficiency. We finally caught a little lee from north Manitou Island and while the island caused the swell to wrap around more to our stern it still broke up much of the chop. The rest of the ride in to Bay Harbor was uneventful as we only spotted a few Chicago to Mackinac race boats.
Bay Harbor is proper, stuffy, and ....boring, for the most part. It is a very nice facility with not much to do. That night I noticed lightning off on the horizon and decided it would be best to cover all of the seats. While laying in bed around 0030 the storm finally hit. It was a good storm with tons of lightning and 50-60 knots of wind. All I could think about were the sailors out on Lake Michigan participating in the Chicago to Mackinac race. I had family out there and while I sat snug on the dock in the protected marina of Bay Harbor I suddenly started to feel a bit helpless. I've always had respect for the sea and my bosses will tell you that I am a very conservative captain. I can't say that I have ever been afraid of the sea, I've simply always held an upmost respect to it. I couldn't sleep. My mind was racing, I found myself checking docklines over and over even though I knew everything was holding on fine. The next morning I checked the news and found that a sailboat had capsized and two of the eight crew were still missing. I couldn't get a hold of any of my uncles in the race but when I didn't recognize the name of the boat it brought a bit of ease to my mind. I still found myself getting a bit worked up about the whole situation. I was scared. I had an emotional gut wrench twisting away at my stomach and a walnut growing in my throat. Literally four hours before the storm capsized this boat I grabbed the wheel of Bonita, disengaged the autopilot and was forced to turn hard to starboard....in the same exact location of the sailboat accident. I sat there in the harbor and watched the exact storm that claimed the lives of two sailors. I finally got to talk to my uncles and found out that they were O.K. but I still was just a little bit freaked out. I don't know why, and I still can't explain my feelings. Some tell me that I must now have more respect, but I've always had a ton of respect. I believe that there is a difference between having respect for the sea and being scared. I was scared. It still does freak me out when I think about it, and I don't know why. It was the storm that rubbed me the wrong way and I hope that it does not affect my decision making next time I am approaching a storm while on the water.
We spent a few days in Bay Harbor and I even managed to sneak away to the driving range one evening to hit some balls. On Wednesday we left for our long 4 mile journey across Little Traverse Bay to Harbor Springs. The boat that was in our spot had told Mike, the Harbor Master, that they would be leaving at 1000. They were still at the dock when we pulled up at 1015. With a storm approaching I knew that they most definitely would not be leaving anytime soon. I decided to tuck the boat up in to the bay as far as we could and leave the engines on and anchor up for the storm. I wanted to tuck in close to shore and not have to worry about getting a wind shift if the anchor was down. Thankfully the storm did not bring much wind, just a lot of rain and lightning. It was over in about 10 minutes. I got word that the boat sitting at our dock space was having car troubles and would not be off the dock until later in the afternoon. I spun the boat around in the bay, dropped the anchor, turned off the engines, and advised everyone to relax and enjoy the beautiful sites. They did just that while having lunch.
The bay was silent. There was not a breath of wind or a single ripple on the water. Lightning strikes could still be seen off to the east as the storm pushed further in land. The sun was already working its way back out from behind the clouds as it cranked up the heat and humidity. You could slice the air with a knife as the temperature went from 80 to 90 to 100. It was beautiful out as the town came back alive after its brief storm.
We finally got in to the dock and shortly after the owners son and girlfriend left to head home. It was now just me, the owner and his wife on board which was an even more silent relief. It gave me time to get a lot of projects done and really clean up the boat and get it back in order.
The owner and his wife invited me out to dinner one night and we went to the dam site inn which had a great family, home cooked, chicken dinner.
I got to hang out with my Uncle David a few nights and had a fun night at the bar last night with cousin Ryan. Today, Sunday, has been very gloomy and town has been quiet. It has been raining on and off and my project list has slowed for today anyway. Tomorrow I again shift gears as the owners daughter and her four small kids head back up to be on the boat with me until Chicago. Let the games begin.
I hope to have the boat back to Chicago around August 1st or shortly there after. With only a few more stops on the Michigan side I can not believe that July is already almost over. More so, I can not believe that I am posting day 284. Only 76 more days until my 365 days of blogging is over.
Bonita Out
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Day 242 - 276: Summer Trip
FISH CREEK, WISCONSIN USA
Wow, I almost forgot that I even was still keeping a blog. While back in Chicago everything got away from me. A new rhythm, a slower pace of guests on board, and less movement of the boat and I completely forgot to keep writing. Looking back to the last blog post I realize that I have a lot to catch up on.
I did end up asking for a completely new hydraulic pump from Naiad Dynamics in Ft. Lauderdale. For some reason, they thought that something else was still the issue and it wasn't the entire pump. I know they are the experts but I don't know how they could think that. Shortly after receiving the pump I could not put it in. The owners daughter caught the bug for being on the boat and was down with a different set of friends everyday for about a week and a half. I didn't get anything done in terms of projects and most of my time was spent keeping up with making sure the inside of the boat did not turn in to a total disaster. I finally had to let her know that I needed to complete some projects as the summer trip was nearing closer and closer and would not be able to play stew each and everyday.
The hydraulic pump change went very well other than the fact that I chased a tool around town for a couple of hours. I needed an over standard allen wrench and no one seemed to carry them. I am finished with going to Home Depot. Every time I go there the products get worse and worse. I found a great hardware store in the city called Clark and Barlow. They had everything. After the pump got changed everything seemed to check out and the project could finally be closed after about a year. I think I mentioned this project in my first few blog posts.
So besides having the owners daughter and her assortment of guests down to the boat almost every day and the hydraulic pump problem, the summer was fairly quiet up until July 8th when we pulled away from the dock for our annual summer trip around Lake Michigan. The streak continued as I had the owners on board along with his daughter, her husband, and their four kids....the young kind with endless amounts of energy and demands. Don't get me wrong I have a blast with the kids and I'd like to think that they enjoy spending the time with me, but when it's all said and done the piece and quiet is great. On that note, I'm just going to say sorry to my mom and dad for being so obnoxious as a kid :-).
We left Chicago at 0500 in the morning for Milwaukee and ran about 10 knots until Racine Reef where we ran it up to 18 knots. It was the Chicago Power Squadron Rendezvous, and as always it was a circus show at the docks and after about 45 minutes everyone decided where they wanted to go, we changed slips twice, and were finally settled in. It took another 15 minutes of everyone deciding if they wanted the boat two feet forward or two feet back and finally I just starting making the lines. My biggest pet peeve hands down in my job is peoples attitudes while we dock the boat. The owner and I are a great team when it is just the two of us. It's when other people come in to the picture that confusion starts to set in. The owner asked me to sit down and have a talk about the issue and I gladly agreed and was thrilled that he asked. All too often someone shows up on the dock to help catch a line, which is great, we appreciate the help. All too often that person that shows up to help wants to be in charge. I often hear them giving commands, letting the person driving the boat (whether it is me or the owner) know how horrible of a job they are doing. They like to tell my deck crew and me how to tie up the boat. For all who read this I tell you this: If you are on the dock then please be quiet (to be politically correct). First off, my deck crew is rarely experienced yacht crew and is nothing more than some guests on board, so we don't need to add confusion there. Secondly, the person driving the boat is focusing and someone on the dock telling them what to do will just break their concentration. The only verbal actions that the person driving the boat should receive are distances and relays of the boats position, i.e. "six feet to stern, or 15 feet off the beam mind your bow." Thirdly, and most nagging to me is how stupid everyone looks when they are yelling back and forth. My dad and I used to sit on his boat and watch people come in to the docks just laughing. "Look at how stupid these people look". We kind of hoped that they would hit the dock, doesn't everyone? It's like watching Nascar, its boring unless you see a crash. With that being said I cannot emphasize enough that everything should be silent while docking. We don't need someone yelling the full length of a ninety foot boat, it just looks stupid. The owner and I discussed all of these issues and agreed, so hopefully things will quiet down around the dock for the rest of the summer.
I went out with the captain of Plane to Sea on Friday night and it was cool to see some of the city. Summer fest was going on in Milwaukee but I never got down there to check it out. We left around 1000 on Sunday for Sheboygan and ran slow the entire way. It was only about a 40nm run so it wasn't too bad. The owner and a guest invited me to play golf with them at Blackwolf run in Kohler, the home of the 2012 women's open. I was thrilled, and super excited. Our tee time was set for 1040 on Monday. At 0520 Monday morning I woke up to a little rain on the window. I was mad because I forgot to cover the aft deck seats. I glanced at the radar and shot out of bed. The seats were the least of my worries, we were under a severe thunderstorm warning and it was bad. I got some shorts on and threw my foul weather jacket over my bare back...no time for t-shirts. It was quiet in my quarters and other than some rain drops I thought I was going to beat the storm. I opened the aft hatch and found that I was wrong. Wind was whipping down the river and right in to my face, the rain was pounding down and I was instantly soaked to the bone. The morning chill had me shivering in no time. The lightning and thunder had already arrived and I knew it wasn't safe to stay outside long. Being that I'm a fairly responsible captain :-) the boat was already secured very well and other than one or two things on the table I was able to get back inside quick. It was a bad storm but everything went well. Something very close by got struck by lightning and I'm just glad it wasn't us.
Unfortunately that storm ruined my hopes for golfing. We did however go hit balls at the range at Blackwolf run and the course was absolutely stunning. One of the owners guests is a very good golfer and he gave me a few tips that really helped my swing. I did forget to mention that I did end up buying new clubs. I got a swing analysis and was fitted for Mizuno JPX 800-pro with project X 6.0 shafts (extra stiff). I am still getting used to them a little bit but really love them. It was hard not to play the course and I drove away from the range with a bit of a tear in my eye....next time.
The owner decided he was done with Sheboygan despite having two more nights on our reservation. Not only was he in a hurry to get out of Sheboygan but he was in a hurry to get to Sturgeon Bay, our next stop. He asked if I would be O.K. with running at night, you know, like the cruise ships do, then we don't have to waste a day on the water. I told him I was fine with it as long as I got to sleep before and after the trip. With that being said I went straight to bed. I got up around 2300 hours and got the boat ready. We were off the dock by midnight and underway. It was clear, cold, and calm...perfect conditions. One of the owners guests came up and sat with me until about 0300. I refused to drive from the pilot house because I knew the quiet, calm, warm air would instantly put me to sleep. The fly bridge was cold, and I had two coats on but it kept me awake. To my surprise the owner came up around 0300 and I gave relief to his guest to head to sleep. The owner stayed with me for awhile but soon retired to the warmth of the pilot house and salon below. I caught a beautiful sunrise as we steamed north at 10 knots through a glass calm Lake Michigan. We arrived in Sturgeon Bay around 0745 and as soon as we were secure I went to bed.
Sturgeon Bay was O.K., the marina is very nice and the family that runs it is wonderful. I never left the marina other than to pick up a rental car before we left for Fish Creek. The logistics of getting the owners daughter and her family home were a nightmare and I have clearly taken the position of staying completely out of logistics battles. Let me know what you decide and I will do it...after it changes four more times. We rented a car and had a guest drive it north to Fish Creek, our next stop, and my favorite on the Wisconsin side. Again we were way ahead of schedule and leaving Sturgeon Bay after only one night. Luckily all of the marinas could accommodate us despite our early arrivals. The cruise up to Fish Creek is a beautiful one, and a short one. It was only two hours at 10 knots.
Fish Creek is a small little town tucked under a bluff, protected by a small harbor. A small mooring field scatters the inner waters of the harbor as sailboats bob slightly and tug on their mooring lines. Its door county at its finest.
Now as I sit here in the galley the sun has come up on another beautiful, but cooler, Wisconsin day. The forecast is calling for more heat however as the sun works its way higher and higher in to the sky. The owners daughter has left with her kids and a quieter group, the owners son and his girlfriend, are now on board. The dishwasher hums away and the coffee maker clicks back on to warm up today's pot that was brewed 3 hours ago at 0600 sharp. The boat is quiet and other than some soft conversation coming from the salon the air is still and peaceful. The hum of a diesel engine echos against the hull as the Fish Creek tour boat heads out in to the lake, taking another group of tourist for a spin around the sights. A stroll through town early this morning, on the hunt for todays newspaper, was about a tranquil as they get. Loud kids screaming for ice cream, and tourists on every corner were still snug in their beds. Most shops weren't even open yet as I patiently waited for the Fish Creek Market to open at 0800. My newspaper teased me in the window front as 0801 ticked by. The kid earning some spending money over the summer was late for his job at the market, which only extended my relaxing rest on the bench outside on the sidewalk. I didn't care if he was thirty minutes late, I could sit here all day. Just then the door swung open, "Good morning sir, come on in."
Tomorrow we leave for Michigan, and we will be leaving very early. As usual I have reservations but as it stands now there are three different ports up for debate. I was told to call and make more reservations but considering I've already called three times this summer changing reservations I advised everyone to make a final decision before I call anyone...that is after they change it two more times after that.
Bonita Out
Wow, I almost forgot that I even was still keeping a blog. While back in Chicago everything got away from me. A new rhythm, a slower pace of guests on board, and less movement of the boat and I completely forgot to keep writing. Looking back to the last blog post I realize that I have a lot to catch up on.
I did end up asking for a completely new hydraulic pump from Naiad Dynamics in Ft. Lauderdale. For some reason, they thought that something else was still the issue and it wasn't the entire pump. I know they are the experts but I don't know how they could think that. Shortly after receiving the pump I could not put it in. The owners daughter caught the bug for being on the boat and was down with a different set of friends everyday for about a week and a half. I didn't get anything done in terms of projects and most of my time was spent keeping up with making sure the inside of the boat did not turn in to a total disaster. I finally had to let her know that I needed to complete some projects as the summer trip was nearing closer and closer and would not be able to play stew each and everyday.
The hydraulic pump change went very well other than the fact that I chased a tool around town for a couple of hours. I needed an over standard allen wrench and no one seemed to carry them. I am finished with going to Home Depot. Every time I go there the products get worse and worse. I found a great hardware store in the city called Clark and Barlow. They had everything. After the pump got changed everything seemed to check out and the project could finally be closed after about a year. I think I mentioned this project in my first few blog posts.
So besides having the owners daughter and her assortment of guests down to the boat almost every day and the hydraulic pump problem, the summer was fairly quiet up until July 8th when we pulled away from the dock for our annual summer trip around Lake Michigan. The streak continued as I had the owners on board along with his daughter, her husband, and their four kids....the young kind with endless amounts of energy and demands. Don't get me wrong I have a blast with the kids and I'd like to think that they enjoy spending the time with me, but when it's all said and done the piece and quiet is great. On that note, I'm just going to say sorry to my mom and dad for being so obnoxious as a kid :-).
We left Chicago at 0500 in the morning for Milwaukee and ran about 10 knots until Racine Reef where we ran it up to 18 knots. It was the Chicago Power Squadron Rendezvous, and as always it was a circus show at the docks and after about 45 minutes everyone decided where they wanted to go, we changed slips twice, and were finally settled in. It took another 15 minutes of everyone deciding if they wanted the boat two feet forward or two feet back and finally I just starting making the lines. My biggest pet peeve hands down in my job is peoples attitudes while we dock the boat. The owner and I are a great team when it is just the two of us. It's when other people come in to the picture that confusion starts to set in. The owner asked me to sit down and have a talk about the issue and I gladly agreed and was thrilled that he asked. All too often someone shows up on the dock to help catch a line, which is great, we appreciate the help. All too often that person that shows up to help wants to be in charge. I often hear them giving commands, letting the person driving the boat (whether it is me or the owner) know how horrible of a job they are doing. They like to tell my deck crew and me how to tie up the boat. For all who read this I tell you this: If you are on the dock then please be quiet (to be politically correct). First off, my deck crew is rarely experienced yacht crew and is nothing more than some guests on board, so we don't need to add confusion there. Secondly, the person driving the boat is focusing and someone on the dock telling them what to do will just break their concentration. The only verbal actions that the person driving the boat should receive are distances and relays of the boats position, i.e. "six feet to stern, or 15 feet off the beam mind your bow." Thirdly, and most nagging to me is how stupid everyone looks when they are yelling back and forth. My dad and I used to sit on his boat and watch people come in to the docks just laughing. "Look at how stupid these people look". We kind of hoped that they would hit the dock, doesn't everyone? It's like watching Nascar, its boring unless you see a crash. With that being said I cannot emphasize enough that everything should be silent while docking. We don't need someone yelling the full length of a ninety foot boat, it just looks stupid. The owner and I discussed all of these issues and agreed, so hopefully things will quiet down around the dock for the rest of the summer.
I went out with the captain of Plane to Sea on Friday night and it was cool to see some of the city. Summer fest was going on in Milwaukee but I never got down there to check it out. We left around 1000 on Sunday for Sheboygan and ran slow the entire way. It was only about a 40nm run so it wasn't too bad. The owner and a guest invited me to play golf with them at Blackwolf run in Kohler, the home of the 2012 women's open. I was thrilled, and super excited. Our tee time was set for 1040 on Monday. At 0520 Monday morning I woke up to a little rain on the window. I was mad because I forgot to cover the aft deck seats. I glanced at the radar and shot out of bed. The seats were the least of my worries, we were under a severe thunderstorm warning and it was bad. I got some shorts on and threw my foul weather jacket over my bare back...no time for t-shirts. It was quiet in my quarters and other than some rain drops I thought I was going to beat the storm. I opened the aft hatch and found that I was wrong. Wind was whipping down the river and right in to my face, the rain was pounding down and I was instantly soaked to the bone. The morning chill had me shivering in no time. The lightning and thunder had already arrived and I knew it wasn't safe to stay outside long. Being that I'm a fairly responsible captain :-) the boat was already secured very well and other than one or two things on the table I was able to get back inside quick. It was a bad storm but everything went well. Something very close by got struck by lightning and I'm just glad it wasn't us.
Unfortunately that storm ruined my hopes for golfing. We did however go hit balls at the range at Blackwolf run and the course was absolutely stunning. One of the owners guests is a very good golfer and he gave me a few tips that really helped my swing. I did forget to mention that I did end up buying new clubs. I got a swing analysis and was fitted for Mizuno JPX 800-pro with project X 6.0 shafts (extra stiff). I am still getting used to them a little bit but really love them. It was hard not to play the course and I drove away from the range with a bit of a tear in my eye....next time.
The owner decided he was done with Sheboygan despite having two more nights on our reservation. Not only was he in a hurry to get out of Sheboygan but he was in a hurry to get to Sturgeon Bay, our next stop. He asked if I would be O.K. with running at night, you know, like the cruise ships do, then we don't have to waste a day on the water. I told him I was fine with it as long as I got to sleep before and after the trip. With that being said I went straight to bed. I got up around 2300 hours and got the boat ready. We were off the dock by midnight and underway. It was clear, cold, and calm...perfect conditions. One of the owners guests came up and sat with me until about 0300. I refused to drive from the pilot house because I knew the quiet, calm, warm air would instantly put me to sleep. The fly bridge was cold, and I had two coats on but it kept me awake. To my surprise the owner came up around 0300 and I gave relief to his guest to head to sleep. The owner stayed with me for awhile but soon retired to the warmth of the pilot house and salon below. I caught a beautiful sunrise as we steamed north at 10 knots through a glass calm Lake Michigan. We arrived in Sturgeon Bay around 0745 and as soon as we were secure I went to bed.
Sturgeon Bay was O.K., the marina is very nice and the family that runs it is wonderful. I never left the marina other than to pick up a rental car before we left for Fish Creek. The logistics of getting the owners daughter and her family home were a nightmare and I have clearly taken the position of staying completely out of logistics battles. Let me know what you decide and I will do it...after it changes four more times. We rented a car and had a guest drive it north to Fish Creek, our next stop, and my favorite on the Wisconsin side. Again we were way ahead of schedule and leaving Sturgeon Bay after only one night. Luckily all of the marinas could accommodate us despite our early arrivals. The cruise up to Fish Creek is a beautiful one, and a short one. It was only two hours at 10 knots.
Fish Creek is a small little town tucked under a bluff, protected by a small harbor. A small mooring field scatters the inner waters of the harbor as sailboats bob slightly and tug on their mooring lines. Its door county at its finest.
Now as I sit here in the galley the sun has come up on another beautiful, but cooler, Wisconsin day. The forecast is calling for more heat however as the sun works its way higher and higher in to the sky. The owners daughter has left with her kids and a quieter group, the owners son and his girlfriend, are now on board. The dishwasher hums away and the coffee maker clicks back on to warm up today's pot that was brewed 3 hours ago at 0600 sharp. The boat is quiet and other than some soft conversation coming from the salon the air is still and peaceful. The hum of a diesel engine echos against the hull as the Fish Creek tour boat heads out in to the lake, taking another group of tourist for a spin around the sights. A stroll through town early this morning, on the hunt for todays newspaper, was about a tranquil as they get. Loud kids screaming for ice cream, and tourists on every corner were still snug in their beds. Most shops weren't even open yet as I patiently waited for the Fish Creek Market to open at 0800. My newspaper teased me in the window front as 0801 ticked by. The kid earning some spending money over the summer was late for his job at the market, which only extended my relaxing rest on the bench outside on the sidewalk. I didn't care if he was thirty minutes late, I could sit here all day. Just then the door swung open, "Good morning sir, come on in."
Tomorrow we leave for Michigan, and we will be leaving very early. As usual I have reservations but as it stands now there are three different ports up for debate. I was told to call and make more reservations but considering I've already called three times this summer changing reservations I advised everyone to make a final decision before I call anyone...that is after they change it two more times after that.
Chicago Skyline from the river
Chicago fireworks at Navy Pier
Afternoon cruise of the skyline
Another beautiful sunset
Chicago lighthouse
Coming in to the harbor at Chicago
Flat calm day for cruising!
Sheboygan to Sturgeon bay...roughly 2:30 AM
Civil Twilight inbound for Sturgeon Bay. Flat Calm
Almost time for sunrise over Lake Michigan. Inbound for Sturgeon Bay
Bonita Out
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Day 228 - 241: Slow start to the summer
CHICAGO, IL USA
Well the title of this blog says it all. It has been a slow start to the summer. The month of May was a disaster and it didn't warm up until Memorial Day. We had great weather for about a week and now as we near the middle of June it barely broke 60 degrees today. Due to this crazy weather my job has been very low key. I have my projects as usual but with only a couple visits, and one dinner cruise, the inside of the boat simply requires a light dusting and that is that. Don't get me wrong there is still a project list, but being that the boat is not being used as much as Sound Waves all winter there are not huge projects. Still no word on our stabilizer pump issue, and I think that I am just going to have to replace the entire pump in the end, which will be such an enjoyable project...not.
The trip for this summer is starting to come together, but it appears as if it will be much shorter than the six week long trip last summer. If the weather doesn't shape up we may not be going anywhere!
Due to the bad weather this weekend I have it off, and it has been spent playing some golf. I broke two clubs in two days and I think that the old irons that I use are finally giving up. It's too bad though because I just got them lengthened and re-griped. Hopefully I don't have to buy a whole new set of irons, but I think it may be the best thing to do for the long run. I have a feeling that I may keep breaking shafts throughout the summer and at $35 each to fix them, it could get just as expensive.
Bonita Out
Well the title of this blog says it all. It has been a slow start to the summer. The month of May was a disaster and it didn't warm up until Memorial Day. We had great weather for about a week and now as we near the middle of June it barely broke 60 degrees today. Due to this crazy weather my job has been very low key. I have my projects as usual but with only a couple visits, and one dinner cruise, the inside of the boat simply requires a light dusting and that is that. Don't get me wrong there is still a project list, but being that the boat is not being used as much as Sound Waves all winter there are not huge projects. Still no word on our stabilizer pump issue, and I think that I am just going to have to replace the entire pump in the end, which will be such an enjoyable project...not.
The trip for this summer is starting to come together, but it appears as if it will be much shorter than the six week long trip last summer. If the weather doesn't shape up we may not be going anywhere!
Due to the bad weather this weekend I have it off, and it has been spent playing some golf. I broke two clubs in two days and I think that the old irons that I use are finally giving up. It's too bad though because I just got them lengthened and re-griped. Hopefully I don't have to buy a whole new set of irons, but I think it may be the best thing to do for the long run. I have a feeling that I may keep breaking shafts throughout the summer and at $35 each to fix them, it could get just as expensive.
Bonita Out
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Day 220 - 227: Back to work
CHICAGO, IL USA
Well its back to the grind. I have to say that the grind isn't as stressful or as intimidating as last year this time. I got on board Bonita last spring and pretty much knew nothing. The entire first week of work was spent ripping things apart, crawling in to tight spaces, flipping every light switch, pushing every button, sitting in the pilot house messing around with the navigation equipment, all just to get to know the boat. This year was a lot different. The main reason being that I did not log 92 hours of work in the first week like last year. It was much more casual and only around 55 hours... a light workout in this industry. Being that the weather has been horrible up here I have not seen much of the owners. I spent most of the week cleaning the boat. I had a fresh start. Other than some dust from the winter the boat was in order, and there was no one there to move things around as soon as I re-organized. I took my time and went through every head, detailing every corner, organizing the cabinets and restocking them perfectly. By Thursday afternoon the boat was in the best shape it has been in.
Jessie entered the J.P. Morgan Chase corporate challenge race here in Chicago. All of these businesses get together and have a "team". It's a 3.5 mile run and about 25,000 runners entered! I walked from the boat to the race grounds and it looked more like we were setting up for a war. There were tents everywhere for miles! BBQ's, beers, music, the works. Jessie did really well in here race and was proud of her time. I got to watch the first place guy come across the line...in 16 minutes 13 seconds, and I have to say my jaw was on the floor. As he came to the end of his 3.5 mile run he was sprinting faster than I can run a 100 yard dash. He must have been a marathon runner and this was just a light workout for him.
In the meantime I still managed to sneak away and play some golf in the late afternoons. I really have been playing a lot better. On a par five I missed the green by 3 feet on my second shot and chipped within inches of the hole for an almost eagle. On a par four I landed the ball a foot in front of the hole from 180 yards out. It went past the hole, bounced and rolled back to within two feet. I had a tap in for another birdie. Am I ready for the Masters? hah! My goal is however to hopefully play in an amateur tournament by the end of the summer. I have really become good friends with one of the teaching professionals at the driving range by my apartment and he is encouraging me to play. So I'd probably get last place...so what. He said that I still should absolutely do it, not for the competitive side of golf, but for the experience. They call your name at the first tee, no mulligans, no fluffing your ball, and you have to have a caddy. I've never had a caddy, that'd be cool! So whether or not I enter the tournament for late August at the Sydney Marovitz golf course here in Chicago remains to be seen, but it is a fun goal to have.
Friday we had an event planned to go to the Chicago Yacht Club with another family but cancelled due to the cold temperatures and the brisk northeast winds. I had the night off. So naturally I went home to the apartment, called all of my friends, and decided to rent a movie OnDemand and enjoy my night off in relaxation instead of meeting up with friends at Duffy's for all you can eat and drink from 6-11 for $20 (a very tempting deal).
Saturday took me about an hour to get to the boat as a race at Soldier Field had traffic looking more like a parking lot. The owner and his wife showed up around 3:00 PM and our guests about an hour later. We had a wonderful cruise up to CYC, minus the rain and cold, and a great dinner. I got invited to dinner which was nice, because I never expect the invitation. We finally got back to the docks around 11:00 and I took about a half an hour to clean up and get the boat back in tip-top shape. Our guests finally left around 11:30 and bedtime followed shortly after.
Now as I sit in the galley on a gloomy foggy Sunday morning, coverage just begins on the Indy 500 on the tv in the salon. The faint smell of coffee fills the air as a few cups still linger, getting cold. The boat is beginning to move around in the slip as a dead calm morning comes to an end with the wind of the approaching severe storms expected later today. The rain starts to pound on the boat and just like that everything goes silent again. It was the warning bell that the radar is true and the storms are really out there. I hope for the storms though as they are being produced by an approaching warm front and a sunny and 90 degree day tomorrow. The sooner it storms the sooner summer really starts, and hopefully it is here to stay this time. I've had trouble getting up in the mornings lately but today I was wide awake staring at my clock four minutes before my alarm went off. I enjoyed the peace and quiet however and let my alarm carry out its duties four minutes later. And while it has been a slow start to the summer I am still hopeful that sunny and hot days are still yet to come.
Bonita Out
Well its back to the grind. I have to say that the grind isn't as stressful or as intimidating as last year this time. I got on board Bonita last spring and pretty much knew nothing. The entire first week of work was spent ripping things apart, crawling in to tight spaces, flipping every light switch, pushing every button, sitting in the pilot house messing around with the navigation equipment, all just to get to know the boat. This year was a lot different. The main reason being that I did not log 92 hours of work in the first week like last year. It was much more casual and only around 55 hours... a light workout in this industry. Being that the weather has been horrible up here I have not seen much of the owners. I spent most of the week cleaning the boat. I had a fresh start. Other than some dust from the winter the boat was in order, and there was no one there to move things around as soon as I re-organized. I took my time and went through every head, detailing every corner, organizing the cabinets and restocking them perfectly. By Thursday afternoon the boat was in the best shape it has been in.
Jessie entered the J.P. Morgan Chase corporate challenge race here in Chicago. All of these businesses get together and have a "team". It's a 3.5 mile run and about 25,000 runners entered! I walked from the boat to the race grounds and it looked more like we were setting up for a war. There were tents everywhere for miles! BBQ's, beers, music, the works. Jessie did really well in here race and was proud of her time. I got to watch the first place guy come across the line...in 16 minutes 13 seconds, and I have to say my jaw was on the floor. As he came to the end of his 3.5 mile run he was sprinting faster than I can run a 100 yard dash. He must have been a marathon runner and this was just a light workout for him.
In the meantime I still managed to sneak away and play some golf in the late afternoons. I really have been playing a lot better. On a par five I missed the green by 3 feet on my second shot and chipped within inches of the hole for an almost eagle. On a par four I landed the ball a foot in front of the hole from 180 yards out. It went past the hole, bounced and rolled back to within two feet. I had a tap in for another birdie. Am I ready for the Masters? hah! My goal is however to hopefully play in an amateur tournament by the end of the summer. I have really become good friends with one of the teaching professionals at the driving range by my apartment and he is encouraging me to play. So I'd probably get last place...so what. He said that I still should absolutely do it, not for the competitive side of golf, but for the experience. They call your name at the first tee, no mulligans, no fluffing your ball, and you have to have a caddy. I've never had a caddy, that'd be cool! So whether or not I enter the tournament for late August at the Sydney Marovitz golf course here in Chicago remains to be seen, but it is a fun goal to have.
Friday we had an event planned to go to the Chicago Yacht Club with another family but cancelled due to the cold temperatures and the brisk northeast winds. I had the night off. So naturally I went home to the apartment, called all of my friends, and decided to rent a movie OnDemand and enjoy my night off in relaxation instead of meeting up with friends at Duffy's for all you can eat and drink from 6-11 for $20 (a very tempting deal).
Saturday took me about an hour to get to the boat as a race at Soldier Field had traffic looking more like a parking lot. The owner and his wife showed up around 3:00 PM and our guests about an hour later. We had a wonderful cruise up to CYC, minus the rain and cold, and a great dinner. I got invited to dinner which was nice, because I never expect the invitation. We finally got back to the docks around 11:00 and I took about a half an hour to clean up and get the boat back in tip-top shape. Our guests finally left around 11:30 and bedtime followed shortly after.
Now as I sit in the galley on a gloomy foggy Sunday morning, coverage just begins on the Indy 500 on the tv in the salon. The faint smell of coffee fills the air as a few cups still linger, getting cold. The boat is beginning to move around in the slip as a dead calm morning comes to an end with the wind of the approaching severe storms expected later today. The rain starts to pound on the boat and just like that everything goes silent again. It was the warning bell that the radar is true and the storms are really out there. I hope for the storms though as they are being produced by an approaching warm front and a sunny and 90 degree day tomorrow. The sooner it storms the sooner summer really starts, and hopefully it is here to stay this time. I've had trouble getting up in the mornings lately but today I was wide awake staring at my clock four minutes before my alarm went off. I enjoyed the peace and quiet however and let my alarm carry out its duties four minutes later. And while it has been a slow start to the summer I am still hopeful that sunny and hot days are still yet to come.
Bonita Out
Friday, May 20, 2011
Day 213-219: Launch!
CHICAGO, IL USA
Well it all finally worked out. I called off the launch last week, hopped a bus back to Chicago and waited. I was right.
The wind kicked up. It rained all day, everyday, and was freezing cold. The small craft advisory changed to a gale warning, and no one wanted to be outside. I enjoyed the extended time off and used it to my advantage....while staying indoors.
Wednesday night was Jessie's birthday and her mom and sister were in town. We met up with them and went out to dinner on Michigan Ave. at a place called Bandera. It was a nice restaurant. Afterwards, we went down to the dualing piano bar, Howl at the moon. It was such a cool place! There were about five people rotating through the pianos, and every now and then they played drums and guitar with it as well. By the end of the night all five members played of the instruments including harmonica, fiddle, and trumpet. What a talented group of people!
Thursday morning I got up and caught a cab to the red-line train stop and took a 40 minute ride to the grey hound station on the south side of chicago. My first mate, Clint, and I once again got on the bus and traveled back to Holland, MI where we then caught another 30 minute cab ride up to Grand Haven. It makes for a really long day of traveling to say the least. This time around everything ran very smoothly. The boat went in the water on time, the fuel truck finally got back with me and scheduled a fuel up right at the launch well, the cab was waiting for us in Holland, and the buses were actually running on time. We fired the engines, took an oil sample, checked the serviced transmissions and went through our checklist. I serviced all of the racors, and made sure we still held fuel pressure afterwards. We got both generators up and running despite a manual charge needing to be placed on one of the set of batteries. The AC units fired up without a glitch, and everything was running smoothly.
We decided to go lay up on the wall in Grand Haven as it would get us past one bridge and save about 30 minutes on the river.
Friday came about as early as it could. 0330 (EST) my alarm went off. I was already laying in bed wide awake anticipating the extreme wake up time. It was pitch black and as soon as I opened my hatch the cold, damp Michigan air went right to the bones. There wasn't a single sound, other than the hum of the generator. Some stars were out but it was mostly cloudy and there wasn't a breath of wind. The lights on the pier lit up the water and set the runway for open waters. We fired the engines and began to motor in to the dark.
About three miles offshore we hit fog. We hit the kind of fog that tales are told from in the Bermuda triangle. We hit a fog that makes you wonder if you are in fact about to fall off the edge of the earth. The black sky was now enhanced with a white blanket. The fog horn was turned on and the radar tuned in even more. 10 knots, 96 nautical miles......ETA 1230 (CST) to Chicago. Twilight broke about 0620 but didn't make a bit of difference. We could barely see the water as it disappeared under the bow. The fog had us in its grip. For the next 90 miles we saw nothing but white, and heard nothing but our engines and the fog horn. Drifting off to sleep is no issue as your eyes strain in to the white cloak waiting for a giant freighter to somehow miss the radar and pop out of no where. Nothing...tick, tock, tick, tock....nothing. A constant watch proved for a safe arrival to Chicago and until we were 500 feet from the harbor entrance we had no idea that it was even there. We never saw a building, and hardly saw a boat. It wasn't until we were one mile away that a 30 ft. sea ray presented itself as a faint white shadow on a white background. It was creepy as the image went passed.
The owner greeted us at the dock and after a short briefing and a story or two, we went to lunch at the Burnham harbor yacht club. It was great to be back for another summer and I look forward to the already large to do list that I have created for myself. The weather has started on a very bad note up here in Chicago, but I am hopeful that it improves. May is looking like there is no hope, but lets keep our fingers crossed!
Bonita Out (I typed Sound Waves again!!!...that is going to take some time!)
Well it all finally worked out. I called off the launch last week, hopped a bus back to Chicago and waited. I was right.
The wind kicked up. It rained all day, everyday, and was freezing cold. The small craft advisory changed to a gale warning, and no one wanted to be outside. I enjoyed the extended time off and used it to my advantage....while staying indoors.
Wednesday night was Jessie's birthday and her mom and sister were in town. We met up with them and went out to dinner on Michigan Ave. at a place called Bandera. It was a nice restaurant. Afterwards, we went down to the dualing piano bar, Howl at the moon. It was such a cool place! There were about five people rotating through the pianos, and every now and then they played drums and guitar with it as well. By the end of the night all five members played of the instruments including harmonica, fiddle, and trumpet. What a talented group of people!
Thursday morning I got up and caught a cab to the red-line train stop and took a 40 minute ride to the grey hound station on the south side of chicago. My first mate, Clint, and I once again got on the bus and traveled back to Holland, MI where we then caught another 30 minute cab ride up to Grand Haven. It makes for a really long day of traveling to say the least. This time around everything ran very smoothly. The boat went in the water on time, the fuel truck finally got back with me and scheduled a fuel up right at the launch well, the cab was waiting for us in Holland, and the buses were actually running on time. We fired the engines, took an oil sample, checked the serviced transmissions and went through our checklist. I serviced all of the racors, and made sure we still held fuel pressure afterwards. We got both generators up and running despite a manual charge needing to be placed on one of the set of batteries. The AC units fired up without a glitch, and everything was running smoothly.
We decided to go lay up on the wall in Grand Haven as it would get us past one bridge and save about 30 minutes on the river.
Friday came about as early as it could. 0330 (EST) my alarm went off. I was already laying in bed wide awake anticipating the extreme wake up time. It was pitch black and as soon as I opened my hatch the cold, damp Michigan air went right to the bones. There wasn't a single sound, other than the hum of the generator. Some stars were out but it was mostly cloudy and there wasn't a breath of wind. The lights on the pier lit up the water and set the runway for open waters. We fired the engines and began to motor in to the dark.
About three miles offshore we hit fog. We hit the kind of fog that tales are told from in the Bermuda triangle. We hit a fog that makes you wonder if you are in fact about to fall off the edge of the earth. The black sky was now enhanced with a white blanket. The fog horn was turned on and the radar tuned in even more. 10 knots, 96 nautical miles......ETA 1230 (CST) to Chicago. Twilight broke about 0620 but didn't make a bit of difference. We could barely see the water as it disappeared under the bow. The fog had us in its grip. For the next 90 miles we saw nothing but white, and heard nothing but our engines and the fog horn. Drifting off to sleep is no issue as your eyes strain in to the white cloak waiting for a giant freighter to somehow miss the radar and pop out of no where. Nothing...tick, tock, tick, tock....nothing. A constant watch proved for a safe arrival to Chicago and until we were 500 feet from the harbor entrance we had no idea that it was even there. We never saw a building, and hardly saw a boat. It wasn't until we were one mile away that a 30 ft. sea ray presented itself as a faint white shadow on a white background. It was creepy as the image went passed.
The owner greeted us at the dock and after a short briefing and a story or two, we went to lunch at the Burnham harbor yacht club. It was great to be back for another summer and I look forward to the already large to do list that I have created for myself. The weather has started on a very bad note up here in Chicago, but I am hopeful that it improves. May is looking like there is no hope, but lets keep our fingers crossed!
Bonita Out (I typed Sound Waves again!!!...that is going to take some time!)
Friday, May 13, 2011
Days 210 - 212: Relax, prepare, wait
GRAND HAVEN, MI USA
What a much needed time off the last weeks were. I flew in to Chicago and sat around and did nothing for awhile. As promised, I brought back some 80 degree weather for everyone who has been complaining about the awful spring they have been having. I unpacked everything and got settled back in to the apartment in Chicago. I spent the days hitting some balls at the range, joined a gym and hired a personal trainer for the summer. I want to get back in to football shape, and I don't think it will happen without someone really pushing me. Now that my wallet is pushing me, I am sure that I will utilize my personal trainer!
I headed home for mothers day and it was great to see the family, and be "home" again. The place that is still closest to my true home. There wasn't much relaxation however as the weekend was spent cleaning out the barn with my Dad and Chris and putting in the water toys and my grandparents dock. It was great to see all of the grandparents and enjoy some good family time. On the following Monday I took care of all of my physical check ups. I went and saw the eye doctor, the doctor, and the dentist. Two years after my eye surgery I still testes 20/15 vision, the doctor asked me a ton of questions and sent me on my way, and my streak is kept alive with zero cavities. I am so thankful to have good health.
I planned to drive back to Chicago on Monday, but a pit stop in Kalamazoo to see old friend Pat Lefere turned in to a sleep over. It was great to see him again, it has been way too long. I hope that I am able to see him as well as other friends a lot more this summer.
Chicago was a quick turn around as I hopped back on the train on Wednesday to head to Grand Haven to get the big boat, Bonita, ready for another summer in the Great Lakes.
I left the boat in good shape last fall, which really helped my project list this spring. We cleaned the entire inside of the boat, sanded and re-painted the stabilizer fins, and I did some fiberglass and gel coat work on the transom. We tried to get moved up for a Friday morning launch but as 11:00 A.M rolled around we were still sitting in the barn. The forecast changed drastically and unless we were already on our way to Chicago we were going to get stuck in five footers on the beam by the time we got to Chicago. I looked at the forecast further and saw that it wasn't going to calm down again until late next week. I made the call, let the owner know, and cancelled the launch all together. My first mate, clint and I will be taking a bus back to Chicago this evening and will not be coming back until next week to try again. It is a big bummer, and while it may seem like a waste of time, it was the right decision to make and we still did get a lot done. I talked to my Dad this morning about the weather, and he was well aware of what was happening. The statement "If you say let's go for it comes up, you are going to get in trouble" came to mind that he told me years ago as I set sail in to the open seas on a 34' sailboat. It is a statement that I will never forget and it helped me make my decision today.
So, back to Chicago to wait for the weather!
Bonita Out (I almost wrote Sound Waves!)
What a much needed time off the last weeks were. I flew in to Chicago and sat around and did nothing for awhile. As promised, I brought back some 80 degree weather for everyone who has been complaining about the awful spring they have been having. I unpacked everything and got settled back in to the apartment in Chicago. I spent the days hitting some balls at the range, joined a gym and hired a personal trainer for the summer. I want to get back in to football shape, and I don't think it will happen without someone really pushing me. Now that my wallet is pushing me, I am sure that I will utilize my personal trainer!
I headed home for mothers day and it was great to see the family, and be "home" again. The place that is still closest to my true home. There wasn't much relaxation however as the weekend was spent cleaning out the barn with my Dad and Chris and putting in the water toys and my grandparents dock. It was great to see all of the grandparents and enjoy some good family time. On the following Monday I took care of all of my physical check ups. I went and saw the eye doctor, the doctor, and the dentist. Two years after my eye surgery I still testes 20/15 vision, the doctor asked me a ton of questions and sent me on my way, and my streak is kept alive with zero cavities. I am so thankful to have good health.
I planned to drive back to Chicago on Monday, but a pit stop in Kalamazoo to see old friend Pat Lefere turned in to a sleep over. It was great to see him again, it has been way too long. I hope that I am able to see him as well as other friends a lot more this summer.
Chicago was a quick turn around as I hopped back on the train on Wednesday to head to Grand Haven to get the big boat, Bonita, ready for another summer in the Great Lakes.
I left the boat in good shape last fall, which really helped my project list this spring. We cleaned the entire inside of the boat, sanded and re-painted the stabilizer fins, and I did some fiberglass and gel coat work on the transom. We tried to get moved up for a Friday morning launch but as 11:00 A.M rolled around we were still sitting in the barn. The forecast changed drastically and unless we were already on our way to Chicago we were going to get stuck in five footers on the beam by the time we got to Chicago. I looked at the forecast further and saw that it wasn't going to calm down again until late next week. I made the call, let the owner know, and cancelled the launch all together. My first mate, clint and I will be taking a bus back to Chicago this evening and will not be coming back until next week to try again. It is a big bummer, and while it may seem like a waste of time, it was the right decision to make and we still did get a lot done. I talked to my Dad this morning about the weather, and he was well aware of what was happening. The statement "If you say let's go for it comes up, you are going to get in trouble" came to mind that he told me years ago as I set sail in to the open seas on a 34' sailboat. It is a statement that I will never forget and it helped me make my decision today.
So, back to Chicago to wait for the weather!
Bonita Out (I almost wrote Sound Waves!)
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Day 207 -209: End of another season
33,000 FEET SOMEWHERE NORTH OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA USA
Lets finish up the trip before I wrap it all up (the blog will hopefully continue throughout the summer. After all we aren't to 365 days yet, right?).
Friday I got asked to race again aboard Ruff Justice. The winds were much lighter and at one point of the race we were making about a half of a knot. We again finished almost dead last but today was a little more due to the luck of catching the wrong wind at the wrong time. I went down to the festivities and ran in to a bunch of old friends. Nuno came down from Staniel Cay and I also ran in to Sean and Gemma who are on their way to Cuba in their sailboat. I met another group of sailers my age and we had quite the crew. I ran down to Peace and Plenty and ran in to the Tida Wave and Lady Muriel crew as well as Bushman and Ben. It was a fun night that lasted well in to the morning hours.
On Saturday I focused on fixing the new generator. The generator was started while the fuel lines were closed and things weren't looking good. I couldn't get the generator to prime despite cracking injectors as well as simply removing the fuel line from the output side of the fuel pump. The racors were full of fuel, being that I just changed them, and things weren't adding up. We removed the fuel pump and found that we could not even blow compressed air through it. It seemed that it was clogged with something. The owner did not want me to leave until we got the problem fixed, but after further thought it is not a hard part to install and I can easily handle the logistics from Chicago.
Ben showed up out of no where and told us that they needed me to race again today. I got in his boat only to hear the 1 minute gun go off out in the harbor. I asked him what that was all about and he said he didn't know. Well it turns out the boys were a little behind schedule today and we missed the start of the race all together! I got dropped off as the boat was sailing down to the start line and I was glad that they still decided to race the course, despite being DQ-ed. We almost caught the last place boat and sailed really well! After watching the ceremony that night with Ben I told him that trophies or no trophies he gave a kid from the United States a chance to do something that he will never forget, and in my mind that means a lot more than a shiny trophy. Of course bragging rights in the Bahamas for a year isn't bad either :-/
The night went much like the last as my goodbyes were made to some of my closest friends I have had over the past two months. I couldn't believe that it was really my last night in the Bahamas....
Well it seems like just yesterday I created this blog and began talking about the trip south with Sound Waves. Its funny how some days (more than others in the islands) seem to tick by at a snails pass, but yet when you finally get on that plane I wonder to myself, "how did the last six months go so fast?".
I remember talking about growing up in my first few blog posts. Talking about taking the lead and not letting the next bend in the river, or reef on the chart intimidate me. Well, I accomplished so much of that "growing up". I've navigated the Western Rivers, been offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, tackled the ICW with a six foot draft, rounded the keys of Florida, replaced props, tore engines apart and put them back together, fixed hydraulic pumps, re-wired a set of underwater lights in the bowels of the ship, replaced door handles, re-wired home entertainment systems, crossed the gulf stream, polished the props in the soft sands of the Bahamas, made friends that will last a lifetime from around the entire world, dove on some of the most beautiful reefs in the world, overcame my fears of sharks and open waters while spearfishing, wasted days away on the beach, had amazing bonfires on the beach, sailed in a traditional Bahama island regatta, rebuilt most of the cooling system on a generator, and maintained someones biggest investment of their life in the meantime.
As I stepped onto Bonita a year ago I think it was safe to say that I was in a bit over my head. A bit over my head is an understatement. I was scared shitless of what I got myself in to. A year later as I fly back to Chicago to get ready for another summer aboard Bonita, the story is a lot different. I have already asked for the project list from the previous winter from our yacht services guy, Wade. I have scheduled an oil change as soon as the boat splashes, and have already began to generate my own to-do list. Last year I walked in to the barn with my jaw on the floor!
I've learned so much over the past year and I am confident in saying that I know what I am doing when it comes to yachts (somewhat :-), there is always so much more to learn!)
I look forward to the next week or so to relax and get my feet back on the ground in Chicago. I then look forward to visiting with my family back in Michigan and taking care of doctors, eye, dentist appointments, etc...
From there I will be back in Grand Haven prepping the 87' Cheoy Lee, Bonita, for yet another great summer in the Great Lakes.
Just a little kicking to chew on for everyone, Nuno asked me if I would be interested in visiting him in Europe next fall and helping him sail Sparrow from the Mediterranean back to the Caribbean. We will keep that one on the back burner! :-)
Here are some more pictures:
Lets finish up the trip before I wrap it all up (the blog will hopefully continue throughout the summer. After all we aren't to 365 days yet, right?).
Friday I got asked to race again aboard Ruff Justice. The winds were much lighter and at one point of the race we were making about a half of a knot. We again finished almost dead last but today was a little more due to the luck of catching the wrong wind at the wrong time. I went down to the festivities and ran in to a bunch of old friends. Nuno came down from Staniel Cay and I also ran in to Sean and Gemma who are on their way to Cuba in their sailboat. I met another group of sailers my age and we had quite the crew. I ran down to Peace and Plenty and ran in to the Tida Wave and Lady Muriel crew as well as Bushman and Ben. It was a fun night that lasted well in to the morning hours.
On Saturday I focused on fixing the new generator. The generator was started while the fuel lines were closed and things weren't looking good. I couldn't get the generator to prime despite cracking injectors as well as simply removing the fuel line from the output side of the fuel pump. The racors were full of fuel, being that I just changed them, and things weren't adding up. We removed the fuel pump and found that we could not even blow compressed air through it. It seemed that it was clogged with something. The owner did not want me to leave until we got the problem fixed, but after further thought it is not a hard part to install and I can easily handle the logistics from Chicago.
Ben showed up out of no where and told us that they needed me to race again today. I got in his boat only to hear the 1 minute gun go off out in the harbor. I asked him what that was all about and he said he didn't know. Well it turns out the boys were a little behind schedule today and we missed the start of the race all together! I got dropped off as the boat was sailing down to the start line and I was glad that they still decided to race the course, despite being DQ-ed. We almost caught the last place boat and sailed really well! After watching the ceremony that night with Ben I told him that trophies or no trophies he gave a kid from the United States a chance to do something that he will never forget, and in my mind that means a lot more than a shiny trophy. Of course bragging rights in the Bahamas for a year isn't bad either :-/
The night went much like the last as my goodbyes were made to some of my closest friends I have had over the past two months. I couldn't believe that it was really my last night in the Bahamas....
Well it seems like just yesterday I created this blog and began talking about the trip south with Sound Waves. Its funny how some days (more than others in the islands) seem to tick by at a snails pass, but yet when you finally get on that plane I wonder to myself, "how did the last six months go so fast?".
I remember talking about growing up in my first few blog posts. Talking about taking the lead and not letting the next bend in the river, or reef on the chart intimidate me. Well, I accomplished so much of that "growing up". I've navigated the Western Rivers, been offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, tackled the ICW with a six foot draft, rounded the keys of Florida, replaced props, tore engines apart and put them back together, fixed hydraulic pumps, re-wired a set of underwater lights in the bowels of the ship, replaced door handles, re-wired home entertainment systems, crossed the gulf stream, polished the props in the soft sands of the Bahamas, made friends that will last a lifetime from around the entire world, dove on some of the most beautiful reefs in the world, overcame my fears of sharks and open waters while spearfishing, wasted days away on the beach, had amazing bonfires on the beach, sailed in a traditional Bahama island regatta, rebuilt most of the cooling system on a generator, and maintained someones biggest investment of their life in the meantime.
As I stepped onto Bonita a year ago I think it was safe to say that I was in a bit over my head. A bit over my head is an understatement. I was scared shitless of what I got myself in to. A year later as I fly back to Chicago to get ready for another summer aboard Bonita, the story is a lot different. I have already asked for the project list from the previous winter from our yacht services guy, Wade. I have scheduled an oil change as soon as the boat splashes, and have already began to generate my own to-do list. Last year I walked in to the barn with my jaw on the floor!
I've learned so much over the past year and I am confident in saying that I know what I am doing when it comes to yachts (somewhat :-), there is always so much more to learn!)
I look forward to the next week or so to relax and get my feet back on the ground in Chicago. I then look forward to visiting with my family back in Michigan and taking care of doctors, eye, dentist appointments, etc...
From there I will be back in Grand Haven prepping the 87' Cheoy Lee, Bonita, for yet another great summer in the Great Lakes.
Just a little kicking to chew on for everyone, Nuno asked me if I would be interested in visiting him in Europe next fall and helping him sail Sparrow from the Mediterranean back to the Caribbean. We will keep that one on the back burner! :-)
Here are some more pictures:
Left to Right: Owner's girlfriend, Gizelle, Bushman
Nuno and me at Staniel Cay Yacht Club
Tony in front, David in the back SCYC
Left to Right, Soloman and the owner
At the start line of the A class race. Anchors out and sails down!
And they're off! Start of the A-Class race
Sailing off in to the sunset
Ruff Justice in the back (closest to camera) Thats me out on the pry! (all the way to the right on the "board")
Ruff Justice, port tack to the windward mark, light winds
Tida Wave the A-Class Champions of the 58th Family Island Regatta
Working my way out on the pry
Light winds riding the pry.
Left to Right: Ben, myself, Gizelle, Bushman. Peace and Plenty in Georgetown
Sound Waves Out!
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Day 205 & 206: Family Regatta!
GEORGETOWN EXUMAS, BAHAMAS
First lets post some more pictures from Danger Reef:
On the way down, little mask adjustment and a right leg kick to start things out
Jake scratching the groupers belly. (The grouper is hard to see)
Caribbean Reef Sharks circling above
Trying my luck with the huge grouper
Love this picture with the three sharks
Jake and I working on the grouper
Swimming through the mountains of coral at Danger Reef
Really like this picture with the shark and the changes in coral
Somewhat of a close call with a reef shark. At one point he was close enough that I could have reached up and touched him.
Sting ray getting cleaned by a colorful triggerfish
CRASH!!! He gets his name bc he likes to run in to people. His head is about a the size of a basketball, maybe a bit bigger than that.
Crash heading up for a breath of air
Playing chicken with a reef shark :-)
Jake and I goofing around. We laughed at this picture for about 10 minutes
Arrow Crab (very small)
Me being weird again. I was always hanging out upside down, doing flips, etc... I love being weightless, I should have gone in to space.
Wednesday we took off for Georgetown around 0800 with about five other locals with us on the boat. Tony, Gizelle, Bushman, Chubby and his niece came along with us. It was fairly calm for the first few hours because we were on the inside. Once we went through Gallient Cut out in the the sound the waves picked up. It was still calm enough to fish and we got some lines in the water. For the next 40 miles we had no luck at all. Upon our approach in to Elizabeth Harbor we were greeted with a massive rain squall. They came in one after another for the next day. It was perfect timing because the boat got a fresh water rinse. Canflor girl was still here and Buddy and I planned to head up to the festivities of the regatta. I was granted a nap and then got ready to explore. It was a bit quiet being that it was still Wednesday but I was told to get ready for chaos on the weekend.
Today I ran to the market for some groceries then went down to the waterfront to catch the start of the B class race. I wanted to do my research because I was asked to race on Ruff Justice later in the day in the A class race. A class boats are 28 feet long. Every boat is all wood and Bahamian built and owned. The sails are cotton I believe, or something like that. It is true Bahamian sailing. The sloops start at the line with their sails down on the anchor. The gun goes off and you hoist the anchor, get your sails up and you are off. It rained cats and dogs for most of the day. Just before I got picked up to be taken out to the sailboat the skies cleared and for the whole race we didn't have rain. I was so nervous. My heart was pounding. This tradition of Bahamian regattas is serious business and this was the biggest one of the year. I didn't want to get in the way. It is hard to understand Bahamians sometimes, especially when they are all yelling. We almost missed the start, had to change the mainsail on the way to the starting line, and were messing with the headsail right up to the starting gun. We let all of the anchor rode out so only one guy was hoisting at first until we got enough rode in to all hoist together. There was no rhythm to getting the anchor in and hands were slapping and getting caught in T-shirts. Upon rounding the windward buoy the whisker pole (if thats what you want to call it) was not even on deck yet. Upon rounding the leeward buoy the helmsmen was in charge of bringing the main sheet in and no one was even steering the boat. To say the least it was very unorganized, and we came in 8th place because of the chaos. I stayed quiet and stayed high on the planks. I was the high man out and it was very scary at times. I thought they would put the big guys out there but I later realized that I don't think the big guys could get out there. I was the quickest and one of the most athletic so I think thats why I got put out there. I almost fell in the water a couple of times but managed to keep my balance and keep my feet out of the water. We actually had a pretty good start and were in second place for awhile. We timed our tacks wrong and had to tack one extra time to make the buoy. This really hurt us.
All in all it was a really amazing experience and I hope that I get to race again tomorrow. My knees and legs are raw from sliding up and down the plank and I was soaking wet but I had a ball. The boat almost flipped once and I was about twenty feet in the air out on the end of the plank. A boat did sink in the B class race and they still haven't gotten it up as far as I know. When the boats flip, they sink. They are wooden boats and they put lead in the bottom of them. They have to pull all of the lead out and haul it back to the surface after it flips.
Here are some pictures to help give you an image of these sailboats and what I meant by being out on the plank. I don't know if any of our friends got any pictures today as it was very rough and windy out there, but I will ask around.
This is the actual boat that I raced on today, Ruff Justice. I did not take this picture.
This is a picture of a race. I got this picture online so I am not sure what boats they are. I do not recognize any of the sail numbers. The plank slides from starboard to port when we tack and is about 6 inches wide. The masts are about 60 feet high, the boat is 28 feet long, and in light winds they change the boom and sails. The boom can be up to 48 feet long! It is quite scary to be on the end of the plank when the boat is about to flip. My position all day was the first man out on the plank, all the way out.
Sound Waves Out
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Day 203 & 204: Bye Bye Staniel Cay
STANIEL CAY EXUMAS, BAHAMAS
Monday we were at Sampson Cay...boring Sampson Cay. I had a great list of things to do on the boat...outside....and just before I finished breakfast (I usually don't ever get to finish breakfast but this time it was for other reasons) the sky went black. I couldn't get to the fly bridge quick enough. We got all of the seats covered just in time for the rain. I thought, well it only rains for five minutes down here then it will be sunny again. A whole rest of the day later, wind, black, rain, wind, thunder, lightning, Captain Ron, and nothing got done. What a day. To make positive on the situation, the Bahamas needed the rain.
Tuesday we left for Staniel Cay, surprise surprise: Staniel Cay, Sampson Cay, Staniel Cay, Sampson Cay. Even the locals poke fun at Sound Waves for how much we move around. Anyways, not that it is important, considering I was happy to be back in Staniel Cay. Not to mention I got to download all of the pictures from the Danger Reef Dive!
I did some projects and got the boat prepped for our 0700 departure to Georgetown in the morning. Apparently nine locals are coming along with so they can get to the regatta.
If you can't tell I am in a horrible mood right now, and I don't know why. Lets see what happened that was fun today? OH!!! Finnegan, David and Christina's (sp? sorry) dog was hanging around. He is a 6 month old ......yellow lab/golden something? (I'm so bad at this). I taught him step one on how to shake. I think he is going to pick up on it! We also played on the beach for a long time chasing sticks and palm leaves and learning how to dive for rocks. He is a smart lil pup and it was so much fun to play with him and watch him learn. I have always loved dogs and I really enjoyed getting away from the boat for awhile to play with him.
It was weird walking out of the bar tonight. This was really it. My final days, my final goodbye at Staniel Cay. For the last month and then some I have called this place my home. As I sat at the bar I looked around at the people sitting and working and I knew all but a few of their names. Bushman, Gizelle, the owner, his girlfriend, Nuno, David, Tony, Jeff, Harry, Salt, Ruth, Rhonda, Felisha, Suzana, and Joan. I don't think I could name that many people sitting around any bar anywhere (maybe Holland). I walked down the dock knowing the clear water was coming to an end, as Georgetown is a bit murky. I can't believe it is coming to an end. As I look forward to an exciting weekend in Georgetown for the regatta's I know that I am down to a long weekend until I'm back to Chicago. I am super excited for Chicago don't get me wrong, but this place is special.
The constant changing of colors on the water will put anyone in a trance as the the depths change from a dark blue to a light shade of green and in to a white as the bottom goes from coral to grass to sand. Seagulls break the silence of paradise as todays catch is cleaned up on the bench while hungry nurse sharks and rays pace back and forth hoping for a scrap. Dinghies come and go and the smell of fuel teases your nose before being lifted away by the breeze. The hum of the engine is sometimes confused with the next load of tourists and supplies coming in on the small airplanes that buzz around like flies. The hot sun is relentless, the dive flag at the Staniel Cay dive shop tries to stand up in the weak warm winds from the south east but fails to even flutter. Spices fill the air as dinner time nears up at the yacht club. A group of locals huddle around the fish bench every day, waiting, wasting, and watching another day drift past. A trip to the end of the dock reminds me of how tough my feet have become as splinters and nails are pushed away by my tough skin. The water is crystal clear. The only thing that blurs the bottom is the strong ebb tide with the water rushing back out to sea like the raging Mississippi. A few sailboats block my view of the horizon anchored just off of the dock, and mega yachts scatter in the distance making up their own anchorages it seems. I turn and look back towards land as the day fades away. The Batelco tower dominates the skyline with its flashing red lights. Palm trees in front of the yacht club stand motionless and music makes its way to my ears. A tourist asks me isn't this amazing, I don't think this could ever get old. I smile and simply reply you're right I don't think it ever will. Uninterested and engulfed by my surroundings I walk away. Our underwater lights are starting to take over the night as small fish dance around them. A nurse shark rests on the bottom completely uninterested in its surroundings. A large southern sting ray floats by effortlessly. The dinner bell rings and people make their way in to the bar. This is my home. This was my home. Tony, Barry, Ben, Gizelle, Christina, David, David, Susana, Jake, Joelle, Big Daddy, Raymond, Wade, Salt, Food, Rock, Wellington, Janel, Jeff, Harry, Ruth, Rhonda, Felisha, Chavette, Netty, Joan, Carl, Foodie, Graham, Marvin, Marvin, Salomon, Mackenzie, Eddie, Clevland, and that is just the locals and I am sure I am forgetting a lot! Thank you. Thank you for an amazing adventure, thank you for memories that will last a lifetime. And while I still have a few more days left, I feel as if this blog is significant. Georgetown means little to me. Tomorrow I am leaving my home. On to the next step, where I will again shift gears. Sad, yes. Exciting, yes. I will never forget the past six months of my life, but I look forward to the next many years! As my fortune cookies once told me "the best years of your life have not yet been lived." and "a vacation of vacations awaits you." I still have both of them in my wallet today. What's next captain? Well....its still a lifetime away.
Sound Waves Out
(pictures to come of danger reef....just not tonight....not after that blog)
Monday we were at Sampson Cay...boring Sampson Cay. I had a great list of things to do on the boat...outside....and just before I finished breakfast (I usually don't ever get to finish breakfast but this time it was for other reasons) the sky went black. I couldn't get to the fly bridge quick enough. We got all of the seats covered just in time for the rain. I thought, well it only rains for five minutes down here then it will be sunny again. A whole rest of the day later, wind, black, rain, wind, thunder, lightning, Captain Ron, and nothing got done. What a day. To make positive on the situation, the Bahamas needed the rain.
Tuesday we left for Staniel Cay, surprise surprise: Staniel Cay, Sampson Cay, Staniel Cay, Sampson Cay. Even the locals poke fun at Sound Waves for how much we move around. Anyways, not that it is important, considering I was happy to be back in Staniel Cay. Not to mention I got to download all of the pictures from the Danger Reef Dive!
I did some projects and got the boat prepped for our 0700 departure to Georgetown in the morning. Apparently nine locals are coming along with so they can get to the regatta.
If you can't tell I am in a horrible mood right now, and I don't know why. Lets see what happened that was fun today? OH!!! Finnegan, David and Christina's (sp? sorry) dog was hanging around. He is a 6 month old ......yellow lab/golden something? (I'm so bad at this). I taught him step one on how to shake. I think he is going to pick up on it! We also played on the beach for a long time chasing sticks and palm leaves and learning how to dive for rocks. He is a smart lil pup and it was so much fun to play with him and watch him learn. I have always loved dogs and I really enjoyed getting away from the boat for awhile to play with him.
It was weird walking out of the bar tonight. This was really it. My final days, my final goodbye at Staniel Cay. For the last month and then some I have called this place my home. As I sat at the bar I looked around at the people sitting and working and I knew all but a few of their names. Bushman, Gizelle, the owner, his girlfriend, Nuno, David, Tony, Jeff, Harry, Salt, Ruth, Rhonda, Felisha, Suzana, and Joan. I don't think I could name that many people sitting around any bar anywhere (maybe Holland). I walked down the dock knowing the clear water was coming to an end, as Georgetown is a bit murky. I can't believe it is coming to an end. As I look forward to an exciting weekend in Georgetown for the regatta's I know that I am down to a long weekend until I'm back to Chicago. I am super excited for Chicago don't get me wrong, but this place is special.
The constant changing of colors on the water will put anyone in a trance as the the depths change from a dark blue to a light shade of green and in to a white as the bottom goes from coral to grass to sand. Seagulls break the silence of paradise as todays catch is cleaned up on the bench while hungry nurse sharks and rays pace back and forth hoping for a scrap. Dinghies come and go and the smell of fuel teases your nose before being lifted away by the breeze. The hum of the engine is sometimes confused with the next load of tourists and supplies coming in on the small airplanes that buzz around like flies. The hot sun is relentless, the dive flag at the Staniel Cay dive shop tries to stand up in the weak warm winds from the south east but fails to even flutter. Spices fill the air as dinner time nears up at the yacht club. A group of locals huddle around the fish bench every day, waiting, wasting, and watching another day drift past. A trip to the end of the dock reminds me of how tough my feet have become as splinters and nails are pushed away by my tough skin. The water is crystal clear. The only thing that blurs the bottom is the strong ebb tide with the water rushing back out to sea like the raging Mississippi. A few sailboats block my view of the horizon anchored just off of the dock, and mega yachts scatter in the distance making up their own anchorages it seems. I turn and look back towards land as the day fades away. The Batelco tower dominates the skyline with its flashing red lights. Palm trees in front of the yacht club stand motionless and music makes its way to my ears. A tourist asks me isn't this amazing, I don't think this could ever get old. I smile and simply reply you're right I don't think it ever will. Uninterested and engulfed by my surroundings I walk away. Our underwater lights are starting to take over the night as small fish dance around them. A nurse shark rests on the bottom completely uninterested in its surroundings. A large southern sting ray floats by effortlessly. The dinner bell rings and people make their way in to the bar. This is my home. This was my home. Tony, Barry, Ben, Gizelle, Christina, David, David, Susana, Jake, Joelle, Big Daddy, Raymond, Wade, Salt, Food, Rock, Wellington, Janel, Jeff, Harry, Ruth, Rhonda, Felisha, Chavette, Netty, Joan, Carl, Foodie, Graham, Marvin, Marvin, Salomon, Mackenzie, Eddie, Clevland, and that is just the locals and I am sure I am forgetting a lot! Thank you. Thank you for an amazing adventure, thank you for memories that will last a lifetime. And while I still have a few more days left, I feel as if this blog is significant. Georgetown means little to me. Tomorrow I am leaving my home. On to the next step, where I will again shift gears. Sad, yes. Exciting, yes. I will never forget the past six months of my life, but I look forward to the next many years! As my fortune cookies once told me "the best years of your life have not yet been lived." and "a vacation of vacations awaits you." I still have both of them in my wallet today. What's next captain? Well....its still a lifetime away.
Sound Waves Out
(pictures to come of danger reef....just not tonight....not after that blog)
Monday, April 25, 2011
Day 201 & 202: Danger Reef!
SAMPSON CAY EXUMAS, BAHAMAS
Saturday...geez Saturday. Another day. It was normal chores around the boat, cleaning some beds and heads, doing the shower sumps and checking air filters. Ragged Reef was set to play during happy hour and again after dinner up at the yacht club. Even though I've seen Jake the divemaster around and have talked to him quite a bit we didn't really become friends until we spent the day together diving. He is a really cool guy and I regret not getting to know him more until now. I helped him put up a rack for wetsuits in the dive shop, and while I didn't do much he needed some of my tools. I love doing projects like that with other people. I managed to find some time to play guitar in the afternoon before the band started. Once they started playing I went up to watch them while keeping an eye on the owner and our dinner guests, Bushman and his girlfriend. The band was fun as always and dinner on the boat was great, grilled red snapper. The rest of the night was spent drifting from the bar, back to the boat, and back to the bar. I finally met the crew on the boat next to us, Mobility. Lis (sp?) and John were a captain/chef couple and despite being next to us for a week I hadn't talked to them. Our friends from Sagamar were also in town after seeing them in Emerald Bay and Georgetown. I don't remember everyones name but it was good to see them as well. I do have to say that remembering names is something I have become so much better at. I surprise myself that I can remember names now, I never used to be able to do that.
Sunday we were set to go diving at danger reef. Nuno and Val were back in town with charter guests and he was interested in diving with us. Well he backed out that morning as he had a conference call with the owner. Jake can't take us in to the park unless we have a certain amount of divers because of fuel costs. It wasn't looking like I was going to see Danger Reef anytime soon. Finally Kris (sp?) and I decided to split the cost of a third diver and do the dive anyways. We got in the boat and headed north in to the park. It was about an hour ride to Danger Reef, which is just north of Warderwick Wells. It was a bit rough but nothing that we couldn't handle. As soon as we were secure on the mooring ball reef sharks presented themselves behind the boat. To my surprise I wasn't too nervous about the 8-10 reef sharks circling the boat. I jumped right in. I immediately felt like I was swimming inside the aquarium at Shedd in Chicago. Huge horse-eyed Jacks huddled in a school under the shadow of the dive boat. Yellow tails were everywhere. Everywhere I looked there was a Caribbean Reef shark, all of which were at least 4 feet long and up to 6-7 feet. Huge black and Nassau grouper were not shy at all and almost ran in to you. We went to the bottom and sat in the sand for a little bit to play with the grouper. We stuck our hands out and wiggled our fingers. They slowly came up to our fingers, put their head up in the air, and if we were slow and patient enough they let us scratch their belly! All of the grouper were at least 3-4 feet long and by far the largest grouper I have seen. I could have sat directly under the boat for the entire dive. While swimming around I noticed a reef shark swimming at me in the distance. As I watched he kept swimming at me. I dropped down in between some coral heads and noticed he also started swimming deeper. He wasn't swimming too fast so I wasn't super nervous, yet. He kept coming and it wasn't until he was about 10 feet away (which is nothing underwater) that I could tell that he was going to swim above me. The shark swam about two feet over me head and I had to resist the temptation to reach up and scratch his belly like the grouper. We saw a lot of spotted eels and a few lobster. The sharks left us for awhile but suddenly one was right there again. Kris took a picture of it and suddenly it turned for the surface and swam fast! It hit the other mooring ball that was not occupied. It was a bit scary as I now knew that we were swimming with hungry sharks. Towards the end of the dive Crash came out of no where! Crash is a huge turtle, I am not sure what kind of turtle, I need to figure that out. his head was bigger than a basketball and he made a very close approach to me. It was hands down one of the best dives I have ever been on. While the diving at Saba last year was unbelievable the fact that we saw so much in one dive here definitely rivals Saba. Our second dive was just a little further to the north called Parrotfish reef. It was also a very cool dive, but with only two shark sightings and two grouper mating it definitely did not live up to Danger Reef. I got dropped off at Sampson Cay and relaxed the rest of the night.
What a day!
Saturday...geez Saturday. Another day. It was normal chores around the boat, cleaning some beds and heads, doing the shower sumps and checking air filters. Ragged Reef was set to play during happy hour and again after dinner up at the yacht club. Even though I've seen Jake the divemaster around and have talked to him quite a bit we didn't really become friends until we spent the day together diving. He is a really cool guy and I regret not getting to know him more until now. I helped him put up a rack for wetsuits in the dive shop, and while I didn't do much he needed some of my tools. I love doing projects like that with other people. I managed to find some time to play guitar in the afternoon before the band started. Once they started playing I went up to watch them while keeping an eye on the owner and our dinner guests, Bushman and his girlfriend. The band was fun as always and dinner on the boat was great, grilled red snapper. The rest of the night was spent drifting from the bar, back to the boat, and back to the bar. I finally met the crew on the boat next to us, Mobility. Lis (sp?) and John were a captain/chef couple and despite being next to us for a week I hadn't talked to them. Our friends from Sagamar were also in town after seeing them in Emerald Bay and Georgetown. I don't remember everyones name but it was good to see them as well. I do have to say that remembering names is something I have become so much better at. I surprise myself that I can remember names now, I never used to be able to do that.
Sunday we were set to go diving at danger reef. Nuno and Val were back in town with charter guests and he was interested in diving with us. Well he backed out that morning as he had a conference call with the owner. Jake can't take us in to the park unless we have a certain amount of divers because of fuel costs. It wasn't looking like I was going to see Danger Reef anytime soon. Finally Kris (sp?) and I decided to split the cost of a third diver and do the dive anyways. We got in the boat and headed north in to the park. It was about an hour ride to Danger Reef, which is just north of Warderwick Wells. It was a bit rough but nothing that we couldn't handle. As soon as we were secure on the mooring ball reef sharks presented themselves behind the boat. To my surprise I wasn't too nervous about the 8-10 reef sharks circling the boat. I jumped right in. I immediately felt like I was swimming inside the aquarium at Shedd in Chicago. Huge horse-eyed Jacks huddled in a school under the shadow of the dive boat. Yellow tails were everywhere. Everywhere I looked there was a Caribbean Reef shark, all of which were at least 4 feet long and up to 6-7 feet. Huge black and Nassau grouper were not shy at all and almost ran in to you. We went to the bottom and sat in the sand for a little bit to play with the grouper. We stuck our hands out and wiggled our fingers. They slowly came up to our fingers, put their head up in the air, and if we were slow and patient enough they let us scratch their belly! All of the grouper were at least 3-4 feet long and by far the largest grouper I have seen. I could have sat directly under the boat for the entire dive. While swimming around I noticed a reef shark swimming at me in the distance. As I watched he kept swimming at me. I dropped down in between some coral heads and noticed he also started swimming deeper. He wasn't swimming too fast so I wasn't super nervous, yet. He kept coming and it wasn't until he was about 10 feet away (which is nothing underwater) that I could tell that he was going to swim above me. The shark swam about two feet over me head and I had to resist the temptation to reach up and scratch his belly like the grouper. We saw a lot of spotted eels and a few lobster. The sharks left us for awhile but suddenly one was right there again. Kris took a picture of it and suddenly it turned for the surface and swam fast! It hit the other mooring ball that was not occupied. It was a bit scary as I now knew that we were swimming with hungry sharks. Towards the end of the dive Crash came out of no where! Crash is a huge turtle, I am not sure what kind of turtle, I need to figure that out. his head was bigger than a basketball and he made a very close approach to me. It was hands down one of the best dives I have ever been on. While the diving at Saba last year was unbelievable the fact that we saw so much in one dive here definitely rivals Saba. Our second dive was just a little further to the north called Parrotfish reef. It was also a very cool dive, but with only two shark sightings and two grouper mating it definitely did not live up to Danger Reef. I got dropped off at Sampson Cay and relaxed the rest of the night.
What a day!
Lobster out in the open!
Sting ray
Caribbean Reef Shark at Danger Reef
Crash!
Spotted Eel
More pictures to come after I get more from Kris hopefully today
Sound Waves Out
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Day 199 & 200: SCUBA!
STANIEL CAY EXUMAS, BAHAMAS.....STILL HERE
The owner just doesn't want to leave the yacht club. I don't blame him though. I would much rather be here than Sampson, or even Georgetown with the exception of the Regatta's. We finally got our parts in for the generator. I flushed the coolant system a few more time after installing the new reservoir tank, putting on new zincs, and re-tightening all of the hose connections. Unfortunately the hose that connects the reservoir tank to the expansion tank was no good and I needed to find a way to get another one. By this time it was well in to the evening and time to call it quits. I had an early night and watched Avatar in my room for the first time ever.
Friday I woke up at 0500, too excited to sleep. I tried to lay there for another two hours but hardly drifted in and out of sleep. My alarm finally gave me the go ahead to get up and get ready for the day. I told myself to stay calm and make sure I get a good breakfast, go over all of my gear again, etc, etc... I was so excited because the owner granted me a day of diving. It was a good group, with the exception of one guy who wasn't very coordinated in the water. Jake, Kris (sp?), Dick and myself were the only divers. We had the motivation to dive Danger Reef but Jake, the dive master, called it off because it was a little too rough on the outside. Instead we dove Conch Cut and Jeep Reef.
Conch Cut was a drift dive, and I do have to admit my first official drift dive. As effortless as I though the dive would be I often found myself twisting and turning to try and get in the right position. It is like taking a slow boat down a river, you are moving fast over the ground but have no steerage. We saw a lot of lobster, a ray, and a ton of beautiful fish. Our bottom time was nearly an hour. Jeep reef proved to be the more enjoyable dive however.
Just before we got in the water Dick turned around and stated he wasn't feeling well and was going to sit this one out. It was a smart decision on his part, and it made Kris and I happy because he wasn't a very good diver. Immediately I could sense that Jake himself was much more relaxed and enjoying the dive. The coral was very cool and the fish were spectacular. Large grouper, huge barracuda, and too many lobster to count. We did see the Jeep (how the site got it's name) but other than old tires it was very hard to make out. Coral had claimed the walls and it looked more like a coral covered box on wheels. Last night while I was watching Avatar I kept thinking to myself, wow that would be so cool to live in a world like that. All of the colors at night time, the crazy animals and insects, and soaring between trees and mountains on a "dragon...thing". As I was drifting over the top of a tall coral head I pointed my head down, exhaled, and soared down the face of the coral head. Another breath leveled me out on the sand as I used a bit of momentum from my fall to glide across to the next coral head. Damselfish and blue chromis danced around the coral ducking in and out of their hideaways. A lobster tippy-toed across the sand. A four foot barracuda sat motionless with its mouth half open, watching my every move. I was as close to being on Pandora (the planet in Avatar) as I will ever be, and it was awesome. An ebb tide was starting to present itself as we came to the end of the dive. The huge coral walls were behind us and for the most part it was soft corals on the bottom. I sat at 15ft. for my safety stop and let the current take me. Motionless and weightless I sailed over Pandora. Like a little kid I spent all night pretending that Pandora existed after watching the movie. It was real.
Just like that I snapped out of my trance and noticed Jake floating right next to me. I looked over and he was in a sitting position pretending to read a newspaper (if he were using the restroom). I then noticed that I was in my "comfortable" position which also looked exactly like I was using the restroom. Jake started dancing and I went in to my own world and started doing front flips....why not. The last ten minutes of the dive was spent filling up our masks from laughing and being total idiots while performing our 15ft. safety stop. I think we may have stayed down a little too long if you know what I mean :-).
Back at the docks, I got the generator fixed and went up to the bar to hang out with my new group of friends. The night went by just like any other and I realized that it is almost better now when the bar is really empty because the people that are there all the time and the people who live here are the ones I talk to. It's going to be really hard to leave this place.
The owner just doesn't want to leave the yacht club. I don't blame him though. I would much rather be here than Sampson, or even Georgetown with the exception of the Regatta's. We finally got our parts in for the generator. I flushed the coolant system a few more time after installing the new reservoir tank, putting on new zincs, and re-tightening all of the hose connections. Unfortunately the hose that connects the reservoir tank to the expansion tank was no good and I needed to find a way to get another one. By this time it was well in to the evening and time to call it quits. I had an early night and watched Avatar in my room for the first time ever.
Friday I woke up at 0500, too excited to sleep. I tried to lay there for another two hours but hardly drifted in and out of sleep. My alarm finally gave me the go ahead to get up and get ready for the day. I told myself to stay calm and make sure I get a good breakfast, go over all of my gear again, etc, etc... I was so excited because the owner granted me a day of diving. It was a good group, with the exception of one guy who wasn't very coordinated in the water. Jake, Kris (sp?), Dick and myself were the only divers. We had the motivation to dive Danger Reef but Jake, the dive master, called it off because it was a little too rough on the outside. Instead we dove Conch Cut and Jeep Reef.
Conch Cut was a drift dive, and I do have to admit my first official drift dive. As effortless as I though the dive would be I often found myself twisting and turning to try and get in the right position. It is like taking a slow boat down a river, you are moving fast over the ground but have no steerage. We saw a lot of lobster, a ray, and a ton of beautiful fish. Our bottom time was nearly an hour. Jeep reef proved to be the more enjoyable dive however.
Just before we got in the water Dick turned around and stated he wasn't feeling well and was going to sit this one out. It was a smart decision on his part, and it made Kris and I happy because he wasn't a very good diver. Immediately I could sense that Jake himself was much more relaxed and enjoying the dive. The coral was very cool and the fish were spectacular. Large grouper, huge barracuda, and too many lobster to count. We did see the Jeep (how the site got it's name) but other than old tires it was very hard to make out. Coral had claimed the walls and it looked more like a coral covered box on wheels. Last night while I was watching Avatar I kept thinking to myself, wow that would be so cool to live in a world like that. All of the colors at night time, the crazy animals and insects, and soaring between trees and mountains on a "dragon...thing". As I was drifting over the top of a tall coral head I pointed my head down, exhaled, and soared down the face of the coral head. Another breath leveled me out on the sand as I used a bit of momentum from my fall to glide across to the next coral head. Damselfish and blue chromis danced around the coral ducking in and out of their hideaways. A lobster tippy-toed across the sand. A four foot barracuda sat motionless with its mouth half open, watching my every move. I was as close to being on Pandora (the planet in Avatar) as I will ever be, and it was awesome. An ebb tide was starting to present itself as we came to the end of the dive. The huge coral walls were behind us and for the most part it was soft corals on the bottom. I sat at 15ft. for my safety stop and let the current take me. Motionless and weightless I sailed over Pandora. Like a little kid I spent all night pretending that Pandora existed after watching the movie. It was real.
Just like that I snapped out of my trance and noticed Jake floating right next to me. I looked over and he was in a sitting position pretending to read a newspaper (if he were using the restroom). I then noticed that I was in my "comfortable" position which also looked exactly like I was using the restroom. Jake started dancing and I went in to my own world and started doing front flips....why not. The last ten minutes of the dive was spent filling up our masks from laughing and being total idiots while performing our 15ft. safety stop. I think we may have stayed down a little too long if you know what I mean :-).
Back at the docks, I got the generator fixed and went up to the bar to hang out with my new group of friends. The night went by just like any other and I realized that it is almost better now when the bar is really empty because the people that are there all the time and the people who live here are the ones I talk to. It's going to be really hard to leave this place.
The cliffs at Great Guana
Iguana's at Great Guana
Lounging with the Iguana's
Cool pictures of air bubbles while diving
Triggerfish
Spotfin Butterflyfish
Shaking the lobsters hand at Jeep Reef. He let me grab his antenna
Hanging out on the sandy bottom at Jeep reef.
Cool shot at Jeep Reef
Flamingo Toungue
Lobster out in the open at Jeep Reef
I spy two lionfish. Do you see them?
My "comfortable" position that got me shit the whole night (no pun intended)
I spy ...possibly a peacock flounder...do you see it?
Sound Waves Out
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