Richard Bost – Page 19 – Dauntless at Sea

A New Day Dawns

I love being up before sunrise. It’s my chance to see the world before it wakes up.

Contrails Just Before Sunrise over Waterford

Those half dozen contrails are airliners that left the NE U.S. last night. The groggy passengers just now being woken for their early morning juice and coffee. As the cabin crew scurries down the aisle, with their drink cart, the smell of freshly warmed bread waifs through the cabin.

Now, the warm rolls are for the Business Class passengers. One must admire the airlines ingenuity. Business Class was born when more and more companies in a cost cutting mode back in the early ‘90’s stopped employees flying on company paid travel from flying First Class.

The airlines that scrambled the best and were the most adaptive survived. Since most of their revenues came from those business people flying on someone else’ dime. Thus, Business Class was born.

I miss the time I was flying on someone else’s money. But not too much; well truth be told, not at all. It was only for a short time during the last 30 years, all the rest of the time, money spent on my travel, mostly to Europe to see friends, came out of my pocket and meant that I had to do without something else.

But, in watching those contrails this morning, I also remembered the numerous times I’d be looking out the aircraft window and wishing I was “down there”.

And that’s pretty much the story of my life, always wishing to be somewhere else.

Dauntless changed everything. The world now passes by my living room window. Feeling wistful like a gypsy before; now I am truly a gypsy and loving every minute of it.

Thanks for coming along for the ride.

Coming soon to a theater near you: the Post Mortem, Finding the Right Boat, Weather or Not, Hijinks on the High Seas, It’s Showtime Two.

Three Months, Two Weeks, Four Days, Seven Hours, Five Minutes & Six Seconds

That’s how long the Pilot House Reorganization has taken. It’s finally done, as these pictures will attest. I threw away four trash barrels of junk and packing material. I repacked all of my tools, spare parts and associated fasteners and bits and pieces.

I have listed everything and where it is and what it is packed in.

My goal was not only to know where to find stuff should I ever need it, but also to make the engine room in particular, less prone to floating debris, should a disaster ever take place.

The last step will be to organize the lists on the computer, so when the shit hits the fan, I’m not leafing thru my hand written sheets, trying to figure out what I wrote and of course, not seeing the one item I am looking for.

This also means that Dauntless is finally ready to move. Next week, she will move ¾ mile up river to the boat yards, where her nice round bottom will be cleaned and painted. A bottom I know well, as its very efficiency has allowed this entire adventure and the greater adventures to follow.

Lastly, to be more diligent than the last time, I have scheduled the next Pilot House Reorganization in my Samsung Note calendar for April 12, 2035.

Yes, you read it right. 20 years from now and if I am a lucky person, I’ll die just days before !

Port side Helm Station. Computer, Maretron, Router, AIS on upper shelf. Lower shelf has bins of my most used electrical parts — Port side Helm Station.
Computer, Maretron, Router, AIS on upper shelf.
Lower shelf has bins of my most used electrical parts

Dauntless Cruise Plan – Baltic 2015

Well folks, as we get closer and closer to summer, the moss in growing under my feet, so it’s getting time to move on. As initially planned a few years ago, this summer will be spent in the Baltic. The attached picture shows the tentative route from our departure from Waterford in late May to our return in early October.

As planned, this voyage will be about 4100 nm with 72 legs spread over 130 days. A bit ambitious, but that’s us. While some of the major stops: Holland, last two weeks in June; East Germany, 4 July; Gdansk, 18 July; Riga, 24 July; Tallinn, 30 July & 15 Aug; Helsinki, 6 Aug; are hard wired in, pretty much everything in between is open and will be determined based on weather, seas and moods.

Our usual mode of travel is about 6.5 knots, consuming 1.5 gal/hr. or 4.2nm/gal (2 liters/km) so the total cruise will need about 1000 gallons, 4000 liters, of fuel. So will need to pick up about 300 gallons along the way, to get back to the UK, Ireland with near empty tanks.

Normally we like cruising one day, then stopping at the same place for two nights. By cruising every other day, it keeps the batteries up and in hot water for about half that time. I am in the process of putting the water heater and washer on the Inverter circuit. Thus we’ll have hot water on the non-motoring days.

For charts, I am using the Jepp C-Map charts running on Coastal Explorer, plus Navionics on my tablet and smart phone. I looking for some large scale paper charts to facilitate the long range planning.

Though we will have cell phone coverage most places, I will have our Delorme InReach running and on Dauntless 24/7 to keep a running track of our trip. I will also attempt to take better pictures, videos and document the trip better.

I really appreciate the postings of Dockhead and Carstenb on Cruisers Forum. Their information and enthusiasm about the Baltic have been contagious.

As always, I’m open to suggestions, but keep in mind that some places are locked and loaded and that no trip is ever perfect.

If anyone knows the price of fuel at the Brusnichnoye Lock on the Saimaa Canal, I’d love that information, but I won’t need to know it until the very end of July. That far eastern jaunt will probably be eliminated in any case, unless fuel is 33 cents a liter, as I do need to cut down some miles.

Rock’in and Roll’in All Night

Waterford is by pencil point. Look at the strong gradient.

That’s what we’ve been doing all night. Winds have been 20 gusting to 35 since yesterday afternoon. Waterford is in a relatively sheltered spot in Ireland, so I’m guessing the winds are really howling in the north and west.

During the night, it was like I was sleeping in one of those rocking cribs. Really nice; made even nicer knowing I am tied to a dock that isn’t going anywhere. It even made me think about why I don’t miss our beautiful Manhattan apartment with the roof top garden oasis, we built a few years ago. I did the design and found a carpenter to do all the hard work. The apartment is now rented; we may sell it this summer. But lying in bed last night, feeling the rocking motion of the water, brought home to me how close I am to nature here and how comforting that is. So while I miss my NY friends; the apartment Julie and I loved so much for 7 years, less so.

20130619_122134 (from Home Dell N2) — Our Manhattan Roof Top Garden & Oasis

Fundamentally, maybe that’s why in the middle of the Atlantic, thousands of miles from anywhere, we were at peace. In fact, the lure of the blue ocean, to just jump in, was unbelievably strong. Never something to fear, we embraced it. The ocean was also noticeably saltier than near the coast.

Back to now, these winds would have been much more stressful if we were on anchor. I would have gotten only a few hours’ sleep, at most.

The main reason for lack of sleep on anchor is that in spite of the various anchor alarms I use (alarms that use GPS and sound an alarm if we move a specified distance). On numerous occasions, I have convinced myself that we are moving laterally. I don’t think I have ever been right either, but the feeling is so strong, I must get out of bed, and run to the pilot house, prepared to fire up the engine at the first sign of danger. Being in a dark forward cabin is one of the factors that cause this. It has certainly made me even more aware of the dangers of vertigo that pilots face in dark, FIR conditions. And the only cure trusts your instruments and not your brain.

So for the last few hours I have been finishing the pilot house reorganization. 90% of the stuff is put away and I’ve just been doing the odds and ends today. I’m writing this post now, sitting in the salon, because while in the pilot house not long ago, I realized I was getting sea sick!

Yes, tied to a dock, going no place, I was getting sea sick. Maybe I just needed a little water, but that is usually the first sign. 20 minutes later, I’m fine now. I think having my head under the helm station for an inordinate amount of time was the culprit. But we are also bouncing in a non-rhythmic way. Since Dauntless is tied to a floating dock, under such conditions, the lines pull on the dock, resulting in a jarring motion.

I’ll adjust the lines again. I let you know the results.

Senses Re-tuned

Drip, drip drip. There was a leak somewhere and i was determined to find it.

The bilge pumps had not turned on, so that made it easier. The leak was not into the bilge.

Living for the most part on a boat, it is amazing how my senses have become much keener. I see, hear and small things, like never before.

In New York, Julie has a group of people who really help her live in and appreciate the moment. Dauntless has done that for me.

During the night, I noticed the water pump cycling on for a few seconds. Now I was sleeping, so it was unclear to me how often this was happening, but I probably heard it five times in the course of the night.

I would hear it, then go back to sleep. I wondered if I heard it because I was already awake or did it waken me? I think the latter; otherwise I would hardly have been sleeping. Much like when sleeping in the pilot house, I would awake whenever a light appeared in front of me. The rising of Venus, Jupiter and the Moon always woke me without fail.

So this morning, I decided to tackle this problem before doing anything else, even getting dressed. There was a leak and I would find it before getting distracted.

So there I was with my LED flashlight, my cozy slippers and nothing else. Grateful no one could see me, for I am sure it was a comical sight.

Deciding to start at the bow, I looked at the forward shower and sure enough, drip, drip, drip. I opened the faucet and closed it again, tighter. The drip stopped.

Problem solved. Yes, sometimes, it’s as simple as that.

In fact, as I understand Dauntless better and she understands me, problems tend to be simple.

Why? because we found the right boat of the right brand, Kadey Krogen, that was optimized for what we wanted to do with her.

I’m debating whether to write more extensively about the systematic process we went through to find this boat and be where we are today.

Please tell me what you think.

Not Much is New

I haven’t posted much in the last weeks, because, at least in my mind, I haven’t done much.

I got back from NY last Tuesday and promptly got a cold. That forced me to rest and by drinking a lot of

I feel almost like new again.

I’m in the last stages of the big reorganization, or probably better described, the first organization. Hey, I’m slow sometimes. It’s taken me two years to figure out, what I need where.

I have also firmed up our cruising plan for July and August. June and September is more vague, but I am planning on leaving Waterford May 25^th.

phone 142 — Mary in one of her more resigned moods, wearing my hat.

That’s my mother’s birthday, so it’s fitting, as Dauntless has replaced my mother, in so many ways.

Dauntless in Waterford March 2015 — Dauntless in Waterford
March 2015

Just What Have I Been Doing for the Last Few Months?

Since December, besides travelling to England, Italy, Spain and the U.S., I have been organizing tools and spare parts. I am making a computerized list of each part, their storage location, as well as any significant information, such as model number, etc.

Having also reorganized my tools and fasteners, clamps, etc., my life will be so much easier, and as an added bonus, I was able to throw away two garbage cans of packing materials.

Though I am returning to Dauntless today, I shall return to NY at the end of April for two weeks. Dauntless will be hauled out and have her bottom painted again while I am in NY. Then I will be joined by Larry, a friend of over 40 years, who I met on T-3. With that extra set of hands, we will complete the last of the winter projects.

What’s left to be done:

Replacing the Raritan toilet processing tank,
Installation of the Wallas DT40 heater
Installation of a 30,000 BTU “Bus” heater, which will use engine heat to heat the two cabins while underway,
Recommissioning the Katadyn water maker
General clean up

In my Next post, I will publish the updated Cruise Plan.

On another topic.

I made a new post on my other blog, Refeldtions, titled Another World Leader Appreciates the United States of America.

A great story that was in yesterday’s Opinion page of the Wall Street Journal, 21 March 2015, President Sisi of Egypt tells of a different reality than we are accustomed to hearing, day in and day out.

I thought it was important to share. If interested, the link is: richardbost.wordpress.com

Lessons Learned Living on a Boat in Northern Europe

So far, as I learn something new every day; I’m sure to keep on learning and even on my last day on Earth, I know I’ll learn something new; like how I die!

Having kicked the cans down the road of Greece and the Ukraine, we can now talk about boats again.

So, what have I learned up to now living on Dauntless in Northern Europe:

Waterford has turned out to far exceed my expectations and at this point, it is hard to think that I could find a better place anywhere in Europe for next year. I have 10 minute walk to the bus that whisks me to the airport in Dublin for only 20 Euros. In NYC, it takes 90 minutes to go 12 miles and that includes three train changes, which means many staircases, up and down. (We got a man to the moon 50 years ago, but NYC still cannot keep an escalator running more than a day or two before it breaks down for three months).

The Waterford City Marina, being right downtown, has given me the best of all worlds. On one hand, I am five minutes from downtown and only a 15 min walk to my favorite bakery and butcher. Yet the dock itself is very secure with a gate that is electronically activated, but it also has a chain and lock, making it really secure. The first few times I left Dauntless for any length of time, I was really nervous, but now only a little bit.

The people in Ireland are very nice, like Midwesterners, but with a NY attitude, meaning they are loud, talk fast and curse a lot, and really nice in doing it and helpful all the time.

Having Julie in NY, Dublin is only a 6 hour plane ride away and the tickets are about 60% of the cost of flying to the continent. So it’s terribly convenient and already, while I like exploring new places, for our next and last winter in Europe, I will be hard pressed to find someplace that has all that Waterford and Ireland offer.

I’m fluent in the language, for the most part. There have been a few times, that not understanding something and having them repeat it three times, I am still clueless and just hope for the best at that point. The first time this happened, one of the passengers on the bus could tell that I did not understand and explained in words I could understand.

I haven’t gotten run over yet crossing the street, only because I look in both directions three, that’s 3 times, before I step off the curb. And every time I do, I think of all of those who thought crossing the Atlantic was dangerous. I’m far more likely to die crossing the street here.

The Lexan storm windows that Julie, Richard and I made and installed in the last days and hours in Rhode Island, have really made a difference. While on the ocean they gave us peace of mind, since I have been here, I am so pleased that they really insulate the boat. Dauntless is far warmer, having the double pane up. In addition, I so not have any condensation problems, as the glass windows stay just warm enough. Two of the storm windows in the pilot house are 4 inches short, and it that one spot, I do get some condensation on really cold days. Well, I did, but have not seen any in two months.

Even without the Wallas heater, this Krogen stays warm and dry. I have been using a little 2000 watt electric heater when I am on the boat. But I have been so pleased that I do not have the dampness and condensation problems I have read about by many who live on their boats in the winter.

I have like 10 lines on the boat, all 5/8” thick. The Fastnet boat docked behind me, a steel boat used to ferry crew to the oil platforms, about the same size as Dauntless, has 4 lines, and they are not even ½”, probably 3/8”.

I suppose that’s the difference between docking a boat that is also our home and a work boat.

A Perspective

Yesterday evening, the 5^th of February 2015, as I gazed out the window watching the traffic flow along the quay of Waterford the realization struck me as to how much has changed in just one year.

Looking out the Salon Window onto the Quay of Waterford, Ireland

Last year at this time, I had just returned from the Bahamas, had crossed the dreaded Gulf Stream, this time alone and was docked at my friend’s Paul house.

Now I had set up Paul and Chantal, my crewmate, as they seemed a very good match. The problem was I lost a reliable crewmate and as it turned out, Paul got weirder and weirder and I still not understand what happened.

But Dauntless was in Miami to have a lot of work done in preparation of the upcoming Atlantic Passage coming up in July. I had thought I had found a rigger and fabricator who would do the paravane stabilization system and I was waiting in very nervous anticipation for that work to start, as it was something that had to be done before our passage and they had given me a price I could afford, though I still had to manage my meager resources well.

So it’s early February, I had no help and all this work (buy, make, install) had to be done on the boat before we left and time was running out:

Fabricate and install the paravanes,
Replace current fridge and freezer with 12 volt system,
Solar panels,
Water maker,
Replace the depth sounder,
12 v boat computer and 12v monitors,
New navigation system and chart plotter,
AIS transceiver,
Replace one VHF antenna repair the other
Get a life raft,
Maretron system for environmental and navigation data,
European, Canadian and Atlantic charts,
Spare engine parts, alternator, injection pipes, water pump,
15 Lexan storm windows to make and install,
Replace 112 bungs in the teak deck,
Paint the cap rail, sand the rub rail,
Get a bicycle,
New Anchor
Get my Captain’s license (handy in Europe)

And I knew even once all of this was done, we still had to cross 3,000 miles of the North Atlantic.

Now, I had been reading, reading and reading, asking folks stuff on Trawler Forum, but the hard part was actually deciding on this versus that. Why that life raft and not this one. As the time crunch got crunchier, it became easier only because it was time to shit or get off the pot, as my mother would say.

But even now, I look at that list in amazement and also proud that I, we, got it done. It would not have happened without the help and support of some new friends.

In March, Richard (not me, another Richard), who I had met in the marina in Providence, came down from Rhode Island and spent a month with me doing a lot of different jobs. I so appreciated his company and work and Dauntless still shows his efforts. He also helped to get me focused and on track.

I had also moved the boat to a little pontoon just behind Park’s store, Hopkins-Carter Marine. This also turned out to be a Godsend in that, when the paravanes were finally being built, I had a store one minute away that had all the extra things I needed every hour.

Finally the paravanes were done and I hightailed it to Ft. Pierce, where David spent two weeks installing the fridge, freezer, solar panels and water maker.

The rest of the work was done in the coming months as I returned to Providence, where in the last days before departure, Richard again came to the rescue and got my Lexan cut to size and then, finally, only three hours before departure, Julie and I finished installed the Lexan storm windows.

And the rest is history.

So, as I sit here in a warm cozy Kadey Krogen a year later, I’m in Europe, our goal of the last 7 years, the worst problem I seem to have is that in sorting and cataloging spare parts and reorganizing everything, I’ve discovered that I have 4 soldering irons.

Even though we have a few more oceans to cross and many miles to go; it’s all downhill from here.

Life is Good.

A Higher Call by Adam Makos – A Book that Lives Up to the Hype

I was skeptical at first, the hype being a bit over the top, but the book looked interesting, so I gave it a try.

What I liked immediately was that seldom do you get to read about World War II from opposite perspectives. I’ve read a number of books by Germans and Americans, but this was really the first that juxtaposed the two adversaries over the shared incident.

Having lived in Germany for 4 years, and still having some dear friends there, I was interested in seeing it from the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) perspective. Interestingly enough, this is one aspect that Hollywood depicted rather well in the Great Escape, which highlights the conflict between the Luftwaffe and the SS and Gestapo. I think Stalag 17, did also, but I frankly don’t remember it as well.

Speaking of movies, two other must see WWII bomber films are Twelve O’clock High and Command Decision, both great movies that deal with both the aircrews and the commanders who must keep them going no matter what. If you have not seen those three movies, shame on you. Since you (and I) did not live through it, it helps put our lives and our freedom in perspective. Nothing valuable comes cheaply. I wonder if President Obama has seen them??

Moving on.

I liked the detail and it was clear that the writer, Adam Makos, did a massive amount of research for this book. He has managed to write an engrossing story that is hard to put down. You felt the fear and terror the aircrews went through.

In one gripping scene, our American pilot, only 20 years old and the Aircraft Commander, Charlie Brown, is taxiing his B-17 on a very foggy, dark morning, there are still two B-17’s in front of him, taking off at intervals of 30 seconds. As he gets close to the runway, they can hear the first bomber speeding down the runway, when all of a sudden they see this large yellow glow at the end of the runway and then hear the explosion. Realizing that the plane just crashed and exploded on takeoff, they wait in stunned silence for instructions. Within seconds, the word comes over the radio to continue takeoffs. As they continue to taxi they see the yellow glow again of an explosion, this time higher in the sky, a midair collision. One of the planes that just took off collided with another plane in the dense fog. Within 2 minutes, three bombers and 30 aircrew are gone, just like that.

You’ll have to read the book for the rest of the story, but suffice it to say, you will not be bored and maybe you too will come away inspired and thankful.

The Pity Party

I was feeling sorry for myself last night.

As I laid myself down in bed, this intense loneliness came over me. Hadn’t talked to any friends in a few days, and was reminded again that so far the only down side of this boating, moving home life, is being seemingly cut off from those close to me at times.

And as I’ve lamented before, even those close to me seem fewer, are fewer.

But then as I write this, being objective, I am forced to remember the wonderful times I just had in Italy: an abundance of time, connecting with those whom I have known more than half of my entire life, the true intimacy of friendship. People I can be so open with, because they have truly seen the good, the bad and the ugly in my life. But I wasn’t thinking of that last night.

No, last night, I had a terrible headache and just thinking about why seemed to make it worse, as it usually does. Especially since I knew it was due to drinking red wine and eating dark chocolate.

Then finally I said enough of the pity party.

I’ve just a wonderfully hot shower, I lying in a warm, cozy bed and I have enough fuel to go 2300 nm, 4000 km, that’s all the way to Nova Scotia, or north of the Yuzhny Island (Banana Island for those in the know), or the Cape Verde Islands, or the west coast of Africa.

The world is my oyster and I only have to open it.

So, give yourself a pat on the back and go to sleep.

I did.

And this morning the Lyric FM, a wonderful Irish classical music station,

Dauntless Planning Plan B

Already the plan has changed; not significantly, but it will give me more time in Ireland.

I’ve realized that it makes more sense not to depart Ireland, until I’m ready for the Schengen clock to start (my 3 months out of every 6). Therefore, we will use April and May to explore Ireland. Julie only has the 10 days Easter break during that time, so actual cruising will depend up who is aboard.

To that end, I’ve also put a posting on Cruiser’s Forum, for a Crewmate/roommate/conversation mate for winter and spring. We’ll see, the winter months I don’t have much to offer, but April and May could be nice. I have a number of projects that need to get done this winter and realize I just work better, more efficiently, with someone to bounce ideas off, help pull wires and just be around to help.

I have a few friends who have expressed interest in leaving Ireland with me in June as we start our odyssey on the continent. We’ll see. Dauntless is pretty well booked for the high summer months of July and August, but by September 1st, I expect to be back west, in Denmark and will need someone to help me get the boat back to Ireland, via Norway, the Shetlands, the Orkneys, Scotland and finally Ireland by month’s end.

As I am in Italy for another few days this holiday period, today, the 4th, Befana starts. Every town had built a big bonfire, 30 feet wide, 40 to 50 feet high, that will be burned tonight to symbolize the burning of the witch. Even small towns. One of the pagan rituals that has survived Christianity. I wish I could see a satellite shot. Maybe I can find an IR satellite picture tonight, but it would probably need the resolution of a polar orbiting satellite, not the ubiquitous GOES.

But the real point of this story is that I get so excited talking about our future plans with Dauntless, 2015, but also 2016 and 2017. This is where I must manage my expectations, so that I do not take away from the present Baltic trip, because I am thinking of the Pacific crossing. On the positive side, by having a plan in the back of my mind, it allows me to refine and think of contingencies well before we ever execute it.

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