Sailing Vessel Southern
Cross, the first Dickerson 41 ketch, and only wood hull
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Spring 2002 May 2002 June 2002 July 2002 The Home Page Message, May 2002: Our sailboat Southern Cross will soon be our permanent home. Right now we are busy with the process of divesting of "stuff" and getting the boat ready for us to move aboard. This dream of cruising has been one that Don has harbored for over twenty years. Soon it will become a reality. There is a combination of emotions. Scary: It is something new that we have never tried. Exciting: It is something that we have looked forward to for many years. ( Don, many more years than D) Frustrating: Because there is so much we want to get done before actually moving aboard, within our self imposed time restrictions. Satisfying: Because we are getting so close to actually being able to FINALLY do IT! Also, satisfying because in this kind of work you can actually see what has been accomplished. Overwhelming: Because there is so much left to do.
We've had lots of fun as Port Clinton townies. There has been special winter pricing at the local restaurants. On Monday nights we went to Conrad's Steak house up town for prime rib, a small but adequate 8 ounce cut, for $4.99. On Wednesday night it was Mon Ami winery and restaurant on Catawba Island for steaks again, sirloin or strip, for $6.99, in front of a wood fire. Or, as a change, we ate Lebanese at The Garden, our local upscale place, also on Wednesdays. For a fancy treat we’ve had a couple of bargain wine tastings, really grazings, as you walk between stations with food and the appropriate wine, at Nate’s. Don likes an occasional burger and Harp's draught beer at a local bar called the Tin Goose. Most nights we eat in, except when there is a special dinner at the Moose Lodge. Our Port Clinton Lodge is a beautiful facility on the lake front, with a great view from the bar/dining area. Many thanks to Carl and Judy Hibbard of Gypsy for recruiting and sponsoring us. New Years' Eve we went to the
Moose for a nice party, food, favors, and dancing, but left early to attend the
famous (Ripley's recognized!) Port Clinton Walleye Drop at midnight. We walked
the six blocks downtown from our apartment, arriving at the Walleye Drop in time
for the count down to the new year, complete with fireworks. Speaking of bed, the routine here since retirement has settled in to a typical day of:
Our only long break from this
routine so far this year was our recent trip to Littleton, New Hampshire, to
visit with Don's brother Dennis and family, and get our residence there
established. We will have to have some a Things are done quite differently
in New Hampshire, compared to Ohio, where Don has lived all his life, and D
since 1981. For example, autos are required to pass an annual inspection in New
Hampshire, versus none in Ohio. However, insurance is not required in New
Hampshire, but it is in Ohio. I guess the inspection will protect you against
your own stupidity (failing to maintain a safe car), but you are free to cause a
financial burden if you damage another car, or hurt someone. For sure, the car
inspection We've had visitors to help us from time to time this year, including a week long stay by D's mom Pam in March. Sue Wagner of La Boatique, home for a visit from New Zealand, has helped us with the boat work, and our web site. Check her site at www.kellnet.com/laboatique, it is super! Carl of Gypsy is an invaluable source of advice, criticism and help. Gary Watts, Don's buddy since Cub Scouts, came for a couple of productive days, and Dave Pasch, a new local friend from Gibsonburg, painted a bunch of aft cabin parts and helped Don one Saturday. D is filling in as a "spare" handler for a local equine therapy program, Riders Unlimited, this spring. But mostly we are working diligently on the boat, and on divesting, and getting things simplified as much as possible, for the life ahead. We have just finished closing up
the deck on the boat, in preparation for removing the winter cover. The steering
is now installed, with new cables, roller chain, pins and bushings. We just put
the coaming box teak tops and the primary winches on, also. Down below, we've
shoe horned the new water lift muffler in and made the exhaust connections to
the exit sea cock, then removed it all to paint yet more wood parts. Most of the
wood fabricating is over, much of it is lying around the boat loose, painted,
and ready for installation. The emphasis now is on getting the boat ready to uncover, and move aboard ready after that. We plan to move aboard by June now, but know that we will still be working on our projects at that point. We feel that we must get out of the apartment anyway, partly to save the rent and utilities, but mostly to get the major step of moving aboard made, prior to leaving. To move aboard, we need to remount and reconnect the hot water heater and commission the water system. We'll need some electrics (there are absolutely none right now) to run the water pump, and maybe operate a few lights. We need to run and test the new propane line to the stove. And, we need to finish the carpenter work in the aft cabin so we'll have a place for clothes, and sleeping. After that, the next order of business is to run the engine. This will require more wiring, plumbing the cooling, exhaust, and ventilation systems, revising and installing the fuel filter panel, completing and installing the new engine instrument panel, then adding fluids, bleeding the fuel system, and varoom, we're off and running (we hope). The engine was rebuilt last summer, and has yet to be run.
With luck, we think we will get out for some lakes cruising in July and August. Then back to Brands' for the August party, and preparation for the canal trip east. We have reservations for our Columbus Power Squadron Rendezvous in Cleveland over Labor Day weekend, and plan to continue from there to Buffalo, NY to unstep our masts for the New York State Barge Canal and points East and South. So there's the general plan and progress. As our cruising friends Susan and Eric say, however, our plans are cast in Jell-O! Until next time, fair winds, D and Don
Current Position: Lat 41 deg 31' N. Long 82 deg 57' W Port Clinton, OH at BRANDS' MARINA slip E32 The merry month of May found Don and me still struggling with getting more projects closer to their conclusion. We know that the boat will never be done, just like a house in that respect, but our self imposed deadline of actually moving aboard the boat on June 15th is fast approaching. Bits and pieces are fitting together, but the whole boat is still a mess. We are working to make a little section marina habitable (as opposed to self sufficient) for now. What we have accomplished in the last month, with help from Kitty Dye and
Dave Pasche, is:
To keep our sanity we have managed to squeeze in a little fun. We
attended the wedding of Nancy Lane (My "little sister" through
Franklin County Children's Services, from the early 1980's) to Jason Schmidt,
attended the Port Clinton Playmakers' Theatre production of the comedy
"Dearly Departed," I donated blood, we attended the Port C We showed Marty the boat, and then I took him to set up camp at Transformations Farm, owned by Sherry and Ron Pendleton, out at Marblehead. I volunteer there for Riders Unlimited, a therapeutic riding program for handicapped people. Dinner that night was kindly provided by local author Kitty Dye and her husband Deke. Kitty's historically correct fiction may be found on her web site, http://www.leclerepublishing.com On the next morning, Monday, May 27, Marty made breakfast for both of us.
Then Marty and I spent the day on Kelley's Island! What a blast! We
took his whole rig over there via the Kelley’s Island Ferry, and spent the
day. I'm still flying over that one, and in love with We met up with Gary and Jackie Finger, owners of the Village Pump Restaurant
there in down town Kelley's Island (great Lake Erie fish, check it Wow, what a cool thing to do, take a horse over to the island and ride!
In the evening there Then all I saw was Jubilee’s head sticking out of his trailer window,
enjoying the breeze, as Marty headed east to the Philadelphia area. It was then While in Philly, Marty camped at my Dad’s house in downtown Bristol, PA owned by Sue Atkinson, and gave the neighborhood kids rides. Jubilee scored another hit! Happy Trails! D and Don Current Position: Lat 41 deg 31' N. Long 82 deg 57' W Port Clinton, OH at BRANDS' MARINA slip E32 SPEED BUMPS is the Much of the furniture we were using sprouted "sold" tags, as she asked the new owners to permit us to continue using it until our official moving date of June 15. The good old Triumph TR8 found a home in the Dayton area, where its new owners plan to restore and show it. Of course, the sales activity ate boat work time. D’s Mom, Pam, visited from June
ninth to the sixteenth and helped us to pack, move some items, and prep the
boat. During her visit it became obvious that we would not make it out of the
apartment by the fifteenth. Fortunately, there wasn’t a new tenant yet and our
landlady, Mrs. Fiorani, had no objections to our staying longer. At this point I, normally mild mannered and tolerant, began to feel a growing resentment towards my partner. After all, wasn’t it her job to get all this moving stuff dealt with while I finished the boat? Why wasn’t it done, anyway? I began to feel that I alone was working towards the cruising goal, while D was playing around and wasting our time. All these bad feelings erupted one
evening just before D left for Brookville, Ohio, my old home town, to chaperone
my mother Dorothy to my niece Johanna’s graduation in Littleton, NH. I said
some unkind things, and there was no time to talk things through, only bad
feelings between us as darling D left to do my familial duty. Our plan had been for me to continue with the boat projects while D and Mom attended the graduation, and visited with first grandchild Johanna. Instead, I spent the entire six days that D was gone packing and moving. It was hot, in the nineties, and I could only move our stuff as far as the garage at the apartment, since my sole transport was my bicycle. I spent nights at the boat, since all the sleeping furniture was gone from the apartment, having been sold. Packing to move from one place ashore to another is quite different, and easier, I believe, than packing to move aboard a boat. Whereas the normal goal is just to relocate all the stuff, my goal was to sort and organize as I packed, separating things to be kept and stored, taken on the boat, and disposed of. Think about all the things we surround ourselves with in this life, and the associations many of these have, and you will agree that the decisions required are not easy. And, working alone gave me the fourth category of ?, what do you want to do with this, D? In any case, as I worked my way
from room to room I began to appreciate how much was already done by D. She had
been working at the stuff, after all, and I just didn’t realize how much there
was to be done. Fact is, I decided, I hadn’t wanted to know how much
divesting and sorting work remained to be done, preferring to believe that we
could step aboard and sail off as soon as the boat was ready! I also had time to calm down and remember what is important, and what’s not. I let the problems that were distressing me simmer for awhile, and came to the conclusion, once again, that we don’t need deadlines, and the whole point of this adventure is to enjoy the trip. When D returned we had some long talks, I ate humble pie, and we agreed to disagree openly, and quickly, rather than letting things fester. We also know now that we will spend a great deal more time than we had thought getting ready to sail off, at least as much time on divesting and sorting as we need to spend to finish the boat. Plus time to have fun, to look up and appreciate the scenery! On June 25, we spent our first night together on the boat. We spent the rest of June getting out of the apartment, and as of June 28, are officially living aboard. Although half the month was spent on moving, we did accomplish a lot on the boat. The aft cabin, our bedroom, was completed except for some painting, which we will do later. This included cutting access to wasted space under the berths, where we now have one complete season’s clothing stored in heavy duty zip lock bags. Also, installing the newly powder coated mizzen mast compression post, wiring conduit and Panduit electrical wire way, finishing the engine room Soundown insulation aft, installing floor boards, and sorting and storing parts and tools to make room for us!
I sponsored two friends, Dave Pasch and David Wyatt, as Moose members this month. D had a day’s visit with our old Columbus Ohio friend Debi Joseph, who had a layover in Cleveland as a new ‘stew’ with Southwest Airlines. Best of all, we are still partners, and I have been reminded that the journey is more important than the destination. As we have said before, the idea is to have NO PARTICULAR PLACE TO GO, and PLENTY OF TIME TO GET THERE. The speed bumps are a lot less traumatic if you slow down for them... Fair Winds, Don Current Position: Lat 41 deg 31' N. Long 82 deg 57' W Port Clinton, OH, at BRANDS' MARINA slip E32 Now that we are living aboard
the boat full time, several adjustments have had to be made. Let’s start with
the practical and mundane, as in the "necessary room". You know,
a potty stop. Due to the engine not running at this time, we cannot motor
up to the marina dock where the pump out station is, which means that we cannot
use the head (bathroom) on board the boat. That means a big trek all the
way to the marina bathrooms, and now that we are in slip number 32 instead of Another "hassle
factor" is not having refrigeration on board at this time. We were
using portable coolers until the sump pump was wired up. It pumps the drainage from the
ice melt, head sink, and shower overboard, which in turn allows ice to be put
into the ice box. This means getting both block and cube ice
at regular intervals. So now we can store perishables, but we can’t
store frozen things. We had not emptied out our freezer in the apartment by the
time we were ready to vacate it, but lucked out and were able to store what we
had left in the Brands’ employees "lunch" (really mostly after work
beers), refrigerator. That way we didn’t have to eat everything all at
once! Refrigeration is still on the list, but way down there. The fact that we are
living aboard, continuing to work on the boat, and sorting things to be stored
all at the same time makes for some cramped quarters. Don's epoxy box in with
food items, dishes, and food really can be kind of amusing. "Dear, we have
canned beans or teak boards available tonight for dinner, which would you
prefer?"! It also can be kind of trying. July 8 was D's birthday! We celebrated with dessert (not a normal occurrence) after our regular Monday night prime rib special at Conrad's. Her birthday gifts from Don consisted of a custom spice rack designed by Don and made by Al Harder, a Star Board cover made by Don for the stove top, to add counter space to the galley, and a combo bulletin board/dry erase board for the galley. BOAT WORK ACCOMPLISHED:
DIVESTING and STORAGE WORK, and FUN :
Happy Trails, D |
We
have had a very good winter here in Port Clinton, Ohio, with unusually mild
weather, which has permitted us to keep working on our boat projects every
available day. The boat is coming along, but is behind our desired schedule by
about three months, we think. No big deal, we just have to live with a revised
schedule. But, we will have to cut our summer 2002 Great lakes cruising plans
down, and may not make Lake Michigan, where we had hoped to meet up with some
family. We for sure won't get in to Lake Superior, so no Isle Royale hike,
bummer!
Then
to bed, which was a welcome after our late night out!
ddress while cruising, and we've chosen
New Hampshire due to the family connection. We've always admired the "Live
Free or Die" motto, and we now have a moose on our license plates! By the
way, sending us snail mail in the future will require that Dennis, Don's
brother, forward it to us where ever we are. So, we need to keep it light, so no
mailing lists, please, and we will have to see about Christmas cards. We really
appreciate the volunteer forwarding, so we need to go easy on the help!
doesn't
help the insurance rates, as they are about 50% higher than our old Ohio rates.
Must be the weather, or the moose hazard?
Once
we have a running engine, we will be able to take the boat to have the masts
stepped. But prior to stepping the masts, we have new wiring and brackets to put
in and on the mizzen (aft) mast for the radar and wind generator. Once the masts
are stepped, then it's adjust the standing rigging, put the sails and running
rigging on, and maybe we can get out for a test sail.
So
onward and forward with no end in sight, but a future goal in mind. We are also
moving out of our apartment a little each day, to storage mostly, and selling
more "stuff." Are you sure you don't need some furniture, commercial
style stack unit washer/dryer, Triumph TR8 convertible, pictures, a saddle,
misc. house wares, etc.?
linton
Power Squadron's annual auction, and the BIGGEE: Nashville Tennessee’s Marty
Luffman drove his truck and trailer with horse Jubilee into Brands marina!
Marty, who is a free lance writer for the magazine 
his horse Jubilee!
He is a lovely seven year old dun (a soft yellowy
mouse color with black mane, tail, legs, muzzle and ears) colored
quarter horse gelding about 15.1 hands high. What a sweetheart!
Marty let me ride him all over the place.
out!). Ron Pendleton suggested that we look them up, as
they have a horse there on the island. They were extremely kind to us.
was a cook out back on the mainland at Transformations Farm
and Marty made everyone fried dill pickles! MmMm good! Then on Tuesday, before
he took off for the east
coast, Kitty and I showed Marty a couple of the local sights here in the Port
Clinton area, the Marblehead Lighthouse and Johnson’s Island, where
confederate officers were imprisoned during the war.
back to the regular grind of preparing the boat for living aboard, and moving
out of the apartment, for me.
theme for June,
as D and I came to grips with the many other tasks facing us, not related to
preparing the boat. I concentrated on making part of the boat livable, at the
expense of work on systems like the engine and electric's. As I worked to
complete the aft cabin, where we would sleep, D continued selling
"stuff" via eBay and classified ads.
We now have cushions on the aft
berths and starboard main cabin settee, clear work space in the galley, and a
microwave oven for cooking. We are well on the way towards mounting the new main
circuit breaker panel, which will allow us to wire the pressure water and some
cabin lights.
our old slip 13, (which we had for 16 years) we are much further away. A
bit of a hassle. At three o’clock in the morning the hassle factor seems
immense, but having bicycles right at the end of our dock does help ease the
situation. Thank goodness we bought full size Montague folding mountain bikes
for the boat via eBay. They are light weight and have lots of aluminum and
stainless parts, so we are hoping they will last for awhile.
Drilled in the corner of the
galley for the new propane hose
