Making a Hard-Top

Someone asked for more pictures, so here's a few about making a hard-top for the dodger. All the way across the Pacific to New Zealand, we had no dodger. I designed one, and had it made there for the return trip to Washington. It was great to have, but I decided to replace the canvas top with a hard one. Over the past few weeks, I've been working on it, and it's almost ready toinstall on our next trip soon.

I started by laminating a couple of 1/8" sheets to a curve I made.

Then I glued edging, boom chocks, and nav light bases on the top, and various pieces on the bottom for mounting and structure.

Finally came sealing with penetrating epoxy, and lastly, paint.

I still have to attach the awning track for the cockpit awning, and the grab rails that I made from a nice piece of jarrah. Incidentally, jarrah is a much better wood for boats than teak. It is at least as rot resistant, but it weathers much better and is significantly cheaper. I'll post a final picture in a couple of weeks when I install it on the boat.

Mintaka Swims Again!

After sixteen months on the hard in Port Townsend, Washington, and after far too much driving, effort, hassles, and money, Mintaka finally splashed on Feb 8, and is now tied up in her slip in Brinnon, Washington, on the Hood Canal. She has two new masts, one wood and the other aluminum -- a long, sad tale, best told over beer -- as well as all new wooden booms and rigging.

There are yet more projects to complete this summer before we go offshore again. One of those is the fabrication of a hard top for the dodger. As I get older, I place more value on staying dry while on watch. I had to wait for the rigging to be up to make sure of no conflicts with the main backstays, so that’s the project I’m working on now. I’ll post a photo when I install it in April.

As the mainmast is now a bit taller, we no longer fit under the Hood Canal bridge, so we had to have them open it for us. Quite the feeling of power! This next bit, though, you just won’t believe. The slip we were heading to used to be occupied by cruising friends that we met in New Zealand, and who now live in Hood River, Oregon. Well, Steve was one of the drivers that was stopped by the bridge opening, and he recognized us. He hadn’t been in the area in several years, and had no idea that we had launched and were motoring down to their old slip, and we had no idea that he was in the area. So, as we were sliding into our berth in Home Port Marina, there he was, ready to catch our mooring lines. If he had gotten to the bridge only a minute or two earlier, he would not have been stopped. Robyn and I have had many small-world experiences over the years, some of them truly amazing, but this one ranks right up there.

We are hoping to sail down the coast to San Francisco in early September, staging her there over the next winter for a May 2013 departure back to New Zealand. We’ll be sailing around the Northwest as much as we can this season, working out any kinks in the new rig, deciding on any sail changes, and finishing up remaining projects. I’ll update the blog much more frequently now that we’re operational again, so check in from time to time.

Progress

Work is progressing well. Just got back from two weeks up there. Took the bowsprit off, refinished it, and replaced all the bolts. Got a bunch of other jobs done, too. Back home now, and all the rigging parts have arrived -- over 600' of wire, plus the terminals to make up 26 separate shrouds and stays. We'll be going back up there in a few weeks. Hope that's enough time to make up all that rigging, as well as build the three new booms, and do so some sail work. I think I'll be busy for the next few weeks.

Major Refit

Well, we've decided to keep Mintaka indefinitely, which means we've also decided to spend ridiculous amounts of time, effort and money on a refit. She's on the hard in Port Townsend, Washington, right now, looking a bit forlorn without masts or rigging. We took the masts down in September for some maintenance and deck repairs, and took the opportunity to weigh them. The mainmast weighed almost 550#, more than twice what it should. It was overbuilt, to say the least. So, we're building new masts. Minor chore. Trifling cost. I salvaged the wood from the old masts to make new booms. It was also time to replace all the standing rigging (the wires), and we're taking the opportunity to change the rigging plan somewhat to more closely approach William Atkin's original design. Thousands of sea-miles have convinced me that Atkin got the design right, that the changes the builder made to the design were mistakes. Between the new, lighter masts, and the change in the rig (fractional foretriangle, instead of masthead), we expect great things from the old girl. There are also a host of other projects on her. I'll write about them as we go along.

Belated Landfall

Sorry for the delay in this last blog entry. What with dealing with the engine problem (see below), moving the boat down the sound to her permanent mooring, and getting home to Salt Lake, time just got away from me.

So, we obviously did make it in, Saturday the 2nd to be precise. There was a bit of drama at the very end, though. We had been nursing a sick engine for the previous week or so, and it seemed doubtful that it would take us in to port. The weather wasn't cooperating, with clear, sunny, windless skies, so we really needed the motor. We rounded the spit at Port Angeles with the engine coughing and belching white smoke every couple of minutes. And just as we entered the marina, the engine quit completely. With a good breeze (now the breeze comes up!) behind us, we sailed under bare poles up to the transient dock. Robyn was there to meet us, so she caught our line, took two turns around a cleat, and held on tight. Kind of like landing on an aircraft carrier.

Anyway, my crew jumped ship almost immediately for a hotel and then on to their families. Robyn and I spent the evening and night with friends nearby in Sequim, then the next night on the boat before she needed to go back to work in eastern Washington. Then I motored Mintaka for two days down to Brinnon, Washington, where I put her away in our new slip in Home Port Marina.

It was a good, mellow passage. We had fair winds for all but a few hours. A bit light perhaps, but no complaints. It was great to sail back in to where we left ten years ago. It really feals like I've done something.

Will we go out again? I hope so. On Mintaka? That remains to be seen. She'll remain in Washington for the winter, and then, we'll see.

Approaching the Strait of Juan de Fuca

At 1700 hours today, Friday, we are 50 nm W of Cape Flattery, and sailing well. We have every expectation of making it in to Port Angeles tomorrow.