Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Catch~ up Jeff's Log ~ Friday, August 1st, 2008

August 1, 2008 N45 15.36, W179 37.44 Enroute to Dutch Harbor, Alaska

Just a couple of hours ago, I began the second August 1, 2008 of my year. We crossed the International Date Line. We all gained a day, just like that! I think I even look a little younger, but the others disagree. Our first port of call has been changed to Dutch Harbor. The wind has been light, and Dave and Neil would like to see some of Alaska, rather than just going to the airport with no time to spare, if we pressed on to Kodiak. This is fine with me too, as now we will be on U.S. soil in a little over four days. Scott raised our minimum speed to 5.5 knots, because now we will have more than enough fuel to make the trip, if motoring becomes constant. The crossing has gone very smoothly, thus far, and we had a few really good traveling days with breeze behind us. Neil is quite experienced, and has given me the basics in some new skills. He taught me how to splice modern lines, and how to install a bungee inside of a line to take up hanging slack. He’s a good country cook too.

Everyone has been doing a good job cooking, as we have all taken turns. Scott remains the pasta king, but that is mostly because that is all he cooks. He also watches carefully to make sure no one else uses his sauce. I must say ,though, that it is nice to see his face beaming with pride as we completely finish his spaghetti every time he makes it. Dave is quite the unsung cook. I keep telling him that I’m going to tell his wife how well he cooks. That would change his life for sure.. I enjoy watching Neil and Dave drive the boat when the wind is up. That is what they were hoping for when they came to do the delivery. They are both really happy when they can do a little surfing, and the boat likes it too. That is what she was designed to do, and is very stable and powerful while doing it. I have gotten a considerable amount of helm time, and I think that my driving skills have gotten a little better. Instead of a snake wake, I now leave a wavy wake.

More catch ~ up Jeff's Log ~ Tuesday, July 29th 2008

Tuesday July 29, 2008 Halfway to Kodiak

We have been under engine power for the last 30 hours. The breeze died and has not returned yet. Yesterday, we had some excitement when the d-4 mast support rod parted while the sails were down. The boat got hit by a wave that bounced her a bit, and there was a pop that is a familiar sound to all of us. I was at the base of the mast doing halyard snap shackle maintenance at the time, so the resounding pop was right above my head. I put my gear away, and then we had a little brainstorming session to decide the best course of action. Scott of course was Mr. Negative, saying “how are you going to repair that?” and under his breath saying “yea right” with sarcastic tones. We showed him!!! I rooted around in the sail locker and found some spectra line that was used to keep spinnaker sheets off the boom while racing that was the size we needed. Neil went up the mast to remove the broken pieces and brought the threaded adjuster down with him. We drilled a hole through the adjuster, and I found a shackle that was the proper shape in the “closet of doom” (the hanging locker in my cabin has been turned into spare parts and equipment storage) and we attached that to the adjusting sleeve. Neil tapered the line so that he could easily feed it through the inner bushing on the mast. A stop knot at the top, a bowline at the bottom around the shackle, and Walla! We had an adjustable spectra d-4. Now if the breeze ever comes back, we will be able to sail with no worries.

We have seen a few whale spouts, and one came within a couple of boat lengths going the opposite direction. I could see the water rushing over his large grey body. That was pretty cool. Albatrosses are a pretty common sight, and their low soaring over the waves is fun to watch. Yesterday we happened upon one lone seal. When I spotted him, he was floating on his back with his flippers in the air. I did not know what it was, so I put the autopilot on stand-by and turned the boat so that we could get a closer look. We were all surprised when it was a seal. It was as curious about us as we were of it, and we looked at each other for a few seconds before he dove out of sight. We are seeing dolphins a lot too. Here, they are colored like Killer whales. They are black on top and white underneath, which continues partway up their sides. They are smaller and much quicker moving than the dolphins I see at home. They do not just hang in the bow wave, they dart about and jump with a great sense of excitement. I tried to get pictures, but they do not stay in the same relative spot long enough. I keep getting picture of water instead.

More catch~up Jeff's Log ~ Sunday, July 27th, 2008 HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEFF

Sunday, July 27,2008
My 54th birthday. 42 44.47N 158 54E 2,000 miles SW of Kodiak, Alaska

This morning at 0200, when I came on deck for my watch, things were really beautiful here in God’s country. Shortly after taking over from Dave, the cloud cover that was with us for so many days broke, and the ocean was illuminated by a very bright quarter moon, and there were more bright stars in the sky than I have ever seen. The view put a big sense of reverence in my mind, and sure made me think about our vulnerability. The wind was a steady fourteen knots, and the boat was charging along at eight and a half knots with the auto pilot driving. I went down and got my handy weather instrument (Thanks Sandy and Vicki) and found that what felt like a really chilly temperature was really 65 degrees. The wind and humidity make it feel a lot cooler. I tweaked the sails just a little bit and got the speed up a couple of tenths to 8.7. In a couple of the puffs, it went over nine.

With it being my birthday, I really sort of meditated, focusing on fond memories of friends and family, and trying not to leave anyone unthought-of. I realized, as I have before, that I am truly blessed with a large number of people that I really care for and consider friends. I want to say “cheers” to you all!

On a sad note, Scott let me make a call to Clara on the sat phone, and she informed me that our dear friend Chrissy had passed away from her cancer on Thursday. I am sorry and she will be missed.

Things aboard Pipe Dream are doing well. When we can, we have been using the spinnaker to go fast. For you non-sailors, that is the large, usually colorful, balloon shaped sail at the front of the boat. Neil and Dave are here for the sailing, not to go sight-seeing. They both usually take the pilot off, and drive the boat. Most of the time, that makes us go faster, because they change course when the wind oscillates, keeping the speed up. We have all been taking turns on cooking dinner, and the food has been very good thus far. Last night, I made fried chicken and mashed potatoes, with some corn dressed up with bits of red pepper. Our watch schedule is two on and six off. It has been working ok, and I do not feel fatigued at all from it. I am on from 0200 till 0400, from 1000 to 1200, and 1800 to 2000. When it’s my turn to cook dinner, Dave and I change, and I take the 1600 to 1800. We all work together very well. It is fun to sail with such good guys. Alaska is getting closer, and my anticipation is growing.

Finally he has internet...Jeff's Log ~ Playing catch up ~ Monday, July 21, 2008

Monday, July 21, 2008 34 01N 138 15 E Sea of Japan

We are now into our second day from Tannowa. For a change, there has been sufficient wind to sail, most of the time. The bad news is that the wind is from the wrong direction. The crew now consists of four men. David Woolsey, Neil Cates, Scott and myself. Of the four, I am the one with the least sailing experience, so you can see that as far as sailing goes, we should be all right. We are tacking our way across the bottom of Japan, so the actual distance made good is relatively short. It sure does feel good to be sailing instead of motoring, and Pipe Dream seems to be enjoying it as well.

The last couple of days in Tannowa were very busy, and filled with hard work. The first thing we did upon arrival was head straight to the fuel dock and top off every tank and fill all of the spare fuel cans. While in Osaka, I purchased five more new fuel cans. We now have about fifty five gallons of fuel in cans secured both in the cockpit, and stowed in the forepeak locker. After a short discussion, we collectively agreed that changing to the smaller “Yankee” jib would be a lot easier at the dock, than in a bouncy sea. All of the fuel up front had to come out to get the sail out. We removed the big jib and folded it very tightly (in sailing jargon: flaked and bricked) so that it would fit easily into the sail locker. I must say that Scott and Dave did a fine job, as the sail was in the smallest package that I have ever seen it in. We then hoisted the Yankee onto the head foil, and furled it. The no.2 was then stowed in its place in the forepeak locker.

As long as I had the locker empty, I figured that the time was right to drop the anchor and chain, pull out the anchor rode, and thoroughly clean the bilges, as a lot of mud makes its way in there in the process of all of the anchoring that we do. I am very glad that I did, because it was worse than I thought. There was also a lot of long, tough sea weed strands that surely would have blocked the bilge pump intakes had I not removed them. While in there, I also did the routine hose clamp inspection, and electrical connection service. Now all is well up forward. I removed the line going through the deck for setting the bowsprit, and taped up the hole in the deck. A large rag was forced into the anchor chain chute to slow down the entry of water as the submarine characteristics of this boat forces a lot of water through there.

Mr. Yoshida was kind enough to take us to the super market in his car. It sure did help having someone translate labels for us. After all of the groceries were loaded into his car, there was almost no room for people, but we got everyone crammed in and headed for the boat. By then it was lunch time, and very warm outside. After carrying the groceries to the boat, Scott and Dave rode with Yoshida up to the snack bar, and I repacked the freezer and put away the refrigerator stuff. Then I joined them for lunch. Takeda, the dock manager had given me a straw pointed Japanese hat. I took a sharpie with me and had friends and the office staff sign it in Japanese. It is a memento that I will keep on a special peg at home. I returned to the boat, jumped in the water, and gave the bottom one more going over to be sure it was as clean as possible for our long trip.

After a shower, it was still early enough to get to the office and send a couple of last minute e-mails before meeting Neil at the gate of the marina. I said goodbye to the wonderful staff at the Tannowa Yacht Harbor, gave all of the girls a hug, and with tears in my eyes, left the office. Takahara and Fujiko had some parting gifts of t-shirts and a jar of jam in a nice little basket. They sure are sweet gals! I met Neil when his taxi arrived. He had flown from New Zealand. We took the hike to the boat, and after he stowed his gear, we all went to dinner up on the hill. The restaurant had changed their dinner menu slightly, and we all got meat and fish, instead of meat or fish. The food was very good as usual, and the presentation was that of a first class restaurant. On the way back to the marina, I counted the steps we had to climb to get to the restaurant. There are ninety six, if I counted correctly. Going up helps build your appetite and gets you a little sweaty.

Walking past the marina to the gate, I got a little melancholy knowing that I will probably never see it again. I am left with plenty of fond memories of very hard working, happy people throughout Japan, and I am thankful for the friends that I have made and truly hope to be able to see each and every one of them some time in the future The final preparations for leaving did not take very long, and by 9:30PM, we were off the dock and beginning our journey to Alaska. We quickly settled into our watch schedule, and began making our way around the south side of Japan, looking forward to Alaska.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Captain Scott's Log ~ Tuesday, August 12th, 2008

Sent: Tuesday, August 12, 2008 4:47 PM
Subject: Kodiac

The last day at sea was spent powering into the wind and running along the south coast of Kodiak Island. The wind lightened some and the sun stayed out so it was a pretty day. There are high snow streaked mountains and nearly no civilization visible. Except for a rocket launching facility!!. There is a beach here called fossil breach. Apparently the natural land erosion leaves hardened fossils littered on the beach. We began to get weather reports that said the weather would deteriorate rapidly--it did, but we made Kodiak OK. Forecast for the next 2 days calls for a gale from the NE (directly from Seward) and heavy rain. Both Neil and Dave have a plane to catch in Anchorage--so, they are going to fly out of Kodiak. Jeff and I will wait for perfect weather to get to Seward only 180 miles away. I meet Gill in Anchorage for a 6 day trip into Denali Park. So this will be my last mail for a couple of weeks. Its raining and blowing now but the town of Kodiak looks like its going to be fun.

Captain Scott's Log ~ Sunday, August 10th, 2008

Sent: Sunday, August 10, 2008 10:52 AM
Subject: Dutch Harbor 2

The people here made this stop memorable. It is clear that there is little to do and so most made as much as they could out of what interested them. Bill pumped our gas on arrival and later that night picked us up on the road as we walked to diner. The next day he came by Pipe Dream in a 17 ft aluminum skiff with an ancient outboard, a fishing friend, and a dog. He was drunk as was his friend but his dog didn’t seem to mind. He also had a boatload of fish. He gave us several and asked if he could see the boat. After looking around he said "I got to get a better boat". Then after reflection he said "No, If I did my wife would want to go fishing with me." He had a real gift of story telling and as we were the only people on the island that had not heard them....We heard about the world record 650 lb Halibut that he could not get in the boat, climbing volcanoes, fishing, hunting fox (these are called the Fox Islands), his wife’s lack of cooking skills and winter in Dutch Harbor. "It blows real hard. We get 160 mile an hour winds. You call them hurricanes and we call them Tuesday." Bill also gave us 3 bottles of homemade wild berry jam. He cans 200 bottles every year. It must take a long time to pick that many berries, I asked. "Not that much to do around here"

Captain Scotts Log ~ Monday, August 11th, 2008

Sent: Monday, August 11, 2008 3:39 AM
Subject: Toward Kodiak

The wind was strong out of the NE so we stayed in Dutch Harbor an extra day. Good call but wish we had one more day to wait as the wind was still on the nose when we left. Commanders weather promised it would slacken and back to the NW--it didn't. The passes between the Pacific and the Bering Sea are noted for rough water--it was. So we settled in for the heavy wind and sea beat--crash, bang. By mid day the boat was taking on water at an alarming rate--drop all sail, turn down wind to access the forepeak, pump the boat dry, fix some of the leaks in the bow, and start again--crash bang. To preserve sanity and the boat I decided to motersail at a slower speed. With reefed main only the boat was more upright and dryer. And at the slower speed of 7 kts the crashing and banging was reduced. The next morning the wind quit, skies cleared, and our sense of humor returned. The mid portion of this leg was gorgeous. I actually saw the sun rise and set for the first time since leaving Japan. Stars and moon on a flat sea--wow. We were now up under the Alaskan Peninsula. It the clear air and with setting sun behind you could see 3 volcano's 75 miles away. I have never seen anything so neat. The tallest 2 were 8000 and 9000 feet high and nearly vertical. The top half was snow capped and one was smoking heavily. The slopes on these monsters had to be 70 degrees--perfect cones. Today, Monday, the wind has returned and again on our nose. The barometer is dropping and we are hoping to make landfall before dark.