Where Is The Far Reach--Part III

[wikakaru]

Nice sunset. I like the way the shafts of light splay out around the cloud.

I noticed that you are sculling the dinghy. Do you do that often?

--Jim

[John Stone]

Nice sunset. I like the way the shafts of light splay out around the cloud.

I noticed that you are sculling the dinghy. Do you do that often?

--Jim

Thanks. I liked the photo too. Gayle took it with her iPhone. I scull the Sweet Pea often. I'd like to cut a second offset notch.

Here is a short sculling video the screen capture came from I posted on you tube.
https://youtu.be/vIykaz7UMiA

[John Stone]

On 3 March we slipped the mooring at Lameshur Bay, St John and sailed back to St Thomas. The wind was light but we managed about 4-5 kts wing and wing with the whisker pole supporting the working jib. The windvane steered perfectly. Just as we arrived in the harbor we were welcomed back to Elephant Bay with a gully-washer of a rain storm.

We hung out in St Thomas for a week. We took on water and ice and went shopping. We did laundry. We had a couple social events with our friends. Then the wind picked up. Maybe 25 g 30. Forecast was for more of the same for a week. We were rocking on the mooring as the wind whistled down the West Gregorie Channel. So on 9 March we dropped off the mooring and sailed downwind and around the west end of the airfield and beat up into Brewers Bay. A dozen boats were already there seeking shelter. We found a nice spot and got the hook down in 15' of water on a sandy bottom. I let out about 100' of chain. Very calm. Just a great place to hang out. A nice sandy public beach to land the dinghy on. The local safari taxi picks up there ($1 for down town and $2 gets you all the way to the east end of St Thomas).

The same day we arrived a pod of dolphins swam into the bay. They swam right up to some snorkelers near our boat and lay on their sides and let the swimmers stroke them. It was incredible to watch. I am sure it was a thrill for the swimmers too. I have heard about that happening but I had never seen it. Amazing.

We have just been swimming, reading, cooking, eating and hanging out in a very relaxed manner. Just enjoying life on the water.

[John Stone]

Today we went for a hike. The trail was up a draw filled with rocks and boulders. I call it moderate since you were scrambling over boulders most of the way. The trail terminated on top of a rock outcropping with a cave under it. I'd estimate the elevation of the outcropping around 800' but that just a guess. The view was fantastic.

[Jim Walsh]

Great pics. Your mast looks enormous in the distant shot, I can see the need for two sets of spreaders.

[John Stone]

It's four feet taller than stock but 50 lbs lighter.

[John Stone]

SV Jodi anchored behind us today. C&C 61. Launched in 1974. Completely restored. Now that's a tall mast. 93' air draft! Shazowie! I can't imagine the loads on the hull and rig. And that's not in-mast furling. Pretty scary to gyb that sucker offshore at night.

[mgphl52]

WOW! Now that's a *BIG* stick!

[John Stone]

The other day a center console inflatable came up to the FR. Turns out it was the charter boat captain of a big catamaran named Blue Pepper anchored near by. On board the inflatable was his client, our own Cape Dory forum member Mike Bigos who owns CD 36 Dolphin. We chatted and he asked if he could take a peak at the Far Reach. Certainly. So we gave Mike and Justin Summers (the cat skipper) the nickel tour. Turns out Justin has a Cape Dory 27 he keeps in Hawaii! A small world. Though they only had time for a short visit it was fun and interesting.

Mike and his family and friends were soon to head back to Maine. Brrrr. Safe travels Mike. We enjoyed meeting you and Capt Justin of SV Blue Pepper.

[John Stone]

Yesterday I had a child hood dream come true. For a couple days there was a red monohull anchored behind us. I finally rowed over and said to the skipper "This looks like an Admirals Cup boat from the 1970s. The skipper said "it is in fact that very thing." He said it also sailed in the infamous 1979 Fasnet race slammed by a Force 11 storm where numerous boats were sunk and I think about 15 sailors died. There is a book about it I read many years ago. This particular boat won its class in that race.

Anyway, the skipper, Rob Newcomb, invited me aboard Red Rock IV (Google it). Wow. I was head over heels. I loved reading about these boats as a kid. They are 2 Tonners. You can Google Admirals Cup etc. Ted Turner sailed a red two tonner as well called Tenacious which I saw one year in the 1975 SORC way back when Christ was a corporal.

Red Rock IV is aluminum and absolutely flush deck and is essentially unchanged externally. She has an aft helmsman cockpit with entry to nav station below. Rob build a fiberglass dodger over the aft companionway. A fighting well is forward with coffee grinder and other winches. Original winches. Companionway ladder in fighting well to saloon. There is a walk through passageway to the aft ladder to the helmsman's cockpit. All open below--no bulkheads. Designed by German Frers for the Argentinian Admirals Cup Team. Just fantastic. Rob has owned the boat since 2008 and raced it a fair bit to include from England to the Azores and back. He has a couple cool YouTube videos posted. He continues to sail her with hank on headsails. He is out cruising with his girlfriend Louise. They are transplanted South Africans living now on the SW coast of Great Britain in Wales.

They were both delightful and interesting. We had planned to get together the following day but they got a message a family member was flying into Puerto Rico a day earlier than expected and they had to depart. They are headed back to Wales in June via the Bahamas.

What a great experience.

[John Stone]

We decided to to weigh anchor at Brewers Bay about 0800 and head back up to St John. Forecast was for 12 kts. Still, I chose a single reefed main and working jib as I suspected we might see a bit more wind. But we were looking forward to nice leisurely beat up the coast for a change. Ha! That lasted about 30 min.

The wind built to 22 g 28. In no time we tucked in a second reef. Then the rain arrived. At the height of the rain squall, on the offshore port tack tack, a big catamaran "head boat" coming out of Charlotte Amalie ran up on our stern with jib and both engines wide open to beat the squall into Buck Island where they were taking day snorkelers. He was loaded down with cruise ship passengers getting wet from the rain. He did not make his intentions clear. For a moment I thought he might run into us he was that close to our stern. He was steering left then right. It looked like he might go under us which is what he should have done. I needed to tack as we were closing on Buck Island. I tacked to port just as he decided to power over us. I had to fall off after the tack. It was a foolish and potentially dangerous move on his part. Though no harm was done he put his passengers at risk as well as our boat.

We continued to beat up the coast as the gusts hit the high 20s. The rain was intense but short lived. We sailed up into the lee of Christmas Cove and dropped the jib then hauled up the staysail and beat right through Current Cut into Pillsbury Sound sailing the whole way. With the boat reefed down we scooted along nicely in brilliant sunshine though the wind was still gusting to about 25+ kts. The FR balances beautifully reefed down with the staysail and double reefed main. Remember, she has a bigger rig and a much bigger staysail than a stock CD 36 so she still has plenty of sail power thusly configured. Very comfortable and Gayle enjoys steering when she's tracking so well.

From there we carried on up into Francis Bay where we picked up a National Park mooring.

[Jim Walsh]

Sounds like the type of excitement you don’t need, but it ended well. Nice action photos with your post…..
I always keep an air horn in my mainsheet bag so it’s immediately available. I’ve only had to resort to it a couple times. Once was when a Hinckley was bearing down on my port side under power with no one visible at the helm. I luffed up slightly to let him pass a boats length ahead of me, then I used the air horn to give him a prolonged blast directed at his open companionway. My fear was the skipper had fallen overboard. The skipper bounded out of the companionway into the cockpit and looked rather stunned. I must admit I resorted to my best selection of “sentence enhancers” as he collected his senses. I resumed course and he did his best to avoid looking in my direction. Autopilots can be a mixed blessing.

[John Stone]

Sounds like the type of excitement you don’t need, but it ended well. Nice action photos with your post…..
I always keep an air horn in my mainsheet bag so it’s immediately available. I’ve only had to resort to it a couple times. Once was when a Hinckley was bearing down on my port side under power with no one visible at the helm. I luffed up slightly to let him pass a boats length ahead of me, then I used the air horn to give him a prolonged blast directed at his open companionway. My fear was the skipper had fallen overboard. The skipper bounded out of the companionway into the cockpit and looked rather stunned. I must admit I resorted to my best selection of “sentence enhancers” as he collected his senses. I resumed course and he did his best to avoid looking in my direction. Autopilots can be a mixed blessing.

You're right about that air horn. I have one but usually keep it under the watch seat so not as handy as it should be. Keeping it handy to the helm is a very good idea.

Going in and out of port, especially the marina, I usually have it in the cockpit. I like your method.

[wikakaru]

I like the action photos, John. Keep them coming!

--Jim

[John Stone]

Gayle and I rowed Sweet Pea ashore to the beach last evening to drop trash off. As I walked up to the trash cans an older guy with a grey beard called out to me, "Is that a Fatty Knees dinghy?" I said yes and asked if he was a sailor and he said yes and I asked if he had a Fatty Knees and he said no. He then said "I was introduced to them by the Pardey's." So we chatted about them for a minute and he asked which boat I was on and I pointed out the FR in the fading light. So, we talked about that for a minute. And I asked where he was from and he said Maine. And I said "well that's cool both my boats were originally built there." He asked, "Have you ever heard of Off Center Harbor?" I said "Sure. I am a Lifetime member." He smiled and said "I'm Steve Stone!" (Steve is a co-founder and chief filmmaker for OCH). Ha! How about that! He had to leave as his family was all loaded up in the jeep waiting on him.

What a small world, eh?