CRUISING ADVENTURES AND GUNK HOLING IN SMALL SAILBOATS 12

Article By Richard Frye
Part 12 of the series: Backpacking On The Water

Three more days went by and those expected to show up at the marina for the cruise south had not arrived! It was a little disheartening that none of the ones mentioned had sailed into the marina! They were expected on Saturday or Sunday at the latest and it was already Wednesday morning! Still not a mast in sight! I wasn’t in any hurry because there was plenty of time to beat the oncoming cold weather. While I waited, there were things that had to be done, and I was going to make sure that Sea Mistress would undergo a major cleaning inside, and all stores, gear and supplies would be organized. I had wanted to do that for quite some time but just didn’t get around to it. Several years at least on various sailboats! So, now would be a good time to strip out her insides and see what treasures I could find! Perhaps a favorite lure for the big Channel Bass, Spot tails or Red fish as some are called. This fish has many names but I think it’s actually a Red Drum! Just like home, something was always finding its way behind and under sofa and chair cushions! It wasn’t much different on boat that was your temporary home!

My thoughts were, “Once it’s in order, everything will stay what way!” How untrue a statement that is! The last part is what I’m referring to! Some phantom or sea ghost is constantly messing up things about my little ship! Hiding stuff! Throwing stuff here, throwing stuff there, and I’m finding stuff where it is not supposed to be. And then more stuff is turning up missing for a week or two! Now that’s hard to conceive that things could actually get lost in such a small area but it does happen! Miraculously as it may sound, some things really do find their way back to their proper places on the boat after being called upon for use or to do a certain task! I have to admit that those occasions are rare and should be celebrated when it does happen!

The weather forecast was good for the next week with no rain expected, but a nasty squall could suddenly blast through without any warning to drench things and do some horrific rearranging of almost everything with strong destructive winds, and then be gone in the blink of an eye! Sun would be shining, a beautiful day it was! All would seem normal, but the damage was done when you looked around. It was just a matter of cleaning up after the storm. So is the life of a cruising sailor!

I wandered over to ONAWHIM with my mug of coffee that was heavily seasoned with a shot and a half of Kahlua to see if John and Mara had heard anything about the others? He said that he had just gotten off the phone, and they were enroute and cruising together. It wasn’t planned that way but they all wound up in the same place somehow. The delays were now due to outfitting problems, electrical malfunctions, engine repairs, etc. Just one little thing after another as the continued with a list of things that were wrong with the boats or crew. One was sick from bad food he had had for dinner at a restaurant with gastroenteritis. Another had a leaky fuel tank fitting! Somebody clogged up the toilet on one boat! That was just the beginning of the many things on the growing list that appeared to be as long as the Dead Sea Scrolls as John continued with a chuckle! Things do happen but it seemed like everyone that was to join us was having some kind of difficulty! I had nothing better to do except to clean the Sea Mistress from stem to stern on the inside! I sat on deck of ONAWHIM while John poured himself a cup of coffee from down below. I looked around at the trees and the leaves were beginning to change color on the hardwood trees and some surrounding vegetation. The Pines and Palmettos were forever green! But now brilliant shades of gold, orange and red was spreading like wildfire across the land, telling all that Fall was around the corner!

The sun was bright and lighted a blue sky with hardly a cloud in site! I sat talking with John for a few minutes, and then headed over to Sea Mistress so I could begin my chore of cleaning her from top to bottom on the inside! I would be busy for the next few days! John and Mara were outfitting and stocking up on things they needed as well. My boat was a wreck inside. I’d gotten slack on keeping things shipshape. Time to get back in the swing of things now.

As for myself, I pretty much had everything I needed in the way of supplies or that I would need on an extended cruise. Fresh eggs, certain vegetables, and fruit need to be purchased the day before setting sail! I opened the hatch and stared inside the tiny cabin at the mess! Where to start! First the bedding, pillows, blankets, sheets and cushions, the open tool box in the middle for me to trip over! And a sleeping bag too that was getting soggy for some reason! All was pulled out! They needed a good cleaning and airing out! I got the cushions scrubbed with Ajax and they looked nice! The colors were revealed after removing the crud and also a little mud from a past expedition was dazzling! They really looked nice but hadn’t been cleaned in a very long time. Come to think of it, I don’t think that they had ever been cleaned at all, but the boat was also fairly new! How negligent of me!

The crew looked into a mirror at the captain with disgust, saying, “You need to take better care of your ship matey!” A trip to the Laundromat at the side of the marina was placed on the schedule for after lunch. Next was each quarter berth, one of which was storage to a lot of supplies. The shelves and hammocks around the interior would be done later! The dock was piling up of things that were stored in the forward v-berth. The size of this mountainous pile of stuff was amazing! Cans that had become rusty were discarded but they were mostly in the bilge compartments. Some had labels missing and they were thrown out too! Some cans had been marked with a grease pencil. I kept those, and remarked them. Only a few selected food items were packed in aluminum cans at this time. That alone was an excellent selling ploy, and a very successful marketing tool for some products! To be packed in aluminum! That was the new “IN THING” now! Times were changing and even the shape of the common flat squatty coffee can had a different look, but much of the coffee was still in bags that folded at the top to “seal in freshness!” I kept my coffee in a mayonnaise jar that was wrapped with cloth to keep it from molding or turning into one huge lump and helping to prevent breakage too! The disadvantage here was glass! Glass of any form is an enemy aboard a sailboat! Don’t ask me how I know that! Clear glass will disappear in water to the point of being almost invisible, and becomes a dreaded danger lurking in the cockpit floor, just waiting to slice a foot open! Tupperware was the greatest thing since ice-cream was invented, but difficult to find unless you knew someone that was having a Tupperware Party! Yep, that’s the way they did it back then! Mostly the women of the modern world attended these historical events, but there were a few men that wanted that magical storage containers too! And the host would offer really neat gifts to those attending “her” Tupperware Party! I had to get into one of these things! A use for those new-fangled containers was endless! A waitress I had befriended gave me a shrimp deveining tool made from this new plastic that she got at one of these fabulous events! It worked as good if not better than the homemade one I had carved from a sliver of locally acquired bamboo or river cane! I could see that plastics would be the new space aged material to end all worries of rust, and corrosion! Did I mention that if you dropped it you didn’t have to worry so much about breaking it. But sometimes the lids popped off! It was still easier to clean up a mess and even save some of whatever rather than to throw the entire contents away because of broken glass! Great stuff!

After some inquiring, I discovered that just about any waitress was full of knowledge about the whereabouts of Tupperware parties, and how to get this new product! Oh yeah! Avon products for men worked in a similar way…that is.... if you wanted some smelly stuff that was nice while sitting at a local pub! But in order to get some of anything I’ve mentioned, you had to attend a party with a bunch of women, and be stared at! The bad thing was that most of whatever you wanted had to be ordered and if you were on a boat that presented another problem! You could have an item sent home that you ordered, but you might not get home to get the item for months! Some people would do that for you. It helped tremendously to know someone that was settled into a community with a mailing address and contacts with many other folks as well! The waitress became the ultimate source for me. Once they got to know you they would say, “Sure, send it to my house and pick it up the next time you pass thru! Or I’ll pick it up for you!” That is just an example of some of the wonderful people I have encountered along the coast, and how kind they were. Many became good friends and acquaintances over the years.

As I restacked almost everything from the inside of my boat on the dock, I noticed a dark cloud coming! Just what I needed! The afternoon sun dried things out nicely and I made that trip with a huge load of laundry that was in the dryers! Everything but clothing! I would do clothing later the afternoon or the evening before heading south. With the cushions back inside and a nice clean and dry sleeping bag, I was all set for the night. Stores on the dock were covered with a tarp to keep it dry. Nothing would be damaged by water if it did rain, but I just didn’t want to put things away wet! The evening went on without incident, and around 6pm I decided to go to the restaurant for a nice vegetable plate. It was cheap at 2 bucks and very filling with a choice of 6 different veggies! I ordered rice with gravy, red beans topped with chopped onion. Then I had broccoli for a green veggie and a bowl of apple sauce. Ice tea came with the meal. A coke was extra so I had tea! Desert was free because it was somebody’s birthday again! They always had huge birthday cakes for the moment, and a healthy slice was offered if you wanted it! It just so happens that I love birthday cake and really don’t care if it’s for a birthday or not! I like the yellow cake best of all with white icing!

I waddled back to the boat and sat down in the cockpit to relax with a small mason jar, a poor man’s version of an Old Fashion glass full of Grand Marnier on the rocks since I had plenty of ice. I held the golden drink up to the sun and admired the beauty, and at the same time, I thought about those new Tupperware glasses or plastic tumblers that came in various colors and they even had snap-on lids to keep a clumsy oaf like me from spilling my drink all over the place! Yep, I was certainly going to get me a set of those! The waitress showed me one! I got excited! All I had to do was locate one of those Tupperware Parties one day! She said she would look into it for me.

The sky looked really bad way out at sea, displaying low lying dark gray clouds, and so dark they were almost black but gradually lightened in color as the front moved north! Time progressed into late afternoon and the angry clouds appeared as if they would pass me by. I was very glad about that! My plans were to spend a night looking at the stars above while enjoying a nice relaxing beverage and I was really looking forward to that! I also put out a couple of crab traps!

John and Mara had returned from a walk and refreshed their drinks before appearing at my slip! What a delightful surprise! I was shocked that they would even consider visiting such a small boat, but I invited them aboard my proud little ship, and they sat relaxed on nice clean cushions in the cockpit as the sun set over the trees and marsh. The cockpit was open and very clean but my huge pile of food, supplies, and gear was still covered up with a tan canvas tarp that I often used as a boom tent! Everything still needed to be put back in its proper place! Mara commented on how neat everything was! That was only because Sea Mistress was empty! All my junk was out! She actually did look quite roomy inside now!

John began to talk about the trip. He told of places that had already spurred my interest and then back to the others that were heading our way. I felt privileged to be invited on this wonderful adventure, and in the company of these people. Showing John how to tie certain knots kept his interest toward me as he examined Sea Mistress. First the stanchions all roped up with French Hitching and painted with many coats of glossy white high quality oil based enamel. Then he pointed out my bell rope that showed a variety of sennits, and knots such as the Mathew Walker at the end to make a big knob, then fingered the varnished French Hitching on the tiller. After a while he asked if I would do some decorative work on their boat. “Sure!” I said. I would be glad to do that. Then he mentioned that his sailing friends would be interested as well and would pay a good price for some of the work he was looking at! In that case I would need to stock up on seine twine of assorted sizes, and some manila and sisal rope as well! He quickly said the hardware store in town had plenty of rope and string! I didn’t notice it the last time we visited the hardware store. But now I was going to need some bottles as well! That was always quick cash in hand! When people saw a roped bottle they had to have it! Especially if it was a usable and functional addition to their décor like my famous decanter sets!

Another thing to be considered when cruising along the Southeast coast is the every changing wind direction! John and I were concerned about the winds at this time and accepted the fact that we might be motoring our sailboats for several days. Winds are so unpredictable along the southern coast. One day you are making terrific speed with a wind off your quarter and the next day it is dead in your face! This factor proved to be a culprit causing further delay for the other boats we were to discover later. They just pulled in for the night at whatever place was comfortable until it got to be closer to the time for all the boats to meet up. Now it was sails down and motoring in the ICW at 3 to 6mph depending on currents and tides with an average speed about 4.8mph. Below is a copy of recorded wind speeds from my log book during this time, and also from the actual weather report from the Coast Guard Station at Jacksonville, FL to give you an example beginning on a Sunday and then a forecast for the remainder of the week. Sunday was a clear day but winds came from the SSW at 10mph. On Monday they were 11mph from the WNW that meant great sailing if you were heading south. Same with Tuesday, but a gentle Northerly breeze at 6mph. Wednesday they came from the ENE at 8mph! Thursday wind was from the NE at 13mph. That was great but with rough choppy seas! Friday was better at 15mph from the NNW and would zip you right along at wonderful sailing speeds. The conditions were great too with enough chop to make for some exciting sailing! This was the same for the next few days as you can see, but you have to allow for those not so cooperative days! That’s when you find something else to do like fire up the motor, sit in a pub or go fishing! Wasting fuel was not considered a good thing, so you can plainly see the wonderful alternatives!

10mph SSW, 11mph WNW, 6mph N, 8mph ENE, 11mph S, 13mph NE, 15mph NNW, 15mph WNW, 13mph NW, 13mph NW.

I will say again that these reports of wind speed and direction were documented in an old logbook aboard Sea Mistress and information is from the USCG at Jacksonville, Florida. This is what you have to contend with so often in the sunny south! There have been times when I noticed several and totally different wind direction changes in one single day of sailing. The average recreational sailor wouldn’t notice it because he is having fun and will be in before dark and also not going anyplace in particular! The only place he is going at sundown is the local pub, marina or back home! The cruising sailor has important things to consider. One is sailing during the night, if you have the crew that’s willing and experienced to do that. Second is finding a suitable mooring and safe haven for the evening. Most prefer the latter!

As the sun rose, it was warmer than I expected, and I chose to have coffee and hardy breakfast at the marina restaurant. I wanted to get back at my chores of tidying up Sea Mistress. Sometimes I thought that I had too much, but in reality I had just the right amount of gear and supplies. It appeared to be a lot of crap but once in place, every item had a purpose. Food stores were replaced when needed, and my Quartermaster manifest let me know when anything was in need of replenishment! This manifest was read on a daily basis when possible, and usually before turning in for the night! Today was clear and I walked down the dock toward the marina restaurant.