Hey Howard --
Thanks for the wisdom. I'd say what you describe in
regards to Lake Michigan conditions fits my experience
pretty well.
A couple of weeks ago I attempted my longest sail yet --
left the Evanston boat ramp at about 8:00 AM, and there
didn't seem to be a breath of wind though the forecast
called for winds of 5 to 10 knots.
I fired up the 2-hp Honda short shaft and headed straight
out east toward the middle of the Lake -- I could see by
the look of the water that there was some breeze out
there -- where I was, I could see all the way to the
bottom the surface was so smooth. Highly unusual.
By the time I was a mile out or so, the breeze began to
pick up out of the west. Cut off the motor, and headed
south toward Chicago Harbor, maybe 8 or 10 miles away.
For the next two hours I had what was undoubtedly the
best sail of my life. The breeze was strong enough that
I could do something like hull speed, and yet with the
wind just picking up from the west, there was virtually
no chop at all. Smooth as silk. A very unusual set of
conditions for Lake Michgan -- at least in my limited
experience.
But it was exhilarating! Cruising along at hull speed --
and so smooth a ride I might have been heading down the
highway my Dad's old Buick. And -- one more great thing
-- it was too early for the majority of the stinkpotters
and all of the PWCs! I was plowing this big beautiful
flat lake all alone, with the deep blue sky above and the
extraordinary, breathtaking Chicago skyline spread out
before my eyes, all the way from Hollywood Avenue in the
north, down the Gold Coast, the Miracle Mile, to the
skyscrapers of the Loop and beyond. What a view! What a
day! Man that was sailing!
I got down to the harbor in about 3 hours, sailed by the
Chicago Light and right up to Navy Pier, but then my
fortunes began to wane -- the wind had shifted Northerly
and the waves were really picking up -- once I began
heading back north, the chop I was going through was
bone-jarring. Before long, the waves had gotten quite
large (4-5 feet I'd guess). I just couldn't seem to make
headway north through that terrible chop. The next
couple of hours were extremely demoralizing as the wind
slowly died without much abatement in the waves. I
considered using the motor but was afraid I wouldn't have
enough fuel to get back. Finally, when it seemed the wind
had died pretty much altogether, I fired the motor --
made it back to Evanston a couple of hours later, with no
more than a thimble full of gas left in the tank. I had
been out for 10 hours and I was totally, totally wasted.
And then after it's all over, and the boat is sleeping
quietly in the garage, and you are nursing your sunburn
and your cracked lips and your sore muscles between sips
of cold beer, and someone asks you "how was it? -- did
you have fun?" And the fact is -- you don't know what to
say. "fun" isn't exactly the word that would sum up your
day. Really only one word will sum it up: "Intense".
O
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~ ~ ~ ~
Steve McClellan~~M15~#152~~Chicago
> Dear Steve:
>
> You almost got to meet me. I was in Waukegan over the Fourth holiday. When I
> am in that area I like to crawl around the yard at Larson Marine. They have
> a yellow M17 on the lot that is exactly the same as my M17, except it is
> different. I thought about calling to see if you wanted to try a sail last
> week, but decided not to so as to not screw up your holiday. In other words,
> my wife didn't want me to go.
>
> For a place like Lake Michigan, there has to be enough wind to keep the
> sails full and pulling or the chop will knock you back and the roll will
> toss your boom around, spilling your wind. I was out a few weeks ago and
> tried to sail back from a raft up in very light wind (5 knots or less and
> variable). It would vary from glass smooth to a few cat's paws. In some
> cases, I was making one or two knots...when that dropped off to dead calm,
> the sails would just go limp and the driftwood was beating me. That was ok
> and almost challenging to see what would work until the ski boats showed up
> and the left me bouncing in their wakes. All that flogging just puts stress
> on the sails and rigging. My old main actually ripped out under similar
> conditions during last year's CBR.
>
> At the other end of the scale, I've been out in 30+ knots with no problem,
> double reefed main and storm jib. But that was on a lake with less than a
> mile of fetch and 3' to 4' waves. She just stayed on top, didn't heel all
> that much and just scooted right along at 5+ knots. The biggest problem with
> that if you are single handed is getting out of the cockpit to mess with the
> sails. That's when most of my problems start.
>
> I seem to recall some of the M15 guys on the CBR talking about being out in
> 8' seas or worse. Probably much worse if the water is open. But I think that
> all depends on your experience level, comfort level and setup. I would also
> think that getting back into a harbor on Lake Michigan under those
> conditions might test my pucker factor!
>
> Howard
> M17, #278
> "Audasea"
>
> (Pondering a name change to "Bianca". She is an all white boat).
>
>
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