Annual Haw River Flood

Jennifer and I took a few days to drive up to Paul's dad's place way up high on Bluff Mountain in Ashe County near the corner of NC, VA, and TN this week. As we departed, a terrific windstorm formerly known as Ida swept over NC, dropping loads of rain. We scooted far enough west to avoid the worst, but the rain filled the Haw River basin.

I saw the river crossing under NC 54 as we returned from the mountains to our area, and I decided to visit the parcel that I own along the Haw in Orange County. The river overflows its banks about once a year. Below, Jennifer views the Haw covering the canoe access near NC 54 in Alamance County





Jennifer drove me to the property, and I called Mark to have him join me and see the spectacle. I reached the water's edge and saw that the river was much wider than normal, covering much of the field stretching away from the river. My canoes were far out in the stream, but I needed a boat to tour the flood. I stripped down my clothes and waded out to the nearest canoe, finding it overturned and floating on top of a wooden staircase that allows access to the river in low water. The canoe was tied to an 8X8 deck, which in turn was tied to another canoe stretching downstream at the length of its painter. When I untied the upstream canoe, the deck and other canoe began to drift downstream through the trees. Fortunately, the deck became lodged between two trees, and the second upturned canoe was fast to the deck. I drained my canoe and began scouting around by boat.




Below, the Haw covers the road, leaving behind well-combed grass as it drops somewhat from its maximum flow.




The flood waters were well into the forest, with myriad bugs and spiders above the waterline. By and by, Mark marched down out of the woods (the road was impassable due to a foot diameter tree down). He and I embarked and went out to see the fast-flowing main stream of the Haw, and I pointed out the deck and second canoe in the woods, far from the clearing where I had placed them initially. We went and secured the extra canoe to a tree, and then attempted to tow the deck upstream while it floated in three or four feet of water. Amazingly, this worked, until we got the deck posts entangled in the stairs, which were floating at the end of an anchor line. I decided to go ahead and get wet, and was able to disentangle the lines and manually push the deck back upstream while Mark belayed the deck and me. We retied the deck to very near where it had originally been, and then cracked a well-deserved beer in celebration. When the river drops to within its banks, mud will coat the grass, debris will hang from the trees, parts of the bank may have slipped away, but the deck and all three boats were saved.



Above, a view of my wooden stairs floating just outside of the swift main flow of the Haw River


Below, Mark braces the canoe, with the deck secured behind him in the customary location.

Spring Sail to Bass Harbor

The great thing about Deer Isle is that it is within striking distance of so many very beautiful islands and harbors along the Maine coast. After fixing the spreaders, Jennifer and I talked about where we might go. I really thought Mt. Desert Island was within two, and maybe only one, nights range. I gathered up the various necessary components for the Wayfarer, such as the paddle, rudder, anchors, sails, tools and buckets. I also loaded the forward compartment with the sleeping bags and pads, extra water, and clothes. We packed a cooler with beverages and snacks, plus our standard shipboard fare, which was a big cold dish cooked the night before, in this case, sesame noodles.

We drove Mary's 1992 Toyota down to the shore with Juliet in tow. It is a very beautiful drive, though only a half mile.



At the Beach at Old Ferry Landing, I disconnected the trailer and wheeled it down the sandy beach to the water's edge and checked the plugs, then launched Juliet by hand. Then Jennifer helped me drag the Pamco trailer back up to the grass in Gerald and Jean's yard.

Gerald and Jean's Inn at Ferry Landing



We carried the sails and heavy gear down to the boat and rigged her up. We used low plastic tote boxes that slide under the seats for easy access. Maps and rain gear, snacks, sandals, the camera, and other day use items are best stored in these totes, and in Ziplocs if sensitive to moisture. Ziplocs are handy. The sails were raised, the rudder installed, we donned our life vests, and Jennifer boarded the sailboat first. The water was cold, and I was careful to give a little shove out and step over the transom, quickly pushing the rudder down and steering away from a known rocky bar at the ferry landing. Jennifer grabbed the mainsheet to power the Wayfarer forward. Then the wind and calm take over. I got out of the way and Jennifer took the helm. We headed south toward Brooklin and Swan's Island.

A link to a nice cruising log.

Here's a link to a cruise that Dick and his friend Dennis sailed around Deer Isle in the opposite direction as Jennifer and I sailed.


2009 Maine Cruise: Dick Harrington's log - 1


We had run into them on Eggemoggin Reach as we made a shakedown daysail before our cruise. Dick has written and mapped out a terrific adventure which I know you will enjoy. I found it when I searched our sail number (W2414) and up popped a reference to the meeting in Eggemoggin. I shot a few digital pics, and present them here.





Dick and Dennis got a good look at our rig, and Dick mentioned he knew a few ways to speed things up for us. As we chatted, both over the gunwhales and the radio, I recognized that they were outpacing us, even with all of the camping gear they carried. We were nearly empty. Below is a photo of us passing in front of the Deer Isle-Sedgwick Bridge, a very beautiful edifice similar to "Galloping Gertie", which famously collapsed on film in the Tacoma Narrows in 1940.

Great Sailing Video

Here is a relay Laser race with some excellent (hilarious) action.

6 uren from Floris Wijnbergh on Vimeo.

Weekend Trip to the City

Greetings any and all readers from the fabulous Taj Mahal in New Jersey!


Atlantic City became our destination for the weekend when we opened our "junk mail" and to our surprise found that a casino had invited us for two free nights stay. The room was comped to us, that is to say, in exchange for playing card games at their poker room.

It takes us about 9 hours to drive each way, which we broke up by making a stop in DC to visit Mike, who kindly put us up on his fancy couch. He also invited me to a party across town, and even lent me the bike to get there! Mike's neighborhood is thriving and attractive, known as Mt Pleasant, and we frequently visit and Mike always accomodates us with gracious generosity.


Compare with the below picture of some row houses abandoned and boarded up (the Borgata Casino is behind them) in Atlantic City :




The view from the room of Absecon Inlet at the north end of the island includes the Lighthouse and a giant new casino under construction.

We brought a good bit of our own supplies to the hotel, since room service and drinks and what-not are often overpriced. But the modern room was very nicely appointed with a fridge. We brought fresh baked brownies, fancy beer and sodas, and garden grown flowers from NC to ensure proper decor and diet while there.





I approached the weekend from a wilderness camping perspective, since as soon as you walk out of your room, you begin to run into ways to spend money. But there are simple bargains, too, such as valet parking ($7 including tip), coffee (free in the room, around $1.25 by the thermos-full at service stations), and food at the poker table ($7 plus $2 tip for a large salad and order of onion rings).

Among the few recreational activities in Atlantic City are beachcombing, which is surprisingly interesting. Jennifer and I strolled up to Absecon Inlet and back, and easily could see significant erosion from the summer hurricane named Bill. Along the beach are numerous piers, jetties, groins, bulkheads, pilings, and all manner of failed construction. But at the NE tip of the island is a jetty which the locals fish from. It was very pretty fall weather, and we saw others strolling and biking, as well as fishing and surfing.






The drive back to NC was a long one, but I would definitely repeat the trip, and I felt good about keeping the trip simple and affordable, as well as the nice touches that made the trip more homey and low-key.

Minor repair for the Wayfarer

Raising and lowering the mast on the Wayfarer can cause a lot of wear-and-tear. Trailering her along bumpy frost-heaved Maine roads doesn't help the situation much. The mast and spreaders receive much of that abuse. Last year as I put Juliet away for the winter, one of the spreaders cracked and broke into two. I looked closely at the spreader, and resolved to bring the needed repair parts with me in the spring when Jennifer and I returned to Deer Isle. On our drive north from North Carolina, I collected a few things I thought might come in handy. First I stopped at Hamilton Marine in Searsport, Maine. I thought I would be able to just buy a spreader arm or set. I only found some Taylor brand boots to put over the spreaders. So on to the next stop, the hardware store in Bucksport. There I found 3/4 inch electrical conduit that seemed like it might be a good backup plan.

Juliet had waited all winter on Deer Isle, way down at the bottom of Mary's backyard. Usually we stash the boat around a bend in the trees but last year we tried putting her in the old boathouse at the bottom of the yard. I found the boat and trailer stuck axle deep in mud. Instead of struggling against the mud, I used a couple of old boards under the trailer wheels and Juliet followed along like an obedient puppy, all the way up the grass yard.



In the driveway I got another look at the broken spreader. Now, how to fix the damage? It seemed like Juliet needed another spreader, and the conduit was going to be it. I measured the length of the spreader, and cut a piece of conduit to match.

Then I realized that I really wanted a splint for the broken outside end of the spreader. I cut the replacement spreader down by about four inches, so that it would act as a sleeve. I flattened and drilled a hole through the mast end of the conduit to screw it to the mast brace. Below, I am smoothing the burrs of the sawn ends of the newly fabricated spreader. The broken original spreader is across the port gunwhale.





After I got a screw through the new piece, I slid the old broken spreader into the new, and taped it up to prevent the sail from contacting anything rough. It worked pretty well. I only spent a little on the parts, although I plan to order the new correct spreaders for the Wayfarer. I like working on the Wayfarer, because anyone can see what is wrong when something is broken, and then repair it with a little creativity, even on the water.

The Alcort Sailfish, My First Boat

Below is an old Instamatic photo of me and my stepbrother Harrison (hat) sailing our 1964 Alcort Sailfish in the summer of 1981. I often point out that my first car was a boat, and I think all children should have a chance to go boating. The shoreline is in the Chesapeake Bay, east of Lynnhaven Inlet. My stepdad Bobby got us this boat from somewhere, along with his whole quiver of other sailboats, such as Nacras, Hobies, and Sonars. We kept it on Chesapeake Beach from the time I was eleven till I was fourteen or so. Then we moved it onto the oceanfront of Virginia Beach.


A permit was required to keep it in VB, and mine read "58th-60th St Only." To sail her I would carry the sail spars, rudder, daggerboard and lifejacket down to the boat, untie it from the fence and then drag the whole boat down to the water's edge. Rigging the Sailfish was easy, and getting through the waves became second nature. As you can see, there is no cockpit at all, which let waves wash right over it. I would often sail out of sight of land, and at least once swam in the deepest, most remote water I could find, which was about three miles out and forty feet deep or so.
Eventually, I left Virginia Beach to attend Christchurch School in Saluda, Virginia. I took the Sailfish with me, and often sailed as part of the Christchurch Sailing Team in the Rappahannock River near the Chesapeake Bay. After I left to go to college, Bobby turned the boat over to a friend's son, and I moved on to other boats. I owe Bobby a huge debt of gratitude for introducing me to sailing.