San Juans - 4 weeks away

[Don T]

Hello Mac folk:
Well, I'm 4 weeks away from our trip up north.

Duane, I don't think we'll get far enough north to meet up with you. Our boating freinds on this trip don't have enough time and we have this event right in the middle of our vacation we want to attend.

My stainless hatch rails are being a bit problematic due to expansion differences. Turns out 5200 does not adhere very well to stainless. Other than that, my preps are going OK.

This year I will be sailing with a Freedom 30. I don't know much about it but I think I will have my hands full keeping up. The skipper is very seasoned but not on this boat. Same guy was skippering the 28' full keel boat I mentioned in another post.

I can hardly wait, this will be our first trip without the kids since our honeymoon. The Mac is going to feel huge.

[Graham Carr]

Hi Don, I am on a working holiday in the San Juan Islands. I arrived two weeks ago (with my boat) and will be here until Aug 1st. Send me an email if you would like to meet and Ill give you my cell phone number. My sailing schedule is totally flexible. I am staying near Anacortes.

Graham Carr
Pauka2
Longmont, Co

[Don T]

Hello Graham:
We will be launching from Washington Park July 5th.

[Graham Carr]

Hi Don, sorry I did not respond to your post. I have been working long days. I am trying to get this construction project wrapped up so I can enjoy the holiday part of this working holiday. Anyway I will not be around on the 5th. I am sailing down to Seattle for the 4th. Plan on watching the fire works (I think they are shot off from the space needle) from Elliott Bay or Lake Union. Ill be heading back to Anacortes on the 5th. What are your sailing plans? Have you launched from Washington Park before? I launched their on Memorial Day. The park is wonderful, but very busy. They have a place to rig your boat before you head to the ramp. The problem I encountered was when I went to prep the boat for leaving. Their really is not a good place to park while doing this. I had to pull along side the parked empty trailers and just had to move when someone wanted out. The place is great other then that. Watch out for the trees when you head to the ramp. I have posted ramp photos, (see link below) which I took at low tide. I like launching from Swinomish Channel. I found out the hard way its better to launch at high tide or during the flood. The ramp dock is floating so only a short section is left. It makes it hard to get on the boat. The last time I returned I had to wait about 15 min for the ramp to clear before I could pull in. This was interesting because I had to counter a fairly strong flood current. I just match my forward speed to hold me in one spot (kinda) I plan on trying out the Cornet bay ramp this Sunday. The only thing I was warned about from the locals was the concrete ramp is a few feet from the float dock and that the ramp has some drop-offs. You can see a photo of a boat being pulled. This guy stayed closer to the middle. I have sailed into Cornet bay several times. One thing I liked was it was calm and not really busy. Anyway hope this helps.
http://groups.msn.com/Pauka2Cruising

Graham Carr
Pauka2
Longmont, CO