ColumbiaRiverCatalina.org		August 2006

From the Commodore
By Bob Gales

Ahoy Mates! Finally Gail and I have actually taken Soleil out on the water! Last month we motored to East Dock and back for our first cruise on the river. We flew no sails as the doc still did not want me using my shoulder. Then we did the LazyDaze cruise down river with Rose City Yacht Club. This was our first true test of Soleil as a comfortable cruiser. We were not disappointed.

The Oceanis 350 has almost identical dimensions to the Catalina 34. Gail and I have always enjoyed the roominess of the Catalina salons and find the Beneteau’s main cabin a bit confining. The drop leaf centerline table seems to be in the way of stretching my legs while relaxing so I am toying with ideas for modifications. But there is an awesome amount of storage so we are happy with that. Cleaning, waxing and refinishing continue as do systems upgrades. A new toilet in the head really made a difference and was my first project.

The next project I tackled was the freshwater system. The hot water heater is currently disconnected as I await fittings for the new engine. In the meantime my pump started not turning off. I carefully checked all connections and even returned a new pump thinking its pressure switch was faulty. It wasn’t until weeks later, and many gallons of water wasted, that I finally found the problem. In order for us to use the pressure water I would turn on the switch at the panel, use the faucet and then turn off the panel switch. A real pain but it was the only way to get fresh water. While at the St. Helen’s city docks Gail and I went through that scenario only to have our friend on the boat behind us comment about all the water shooting out of the stern! Our stern shower was spraying the bow of their boat! The shower handle was cracked, perhaps from a late winter freeze. I removed the handle and clamped the hose shut. Ta da! Our freshwater pump worked like a charm! A few days later we experienced the same problem. This time the shower hose disconnected from the supply hose. Of course the supply hose was inside the boat and the water filled the bilge! The previous owners used green masking tape around the barbed fitting for a tighter fit! It kind of melted and just slipped off. I bought some plastic plugs at Lowe’s that come in very handy for plugging water hoses.

At the same time we noticed the exhaust steaming more than usual. We were on our way from Cathlamet to Astoria and I kept a close eye on the amount of water coming out with the exhaust. The engine was not over heating so we continued. By the time we tied up in the East Basin the exhaust was barely spitting. With only 30 hours on the new engine the impeller had lost four of its six vanes. Fortunately I found all four broken ones and removed them. A new impeller (and a spare) made for an easy fix.

After a few days in Astoria we enjoyed flying the head sail as we motored back to Cathlamet. We hope to get out soon and sail with both main and jib and that rumbling engine silenced.

My current project is replacing the propane hoses and doing maintenance on the stove. The 18 year old hoses were the braided type and the pig tail from the tank to the regulator was leaking. We were in no danger but it was sure smelly. For those of us with older boats, especially ones new to us and with mystery maintenance, it is wise to go through all of the systems. After the propane upgrade I’ll move begin on the Webasto furnace. In the meantime Gail is sewing new slip covers for the interior cushions. I just received our registration decals and we need to get the name on the boat. All of this with camping trips, concerts and yard work squeezed in!

Happy sailing, see you on the water,

Bob

Vice Commodore
By Eric Rouzee, C36, Legacy

I’m about 18 hours away from a sailing vacation and I can’t wait.

Every time this summer when someone has asked where I moor my boat, I’ve told them that, for the summer, Legacy is up in Puget Sound. That’s always followed by something like, “Oh, it’s so beautiful up there. How lucky you are!” And yes, it is beautiful in Puget Sound and the San Juans. Without a doubt, it is the premier cruising grounds in the Pacific Northwest.

The problem is, I haven’t laid eyes on my beautiful boat for about a month now, and I’m in serious withdrawals. So you can imagine my anticipation, for as I write this, I’m only a few minutes away from making the drive up to Port Ludlow, where we’ll pack our provisions, get Legacy up and running, and then tomorrow morning, we’re headed north across the Straits of Juan de Fuca and on to Lopez Island for the Latitudes and Attitudes Cruisers rally. After that, it’s another week of just cruising the islands. I can assure you that I’m ready!

Legacy will make her return trip to the Portland area over the Labor Day weekend, and then I’m looking forward to some river cruising with other boats from CRACA. Personally, I can’t wait to get back out in the ocean. I was just recently down in San Diego, and it really struck me that in that port, if you want to go out for a little ocean sailing, it’s simply a matter of pointing your bow west and a few minutes later, you’re there. Oh well, perhaps the fact that we Portland sailors have to cross one of the most dangerous river bars in the world in order to get our ocean fix makes us that much tougher, right?!?

I’m working on a guest speaker for the September Rendezvous, and if all goes according to plan, it should be a good one. I’ll keep you informed as we get closer to that event. Any other ideas for that weekend are also most welcome.

We’ve got some great cruises coming up, which Jim Elieff will tell you about. Hope you’re all enjoying the summer. And as an old sailing friend of mine loves to tell me from time to time, “Keep the slimy side down, live slow and sail fast!”

Eric Rouzee
s/v Legacy
erirou@colmac.com
360-690-0331

Changes in Latitudes
By Jim Elieff (Cruising Chairman), C30, Fortune

Hello fellow CRACA members, I know that the summer has been busy for everyone. Lately it has been very hot. The cruise to Government Island, East Dock on July 15th & 16th was attended by five Catalina's.  Rick and Cheryl Ward (C36, Cheryl Lynn) came up Saturday afternoon with Cheryl's brother and his wife from Hawaii.  Jerry Sampson (C27, Sydera) came over Saturday in his new Boston Whaler dingy. Looked a lot safer than his old one.

Those in attendance were:

• C30, Ivan Ho, Craig & Rhonda Sorenson
• C30, Fat Cat, Jim & Ronda Turner
• C30, Fortune, Jim Elieff & Marilyn Nicholson
• C30, Mage Wind, John & Emily Kerrigan
• C36, Cheryl Lynn, Rick & Cheryl Ward

Others joining us on the cruise were Dave & Ellie in a 26' Chysler named The Office, Dave & Lanie Gaskill on a 33'Carver named Launa, and Ken & Teresa on a 33' Carver named Why Not.

We all got there Friday afternoon and enjoyed being together until late Sunday afternoon. The weather was great and the company was terrific. Lots of food , snacks veges, dessert, and drinks.

Beacon Rock Cruise, August 17 - 20

CRACA's annual cruise to Beacon Rock State Park is once again being hosted by Dale, Laura, and Sean Mack (C30, Celtic Myst).  Here is the list of folks who have signed up for the cruise with either Dale or myself:

• C22, <<no name>>, Tim & Kori Taylor (a maybe)
• C22, Windrider, Scott Ferre
• C250, <<no name>>, Doug & JoNell McClary
• C27, River Rose, David & Sylvia Keller
• C30, Anakele', Alden & Carrie Andre (a maybe)
• C30, Celtic Myst, Dale & Laura Mack (cruise leader)
• C30, Fat Cat, Jim & Ronda Turner
• C30, Fortune, Jim Elieff
• C30, Ivan's Ho, Craig & Rhonda Sorenson
• C36, Cheryl Lynn, Rick & Cheryl Ward
• C42, Kira Lynn, Jess & Mary Schefstrom
• C42, Wind Raven, Michael & Kathleen Lewis

Kira Lynn, Fortune, Cheryl Lynn, and Fat Cat are going to Government Island, East Dock Thursday night and leaving Friday morning between 10 am and noon to go to Beacon Rock on Friday.  Ivan's Ho will leave Camas Friday around 3:30 pm and come up before dark.  Wind Raven may come up Friday.  Several of us will be coming back Tuesday instead of Sunday.  Celtic Myst, and River Rose are going to Camas/Washougal Thursday, dining at the Puffin Cafe Thursday evening, and then leaving Friday morning for Beacon Rock.  See Dale's article for more details regarding the cruise.

2006 CRACA Cruising Schedule
Cruising points are only awarded to boats that register in advance for a cruise

Date	Destination	Cruise Leaders
Aug 17 - 20	Beacon Rock	Dale & Laura Mack
Sept 16 - 17	Catalina Rendezvous McCuddy's Landing	Eric Rouzee & Dale & Laura Mack
Oct 21 - 22	Government Island, East Dock

 

Beacon Rock Cruise, August 17 - 20
By Dale Mack, C30, Celtic Myst

Nestled amongst the slopes of the Columbia Gorge is Beacon Rock State Park just downstream of the Bonneville Dam (the last dam on the Columbia River).  Part of the Washington State Park System, Beacon Rock features, wide docks, picnic and camping sits, BBQs, sandy beaches, a launch ramp (popular with the local fishermen), excellent restrooms with hot showers, and potable water.  New in 2005 was the addition of power on the docks, and a marine head pump out station.  One of the added benefits of Beacon Rock is that you can have family and friends meet you there by car.

Reachable in six and half hours motoring upstream from the I-5 bridge, the trip to Beacon Rock can sound intimidating if you haven't cruised that long non-stop before.   Although I've motored straight through in the past, my favorite method now is to split the upriver trip into two parts, and spend the first night  at Parker's Landing (the Port of Camas-Washougal, 3 hrs).  One of the treats about staying at Parker's Landing is going to the floating Puffin Café for dinner.  The marina has fuel, a launch ramp, and lots of guest berthing with power.  The return trip from Beacon Rock takes about 4 hours.  I recommend planning to get to Beacon Rock in the early afternoon, because the late afternoon wind blowing East can sometimes generate a considerable swell.

Laura, Sean, and I are the cruise leaders for the Beacon Rock cruise this year.  Please email me at celtic-myst@comcast.net if you'd like to sign-up for the cruise or you want more information.

Cruise Itinerary

Thursday

• Destination - Guest docks at the Port of Camas-Washougal
• Dinner - 6:30 pm at the Puffin Cafe.

Friday

• Destination - Beacon Rock State Park Docks
• Potluck Appetizers - 4:30 pm on the dock.

Saturday (Beacon Rock)

• Hike to the top of Beacon Rock, Kayak the backwaters, etc.
• Potluck Appetizers - 4:30 pm on the dock.

Sunday

• Return to Portland

Notes on Beacon Rock:

• Moorage at the dock $.50/foot per night.   In 2005 power was $5/night.
• Bring quarters for the showers (3 minutes for 50 cents).
• Great place for dinghies, kayaks, or small sailboats.
• Running water is available at the top of the ramp.
• There is a one knot current that runs south passed the docks.

• Camp sites, boat ramp, and picnic area available.

• The walk to Beacon Rock is very doable if you want to hike to the top.

 

Technical Tips

Parallel Parking
By Dale Mack, C30, Celtic Myst

With several of us heading to Beacon Rock this month, I thought this article from September 2004 might be useful.

We watched the blue forty-six foot steel sloop slowly approach the Beacon Rock dock aiming to occupy a fifty-five foot space we had created between Jim Elieff's C30, Fortune, and a very new looking fifty-plus foot center cockpit fiberglass sloop named Whisper.  The steel sloop was parallel to and about twenty feet off of Whisper's port side (Whisper was pointed south, stern facing the current that typically runs past the dock).  With about fifteen feet of the sloop's bow past the stern of Whisper, the sloop's skipper made the unfortunate choice of starting to point the boat's bow toward the dock.  With the boat's keel and rudder no longer pointed directly into the current, the boat started to move sideways in addition to moving forward.  The twenty feet separating the two boats vanished very quickly.  People started leaping upon Whisper to fend off the steel sloop as its last fifteen feet scraped along the port quarter of Whisper.  Fortunately no one was hurt, but Whisper lost a BBQ into the river, a bent rail, and some scratched paint.  The sad thing is that the conditions for the landing were almost perfect, but the skipper obviously didn't know how to take advantage of them or was totally unaware of the current running past the dock.

The first rule about giving advice about docking is that it condemns you to screwing up your next attempt, and having it occur in front of a large audience, preferably one you've given advice to.  So with a clear understanding of the consequences, let me share some advice on how to parallel park your boat when you have a current running parallel to the dock and your bow pointed into the current.  As illustrated below, you essentially bring your boat alongside the space you are interested, and hover the boat by going in and out of forward gear to maintain position against the current.  The proximity of the other boats will serve as excellent reference points to verify your hover.  When you are ready to move toward the dock, begin a series of small rudder movements toward the dock and then back into the current, all the while remaining mindful of the other boats.  This scalloping action is so slight that to those on the dock the boat will appear to move sideways.  When used in reverse order, this technique will gracefully get you away from the dock when it comes time to depart.

Come in parallel to the dock.

Go into and out of forward gear to hover adjacent to the space you want to occupy.  Now is a good time to verify you fit the space.

A series of small rudder movements toward the dock and then into the current will cause the boat to move sideways toward the dock.

A great place to practice hovering is to go out to buoy "14" and approach it from the downstream side.  Point your bow at the buoy and practice station keeping with the rudder and engine.  Once in the hover, practice sliding sideways left and right.

One word of caution, I recommend you NOT throw your dock lines to someone ashore unless you're sure they won't start pulling your bow toward the dock.  I'd wait until the boat is alongside the dock, and then have your crew step off and secure a forward spring line and a  bow line first and then a stern line.

 

Scuttlebutt

Catalina Newsletters of the Northwest

Checkout these links to Northwest Catalina newsletters and local racing:

Catalina 22 Fleet 20 of Portland www.C22pdx.org Sail Portland www.sailpdx.com Oregon Women's Sailing Association www.owsa.net

Catalina Assoc.  of Tacoma and South Sound (CATSS) home.earthlink.net/~catss/CATSS Web Page.htm Catalina Association of Puget Sound (CAPS) capsfleet1.com/News Letters.htm Small Yacht Sailing club of Oregon (SYSCO) www.sailpdx.com/sysco.htm

 

Upcoming Events

August

• Cruise:  9 - 19, Astoria
• Cruise:  19 - 22, Beacon Rock

September

• Cruise:  15 - 17, Catalina Rendezvous, McCuddy's Landing, Multnomah Channel
• Cruise:  23, Sail for the Cure

See the calendar

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The Columbia River All Catalina Association newsletter is published once a month online at ColumbiaRiverCatalina.org.  Articles are the opinions of the authors and don't necessarily represent the consensus of the Association.