Ship's Log 07/13/09 8:00AM
So much for the storm free night. two nasty lines of thunderstorms passed through. Why is it that it takes about 8 hours for the two lines of thunderstorms to pass through? I could not douse off, not even for few minutes. The first one came few hours after sunset. Impressive lightning all around, and then the wind picked up. Very powerful. I just had enough time to tie off the wind generator blades before they blow a hole in the transom. I also went below and managed to put a sweatshirt on. In a way, I liked the tropical squalls much better. At least you can sit there in your swim shorts and not feel cold. Last night, I was freezing, and I could not let go of the helm. For a brief second I thought a triple reef on the main was too much because the autopilot could not cope with steering. But that was only because the winds were shifting so violently that one second I am headed and the main starts luffing violently, and the next I find myself sailing by the lee. I got soaked and everything else got wet. At least all the salt was washed away. The boat probably appreciated it very much. I was just thinking how I will need to fresh water-rinse everything. If there is one good thing about these thunderstorms, it is that they really wash away all the salt.
So the first line went by and I soon saw the stars, the first constellation I saw was the big dipper, a bit blurred from the high level clouds, but it was there. Frequent lightning made it hard for eyes to adjust but I was able to verify that it was not the hallucinations, and that it was indeed the big dipper. And I thought I was done for the night. Winds went back to light SW, and I was drying off clothes, picking up the water that entered the cabin and finding something warm to wear. I was freezing. It was nice to relax but it was short lived. Soon, form NW, I saw more lightning. And I knew that its moving SE and towards me. This time I was ready, I went below I dug out my old foul weather gear, overalls, and storm jacket. I put on some dry clothes underneath and I was warm and comfortable. But this line of thunderstorms, came even more violently. It gets so dark and its hard to see where the storm is coming from. Steering by the pedestal didn't work out very well due to shifting winds. In the cockpit, bimini and side canvas distorts the wind quite a bit, and its hard to get the feeling of where the wind is coming from, especially when it shifts violently. My only guide for steering is the little wind indicator on top of the mast. So I sat on the side of the cockpit coamming, and kept my eye on the masthead, holding on to the bimini frame with one hand, and the wheel with the other. The only time you can judge the cloud formation and the direction of could movement is when the lightning strikes. And there were plenty of those. Everywhere, on top of me, horizontally across the sky, discharge into water, etc. I was amazed how when a lightning hits water, it sometimes takes almost up to a second for all the energy to discharge. There appear to be 4-5 fast lightning bolts hitting the same spot in that second. God, I would hate to be on the receiving end of that. I put my small backup GPS into the oven. The only place that electronics can survive a lightning strike. I placed a portable VHF there, and I was almost gonna put a laptop in as well. But I didn't get around to it as the winds clocked to W-NW violently. It was now blowing in the 30s. I have not seen high 30s while sailing since 2006. The most anemometer clocked last night was 39kts. But it was only a localized wind so the seas were rather flat. At those few moments I thought my poor little main sail, That little piece of canvas seems to be on life support, It already has more patches then a Cuban automobile. Its gonna just rip to shreds and that will be it. But it didn't. Part of it was that I set the leech very tight, by adjusting the topping lift, and the mainsail shape was excellent.
The problem with the wind again was that it would shift up to 90 degrees from S to SW to W, in a matter of few seconds. And it was not the swell doing it. The SW swell was gone, flattened by the storm winds. And if I didn't react quickly to the shift I could find myself back-winding the main and braking the boom. Even before this trip, the boom bail has already worked an enlarged hole in the boom. Its now clinking, and it has quite a bit of play. That's why I always set the preventer to help ease the violent jerks on that delicate spot on the boom.
So the second line of thunderstorms was much shorter, at least the very violent part and the stinging rain. The autopilot took over after about an hour. I was freezing. The rain found its way into my starboard settee, my favorite spot for power naps while under way. It also found a way down my overalls, and soaked up my shorts.
I went in changed into dry clothes, and wondered how quickly warm tropical squalls and 80deg. water turn into freezing cold fronts and stinging rain. I was no longer in the tropics and I was feeling the effects of it.
One other mishap took place last night. One of those violent jerks and a wave from astern yanked one of the nylon pins form the servo pendulum on the windvane, my mechanical autopilot. I haven't used it since before Beaufort, NC, and the electronic one was coping quite well. But that was my main means of autosteering in heavy conditions. The problem my prove to be serious in the next few days. Electronic autopilot is rather weak. The most it was successfully able to steer was 25-30kts and 8-11 foot seas. While I hope I don't get more then that for the next 300NM or so, I did see one of the forecasts for the South of New England saying something about 30kts SW on Thursday. That pin on the servopendulum part of the windvane seems to be the weak link. I have already replaced that pin in FL. I got hit by one of those weekend power boaters and it yanked the nylon pin out of the servopendulum. Then I realized that in my spare box, I only had one more of those. That was the one that went yesterday. I am gonna try and fabricate something in the next day or two.
One other good thing happened, the weather instruments on the main dashboard are responding again. The main dashboard was not responsive since PR. It was just showing the miles logged. Now it can once again show, wind speed, relative direction, depth, VMG, etc.
So the first line went by and I soon saw the stars, the first constellation I saw was the big dipper, a bit blurred from the high level clouds, but it was there. Frequent lightning made it hard for eyes to adjust but I was able to verify that it was not the hallucinations, and that it was indeed the big dipper. And I thought I was done for the night. Winds went back to light SW, and I was drying off clothes, picking up the water that entered the cabin and finding something warm to wear. I was freezing. It was nice to relax but it was short lived. Soon, form NW, I saw more lightning. And I knew that its moving SE and towards me. This time I was ready, I went below I dug out my old foul weather gear, overalls, and storm jacket. I put on some dry clothes underneath and I was warm and comfortable. But this line of thunderstorms, came even more violently. It gets so dark and its hard to see where the storm is coming from. Steering by the pedestal didn't work out very well due to shifting winds. In the cockpit, bimini and side canvas distorts the wind quite a bit, and its hard to get the feeling of where the wind is coming from, especially when it shifts violently. My only guide for steering is the little wind indicator on top of the mast. So I sat on the side of the cockpit coamming, and kept my eye on the masthead, holding on to the bimini frame with one hand, and the wheel with the other. The only time you can judge the cloud formation and the direction of could movement is when the lightning strikes. And there were plenty of those. Everywhere, on top of me, horizontally across the sky, discharge into water, etc. I was amazed how when a lightning hits water, it sometimes takes almost up to a second for all the energy to discharge. There appear to be 4-5 fast lightning bolts hitting the same spot in that second. God, I would hate to be on the receiving end of that. I put my small backup GPS into the oven. The only place that electronics can survive a lightning strike. I placed a portable VHF there, and I was almost gonna put a laptop in as well. But I didn't get around to it as the winds clocked to W-NW violently. It was now blowing in the 30s. I have not seen high 30s while sailing since 2006. The most anemometer clocked last night was 39kts. But it was only a localized wind so the seas were rather flat. At those few moments I thought my poor little main sail, That little piece of canvas seems to be on life support, It already has more patches then a Cuban automobile. Its gonna just rip to shreds and that will be it. But it didn't. Part of it was that I set the leech very tight, by adjusting the topping lift, and the mainsail shape was excellent.
The problem with the wind again was that it would shift up to 90 degrees from S to SW to W, in a matter of few seconds. And it was not the swell doing it. The SW swell was gone, flattened by the storm winds. And if I didn't react quickly to the shift I could find myself back-winding the main and braking the boom. Even before this trip, the boom bail has already worked an enlarged hole in the boom. Its now clinking, and it has quite a bit of play. That's why I always set the preventer to help ease the violent jerks on that delicate spot on the boom.
So the second line of thunderstorms was much shorter, at least the very violent part and the stinging rain. The autopilot took over after about an hour. I was freezing. The rain found its way into my starboard settee, my favorite spot for power naps while under way. It also found a way down my overalls, and soaked up my shorts.
I went in changed into dry clothes, and wondered how quickly warm tropical squalls and 80deg. water turn into freezing cold fronts and stinging rain. I was no longer in the tropics and I was feeling the effects of it.
One other mishap took place last night. One of those violent jerks and a wave from astern yanked one of the nylon pins form the servo pendulum on the windvane, my mechanical autopilot. I haven't used it since before Beaufort, NC, and the electronic one was coping quite well. But that was my main means of autosteering in heavy conditions. The problem my prove to be serious in the next few days. Electronic autopilot is rather weak. The most it was successfully able to steer was 25-30kts and 8-11 foot seas. While I hope I don't get more then that for the next 300NM or so, I did see one of the forecasts for the South of New England saying something about 30kts SW on Thursday. That pin on the servopendulum part of the windvane seems to be the weak link. I have already replaced that pin in FL. I got hit by one of those weekend power boaters and it yanked the nylon pin out of the servopendulum. Then I realized that in my spare box, I only had one more of those. That was the one that went yesterday. I am gonna try and fabricate something in the next day or two.
One other good thing happened, the weather instruments on the main dashboard are responding again. The main dashboard was not responsive since PR. It was just showing the miles logged. Now it can once again show, wind speed, relative direction, depth, VMG, etc.
posted by sundowner-cruise at 9:14 AM
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