Musings on our recent trip (long)

[mike]

We just got back from our 6-day summer vacation cruise along the Mississippi barrier islands. Here are some random observations/comments/stories...

1) Sailing vs. Motoring We travelled a roundtrip total of about 164 miles, and aside from a few hours on the second day, motored pretty much the whole time. We enjoy sailing, but not when the wind is just barely a light breeze and we need to reach our next destination before dark. For the most part, we motored at just a moderate speed (7 - 8 mph) to conserve fuel, though on a few legs of the trip (when I knew we'd have enough fuel to make it to the next marina stop) we did zip along at 11-12 mph (being loaded down with gear, supplies, and family, and towing a dinghy, plus not wanting to run W.O.T. for extended periods makes that our top speed on cruises).

2) Generator Having the Honda EU2000i generator was great. It lived on the back porch under the helm seat (with a sunbrella cover on when not in use), and we'd run it for an hour or two in the evenings to heat up dinner with the microwave and charge batteries. The kids got a kick out of us being able to microwave a bag of popcorn to eat during our nightly movie. The microwave (a small and super-cheap 700 watt) popped popcorn surprisingly well, and also worked well with the Honda's "eco-throttle" mode (which runs the engine at low speed under light loads, increasing as necessary). This allowed the generator to purr along quietly as the batteries were being charged, then automatically power up temporarily when the microwave was on. I'm very glad we had the generator, as our battery power usage was quite a bit higher than expected (with the refrigerator cycling more often due to the oppressive heat, and the multitude of cabin fans running overnight for same reason).

3) Overnight Comfort Our boat is equipped with four of the $19.99 West Marine / Hella fans, which consume very little power, but also don't move a whole lot of air. They are adequate for providing some circulation, but based on experiences of last year's summer trip, and knowing we had some more power available due to the generator being able to replenish the batteries easier, I bought a few cheap clip-on 12v fans from Wal-Mart to supplement the other fans at night. These were junk (vibrated excessively and the clip didn't hold too well), but we ended up using them anyway (one for us up in the v-berth, and the other for one side of the aft berth, since one of the Hella fans back there broke on the first day of the trip). The first night we had a pretty good breeze coming in through the hatch, which made the heat bearable. But most of the other nights had virtually no wind. For the next trip, I am considering getting one of those "Endless Breeze" box fans mentioned in another thread, and rigging it to the front hatch where it can pull fresh air into the boat when there's no wind.

4) Strange Fish Behavior Horn Island was our first destination. As we played in the 1 - 2 ft. of water near the beach, we observed the occasional fish jumping out of the water and pondered why they did that. As we were sitting there in the water, all of a sudden something happened that is somewhat difficult to describe accurately. It was as if several dozen fish about 15ft. out from we were suddenly decided to have a "jumping race" towards the shore (therefore towards us)... as if on cue, they all began furiously jumping out of the water repeatedly, coming directly at us, and causing a frightful ruckus (sounded like a heavy rain, and looked just plain unreal). It was over in about 5 seconds, and things went back to normal. What the heck was that? Were they feeding? Or maybe they were being attacked by a predator (I don't think it could have been a shark, as the water was quite shallow and I didn't see a fin sticking out). Over the remainder of the trip we saw this happen several more times at other islands (though not right by us as the first time).

5) Chart Discrepancies Approaching Dauphin Island, AL, a wide pass between that island and a thin strip of sand called Pelican Island turned out to be, well, not there. This area on the Navionics chart noted "Area Subject to Change" (no kidding!). Turns out this was a result of Hurricane Ivan last year. The result was an unplanned detour of several miles to go around this island (though, thanks to the 26X's shallow draft, we were able to cross in 2-3 ft. water soon after clearing the island, instead of having to continue until clearing the shoals).

6) Nervous Oil/Gas Rigs Leaving Dauphin Island, we travelled several miles south of Mobile Bay to get a close-up look at the Sand Island Lighthouse (Sand Island no longer exists... the lighthouse stands in open water surrounded by chunks of rock/concrete. Turning west to head back towards the Mississippi islands, we passed through a field of oil and/or gas platforms. I don't know much about these things, but I classified most of them as "small" (not appearing to have living quarters for crew, presumably unstaffed/automated), and a few as "large" (having living quarters, multiple connected platforms, etc.). As we approached the first of these (a "small" rig), we began hearing a repetitive loud "BEEEEEP" sound emanating from it. Hmmm... are we not allowed to be here? There were a few signs on the rig, which I studied through the binoculars, but there was no "restricted area keep 1/2 mile away" or anything like that. We passed a few hundred yards away from it, and I nervously half-expected a Coast Guard cutter to appear, guns at the ready. Other similar rigs made the same sound when approached (though, after the first one, we stayed further away). When we passed some of the bigger rigs, we didn't hear this sound... just the "small" ones. I'm wondering... is this some sort of automated proximity alarm? Not necessarily to prevent boats from coming near, but just to make certain that in conditions of poor visibility, that boaters are aware of its presence.

7) Hunter Envy? Our slip in Gulfport was right next to a couple of brand new Hunters (a 36 and a 33) for sale by the local Hunter Dealer. The dealer and his son showed up with a group of people and went out for an evening cruise. When they returned, he cheerfully allowed us to go aboard the 33 and take a look around. Beautiful boat... nice and beamy, spacious interior, furling main, private cabins, A/C, etc. The kids insisted that we buy it on the spot (at 5 and 7, they have little concept of what $110,000 is). When we returned to the cockpit of our lowly 26X, my wife and I chatted for quite a while on the topic. Yes, the accommodations of this big boat would be very nice. But our 26X is paid for... a new Hunter or Beneteau would cost more than our house. When hurricanes threatened to strike, I wouldn't be able to simply yank the boat out of the water and take it home, instead having to scramble to find a hurricane hole inland. Maintenance (such as bottom paint) would undoubtedly cost quite a bit more, since I wouldn't be able to do it myself as I can now. And, of course, we wouldn't be able to anchor in the thin waters close to the islands. Beneteau offers a retractable keel on some of its models (with a min. draft of about 2.5ft.), which would be an acceptable compromise, but still, all these 30-something ft. boats are out of our league financially. As with other times that this topic has come up, we concluded that although we'd like to have a new and bigger boat someday if finances permitted, our 26X is wonderful for our purposes now, and we feel very fortunate to have it.

8) Our First Thunderstorm at Sea Heading home today, we ran into a big storm... not a lot of lightning, but heavy rain, rough seas, and 25 - 30 knot winds. We passed through it in about 20 minutes, but we took a significant casualty, being...

9) Submerged Outboard I watched in horror as the dinghy (which was being towed) flipped over, and kicked myself for having not removed the little outboard motor and oars before departing. The result was that the oars were lost, and the outboard's powerhead was submerged. After the worst of the storm had passed, I was able to right the dinghy and pull the drowned motor off. As soon as we got home, I drained the fuel tank, removed the spark plug (water came out of the cylinder... ugh!), and proceeded to spray tons of WD-40 into the cylinder and in through the intake side of the carb in an attempt to flush out all the water. After putting it all back together, it started with little difficulty, and I ran it for about a half hour... hopefully it will be ok.

--Mike

[mssydnie]

Sounds like you had a grea tholiday! I certainly am going to check on the generator you mentioned...apparently it is pretty quiet. Loved the popcorn comment during your nightly movie.

[Casey]

Mike

Thank you for sharing your adventure. My hope was to visit Horn Island with some friends this year. I have taken a ride with the Hunter Gulfport dealer, who is a very nice man, on boats larger than the Mac 26x. We became hung up on the keel on a sand bar. My wife agreed about the nicer accommadations but did not like the grounding. Considering the locations we frequent, we are very happy with the swing keel of the 26x.

Casey

[McSkipper]

Thanks for taking the time to share your trip Mike. We intend to sail those waters in the future and we have little appreciation for the weather and the need for ventilation. Thanks for reminding us. We play in 110 plus desert heat but I don't think it compares to the hot and humid gulf. The generator sounds like it is worth having.

I routinely sail with friends who have the big lead keels. They're in a different world from the MAC and require so much more in time and money. I have come to accept and be really comfortable with jNi, our . And I'm glad my friends like and can afford their choices. I get to enjoy their choices too.
I always get a kick as to how curious they are and how they admire the freedom we have with our cosy clorox bottle

Thanks again
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