the Admiral's daughter arrived and insisted we launch the next day. The weather was a cool but fine 16 degrees Centigrade when we arrived mid afternoon at Apple Tree Bay on the Hawkesbury river system North of Sydney. I had selected this site because it has an excellent deep water ramp that is not to busy during the week with plenty of room to maneouvreAs we planned to sleep overnight we had only two hours to setup and get to our mooring. Many had advised to motor first and get a feel for the boat. The launch went smoothly and the Evinrude 60hp Etec started first crank and I was away. Managed to dock at the Jetty and waited until the AD arrived. We backed off and set off for Little Jerusalem Bay about 7nm towards the Estuary.
First Impressions:
1: The mast raising that I had practiced on land still seems a bit clumsy with the mast waving from side to side until the SS wire guides tighten. The spreaders have to be carefully set free from the safety lines. The fact that the genoa was also attached was a new experience and it would seem to me that it may be a bit of challenge to manage this quickly with just one person?
2: Was surprised how high the
is off the waterline3: The Ballast filled very quickly and final burp quite satisfying to hear.The stability with ballast was better than I had imagined
4: We cruised initially at about 7 knots and it seemed a very nice comfortable cruising speed
5: The lag in the rack and pinion steering takes a little time to get used to but was pleased with the overall maneuverability
We picked up a permanent mooring for the night just before sunset and prepared to settle in. The AD cooked up a tasty stir fry with Fajitas but had left the drinks box at home so we celebrated with a glass of " Chateaux du Pompe 2009" Although the temperature dropped to a cool 6 degrees C overnight the cabin was cosy and the beds quite comfortable although I found that the stern berth panels under the mattress creaked every time I moved!
After a glorious sunrise we powered out to the bar (in the absence of any wind) and the AD flattened the motor on very smooth water and full ballast. My GPS clocked and sustained 16.2 Knots. This was substantially better than I had expected. We had a very light NW at about 5knots. We raised the MS with one reef(as advised to get the feel of the boat) and added the Genoa. The boat picked up on a beam reach to 4-5kn with good shape in the sails. However the wind died on us so we proceeded to cross the bar into Brisbane Water and circumnavigate Lion island. There was a gentle rolling swell and an underlying tidal stream on the ebb that gave us an opportunity to see how WS handled it.
On returning to the Estuary mouth there was a quick burst of wind (10kn) and we tried sailing just on the Genoa but the CDI furler jammed on about 50% for no apparent reason. All lines were free. We finally had to start up and motor into the wind where I was able to go up front and manually work the furler backwards and forwards until it freed up but by then the wind had died and stayed that way. We motored back and were able to put WS on the trailer first attempt and then Mac bumped her successfully.
Final impressions.
1: Overall the launching and stability challenges were less than I had expected.
2: The short time I had the Genoa out fully I noticed that the foot of the Gennie does not ride clear of the safety lines. Is this normal or have i not raised it on the furler high enough?
3: I noticed also that the mainsheet 5:1 is constrained by the rear safety lines when on full traveler extension. Again is this normal?
4: Not sure I like the Rudder raising and locking loop rope setup. It seems clumsy to me.
5: The Etec is really good and quite economical I found.
6: The Boat really catches peoples attention and i had nothing but friendly waves and or comments. During setup a number came to ask questions about it
7: I was amazed how much condensation takes place in the Cabin. I will have a chamois on next time to mop that up.
8: There was one major calamity which caused the AD some distress. The New Toilet had a leak in it around the seal between the top and bottom sections. She was not amused or impressed. I have yet to check out where it was made!!
Anyone had similar problems?Thanks guys for the terrific support and ideas that this website gives. It is giving me a lot of help
Here are some pix
