Highlights of a weekend sail for Tod and list members, I took Storm Petrel up to Sandusky Friday night. Arrived late, slept onboard, then launched in the morning. There wasn't a breath of wind, and the forecast was for 10kts or less. The weather was beautiful, though, and I was set to make like a motorboat and explore the bay while the real stinkpotters slept off their Friday night activities. A bit of breeze stirred as I headed out at 9:30. By the time I reached Cedar Point, it was quite brisk.
I ended up sailing counterclockwise around Kelley's Is. Had to make a couple of tacks to clear the island, but the wind was perfect, probably 12-15 knots out of the NE all day. So much for NOAA forecasts. The Forespar lock box worked great, especially on a beat. I was able to sail indefinitely without touching it, but with a slight loss in performance. I anchored on the N side for lunch and a rest. Figuring this would be a good test of my new 2kg (4.4lbs) claw, I dropped the jib then the anchor, leaving the main pulling strongly. The anchor bounced over the rocks for a while, but finally securely closed it's claw on something. I still need to try it in sand and mud, but so far so good. A very attractive area, the north side of the island, one that I hadn't visited. Peace reigned there, as there weren't many dreaded powerboats, although roughly 40 were anchored near the park, along with 6 of the sail variety. Nice sail around the N and W sides of the island. In spite of the considerable powerboat-induced chop in the South Passage, I made the best speeds of the trip on the beam reach from the island to the bay. I arrived back at Sadler around 5:30, left Storm Petrel next to your empty spot and had a late dinner with Chris and Jen. How's progress with your mast rehabilitation? Notes: For what was anticipated to be a washout weekend, windwise, the winds couldn't have been better. I've never seen such chop as exists in the west end of Lake Erie. Must be the shallow depths. But the Chesapeake is largely shallow, and it isn't as bad there. ???? On the way out, near Marblehead, I passed the BCC heading back toward the bay. Many blue herons were out, several just standing on the rocks (including one on the jetty at Sadler), facing into the breeze and enjoying the weather. One flying near the island wheeled and dove like a gull on a potential meal. Never saw a heron do that before. He looked a bit awkward, but was successful getting airborne again. Bill Riker M-15 #184 Storm Petrel _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats
