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Fall Sailing in New England

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T O P I C R E V I E W
Voyager	Posted - 10/08/2020 : 10:07:35 So it�s that time of year again, when you put on your hoodie and sailing slicker, shorten sail and head out in a blow. Last week we had early morning temperatures in the 40�s and tomorrow they�re promising 30�s. Afternoons have been mild here in Connecticut with 60s and 70s and low humidity. Last week we had winds blowing out of NW following a cold front at 10-15 with gusts to 20. Very challenging, but exhilarating! Yesterday we had an approaching front whip up SWerlies with 35kt gusts. I watched from shore as windsurfers and kite surfers plied the steep chop. Fun to watch but I�m glad I was not trying to manage Passage through all that. This weekend we�re expecting warmer temperatures in the 70�s and 60�s Saturday and Sunday so I�m planning a short day sail. What are sailing conditions like where you are?
25 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First)
Steve Milby	Posted - 11/01/2020 : 06:48:48 quote: Originally posted by bigelowp Steve: Thanks! Actually my nonskid has worn off/down to the resin -- areas are smooth and able to see brown of wood vs tan of gel coat. Over the past five years it has progressed from one small spot to @15% of both lower and cabin top non-skid deck. I will check out both links. If only your nonskid is bad and the rest of your topsides gel coat is ok, then you can paint only the nonskid with Kiwigrip. It looks good, provides good grip and is easy to apply. My friend used it on his boat and was very pleased with the result. https://www.pyiinc.com/KiwiGrip/
bigelowp	Posted - 11/01/2020 : 06:30:38 Steve: Thanks! Actually my nonskid has worn off/down to the resin -- areas are smooth and able to see brown of wood vs tan of gel coat. Over the past five years it has progressed from one small spot to @15% of both lower and cabin top non-skid deck. I will check out both links.
Steve Milby	Posted - 11/01/2020 : 05:55:39 There are a number of good two-part paints that can be applied by DIYers with a roller and brush by the "roll and tip" method to obtain a very pleasing finish. Here's an article that will answer most of your questions about it. https://www.boatus.com/magazine/2017/april/10-steps-to-the-perfect-topside-paint-job.asp If the main problem with your gel coat is that it's chalky and dirty, you can probably restore it without painting by following Mainesail's advice in this article. Mainesail is generally considered the guru when it comes to restoring the shine to old gel coat. https://www.sailnet.com/threads/tips-for-compound-polish-wax.52772/
bigelowp	Posted - 11/01/2020 : 05:06:19 Dave: If Awlgrip, or any two part I would have a yard, or hired professional do the work. Still considering the options -- I have found the topic of relative deck moisture, resin/paint/finish options and "expected" lifespan of all to be fascinating. No one expected fiberglass to last as long as it does and everyone has differing opinions of what impacts structural integrity especially when wood is involved in the deck laminate.
Stinkpotter	Posted - 10/31/2020 : 13:43:24 Peter: Are you planning on applying Awlgrip yourself? It's generally considered a job for professionals--at the very least I'd look for someone with experience to "assist." (That wouldn't be me. )
Stinkpotter	Posted - 10/31/2020 : 13:23:28 quote: Originally posted by Voyager A buddy of mine at the marina with a 28 ft early �80s sailboat spent his entire last spring repairing the inboard transmission, then the driveshaft and assorted components and could not launch until June. I saw him back in the yard last week after haul out working on leaks. He said that he might pack it all in and get a Honda 15 and an engine bracket. He'll still have the leaks, unless he does some work on the hull. And of course the longer the boat, the more problematic the outboard is regarding keep the prop in the water. That 35-footer with probably 1050 hp probably burns around 50 gal/hr at a modest cruising speed and all-he's-got per hour at WOT... But he can cover a lot of the bottom in that hour! I wouldn't mind having twin screws for maneuvering, but I don't miss feeding and maintaining a second one.
bigelowp	Posted - 10/31/2020 : 09:43:46 Over the past couple of years i have been tempted by a few newer (everything is relative) C-27's but kept thinking nice, but really no different, except for the engine, to what I have. I was a nano-second away from buying a Tartan 30 this summer. The boat, a 1978, looked like it was in the show room: interior wood, upholstery, gel coat shine, sails and rigging, etc. The owner did a magnificent job of maintenance -- even the A-4 was so clean you could at off it but then, as Dave pointed out, the reality of maintenance and that at my point in life I really am doing only day sailing so the extra few feet are less attractive as they may have been a few years ago. BTW the boat was purchased by a member of my Yacht Club and is on the mooring next to mine! Regarding the deck, based on input from various people, most likely will be Awlgrip rolled on the non-skid areas with non-skid additive. Too high moisture reading for Kiwi-Grip (latex formula) and supposedly Awlgrip is most forgiving for this purpose. We'll see. No definitive decision has been made yet. Currently a total of 2 sq. ft. of non-skid gel coat has worn off and through the clear fiberglass the brown wood can be seen. Besides it being slick, I fear UV issues if something is not done. One last thought: I have considered buying a new hull in better shape and swapping out, but that is tough for me emotionally as I have spent the past 14 years restoring/upgrading -- I kind of want to complete the project.
Voyager	Posted - 10/31/2020 : 06:34:23 Dave, I have to agree with you on the outboards. A few comments. � Whenever I back into my slip my sailboat dockmates are a little jealous of the fact that I can steer both with the rudder and the engine. They may even have a folding prop so the best they can do is steer with the rudder and fend off if they�re not perfectly aligned with the docks. For me with no currents and the outboard, I can very deftly maneuver back into the slip. � I saw a 35ft stinkpot on the travel lift the other day with three big honkin� Yamaha outboards on the transom. Turning and maneuvering must be a breeze with separate engine controls. I�m sure the boat goes pretty durn quick too. � A buddy of mine at the marina with a 28 ft early �80s sailboat spent his entire last spring repairing the inboard transmission, then the driveshaft and assorted components and could not launch until June. I saw him back in the yard last week after haul out working on leaks. He said that he might pack it all in and get a Honda 15 and an engine bracket.
Stinkpotter	Posted - 10/30/2020 : 19:54:33 Hi Peter! 40 year-old boat... I'd suggest a non-skid compound paint job, masking off the areas to be done. There are some good products. I'm not a fan of painting over gelcoat, but I think this is beyond the tipping-point. Paint or sell (to switch to an inboard diesel)?... Unless the switch is to move up to a 30-footer or something, I think you'd rue the day you moved away from your simple outboard on a bracket on the transom. Inboards are nice until you have to maintain them, fix them, replace them, and maintain the shaft-log, cooling intake, heat exchanger,... Diesel is nice until the algae in the tank clogs your fuel filter at just the wrong time... I bought (and soon repowered) Passage in part for these reasons. Some of them also explain my current choice in vessels, which I had built for me 13 years ago. Back then my model was built mostly as stern-drive inboards--the absolute worst of both worlds! It's interesting how the market for boats like mine, and much bigger, is now jumping from the inboard paradigm to outboards! I was ahead of my time. "Simpler is better" is my motto. I listen to my friends' descriptions of their inboard woes, and try not to smile.
Voyager	Posted - 10/30/2020 : 18:59:41 Peter, I�d be happy to set up the bridge openings next season, you could do an overnight. Come up on a Saturday, stay over that night then head back to Norwalk on Sunday. But seriously, for nonskid, you might want to consider something like the following approach. Find a boat with pretty good nonskid texture. Wax up the boat�s nonskid. Make a mold using something like plaster of Paris or thickened epoxy of the nonskid. A 4x4 square might be enough. Tape off the nonskid on your boat, then apply some faring compound to your nonskid. Let it set up a little and imprint the mold into the faring compound. Stamp it up. Once fully cured, take a 1 part or 2 part polyurethane paint and paint up the nonskid. Just a thought but there may be other ways to skin this cat.
bigelowp	Posted - 10/30/2020 : 16:55:26 Bruce, while I would never want the run you have from Milford to your winter home, I must admit it would be a fun -- one time(smile) excision. My big winter project conundrum is resurfacing my non-skid vs another boat. A big part of me wants the convenience of a diesel, while a big part of me likes knowing what I have, which is the way I want it, but needs serious attention to the non-skid -- serious! So, as I experience analysis paralysis I play the lottery and maybe will be able to buy a new boat, lol
Voyager	Posted - 10/28/2020 : 06:26:59 @Dave, in the past the Devon Railroad bridge had quite a few more openings as there are three marinas (which consist mainly of powerboats) above the bridge. At 17 ft vertical clearance above MHHW, unless you have a triple-decker flybridge, most powerboats can pass underneath, and because tide range there is about 5 ft, a 21 footer can squeak by at low tide. With COVID-19, you need to reserve on 48-hours notice, so bridge openings on a whim are out of the question. Each weekend in the spring and fall these numbers pop due to the numbers of sailors who use the winter storage options given the better prices and much less scrutiny about boat-owner maintenance. For example, I can sand and repaint my bottom coat in the spring provided I use a tarp and dust collection on my sander. I can change my engine oil and bottom unit gear oil. I can wash and rinse the topsides and apply Poli-Glo. I can drop the mast to work on it. Many of the �Gold Coast� marinas on LISound do not allow this, you must use their services instead. At my winter marina there�s a sense of community and cooperation, the management and crew are �regular folks�. I reciprocate with my appreciation and a nice tip any time they help me out and each season above and beyond the fees... It�s getting more and more rare these days.
Stinkpotter	Posted - 10/27/2020 : 20:21:42 quote: Originally posted by Voyager ...They do 3-5 bridge openings per week during the season, and several more on weekends in May and October. A week?? I guess that's a powerboat marina... (So is our private one here--the I-95 Mystic River bridge has 25' clearance.) Saving $1000 is great, and 7 minutes from home is better! (My slip is only a few minutes closer to my place, although that's on foot. )
Voyager	Posted - 10/27/2020 : 16:19:03 Dave, not to quibble but the marina hosts at least 20 sailors from Stratford, Milford, Bridgeport, Black Rock and Southport. Lots of stinkpots too. I�ve made a number of sailing acquaintances among the boaters. I save on average $1000/yr wintering there. It�s about 7 minutes from my home and can work on the boat all morning, stop home for lunch, and get back there in the afternoon. Yeah, the Devon RR Bridge is a bascule bridge on the New Haven line that�s 114 years old. Wikipedia article here. One operator runs the levers in the bridge house, another watches the gears and counterweights beneath the tracks, two more handle each of two sections that carry two of four tracks and a supervisor. That�s five. They do 3-5 bridge openings per week during the season, and several more on weekends in May and October. @ Peter, I planned to post an article on winter projects. I�d welcome your thoughts and suggestions.
bigelowp	Posted - 10/27/2020 : 13:17:05 Last weekend took Limerick on the relatively short trip to her winter home. Actually, spent a long afternoon sailing then to a dock at the marina where she will be hauled. Great weather, great sail. Now all the decision trees regarding if and what projects to tackle this winter. . . .
Stinkpotter	Posted - 10/26/2020 : 20:26:07 Bruce: Why Shelton? I know the area (we lived next door in Monroe), and that the Housatonic is a "significant" river, but between bridges and bottoms, that's not a trip for sailing vessels! Is that why you do it--the marina is trying to lure boats with amazing prices? So next, is this marina close to home? When you're preparing next spring and find you left something at the house, how does that go? Just curious... And why does it take a crew of five to open a bridge?? Do they have to pull it up by hand? Evidently not many boats make that trip!
Voyager	Posted - 10/26/2020 : 14:33:59 The entire past week featured a late �summer� Bermuda high with southerly breezes and a very persistent marine layer, but once the morning fog burned off we had sunny, humid days in the upper 60�s and lower 70�s. What a treat so late in the season. A pair of my dockmates took off on Wednesday-Saturday for one last sail around Long Island Sound from the Norwalk Islands, to Northport Harbor, to Port Jefferson Harbor, finishing in the Thimble Islands off Branford CT then back to Milford. About 120 nm. I daysailed around Blackrock Harbor and New Haven throughout the week. Then Saturday was the last day of warm weather before the cold front was due to come through, so I packed up on Friday to prep for my trip to my winter quarters and haul out up the Housatonic River in Shelton, CT . High tide was at 6:30AM with a low tide at 12:30 so I needed to set out early to have enough water under the keel throughout my trip. The Amtrak railroad drawbridge at Devon requires sailors to call a few days in advance to schedule an opening.The earliest I could get was 9:30AM since it takes five crew members to open the bridge. That was fine since it was half-tide and I should have enough water to navigate. As I plied up the river from Long Island Sound, the current was running out at about 2.5 kts. The fish were jumping everywhere (and so were the anglers), plus seagulls, snapper blues and striped bass chasing the bait. Chaos! At about 9:15 a voice crackled over the VHF, �Devon Railroad Bridge callling vessel Passage, Devon Railroad Bridge calling vessel Passage�. �Holy crap!�, I thought, �they�re calling me?!?� Normally they�re hard to get into touch with. So I radioed back, �This is Passage, come in Devon RR Bridge� They explained that they had the crew ready and needed to know when I�d be there. I told them I�d be there about 20 minutes given the strong river current and I also required a prior highway bridge opening (usually on demand). They were cool with that. As I approached the Devon Highway bridge, I called the operator. I can usually time it so I don�t even have to slow down. But the bridge tender told me, �we have a few walkers (pedestrians) crossing over the bridge�, so I had to cool my jets until they passed. Afterwards the bridge went up and I passed through. As I entered the pool next to the RR bridge, it was raising up too. This was a first for me, I normally have to wait awhile. So after whizzing through those obstacles, my next magical trick was to navigate the ever-shifting shallows of the river. I could imagine the riverboat boatswain hollering �mark twain� across the bars. Instead I used the CMAP app on my phone to get real-time updates. I avoided several 1-2ft depths and kept her in the channel between the buoys. My least depth was 5.2 ft in a few spots, and never touched bottom. I�ve scraped a few times in the past... From there on all went well. As I came around the last bend in the river, there it was! My marina, the end of the line for the 2020 season. The docks welcomed my with open arms. After landing,I puttered for a few hours cleaning up and taking down sails. All in all, despite the crazy year, it was very satisfying for me to close the books on another great sailing season. Looking forward to many more to come.
glivs	Posted - 10/16/2020 : 19:46:40 Bruce, Haul out is an anxious time for many reasons, including efforts to schedule around the seasonal frontal systems as they pass through here in the NE, but your journey from Milford to Shelton adds markedly to the adventure. Fair winds and sun this week. Share a few pics. As to your question about depths here between Outer Malletts Bay and the broad lake, I can only speculate. The waters must have been shallow enough across the mouth of the Bay that the railroad engineers planned and oversaw the building of the causeway ca. 1899. To my understanding there were (and remain) two cuts in the causeway in its original design. The small cut has a fixed span bridge with a 3-4 ft clearance; the second cut was spanned by a steel swing-bridge to allow for commercial boat traffic as it existed at that time. The bridge is long gone and today a small barge ferries walkers and bikers across the cut. That said, the Lamoille River empties into the outer bay and over time sediment carried by the river has created shallow bars, particularly on the outside of the cut, that must be carefully navigated. Irene (2011) then added a great deal of new sediment. Lucky? Of course everyone enjoys their own sailing venue but I am very much aware of what's before me. Les and I did not volunteer to be port captains on this forum as life these past 9-10 yrs was, at best, unpredictable and change again is in the winds for next year. None-the-less, if anyone finds themselves near Burlington, contact me and I'll try to host a day of sailing.
Voyager	Posted - 10/16/2020 : 13:31:23 Gerry, the last time I visited Lake Champlain and the Burlington, VT area I was a sophomore in college. My then wife to be was visiting friends in Vergennes and a buddy and I were heading to Montreal for a visit with his Canadian cousins. We stopped in Vergennes and met her crewe, then later we drove up along the lake into Burlington where we crossed the lake via Grande Isle then onto Rouses Point. I got a good view of the lake as we drove. It is a massive lake, maybe not as great as the Great Lakes, but way bigger than anything here in CT! Looking at Google Maps, your voyage seems like you went a long way from your marina in Mallett Bay, through the cut in old RR bed, across the main body of the lake and out to Valcour Island. I wondered about the depths around the RR bed, was that originally a shallow stretch of the lake or did they fill with 20 ft of stone? Were the cuts originally bridged or were they dug out after the track was abandoned and converted for recreational use? Rail-to-Trails is a keen interest of mine, as I bicycle across several in CT. Soon we�ll see ice crystals begin to form on the puddles. It�s remarkable how quickly winter moves in up north. The warm and waning days of October turn to the chill of November�s north winds. You can go from sailing to skiing within 45 days. It�s beautiful country up your way, you�re very fortunate to be there. I�m looking forward to a few more sunny 60� days coming this week and want to play hooky to get in another daysail. I�m likely to sail Passage to her winter quarters next Saturday providing that the weather�s nice. To do that I must go out into Long Island Sound about 3 miles from Milford to Stratford at the mouth of the Housatonic River, then seven miles upstream to Shelton. There�s a busy RR drawbridge that�s approximately 150 years old and river depths nearby of less than 4 ft at low tide, so there�s a wee bit of negotiation and reconnoitering each time I make the trip. High tide is at 7:00AM, so I�m asking for a bridge opening at 8:00AM. The bridge requires 4 crew members to open it � it scares the hell out of me each time they open it. It creaks and groans during the opening like a fossilized tyrannosaurus gaping its jaws open. One of these times I figure a giant railroad tie or steel girder will come crashing down into the water beside the boat. The autumn leaves along the banks are usually very scenic.I always get a little choked up when I turn the bend under the highway bridge and see the marina in the distance. The home stretch for the end of sailing season. But, as they say in Chicago,�Well, there�s always next year!�
glivs	Posted - 10/10/2020 : 21:02:02 My season is over and am on the hard and buttoned up as of today. Saw little boat time this summer but took advantage of the fall winds for a couple of exhilarating days. Mid-September - I had two wonderful days sailing in 10-15 kn winds. The second day I left my mooring mid-afternoon headed towards an anchorage 11 miles away, Valcour Island. A front was passing through quickly and the waves had not had time to build so I was able to comfortably sail 2/3 of the distance above 5 kn on a close haul with a full headsail and reefed main. Arrived at the anchorage about an hour before sunset. Winds began to die later in the evening and by morning were essentially calm. A few pics... Crossing Malletts Bay...the bike path (19th century railroad track bed) separating the bay and the lake is in the foreground; the Adirondacks are in the distance. Approaching the cut through the railroad track bed. The waters look calm but I nearly rounded up just moments before this photo. My anchorage the following morning. Note how crowded it is. Typical shoreline along the eastern side of the island. Crab Island in distance. One of the interesting joys of fall anchorages is the morning fog which on this day moved in shortly after day break, rose to about tree top height and then began to burn off by about 9:30. If you are into history, Battle of Valcour Is., Oct. 1776 and Crab Is. is the resting ground of British and American soldiers and sailors killed in the Battle of Plattsburgh, Sep 1814. [edited to repair link]
Voyager	Posted - 10/10/2020 : 10:02:27 I agree with you there. This upcoming week in CT we�re supposed to have 70�s and fair winds on Wednesday and Thursday... don�t cha know that�s precisely when we�re doing customer presentations. I�m sure I�ll be a little distracted during the sessions.
sethp001	Posted - 10/09/2020 : 20:03:18 The worst part of becoming a sailor is whenever the wind blows right, the rain is away, and the temperature is nice, you look out your window and regret not sailing. We've had excellent sailing weather all week. I missed all of it but somebody has to work for this family. Of course it's predicted to rain all weekend.
redeye	Posted - 10/09/2020 : 11:10:46 Lake Hartwell.. not my shot ... one of our local boardsailing folks. We have had great sailing weather, picture perfect, followed by the storms rolling through, remnants of hurricanes. It has been very dramatic. 84 degrees Wednesday. . . . One day 2 weeks ago on Lake Lanier
Voyager	Posted - 10/08/2020 : 17:20:31 I love the fall, but I secretly still want highs in the low 80s. Maybe, just maybe, we�ll get 77� on Saturday inland, but sea temps at down in the mid-60�s. I�ll take whatever I can get
keats	Posted - 10/08/2020 : 13:14:01 Expecting a high of 81� on Saturday in Northern California, winds 9-12 kts and, hopefully, no smoke and ash. I'll be out. Might get our first rain in 6 months but it won't be much and will clean the air if it does.

Association Forum

Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.