Hobie Cat Forums

A couple of weeks ago another Watertribe http://watertribe.com/member, WaterDog and I did a late fall Adventure trip down the Mattoponi and York Rivers of Virginia. We did manage to pick the two worst days of the season. But, the rain, cold tidal currents and high winds do make good sea stories.

I put the Adventure into four videos and posted on my You-Tube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/dogslife23452

1) Upper Mattoponi: 3 knot counter current, rain and fog.



2) Lower Mattoponi: More current. Finally some sailing. Cold front and night time navigation.



3) York River: Camp Site and running at full throttle down the York River.



4) Chesapeake: Turned the corner into the Chesapeake Bay. A high wind adventure run toward Hampton Roads, Virginia.



There are less that three month before the Watertribe Florida EC. Winter is not the ideal time here on the Chesapeake for practice. Most of my sailing from now until the race will be short day trips...enjoy...

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Paul
DogsLife
2011 Adventure Island (Little Dog)
2010 Tandem Island (Big Dog: "We keep a leg up on the competition")
2001 Wilderness Systems Woodsman Kayak 14.5 (Blue Dog)

http://dogslifeadventures.blogspot.com/

I recently bought a Kokatat Drysuit to extend my sailing season. I have to stand up to put on or take off the suit. How do you change in and out of your drysuit without getting soaked while wet camping with only a rainfly?

Very carefully...

I first set up the tarp. Pulled my dry sleeping bag and dry clothes bags from the bow, laid them into the cockpit area that was covered by the tarp. I laid down on the tramp taking off my boots not to get sand on the tramp. Laying down I removed my dry suit and put it into the cockpit. I carry a dry towel to dry my self and the tramp off before putting on my sleep clothes. My inflatable mattress is partially inflated in the bow so it can be fairly quickly inflated to get me off the cold tramp. During all of this it was pouring and wind howling. Two problems with the tarp. 1) the edges are pulled down tight so I was dry. The cold wind blew around the edges so it was hard to stay warm. 2) The tarp gives no insect protection. I never thought that Noseeums would be around in this weather. In the morning I reversed the process. It is a routine Houdini would be proud of...

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Paul
DogsLife
2011 Adventure Island (Little Dog)
2010 Tandem Island (Big Dog: "We keep a leg up on the competition")
2001 Wilderness Systems Woodsman Kayak 14.5 (Blue Dog)

http://dogslifeadventures.blogspot.com/

Congratulations fellas. Mammoth effort. I watched the 1st 2 clips last night but it made me too cold, so I went to my nice warm bed and waited until today before watching the rest. They breed them tough down this way.

You've put in alot of work in the editing Paul and it has certainly paid off. Great job.

I thought that if the conditions stayed the same for the entire trip, there would be no way that Cameron would still have a smile on his face but.......
What happy pills is he on ???

Couple of questions. How do you attach and disconnect your boom ? and how did the front hatch seal stand up to being underwater for most of the trip ?

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Don't take life too seriously................it ain't permanent.

Full-on, downwind submarine runs with temps in the "upper 30's"!!!

BRRRRR,... Remind me again why you made this trip??

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"You can avoid reality, but you cannot avoid the consequences of avoiding reality."
- Ayn Rand

Slaughter,

my improved hatch seal worked great. Through all the diving I only got a few tablespoons of water into the front part. One secret that I use is electrical silicone grease on the gaskets. It helps to make the gasket stick. I can pull a vacuum on the front hatch to where I have trouble getting it off until I break the seal. The boom is held in by compression. On each end of the sail is a small webbing pocket. I spring the boom in and it stays there like a bow. The loops in the edge of the sail keep it in place.

I like sailing with Cameron because of his attitude. He is one of those happy people that you like being around. Only time he was not smiling was the first night when the cold front hit in the dark, no navigational references to go by. We were running 6 knots under bare poles.

Nohuhu,

why do the trip? This time of year is the big bird migration time on the Chesapeake. Thousands of birds. This time the weather put a clamp on that. We could hear them but could not see. Also this is my last big trip of the season before the weather shuts me down for overnight distance trips. I am at a age that I need to remind my self that I am still alive and I can challenge my self. Nothing better than having every bone in your body shake because you are freezing to death. I am working my way around the Chesapeake Bay trying to do every major estuary and river. One benefit, very little boat traffic...

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Paul
DogsLife
2011 Adventure Island (Little Dog)
2010 Tandem Island (Big Dog: "We keep a leg up on the competition")
2001 Wilderness Systems Woodsman Kayak 14.5 (Blue Dog)

http://dogslifeadventures.blogspot.com/

That's an amazing seal then for the work that it had to do. Thanks for the tip. I get now how you did your boom. Do you like it ? I've been using mine off and on for over a year now and it does have it's place and definitely gives 1 or 2 more knots under the right conditions.

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Don't take life too seriously................it ain't permanent.

Slaughter,

Yes I like my boom very much. It maintains the sail shape. Even when there is no wind it looks like I am sailing. I have had a few comments, "wow, you can sail that thing with no wind". It is a old magicians trick, keep them looking up at the sail while down bellow the Mirage drive is doing all the work.

You need to think ahead when to deploy the boom and take it down. It takes a little time and coordination. It will keep you from furling the sail if needed. Take down is a lot faster. Putting up takes practice and coordination. The second time I used it I lost the lower half of the boom over the side. I had it laying in my lap while I was installing the first section. I is amazing how quickly things disappear under the water's surface...

_________________
Paul
DogsLife
2011 Adventure Island (Little Dog)
2010 Tandem Island (Big Dog: "We keep a leg up on the competition")
2001 Wilderness Systems Woodsman Kayak 14.5 (Blue Dog)

http://dogslifeadventures.blogspot.com/

Yes, a great job with the video and I admire both of your 'spunk' (Wikipedia: quality of mind showing enthusiasm, boldness, energy, courage, determination and motivation)..
Watching the video gave me the shivers a number of times, especially the scenes where the rain was pouring over Paul's baseball cap - Paul, surely your cap/head must have been soaked and contributed to feeling cold?... brrrrrr! Great effort, thanks for sharing!

Wow- inspiring stuff!
Even a bad day on the water is still a good day .....and better than being at work!
What a great effort -both the trip and the video editing. I really enjoyed watching all the clips. I can see the benefit of a dry suit in those conditions.
The GoPro footage is so much clearer than the handheld (SD?) camera.
Thanks for posting!

Cool videos, although looks very chilly! I am trying to decide between a Gro Pro and Drift 170. Would you mind telling me what brand you used for the mount? I looked at some by kayalu..
Thanks very much!