EP28 - Exploring Fishermans Cove | Solo Sailing to Catalina Island
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- čas přidán 14. 09. 2023
- In this video I solo sail to Two Harbors to meetup with local sailors Mark from @keeldragger and David from sv Riff Raff on my 1978 Catalina 30 sailboat. They got there in time to go to the Two Harbors Beer Fest but I got there a little late so I went exploring on my dinghy.
My dinghy / tender is an 8.6 foot Aleko inflatable with an inflatable floor. I mostly use a Newport Vessels 55lbs thrust trolling motor for ship to shore but for this adventure I wanted to use my Mercury 3.5hp outboard motor that I have added the 5.5hp upgrade to.
First we go motor sail for 2/3 of the trip to Catalina and finally we get some great sailing for the last 9.7nm before entering Two Harbors. Once we (my boat named "Stoked" and I) get to the island we pickup a mooring then I inflated the dinghy and headed off to explore.
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“Stoked” is a 1978 Catalina 30 sailboat that I got for $3500. See that story here: • EP 1 - How we got a $3...
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Great video Andy, as always. When you can’t get a GPS fix due to rain fade or cloud cover, try resetting the unit. This causes the receiver to reestablish connectivity and download what’s called the almanac (which contains the constellation location info, called ephemerides) and recalibrate. Yes, I’m a satellite nerd …
Rad! Thanks for the tips. I’ll definitely try that next time. Nerds unite! 🙌🏼🤙🏼👊🏼
Brother your "solo" comfort is very good. You seem to be really comfortable doing it all by yourself. That's where I'm trying to get to. Keep up the great work.
Thanks Sput! (It’s Sput right? It’s been a while so I forget 😂). I get nervous every time I untie the lines but I just keep a level head as much as I can and take it all in stride. Go sailing in mellow conditions and only use one sail (main) if your solo. Then next time use only one other sail (headsail) until you’re comfortable to do them both. Mad love brother! 👊🏼
Love watching your videos man! You can just see how much fun you’re having every time you go out. This is one of the best yet!
Right on Ryan. I usually use my slow electric dinghy motor but I was having a blast with that outboard. …the sailing was fun too! 😜🤙🏼
I appreciate what you are doing! It's not easy... especially all alone.
Thanks. My wife will sail with me in the harbor but offshore is not her thing so I’m alone on this ride.
Thanks Andy, it's nice revisiting Two Harbors. I wonder if they are still doing Buccaneer Days in October, lots of fun.
I’m pretty sure they are still doing that. I’ve never gone to it but I want to this year if I can find the time. I have a couple buddies that want to help me decorate the boat. It would be a blast!
Heck yeah!
Heck yeah boy! Back at ya! 😜
Really enjoy your content (fellow cat30 capt.)
Right on Steve thanks. Sometimes it feels I’m doing the same thing over and over so it’s nice to hear that some people like it.
What year is your C30 and what is your home port?
You destroyed me in that dinghy race, bro. Just ordered a Yamaha 20HP!
I always thought my motor sucked until that day 🤣
That rock smells really bad. Lol
😂
Hi Andy
The way you wound your jib in is perfectly legit. I am ok with winches helping to pull furling lines at times like that. 'You can tell' if it hangs up or if the sheet gets too tight so it's ok.
Whenever we anchor bow-and-stern at the islands, like Santa Cruz northwest coves, we first figure out where we want the bow hook to be, and where that would put the boat especially relative to boats already anchored.
Normally it would be in about 55' of water and at least 4:1 or more if the depth permitted. A bunch of chain helps justify a steep scope. Looks like around Little Fisherman they're in about 30 ft or less.
Anyway, knowing where the bow hook will be lets you visualize where the stern anchor needs to go. You don't want them Too far apart, looking at the angles of other rodes helps you avoid that.
The two boats in your video were anchored (I guess) so they pointed bow into the swell but with the wind hitting them from the left side. Once the wind dies it's harder to keep the boat pointed into the swell like an isthmus mooring does and it can get roll-y unless you tighten the rodes.
We pretty much always set our stern hook first, idling into the beach or cliff face, twice, don't just drop it on the first pass. I like to set outside any surf, in about 2 fathoms, but (relatively) close to the beach or cliff. In sand or gravel, of course, not on a rock. Have the stern hook ready to lower and start feeding out of the cockpit immediately after the turn away from the beach. If it's winter I anchor much more conservatively, away from cliffs and surf. Setting your stern hook on the beach can be problematic, in several ways.
So point the boat to where you're going to drop the bow hook and feed, check, feed, check, the stern rode to set it and keep the chain straight but not under strain long enough to compromise your ability to steer. If you start to get blown sideways throw as much stern anchor line out as you need in order to goose the bow back to pointing the right way.
So, if you're going to feed enough stern anchor line out to reach where you're dropping the bow hook, that's a lot. Yes.
Once the boat stops over your spot, start lowering the bow hook, check it right after it hits the bottom, then let out another couple fathoms.
Now you can back the boat up by pulling in the stern line and occasionally backing down or both. You can really stretch them out briefly to make sure both are set. Jerking the line can tell you more than a steady pull might.
I would stop dropping back while my bow was farther ahead (out of the cove) than my closest neighbor, then set the angle I wanted with the stern rode. It can be led through a snatch block on the rail, to a winch, instead of its roller if it gives you a better angle.
For coves exposed to the south: They tend to be shallower, sandier, and harder to land at (rough surf) than north facing "cliff coves". Avoid them in the summer during hurricanes or any south swell. You will just get whipped forward and backward which is hard on the line as well as the crew.
There are whole books written by people who know a lot more about it than I do, like Brian Fagan. But I have made many anchor lines for Channel Island cruisers, and I have suggestions (woohoo!):
For a Catalina 30
Your existing bow hook is the bomb. You already have all this, I'm just making a list of what we recommend.
Anchors like danforth (hi-tensile) or fortress work well too. CQR's not so much, especially around kelp.
A very popular option is bruce but remember they are popular with fishermen because of their ability to work short scope and as rock hooks, neither of which are our priorities. Urchin boats hand-set their bruces and then un-set them by hand sometimes as well. Bruces are by far the easiest to grab and lift.
That's all I am going to say about anchors. Fishing boat anchor rodes are Way Different. Often wire rope, or Dyneema. Forget stretch, they don't care. Rarely over 150' long, total. Usually around 68 to 75 feet long, total. Usually with a chunk of 1/2" chain (2-3fm) right at the hook. That won't work on a wildcat (chainwheel).
Catalina 30 bow rode:
55' of 5/16" Proof Coil or BBB galvanized chain. Hi-test chain is not preferred. Stainless steel chain is not preferred. BBB is, because it has the roundest links.
250' min, 300' better x 5/8" white nylon braid or 3-strand, chain spliced together. 1/2" is theoretically strong enough but not preferred. Your windlass will determine what you actually use.
Stern Rode: In the lazarette, or sometimes in a basket.
300' x 1/2" white braid or 3-strand nylon, spliced with or without thimble and shackle, depending on your situation. Spliced to 35' of 5/16 chain. 35ft is what's left over when you cut (the bow) 55' off of a "shot" (90'), which = 1 bucket of chain. These days I like to chain splice both bow and stern. Sometimes you need a shackle bc the line won't fit through a chain link. I often create an interface between the line and chain with Sudbury Elastomeric Sealant, when there's no thimble.
Popular with many divers, who pull their bow hooks with a hydraulic reel, is to splice the line through a galvanized shackle added to the chain. For 5/16" chain it would be a 3/8" shackle. A galvanized shackle is better than a stainless one here. If it hangs up in the roller or Anywhere, we peen over the threaded pin end and cut off the tab with the hole in it. To take these apart you need to sacrifice a link; cut it off at the second link.
If this isn't enough to make the purists out there gasp in horror, then how about I also mention that we tighten the shit out of the pin so there's lots of threaded end to peen over. This of course bends the shackle together which is also a faux pas. This, however is the difference between theory and actual practice. When we cut of the offending pin tab, we always leave the domed part to form the first half of the "rivet".
For people who don't want 600 ft of anchor line, you can just tie the bow and stern rode ends together; feed one out, pull the other one in!
My favorite line choice is Double Braided Nylon. Second choice, 3-strand Nylon, but still excellent.
Last choice is Megabraid or other loosely constructed 8 plaits. I am basing my judgement mostly on chafe resistance.
Funny, there are some really GREAT 8 plaits out there, they just don't sell them in stores that cater to Yachtsmen. In the 1980's, we tried stocking some Roblon (now Robline) 8 strand, and we couldn't Give it away. Everybody was Afraid to try it, except for a few open minded people, some that got many years use out of it.
I know, too much information.
Thanks Andy.
Good morning Marty. Thanks for checking in and giving me your lowdown on bow and stern anchoring. As always, great info that I’ll take to heart.
I’ve got the 45lbs Mantus, 100’ of 5/16” G4 chain (which you mentioned is not preferred) and 230’ of 5/8” triple braid rode. Other than the rounder links is there another reason you say to use BBB? I’m guessing it’s a little lighter and strong enough so why go bigger?!
I like the tip about dropping the stern right as you turn away from the beach but I’m not sure I’d feel comfortable paying out the stern line all the way to where I’m going to drop the bow hook. If I did, your suggesting I pay out the bow while I pull in the stern right?
I have Fagan’s SoCal cruising guide and just ordered No Moorings No Problem for Catalina Island. I’ll look for Fagan’s book on anchoring and I’m going to reference my thick Pilot Book for more info. I want to digest some anchoring techniques because I guessing it would be helpful to some techniques to help me out in certain situations. Cheers!
G4 is not a bad choice. My preference for the weaker chain is because they're less prone to rust. 5/16 chain is plenty big enough, I only rig 3/8 on commercial fishing boats in the 30' boats. Your choice of 100' of chain on the bow is way better than any "minimum", which I call equal to boat length.
I did not mention that I pick the stern hook first, and usually take my time getting to the bow. If you take in the bow rode in 2 or 3 separated (by 15 minutes or more) steps, then you are automatically considering the windlass motor's duty rating, which is well established for All other electric motors but conveniently ignored by anchor windlass manufacturers. If people considered duty ratings, pulling the anchor would take at least an hour.
Typically I take in the whole rode in steps, and stop short where i think the anchor is still holding but not broken out (about 2:1), and let the w motor rest one final time while stowing everything. I don't take breaks when it will cause me to swing into some poor nearby boat.
I have never anchored anywhere but Cat harbor, Little Harbor, and the Isthmus when at Catalina, and that was on one anchor about half of the time, which is not really what we're discussing here.
Thanks
@@sailingsole
Your setup, 100' of chain to 230' of 5/8 inch 3 strand, is what you want for Channel Islands anchoring, Prudent, not overkill. The length of your bow rode exceeds my recommendation, which is a good thing. Your choice of anchor is outstanding.
Hello again!
Hi there! 😂
I'd love if you did a video about sailing/ living in socal. Torn between west coast and east coast. Live in the med west, saving up to buy a live aboard and work in a coastal state. Don't See enough about what it's like in Cali as a sailer
Hey there, thanks for the suggestion. I’ll try to incorporate more of the lifestyle in my next videos.
The West Coast is great but vastly different from North to South. The PNW is beautiful but gets cold and SoCal is close to Mexico so there’s that.
One thing we have an advantage of is year round sailing and no winterizing. The East Coast has the advantage of being close to the Caribbean and Bahamas so it’s a coin toss of what you like. Follow your heart and don’t wait too long! Cheers! 🤙🏼
OFF TOPIC: But I value your opinion and experience. I am most likely going to copy the electronics you added to your boat as it was so "plug n play" (unless experience has told you to do something else). However, I need to have a Simrad TP10 Tillerpilot as it will interface with most newer "bus types" (wired communication) . The other very popular Tillerpilot apparently does not play well with others so the need for the more expensive Simrad. I will be mostly solo sailing or have non-crew passengers. Do you know if your system will accommodate the Simrad in a "plug n play" type install? Thank you!
Hey there Ben. If you’re going to copy my setup then all you’ll need is one conversion cable to allow the Raymarine SeaTalk NG network to communicate with NMEA 2000 data.
If I read correctly, the TP10 is NMEA 2000 compatible so it “should” be plug n play once you have the conversion cable.
My MFD is a Raymarine Axiom 7 and my autopilot is Raymarine but everything else is not Raymarine and they all play nice.
Of course I can only speak of my own experience so do your own due diligence. 😂🤙🏼
@@sailingsole Will do and thanks again. I'm in San Diego now (Fallbrook) so no longer in Pedro/Long Beach for about 50 years so the people down here at West Marine don't seem to have any electronics real wizard so you get a lot of "it could work". I will keep digging. Mucho Thankso!
Is there an add-on GPS antenna for your Raymarine?
Yes. I believe you can plug a generic GPS antenna directly to the back of it.
The preferred solution for my particular setup is to get the external Raymarine GPS antenna and plug it into the NMEA 2000 / SeaTalk NG network. If I do it this way, I believe everything on the network that can use GPS data will be able to read it. For instance, my VHF or AIS transceiver if I had one.
@@sailingsole I think I understand as I remember your YR when you showed and explained the install. I am going to watch it again tomorrow to refresh. Thanks!
if you want miles take your sailboat to Hawaii 😎
I’ve been thinking about this for a few years. My boat isn’t really suited for it but I might be dumb enough to do it anyway someday. The problem is time and money. I have too many responsibilities and loose ends to sew up here on land before I can tackle a voyage like that. 🤙🏼
I understand responsibilities are the worse part. There is a CZcamsr “Sailing with a dock rat” sailed to Hawaii on a 26’. The funny part he blocked the comment part of his videos 😮
Enjoy your videos
Ahh the smell of success 👃 🦅 💩 💰 let me help you with this algorithm. Great video would have loved to see the snorkeling 🤿 thanks
I wanted to snorkel but it wasn’t the weather that motivated me to do it. Next time. Thanks for watching!