Rob Hazard

Here is a great opportunity to learn to read a nautical chart and find other useful resources for trip planning in a full day class with Scott Camlin. This class dovetails very well with our upcoming program on Common Adventure Model outings. Don't miss it! We will meet at the Gould Barn in Topsfield at 10am on Sunday, April 10th. Lunch will be the usual delicious potluck provided by all of us! Please read Scott's more detailed post on this forum.

SUNDAY! I'll be there too!

I am hoping to be there as well.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Spectacular find, Dana! I need to go through them again tomorrow! Cheers, Rob

I've been keeping an eye peeled on morning dog walks along the Merrimack, but none yet. Just the occasional Red Tail. I'll keep looking.

One thing I have noticed about my new hatches is that they came already tethered to the boat from the inside. It is really easy to trap a loop of line under the hatch rim and make a path for water incursion. In fact I have to be careful not to get the line trapped under the rim. Perhaps that is the cause of your leakage?

Peter, does this leaking issue apply to the round hatches as well as the ovals?

Ed, you didn't "overhear" nuthin'. I merely suggested that you wait for the rising tide to float your boat. It's what you get for taking that beautiful classic, vintage Arctic Hawk into those nasty rocks! Tsk, tsk! BTW: I just got a note from Brian at MITA thanking us for our efforts on Crow Island. Seems we did good! So if we should see a nice warm, sunny Saturday this winter, with cooperative tides, what say we have a go at Bangs Island?

Oh, we did indeed! The promised column of willing native porters failed to materialize, nor was there anyone waiting to serve tea and scones on the sandbar, so we had to take it on ourselves to carry the heavily laden vessels across nearly 50 feet of treacherous sand and lethal clam shells, then fortify our starving bodies with energy bars before resuming our arduous odyssey. It was tough, I'm tellin' ya!

Well, just Crow. We didn't go to Bangs. Daylight is short enough these days that it didn't make sense to try to do both Islands, so we concentrated our efforts. As it was we got back just as the sun set. No big adventures to relate, just a lovely day on the bay, light winds, sunny skies, good conversation all the way out and back. We'll have to make a date to hit Bangs another time. I did get to try my Tiderace Xcite for the first time on salt water. Very nice boat; I'm pleased. Thanks to everyone who showed up and made it a fun paddle!

Doug, Release and check for all 3 sessions will be on its way to you in tomorrow's mail. Thanks for setting it up! Rob

Fear not, Blaine. I have been assured that one of our number has arranged with a local chieftain for a train of porters to carry our vessels across the isthmus, singing their charmingly folksy chants as they go, while we march on ahead in freshly ironed khaki suits. Clippers, work gloves, garbage bags. Leftovers and energy bars, hardtack and salt horse.

How about trying the Bangs & Crow trip again this Sunday? I propose a 10 AM launch from Cousins Island, counter-clockwise circuit of Great Chebeague with stops at Bangs + Crow for lunch and a little trail clearing and general pickup. The weather outlook is good so far, and the tidal currents are as follows: (Broad Sound West of Eagle Island) Max Ebb 0702 -1.4 Low Slack 1034 Max Flood 1254 +1.0 High Slack 1607 So we'd be launching on the tail of the ebb tide, which means we'd have the choice of rounding Little Chebeague or portaging over the sandbar. Otherwise we'll have the tide with us or slack water to paddle over. This is a Level 3 trip by the club guidelines. The water is cold now, so drysuits are a MUST. As before, if the weather forecast changes for the worse, let's cancel. I'm not into heroic paddling. Who's up for it? Rob

What about the Sunday after Thanksgiving? That would be the 28th. MaxEbb @ 0702 -1.4 LoSlak @ 1034 MaxFlo @ 1254 +1.0 HiSlak @ 1607 (These tide times are for Broad Sound East of Eagle Is.) If we were to launch at 1000, that would have us paddling out on the dying ebb tide going slack, landing at Crow early in the flood, and returning on the flood tide. I like it better because we wouldn't be fighting an ebb tide when we're cold and tired. Then all we'd need is some decent weather! Whaddya say? Shall I try again?

Well, I can't go on Sunday, due to a previous commitment. I will reschedule the Bangs & Crow stewardship trip for another weekend, hopefully with better tides and better luck on the weather. I'll be posting soon.

The suspense was killing me. Now watch Saturday be sunny, warm, and windless! R

CANCEL! By which I mean I do not think it would be wise to venture out on Casco Bay this Saturday. The wind is predicted to be 20 - 25 with gusts to 35. I have another commitment for Sunday, so I'll suggest we try again another weekend, after Thanksgiving. Thanks to everyone who expressed interest in this trip. We will get out there, just not under suicidal conditions! Cheers, Rob

I just checked Accuweather's forecast for Casco Bay for Saturday. They predict winds peaking about 20 knots in the early afternoon. Technically that would push the trip beyond the boundary of a Level 3 paddle. I still plan on going, of course. We'll be mostly in protected water, and in the early afternoon when the wind is peaking, we will likely be ashore eating lunch or trimming the trails. Besides, a LOT can change between now and Saturday! I thought it was worth a heads-up, though. Rob

This photo showed up on the WoodenBoat forum last week. I'm sure the builder thinks it's funny, and maybe even an artistic or political statement, but to my mind it's like sending a spoof Mayday signal. What will he do if that thing actually starts to sink one day?

I count 9 names so far. That's a good sized fleet. If you guys want to cross-post to SMSKN, that's fine, but we may need to divide into 2 fleets to keep the head counting manageable. Apart from that, the more the merrier! I followed up on a suggestion of Ed Lawson's and asked the MITA folks what needed doing on Bangs & Crow. It looks like Bangs may need a bit of shoreline pickup but not much else for now. Crow could use some trail clearing and a thorough search for the logbook, which has gone missing (possibly stolen). MITA's boats have been winterized now so they won't be doing any more trash pickups this year. Any trash we collect can either be brought ashore or wrapped up and tied down in one of the campsites until spring. Last year we composted our brush trimmings discreetly on island, which I'll assume we can do again. I would like to fill out a float plan for the trip, so if you're sure you're coming please send me the following details: Name, boat description, phone #, emergency contact w/ phone#. If you're not sure, don't worry, we'll do it at the beach briefing. Thanks, Rob

Ooh! One TINY LITTLE detail I somehow neglected to mention... The initial reason for this trip is stewardship of Bangs and Crow Islands. That means cleanup, monitoring, reduction of various evidence of summer visitors to a more natural state. So we need to bring work gloves, clippers, and plastic garbage bags. We will not need to pack the stuff home, though. We'll cache it somewhere where a MITA crew can take it off-island at their convenience. You all didn't think this was just a joy ride, did you? OK, so who's STILL interested? Rob

Trip canceled due to bad weather forecast. I'm thinking about paying a visit to Bangs and Crow Islands, the islands in Casco Bay we have "adopted" for MITA, on Saturday, Nov 20. Anyone interested in coming along? I'd like to launch around 10 AM at the Cousins Island bridge, then proceed down the west side of Cousins, cross to the west end of Great Chebeague, passing over the Little Chebeague Bar, then turn east and head up to Bangs, cross to Crow for lunch, and head back up the east side of Great Chebeague and back to Cousins. The distance appears to be between 11 and 12 nautical miles, so in good paddling conditions I'd estimate 4 hours on the water. With stops I figure we'd return about 4 PM. The two longest crossings are both about 1 nm, but could be shortened by shore hugging, which would lengthen the total distance by a couple miles. The tide table predicts a high tide about 10 AM, so we'd have it with us for the outward leg and have plenty of water to cross the bar between the Chebeagues, but the Ebb would be peaking about 1 PM, just as we head back in, so we'd have to hug the shore of Great Chebeague to stay out of the current. The planned route is mostly in fairly protected water, but if there's a west wind we might make both legs on the east side of Chebeague for shelter and a shorter trip. And, of course, I'd cancel if the weather threatened to be at all hostile. This is a cold water trip, so dry suits and all the usual preparations and precautions are expected. And I'd recommend bringing lights in case a delay has us returning in twilight. So who wants to come along? Due to the bad weather forecast, I am canceling this trip. - Rob Rob

I'll be there! I'll be there!

This past Thursday was the last Chebacco Lake Skills Session for the season. Thank you to everyone who showed up to participate, especially to our rain-or-shine paddler-in chief, Rick Crangle! Congratulations to Bob Levine for executing a "real life" T-rescue under challenging conditions on the Isles of Shoals trip. It's gratifying to know that all that practice really does pay off! Good show, Bob! So now we have a few months of cold weather paddling and pool sessions ahead before we start again in June. See you on the water! Rob