Keep a Log

I love my log-books...
Even if you are a daysailor or weekender only, it is great to keep a log book that details each day of fun that you have aboard your boat.  Your adventures, misadventures, maintenance, destinations, guests, etc.  The above photo shows my logbooks for Snickerdoodle - beginning on a rainy May 3, 1985 when we launched her brand-new at Bayview Idaho... and ending (so far)on a winter day with bald eagles around, December 26,2016 - - in the 2016 three-ring binder full of daily notes.

I like to keep track of Snickerdoodle's beginning-of-the-year status on my first "writing" page.  Things like:

Name of Yacht:               Your Boat’s Name

Owner:                            Your Name

Type of Yacht:                Manufacturere & Length

Hailing Port:                    Where You Sail From Most Of The Time

Designer:                        Who Designed Your Boat

Builder:                           Your Boat’s Manufacturer

Year Built:             Year Built              & Year Purchased: 

Hull Number:         The Hull Identification Number on the Transom

Length:        ___ feet     Beam:          ___ feet               Draft:         ___ feet

Vertical Clearance:          ___ feet

Sails:           What Sails Are On The Boat

Engine:        Brand, Horse Power, Shaft Length, Year Manufactured

Tankage:      Fuel   ___ gal main tank, ___gal backup tank - -   Water  ___ gal  - - Porta-Potty or Marine Head

Auxiliary Equipment – 2-Way Radios, Depth Sounder, GPS, Stove, etc

Hull Color:    What Color Is The Hull

Radio Call Sign:  If Federally Registered

Insurance:   Who Is Your Insurance Agent, Phone, Address

Other: Dinghy, Micro Wave Oven, etc

Start of Log:         January 1, 2017               Log of Daily Experiences, ___ year.

Then, I have a two-page "section" that is designated for each day that I am aboard.- - even if I am aboard only for a few hours.

TODAY’S CRUISE

Day & Date ________________________________

Planned Destination  ______________________________________

Time From Time  ___________________

Time Till  _____________________

Skipper & Crew  _________________________________________________

Guests  _______________________________________________________

Weather  Conditions_________________________________Temp_____________

Wind______________Humidity____________Barometer_________________

What We Ate  ________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

Who We Met  __________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

Comments  ____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

The comments continue onto the next page as well.
I print the pages on both sides to save paper... So, page 1 is the front of page 2... and so on...
I also print photos that I snap during the year and add them to the log-book.  It is really fun to go back and read and enjoy entries from the past.

 If you would like a copy of my log-book template, drop me an email and I'll reply with an attached file.  All you'll need is a three-ring binder and a hole punch to make your own log-book......

BarnacleBillHolcomb@gmail.com
509 993-3214

Lake Pend Oreille Anchorages

Over the years, I have anchored in many nice places all along the shores of Lake Pend Oreille.  Many people think that the water is too deep... but, there are lots of places to set the hook - - whether for lunch or for overnight.  Here are a couple photos of some of the nice places.

This is Whiskey Rock - about 8 miles north of Bayview on the East side of the lake.  There are free public docks as well as mooring "balls".  AND, the bottom is excellent for anchoring too.  Just be aware that storms can come up in the night from the north and the northwest.  The anchorage is completely unprotected in this case.

Here is the beautiful Clark Fork River estuary.  There is excellent shallow holding ground all around this scenic place.  This is a good anchorage with many favorable places to tuck in to to avoid the weather.  There is also a nice free public dock.

This is the anchorage along the south shore of Ellisport Bay - home of Kramers Marina and Pend Oreille Shores condos and the Floating Restaurant.  Hope is at the west end of Ellisport Bay on the north shore.  I usually anchor along this south shore in ~20 feet of water.  Good holding... but lots of seaweed comes up with the anchor in August.  You only need to be concerned about weather from the west (directly from Sandpoint).

Here is Bottle Bay.  Kathy and I have anchored at the south end of the bay near a slough.  I generally anchor in about 10 feet of water as this anchorage is really protected from all but a direct north storm.  The Bottle Bay Marina is about a quarter mile away along the west shore and they usually have overnight moorage.

At the south end of Lake Pend Oreille is ButtonHook Cove.  This is a true "hurricane hole" that is completely protected from all sides.  When anchoring, I usually try to tuck in close to the west shore in about 15 feet of water.  And, there are three nice public docks in ButtonHook too.
There are lots of other places to anchor too around the lake.  Some of the other places (check out your chart # 18554) where Kathy and I have anchored are:
Lakeview
Maiden Rock
Garfield Bay
Camp Bay
Fisherman's Island
near the railroad bridge at Sandpoint; and also at the south end of the railroad bridge
and the Pack River estuary...

Let me know if you have any questions.

509 993 3214
BarnacleBillHolcomb@gmail.com

Brief Winter Maintenance

Hi all,

This winter – so far – has been pretty snowy.  I’ve been out to Snickerdoodle a few times already to remove the snow that has accumulated during each winter storm that has blown through.

Snow – even though it looks and feels light and fluffy when it falls – is actually pretty heavy.  My brother Bob sent me the following photo of a friend’s 30-foot boat after several inches of snow had been removed.  Notice the ice-balls that are frozen to where the waterline was and how much the boat has risen out of the water after the snow was removed.

The weather forecast for the next seven days indicates a warm-up with temperatures near 40F and the possibility of rain.  Remember that 40-degree temp is the high.  It’ll take all day to get to that high and shortly thereafter, the sun goes down and so does the temp.  Those temps will melt a little of the snow off your boat… but not much.  The rain though will add a lot of weight as it is collected in the snow and subsequently freezes as night-time temps fall below freezing.

So, I’d say it would be a great time (if you haven’t already) to head out to your boat and sweep her off before the rain comes.  That way the rain will flow off instead of freezing in the accumulated snow.  While you are at your boat, be sure to check inside too.  Water has a wonderful tendency to seep into any open container it can find – including the unsuspecting boat.  And, there is all kinds of problems that water inside your boat over the winter can cause. 

See you at the lake…..

Old, Inefficient Sails

Take a close look at the sails on boats that are sailing close to you... and, to your own sails.  Are the sails smooth and round?  Or, are there creases and stretch marks?  Are the sails way too round?  Here are a few photos of old and inefficient sails that I've snapped over the years.

This main sail has many creases and folds.  It cannot move the boat effectively.

This old genoa jib has been stretched out badly at its clew corner.

This mainsail has been stretched out way too much along the leech edge.  Probably from too much sheet tension in strong breezes.

This mainsail is blown out.  Notice how the forward edge of the battens creates an edge along the line between the battens?

This mainsail is old and soft.  It won't drive the boat well at all.

Here's another well stretched mainsail.

Yes, these sails will move the boat... but not very well.  And, they will probably heel the boat over much more in the puffs than a newer sail would.

These sails are nice and smooth and drive the boat along nicely - even in light breezes.