Day Three: 5.29.2018: Port Judith, RI to Fisher's Island

Tuesday May 29

Another gray morning. In our little cove winds are very calm, but once we motor out to the ocean, we have a brisk wind from the southwest. Our planned route? West-south west. Almost directly into the wind. But the wind is very steady and waves are long swells, making for pleasant sailing. On our first forays in Eclipse, about a year ago, she behaved with strong weather-helm, which means that when the wind blows hard, she'll turn her nose toward the wind. A little bit of weather-helm is good, but we were constantly fighting to keep her straight. Since then we've added a pair of skegs, a first reef point on the mainsail (she came with the second reef already), and a reef in the jibsail. We've also learned to use all those reefing points. So now Eclipse will sail herself, without any attention to the tiller. Very pleasant indeed.

Tacking west, we often come close to the Rhode Island shore, and marvel at the huge homes just behind the beach. Many of which by the time you finished vacuuming, it's time to start over. Pleasure boats are scarce on this workday, so instead we share the waters with a fleet of trawlers.

Near Watch Hill, the wind can only be found near shore. Beyond and there is no wind, plus a strong current. We have to use the motor.

Our destination is East Harbor on Fishers Island. It should give us protection from SW winds of today, and E winds for tomorrow. As we motor in, we raise the rudder and centerboard in case we encounter shallow water. But for some reason the centerboard only comes up part way. Baffled, we try to dislodge whatever might be there by motoring backwards and forward, but to no avail. So we anchor, and probe around with an underwater camera. Nothing seems amiss. Plan C, and I don my swim suit, jump in, and grope around in the centerboard well for anything. There is nothing but very cold water. Reviewing the video later, we find that the cable for uphauling the centerboard has come undone.

Just to add to the excitement, while we are troubleshooting the centerboard, the bladder tank for our sink faucet bursts and a waterfall of water pours out from its home inside the cabinet and dumps water all over the carpet in the salon. The shelf breaks off as well in the mayhem of the moment. More things to fix.

Our anchorage is quiet, and surrounded by multimillion dollar homes and a golf course. But we have a better view than they do, and we don't pay their taxes.

Osprey Nest!

Fishing Boats ply the waters off of Port Judith

Loons swimming about in a calm ocean as Eclipse passes

Large Mansions dot the Rhode Island coastline near Watch Hill, RI

Watch Hill Rhode Island hosts this replica of an 1868 hotel that once stood on this site.

Day Two: 5.28.2018: Prudence Island to Port Judith Rhode Island

Memorial day. It should be a busy day for boaters, but being cold and gray again, there are few boats out until the stratus clouds lift and blue skies break through. In our relatively calm anchorage, we raise the mast, then up go the jib and mainsail. Tailwinds push us south through Narragansett harbor, past General Dynamics, and under the high bridge to Jamestown island.

High Bridge connecting Jamestown to the Rhode Island Mainland

Airforce One....sans tail, sans rudder sitting on the tarmac at General Dynamics

This plane was making numerous practice runs over the General Dynamics plant north of Narragansett, Rhode Island.

Lighthouse in Narragansett Bay

As we round Point Judith, the winds, which had been steady from the north, swing around to the south and we tack in to Port Judith. With the change in weather, lots of boats are out. Fishing, cruising, and roaring by at full speed. 

Point Judith LIghthouse

Fisherman try their luck with their nets

With the change in weather, lots of boats are out. Fishing, cruising, and roaring by at full speed. Inside the breakwater, down come the sails and we motor in to the marina for gas and water.

Port Judith Marina

Our two intrepid sailors gathering fuel and water at the marina in Port Judith

A short way north from the marina our charts indicate an anchorage....

We drop anchor, and row Partial Eclipse (our dinghy) to the small island nearby. Above the beach of cobble and rounded gravel, are beach roses in full bloom and smelling wonderful. But look out for poison ivy, which here grows as a small bush and is prolific. Needless to say, we kept to the beach. But while here, we notice that Eclipse is getting knocked about by some major wakes from passing power boats. 

Eclipse as seen from one of the islands in Point Judith Pond

We don't want to stay here for the night. On the west side of the bay is a nice protected cove. Perhaps too shallow for many sailboats, but perfect for us. Fishermen like it too, as there are several. Kristen makes a cheese stuffed chicken, to which I add a salad.

FIshing Boats in Port Judith Harbor

The moon rises, about one day from full, and reflects off the water.

Blogging!

Let the Adventure Begin! Day One: 5.27.2018: Trailering to Providence, RI and launching!

May 27 and we are finally underway. Let the adventure begin! 

Winds on the Atlantic between Portsmouth and the Cape Cod Canal have been unfavorable. First they were straight in our face, then in our face and too strong (over 20mph), then moist winds from the East bringing fog. So we stayed home. Today about noon, Gary's father drove us with Eclipse in tow, and Partial Eclipse on the roof of the car, all the way to Providence RI. He then brought the empty trailer back home.

We launched at Collier park under a cold drizzle and a stiff wind, and spent half an hour tied up while we stowed gear and rigged for motoring. And finally, we're underway. Memorial Day weekend and we've got the harbor to ourselves. No wonder! Cold and drizzle keeps most boaters in their warm houses.

Gary at the helm as the Providence Skyline fades away

Numerous international cargo vessels dot the harbour in Providence.  Note the wind turbines.

The providence Skyline as seen off the stern of Eclipse

The cargo ship, "Ciel de Gaspesie"  (Sky of Gaspe), docked in Providence.  Gaspe is a port city in Northeastern Quebec Province.

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Many picturesque lighthouses dot the shoreline and the waters as we head out from the Providence River and emerge into Narragansett Bay.

Once we settled into a routine, I ducked below to cook up a curried shrimp with vegies. As the afternoon progressed toward evening, the waves built to three feet with occasional white-caps. It was still cold with a heavy drizzle, so around 6pm we found an anchorage on the west side of Prudence Island, a space we shared with four other sailboats taking refuge from the inclement weather as well. As soon as we were secured topside we went below to fire-up the Webasto furnace. Having a forced hot air heater on board Eclipse makes all the difference on a chilly, wet day!

Fickle Winds do Blow

Our original plan was to depart Durham on or about May 10. Approaching that date, we realized we had much preparations to do. That date was chosen based on the tide charts through the Cape Cod Canal, so the next date would be two weeks later. May 24 comes, and the weather, especially the wind direction and wave height has caused us to rethink. Our departure has been pushed back to launching Saturday 5/26 at noon (high tide in Durham) and heading down the coast Sunday. But with two more days of fog after that, we'll have to trailer to Providence RI and skip the open Atlantic. All these delays have let us prepare very well, and to make sure everyone and everything we're leaving behind is in good shape. But we're going to have to keep pushing each day to get back on track. 

We will travel as weather permits. But here's our latest proposed itinerary as far as Albany NY. At that point we'll have a handle on how far we can travel in a day and how desperately we want a day ashore.

Providence, RI: Sunday 5/27

Niantic CT: Tuesday 5/29

Hudson River: Saturday 6/4

Troy NY: Monday 6/13

Schenectady NY: Wednesday 6/15

Packing and Preparing and Powering

Eclipse is being packed and prepared for her extended voyages down the coast of the Atlantic Ocean to New York City and inland to the Great Lakes and Canada.  Space is limited on a vessel of this size so everything we carry has to be something we will use.  If it is a tool we are carrying, then that tool should be useful for MORE than one purpose.  Here we have one of our storage areas under the aft dinette seat.  A LOT can be stored in a relatively small area!

Aft Dinette Seat being what it is... a seat.

Food Storage under Seat!

 The bathroom (otherwise known in maritime lingo as "The Head"), has become a multi-purpose area as well.  It now serves as a sitting and dressing area with a large wall mirror.  It also is a repository for any and all hygenic and first aid needs.  Additionally, it holds a select collection of reading materials in the ship's library.  Additional books, reading material and maps (as needed) are stored in less accessible storage areas beneath the rear berth and may be appropriated and exchanged as needed.

The Multi-Porpoise Bathroom Area

The electrical configuration is done and I have successfully utilized all but one of my circuit breakers for the purposes of electrifying various portions of the ship.  The panel has switches that act also as circuit breakers and each switch controls a separate function or series of related functions onboard Eclipse. The panel also has an analog style voltmeter and, below it, a pair of USB ports and a 12 volt socket outlet.  Additionally, I added a second, rechargeable, handheld, marine radio that is waterproof, and floats!  This is a backup that will be useful for signalling the drawbridges and locks to open while remaining seated comfortably in the cockpit and without having to constantly drop down into the galley to grab the mic on the main radio.  It's also handy if the primary radio fails or if we get into trouble and we lose electrical power onboard for whatever reason.  I might have gone a little overboard when it comes to safety but it beats the alternatives if I end up overboard.  Above the electrical panel rests a 12 volt to 110 volt converter to power whatever we may have that requires such voltages.  Below the radio can be seen one of the squirrel fans that is part of the custom designed built-in refrigeration unit that I created in an attempt to help keep what food we may have that requires refrigeration, cold!  A carbon monoxide and fire detector are located to the right of the electrical panel and, below that, there is a spare solar charger that can be swapped out with the one currently in place and active in the power grid....just in case the primary fails and we need a new one in a rush!

Electrical Control Panel with switches, lights and knobs!

Eclipse has her radio mounted up above the galley.  To the right of the radio is an antique barometer that was my grandfather's, a custom clock that was entirely assembled from parts and finally, an indoor/outdoor thermometer with remote sensor.  This was another fun project!

Radio, Barometer, Clock and Thermometers, Oh My!

New Motor!  We sold the older 9.9 HP 2 stroke and purchased a new 4 stroke Electronic Fuel Injection model that is MUCH thriftier on gas consumption and a heck of a lot quieter.  It should prove to be more reliable than the older motor and we will be needing a reliable motor for all of the miles we will be doing!

New Tohatsu 9.9 4 stroke with Electronic Fuel Imjection

How to Explain Sailing to Guests

Required Reading for all guests aboard "Eclipse"

Sasha new pane

Those old windows we thought, this will not do.

So, out with the old and in with the new!

Cutting, chiseling, scraping out goo,

fitting and cutting for a better view.

The old plexiglass is sharp, beware!

Amarine window ports look to be fair.

And they can be opened to let in some air.

If it leaks a little, tighten just a hair.

A boat can be recognized from the shape of it's ports,

That is a distinctive shape, of course.

Eclipse is now all out of sorts;

Is that really a Mac? Will be the retorts.

Sun and Rain

If we're going to be out there for months, in the rain, in the sun, in the bugs, it would be nice to have some protection. The bimini gives us shade when sailing, as it is behind the swing of the boom.

I've added upright extensions so that when our mast is prone, it is held above the bimini, which is about two feet higher than stock. My task became to erect a tarp over the horizontal mast to cover the cockpit.

Here's what I came up with. The sides can be unrolled for serious weather, and mosquito netting can be hung beneath.

It can also be erected when the mast is upright.  

Check out my drawers!

It has taken all summer and then some, but we've got the salon in Eclipse set up for how we'd like to travel. Here's what a MacGregor 26S looks like with the stock interior. Note two long benches along the sides. 

Not Eclipse, but this is what we started with. 

Last spring we cut out and glassed over the port and starboard settees, giving us a big blank slate with which to work. Blue tape shows dinette seats and table, which was then transferred to the port side. 

Starboard side. This will become the galley.

Port side. This becomes dinette and closet.

A few sheets of birch veneer plywood, some hinges, latches, glue and screws later – and we've got a nice layout. We swapped the port longitudinal settee for a dinette where two can sit comfortably across a collapsable table. Three is cozy, and a fourth can perch the little stool. Or dine in the cockpit if the weather is conducive. Across from the head is a nice closet with drawers and shelves.

Looking aft from v-berth. Closet and dinette. Mirror by the composting toilet. 

The starboard settee gave way to an expanded galley with more storage and a peltier powered refrigerator, and topped off with tiles.

New galley, sink, propane stove, tiles and cabinets.

It's been a long project, but we're very pleased with the result. It feels comfortable and quite functional. 

Sweet Dreams Are Made of These

Sleeping onboard Eclipse was a comfortable affair last night. The onboard, diesel fueled central heating pumped out copious quantities of thermally excited air. T'was toasty. We may need a larger fuel can than the one gallon container however. New mattress was created using 3" of medium firm foam with a 1" layer of soft foam on top. Very comfortable indeed. Mattress store wanted $650 to create what we desired. Mail order bulk foam that we cut and glued to shape ran $100. Getting everything in place and working out all of the kinks is paramount prior to departure on an extended trip.

Hot Stuff!

We've had a great summer of sailing on warm weekends and a one-week jaunt down to Boston and back. But fall is coming. After all, this is New England. It'll be getting cold. We'd like to make use of Eclipse in the shoulder seasons, but sleeping on a cold boat elicits a less than enthusiastic response. Sometimes we sleep on board when she's parked in the yard, but then we use a small electric heater.

Lying on the floor of the laz looking up.

View from the open lazaret hatch, showing the diesel tank (red), and
heat shield below it, and heat pipe going to the right. 

So Kristen purchased and I installed a Webasto diesel fueled hot air heater. It took a full month to install it and all its parts. The location is in the lazaret, port side, sandwiched between the motor well and the bulkhead of the lazaret. Most of the installation was done while lying on my back on the floor of the laz, with the heater about eight inches above my face. Every time I needed to procure another tool, or trim some material off whatever I was trying to fit, I had to climb out and back in again.

Vents on port side of motor well. Laz vent, combustion air, air intake for heating.

So many connections to make. The heater takes in diesel (I fashioned a tank from a gallon gas can) and intake air (1” pvc pipe to the port side of the motor well) and outputs exhaust (added a very small muffler, and a through-hull high on the transom.) It also takes in cold air (another PVC pipe drawing in air next to the combustion intake) and puts out hot air (too hot for PVC. I used steel). There are also electrical connections, fortunately these are plug-in, but wires have to be routed forward to the main panel and a controller knob/thermostat.

Looking to port at bottom of heater. What a spaghetti bowl!

Also, with the space being smaller than required, I added a steel heat shield to protect the fiberglass. To avoid loosing heat to the laz, the first four feet of heat vent pipe were insulated inside of a section of metal ducting. At that point the vent turns and enters the salon. Our first firing revealed a piece of foam lodged inside the heat vent, but once that was cleared (no easy task) the heat came pouring out!

Heat pipe in salon, looking aft. 

But winter has settled into New England and there's ice in the bays, so we'll wait for warmer weather and try some early season sailing next spring.

The photos are rather disorienting, as there is little for reference. I hope they make sense for you. 

Positively Powerful

Well, I finally got sick and tired of the hodgepodge additions I was making to an antiquated power panel on Eclipse but was at a loss to figure out what I could do to neaten things up. One day, while surfing the waters of the internet, I came across a power panel strip that I really liked. This one has circuit breakers rather than fuses and comes with the now standard but very annoying blue LED lights that can alternatively be used as runway beacons at major airports. The wiring was neater than before and the configuration of two panels allowed me to dump the SPST switches I had daisy chained on to the panel prior. A much better solution indeed. I carried over the idea of using custom made "bus bars" for the ground (negative) connection that I fashioned out of aluminum on the band saw and then drilled and tapped for screws. Sometimes it takes enough frustration to initiate change. I like this change for the better and I feel much relieved to have the antiquated jury-rigged fuse based panel OUT.