Sailing August Away
August 31, 2008
Saying goodbye to August with an afternoon on Madsu in Howe Sound. Plenty of puffs interspersed with dead spots made for a challenging hopscotch across the sound.
Summer Never Ends
August 30, 2008
We had every intention of getting up early today and doing a circumnavigation of Bowen Island.
But given that this is the last weekend before school starts, we decided to let the boys sleep in.
So we got a late morning start on the boat, and managed to catch some nice in-flow breeze in Howe Sound with Madsu cruising to weather at 5 knots.
Heading back to Horseshoe Bay at the end of the day we played with the cruising chute a bit in the super light breeze ahead of the shift to an outflow.
Nice way to spend another summer afternoon on the west coast.
August Full Moon Sail
August 17, 2008
When I put Madsu in the water this spring, I challenged myself to get in as many full moon sails as I could this summer.
The weather has been super cooperative - with another clear night last night (August 16th) for my third full moon sail this summer (see June and July).
It was one of the hottest days of the summer and I’d hoped for a nice offshore breeze once the sun went down, but no luck - just a few puffs off the bluffs at Whytecliff Park. So, I didn’t get as much sailing in as past full moon nights, but it was still inspiring to see that huge orb slow rise over the West Van hills.
Perhaps as a way of making up for the lack of wind, there was a wonderful sunset. The sky over Bowen Island turned crimson and reflected back on Madsu’s wake. Nice. Also out and getting an eye full was the massive motor yacht Nova Spirit which passed me inbound to Vancouver.
Now if I could just figure out how to do a long exposure on a moving boat, maybe I could get an actual shot of the moon…
Solar Charging My Mobile Phone
August 3, 2008
It’s a bit convoluted, but while sailing this morning I was also using the sun to charge my mobile. There’s something magic about silently ghosting along under sail - added bonus is charging batteries at the same time.
On a sailboat, you typically charge up your batteries while using the engine. Just like in your car, an alternator on the motor charges the 12 or 6 v batteries on the boat. But since there is no alternator on Madsu’s old outboard, the only way to charge the 12 volt batteries that run the lights and other on board equipment is to use a battery charger plugged in while at the dock. I do have a 110v AC marine trickle charger installed, but all last season and so far this season, I’ve relied on a 14 x 14 solar panel I bought at West Marine.
It trickle charges the batteries and I’ve not had to plug-in to shore power since I bought it. I put a switch on the panel so that I can send the charge to either one of the two batteries on board, and so far, I’m super happy with the performance of the little panel. I mount it on the stern pushpit, clamped to the rail mount I use for the Force 10 BBQ which is stowed unless I’m using it.
When it was on sale last year, I also bought a small (coffee cup sized) inverter. It plugs into the cigarette lighter socket on the boat and outputs AC. Today I used it to charge my cell phone. I don’t have a 12v charger for the mobile, and don’t need to buy one. The solar panel charges the batteries, the batteries provide power to the inverter, and the inverter outputs AC to my standard phone charger. Nice.
Moonlight Sail with Bella and Aron
July 22, 2008
Garnet and I were lucky enough to be joined by Aron and Bella on our FullMoon Sail last Friday night.
I got a bit of video footage - fun night. Sorry the video’s so dark but it WAS already quite dark (it’s gonna get darker), and I left the good camera on dry land…
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Sphere: Related ContentMannion Bay Lunch Hook
June 22, 2008
Sometimes things just line up right.
Pushing aside the fear I may be turning into a big softie, I’ll just go ahead and say it. We had an incredible, magic day on the water.
Madsu is ship-shape after a spring of upgrades/fixes and it’s a real pleasure to see and feel the difference every time we go out.
Today, MB came along (my oldest son) and our friend’s daughter who’s interested in sailing.
We took off from Sewell’s Marina in Horseshoe Bay around 11:30, and at 1:30 we were comfortably on the hook in Mannion Bay on Bowen Island.
(click the image for a large panorama shot from the cockpit)
The bay is pretty deep (a few hundred feet) until you get close in then in drops rapidly. We anchored in about 30 feet of water near a lot of other boats on mooring bouys.
The local Canada Geese were out in full force, with a honking and chirping family paying us a visit within minutes of us setting the hook. Looking for handouts, they stayed a while then moved on to check out a more generous group of visitors. I don’t know how long the immature geese stay with their parents, but this bunch looked not quite ready to take off on their own. 
MB fired up the Sea-B-Q and we had some delicious hot dogs, sitting in the sun enjoying what has to be British Columbia’s greatest asset; itself.
The sail back was incredible - we close-reached across in about half-an-hour, never dropping below 5.5 knots the entire way over. Again, those new North Sails are keeping us smiling every minute under way.
Hot Moon Cruise
June 17, 2008
Some of my fondest memories of sailing the west coast were as crew on board a Spencer 51 owned by brothers Ian and Colin Morse.
We did a lot of night sailing and those cruises under the full moon in the Straight of Georgia will be etched in my mind for a long time. They were magic, and I learned a lot on those trips. Inviting me along was a gift I’ll never forget, and for which I’ll always be thankful to ‘the boys’.
There’s nothing quite like sailing under a full moon, especially when the wake is streamed with bioluminescence. About the only thing that comes close, for me, is seeing the Northern Lights.
With the full moon on Wednesday this week, I’m hoping the clouds clear so we can take Madsu out for a night cruise.
According to the Farmers’ Almanac, this month’s FM is known as Full Strawberry Moon, Rose Moon, or Hot Moon.
Full moons fall mid month throughout the summer and fall and we’re planning night sails for as many as we can get.
