BYYB Forums

Hello all,

Night before last I spent out on the water at my favorite anchorage.  I had a few alterations that I wanted to check out as well as get a good nights' sleep.  I finally got to try out my new head system and can report that it works like a charm in every way that I intended it to.  I also tried out a new way of retrieving my anchor which also simplified the process to the point that I can retrieve the anchor and stow it all while sitting in the cockpit. 

In the morning while I was having my coffee, I noticed something in the water.  They looked like nothing more than globs of jelly until they started to swim.  On closer inspection, they turned out to be jellyfish.  Yup, freshwater jellyfish.  They were about the size of a nickel on average, with four radiating bits that looked like spokes on a wheel.  I could just make out tendrils dangling  from the bottom of the edge of the wheel.  There were hundreds of them around the boat.  When I got home I went on the interweb to check it out and learned that they are found in almost every state.  They are not native having come from China around 1900, but are not considered a threat to the environment or people. 

My little pocket yacht allowed me to be in the right place at the right time to see these unusual creatures and I just thought that you all might be interested to see them too. 

Al

Part of the reason that I report on the places I go is to encourage those of you who treat your weekenders as simply day sailers, to get out and give yourself a break once in a while.  This particular adventure began when I left the house at 5.00 pm and ended at 11.00 am when I got back, only because I wanted to stay out as long as I could.  It was not a grand voyage that required a ton of planning and special equipment.  Almost everything was already living on the boat. 

I was on the water by 6:15 and sailed around messing with an adjustment that I had made to the rudder, which didn't seem to pan out by the way, when I realized that I was going to lose the wind sooner rather than later.  So, I headed for the quiet bay that I intended to anchor in for the night.  True to the nature of this lake, as I was heading for the narrow mouth of the bay a gust picked me up from dead astern and forced me to sail through the narrow gap that may or may not have been deep enough for the rudder.  I uncleated the rudder before sailing through the gap just in case, and once through made a hard port jibe into the protection of the trees which killed the wind entirely.  I rowed to the spot that I wanted to anchor, and dropped the hook.  It doesn't take long to set up housekeeping in such a small boat, so before long I was basking in the fading light.

Once everything is ship shape, it doesn't take long to become intensely aware of everything around me as well as the fading of the day.  My favorite time is when the sun is almost down and the alpenglow is on everything in the east.  The wind usually hushes itself around then and I find myself straining to hear everything that I could not before.  I watch and listen until the mosquitoes come out around the time it gets truly dark, then flee to my comfortable cabin and read while listening to the radio until my eyes naturally close.   

Lately, mornings have been coming a few hours before sunrise.  Part of getting old I guess.  Not when I am sleeping on the boat though.  There's a couple reasons for that, chief among them is that I don't want to serve as breakfast for the mosquitoes.  I figure I can always nab a couple more hours to let those little guys clear out.  This particular morning they cleared out before the sun was fully up, so I took advantage of that to watch the sky blue up behind the mist that was shrouding the shore to the east.  This lake is ringed with cabins, both seasonal and year round.  Even so there was not a human generated sound anywhere.  I kind of felt guilty for the noise I made hauling out the galley box and setting up the stove for coffee.  It says something when the noise of a gas burner heating water is the loudest thing around. 

Sitting on my new bridge deck it struck me that I had all the essentials of daily life around me at arms reach so that all I had to do was sit still and enjoy.  To my right was my stove happily hissing under the coffee pot.  To my left sat the food bag ready to cough up breakfast when I reached for it.  In front of me was the kitchen counter with all my utensils at the ready and my water faucet with more water than I would use.  I have learned to bring more water than I think I would ever use because I always seem to run short.  So equipped,  my usual morning routine was replicated in my tiny cockpit. 

All the while the sky was bluing up and the day was heating up to be a scorcher.  Once I had my cleaning chores wrapped up I calculated that I probably should get going if I wanted to be home much before lunch.  Aw, I just couldn't bring myself to take off. So, I sat there waiting for human noise to prod me into leaving the shelter of my private bay.  Eventually it occurred to me that my creaky old bones could use a little exercise after lounging around in this tiny boat, so I hauled the anchor and set to the oars.  There was absolutely no wind so I was justified in leaving that way.  I rowed out into the lake for about a half hour before deciding to go for a putt putt around the lake before heading for the dock.  I like to motor slowly around in my Weekender.  Usually I can tie off the tiller and steer with shifting my weight from side to side.  I did that for about an hour before heading for the dock where for me the trip ends for real. 

This kind of 16 hour outing can have a big effect on me.  I highly recommend one to anyone who could use a vacation but can't get away.  Even if the weather goes a little south on you, it will still have a refreshing effect on your soul if you let it.

Al

Hi Al

Thanks for sharing the pic's and story of your short trip.  I am a Newbie, thinking of building a Weekender.  I have the plans and I have been building some of the smaller parts,  I am only about 96% sure I will build or attempt to build one at this time.    Are you in MN?  I lived in the Twin Cities about 25 years, and down in my home state of IA presently.

Tom Swearingen

Yah, I live in Duluth.  In case you are not interested in building a weekender, there is one for sale here in Duluth on Craigslist.  It is somewhat modified, but it looks like it was well done, and it is sitting on a nice trailer.  $2800 obo.

I really love my Weekender.  I've only been sailing for five years now, and I am convinced that I built the right boat for my circumstances and the sailing opportunities around here.  For example, next week I am taking Duckie to a campground on a lake in my home town in northern Minnesota.  There she will  be essentially tied up in my back yard ready to go at a moments notice for four days.  I intend to sleep at anchor at least one night while there.  I have used my boat as a RV on many occasions.  When I am going sailing out of town, I will simply back into a campsite and sleep in the boat on the trailer.  It pulls behind my little four cylinder pickup like it isn't even there.  This opens up the entire Midwest as sailing opportunities. 

Al