August 2016

Enjoying what little time we have for the Boat. As stated, life gets in the way. Working some and with 2 children pregnant and helping them care for their little ones, sometimes doesn't leave time for our time.
Dean- still working on the mast issues. Have mizzen and main sail in place, jib is not roller furling, so hank it on for each use. And still looking into electrical/technical issues or add-ons that would make our boat more energy efficient and independent for mooring and anchoring, such as LED lights, solar panels, and wind turbine among the options. The new masthead light is LED.
We have been out a few times so far this month, same areas, a little further reach.
Suzan's sister was in town so we motored around the area one day. We were going to take the boat to the Newport Jazz Festival and moor or anchor off around Fort Adams. There are some mooring/anchorage areas around Newport Harbor run by Old Port Marine Services that also offer launch services to and from the moorings. You can reach them on Radio VHF channel 68. Good to know. During the Festival it was "first come" so we opted for land parking. Next time we will take the boat over early for the weekend.
As mentioned in July's post, our first overnight was just off West Island to our north. Suzan is learning anchoring strategies to make overnights on anchor comfortable and worry free.

Ty at the helm

The 2nd overnight was Dean and his son in the same cove. That was quite an experience. We anchored off like last time. Grilled some burgers. Chatted over a beer, and I hit the sack around 11pm. Tyler (son) still up on deck enjoying the night air and peaceful setting. Wind about 7 knots out of the west. Suddenly about midnight I hear a disturbing sound-significantly more wind 25 to 30 knots whistling thru the rigging. As I came up on deck to get Tyler's stuff-cushions etc. under cover, the wind shifts quickly around to the north, giving the water a lot more fetch to build up seas and pointing the aft end of the boat at a spit of land not more than 400 to 500 feet  away and shallow water a lot closer than that, leaving  very little maneuvering room if the anchor were to let go or drag! Quite scary I must say. As expected, the waves built up very quickly, putting more strain on the anchor and rode. We both put on life jackets and waited it out in the cockpit, me at the helm, ready to start the engine to prevent us from grounding. Then the rain came, knocking down the waves and calming things a bit. Not long after, the wind died off and things eased back to normal. Thank God we set the anchor well and gave plenty of scope so Puffin held her own. So glad Suzan wasn't there to suffer through that!

Hammock with a view

The following morning was fogged in but cleared off early and presented another fine day.
Our zinc on the propeller shaft is being eaten quickly and fell off in my hand on an inspection dive, due to the salt water and stray electrical currents in New Bedford harbor. A day later, with a friend on board to keep an eye out, I installed a new zinc. We are learning.
August is almost gone and we haven't spent nearly the time we want with and on the boat. Still, September and October here in Southern New England offer nice boating time.