Day #7, Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Time of Report: 2100 Z
Position: 34.17 , -77.84 (from the spot finder at 1825 Z)
Heading: East
Speed: Heading East @ 6 knots, 5 over water, On starboard tack reach, Winds SW @ 12 expected to increase during the night.
Departed Southport, NC at 14:30 Z. Motored to Masonsboro, NC and cleared the cut at 1900Z.
Now in open water, and the boat is really sailing well. They are on their way to Nova Scotia. The wind generator doesn't seem to be turning fast enough for the wind conditions but hopefully it will improve. Captain and crew are very well and enjoying the beam reach. Will probably reef the main tonight.
As an FYI, shorter blogs like these are typically when Bill Tumlin (BT) talks with Woody, and provides the report to Tracy. When Tracy is lucky enough to talk with Woody, the blog entries will be a bit longer. I think we'll have a good mix of both of both reports. We're all super glad that they're back on the water and looking forward to more reports!!
Tracy
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Engine Problems Solved, we think
We were experiencing engine problems and electricity generating problems on the way to Bermuda. If it had been just one of these problems we might have pressed on, but the combination persuaded us to turn back toward the USA at about 11:30 AM Sunday. We decided to go to Southport, NC, ironically the departure point of Charles Huneycutt abord Flicka "Ranger". We mere mostly through the Gulf Stream and so had to make our way back through a lot of lumpy seas, but the SE angle of the wind, which had been on the nose ever since we got started, was finally excellent for the diversion to Southport which was essentially northwast from our turning position.
The sailing was wonderful until about 10 PM. Then it stopped. For the next 13 hours we had only zephyrs up to 5 kts. In 5 kts of wind a Flicka barely has steerage. Without the engine we could not generate electricity...it was night so the solar panels were useless, and the wind was too light for the wind turbine. We used only the navigation lights in order to conserve electricity.
Finally a little breeze began to develop around 11 AM Monday, and by noon we were again barreling towards Southport, arriving at 4:30 PM. This being Memorial Day week-end, shore accommodations were tight but we found The Riverside Motel, a room with two beds with a view of the dumpster, clean sheets, and a shower and TV for $83. The proprietor, Jeramy, came to the Southport Marina to pick us up and diagnosed the engine problem on the way back to the motel, about 3 blocks distant. Fuel contamination.
This morning, Tuesday, I was at the marina's office when they opened at 8. Their man Sean walked to the boat with me, and after finding that the fluids were fine sheckked the Racor (primary) fuel filter. Sure enough, bad stuff (algea and sludge) in the filter. We also checked the secondary filter and found just small traces of bad stuff. We drained the fuel from the tank and inspected the inside of the tank. Small scaling, not bad, and a bit of sludge on the bottom, again not too bad. We put 2 gallons of fresh fuel in the tank, let it settle, and tried using the boat's electric fuel pump into a bucket to see the contition of the fuel. Well, the fuel pump worked only intermittantly. A tap with a wrench would cause it to work for a while, irregularly. Sean checked for blockage in the fuel line coming from the tank (in the bow) to the engine (in the stern). You won't believe this. Sean sucked on the line until a blob of something other than fuel entered his mouth. He spit the blob into the bucket. "Well there's the real problem" he said casually as I handed h9im a Wint-o-green breath mint. There is a 90 degree elbow in the fuel line where it emerges from the tank, famous for creating blockages. We figured the blockage in the line, combined with the contamination in the fuel, had stressed the electronic fuel pump and wore it out. So we replaced the fuel pump and replaced both folters and bled the air out of the line, and the engine cranked up and sounded perfect. We let it run on high idle for a while. We think this is fixed.
We checked the output of the wind turbine generator, and it is fine. I have an on-off switch for the generator in the head, and inadvertantly the switch had been turned to the off position, causing an unexpected and unexplained drain on the batteries. They are now re-charging.
Our plan is to depart tomorrow (Wednesday) for Nova Scotia. I will lay out the route tonight. I expect this to take 9 or 10 days. We have not been achieving the 3.5 kts that had been built into my plan. Several factors. First, the wind has been consistently on our nose. A Flicka is a fine boat, but going to windward is not its long suit. In the lumpy seas associated with the Gulf Stream it is necessary to let this boat "foot". We are sailing to windward at about 45 to 50 degrees from the apparent wind. The true wind is about 60 degrees. So, tacking takes us through a 120 degree arc from port tack to starboard (and vice versa). Second, the wind has been exceedingly light, mostly zero to 10 kts. We celebrate when we are moving 3.5 kts to windward. Third, we are loaded with more weight than in a normal sail. We started out with provisions for 18+ days, a big inventory of sails, and lots of gear.
Nova Scotia is about 700 nautical miles from here. If we can make 80 miles a day we'll make it in 9 days. The wind direction and velocity will be the determining factors. We'll get off to a good start tomorrow with 10 to 15 kts from the SW.
I am relieved that the engine and generating turbine are again working, and I look forward to having a good passage to Nova Scotia. JD and I are both disappointed to not make it to Bermuda.
Woody
The sailing was wonderful until about 10 PM. Then it stopped. For the next 13 hours we had only zephyrs up to 5 kts. In 5 kts of wind a Flicka barely has steerage. Without the engine we could not generate electricity...it was night so the solar panels were useless, and the wind was too light for the wind turbine. We used only the navigation lights in order to conserve electricity.
Finally a little breeze began to develop around 11 AM Monday, and by noon we were again barreling towards Southport, arriving at 4:30 PM. This being Memorial Day week-end, shore accommodations were tight but we found The Riverside Motel, a room with two beds with a view of the dumpster, clean sheets, and a shower and TV for $83. The proprietor, Jeramy, came to the Southport Marina to pick us up and diagnosed the engine problem on the way back to the motel, about 3 blocks distant. Fuel contamination.
This morning, Tuesday, I was at the marina's office when they opened at 8. Their man Sean walked to the boat with me, and after finding that the fluids were fine sheckked the Racor (primary) fuel filter. Sure enough, bad stuff (algea and sludge) in the filter. We also checked the secondary filter and found just small traces of bad stuff. We drained the fuel from the tank and inspected the inside of the tank. Small scaling, not bad, and a bit of sludge on the bottom, again not too bad. We put 2 gallons of fresh fuel in the tank, let it settle, and tried using the boat's electric fuel pump into a bucket to see the contition of the fuel. Well, the fuel pump worked only intermittantly. A tap with a wrench would cause it to work for a while, irregularly. Sean checked for blockage in the fuel line coming from the tank (in the bow) to the engine (in the stern). You won't believe this. Sean sucked on the line until a blob of something other than fuel entered his mouth. He spit the blob into the bucket. "Well there's the real problem" he said casually as I handed h9im a Wint-o-green breath mint. There is a 90 degree elbow in the fuel line where it emerges from the tank, famous for creating blockages. We figured the blockage in the line, combined with the contamination in the fuel, had stressed the electronic fuel pump and wore it out. So we replaced the fuel pump and replaced both folters and bled the air out of the line, and the engine cranked up and sounded perfect. We let it run on high idle for a while. We think this is fixed.
We checked the output of the wind turbine generator, and it is fine. I have an on-off switch for the generator in the head, and inadvertantly the switch had been turned to the off position, causing an unexpected and unexplained drain on the batteries. They are now re-charging.
Our plan is to depart tomorrow (Wednesday) for Nova Scotia. I will lay out the route tonight. I expect this to take 9 or 10 days. We have not been achieving the 3.5 kts that had been built into my plan. Several factors. First, the wind has been consistently on our nose. A Flicka is a fine boat, but going to windward is not its long suit. In the lumpy seas associated with the Gulf Stream it is necessary to let this boat "foot". We are sailing to windward at about 45 to 50 degrees from the apparent wind. The true wind is about 60 degrees. So, tacking takes us through a 120 degree arc from port tack to starboard (and vice versa). Second, the wind has been exceedingly light, mostly zero to 10 kts. We celebrate when we are moving 3.5 kts to windward. Third, we are loaded with more weight than in a normal sail. We started out with provisions for 18+ days, a big inventory of sails, and lots of gear.
Nova Scotia is about 700 nautical miles from here. If we can make 80 miles a day we'll make it in 9 days. The wind direction and velocity will be the determining factors. We'll get off to a good start tomorrow with 10 to 15 kts from the SW.
I am relieved that the engine and generating turbine are again working, and I look forward to having a good passage to Nova Scotia. JD and I are both disappointed to not make it to Bermuda.
Woody
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Change of Plans - Headed for Shore
Day #4, Sunday, May 30, 2010
Time of Report: 2115 Z
Position: 32.62 W 77.64 N, at 1600 Z, 58 miles from Cape Fear
Heading: North, Northwest
Speed: Not reported
Engine problems continue so have turned back and are heading to Cape Fear for repairs and plan to arrive on Monday afternoon. The hope is repairs can be made on Tuesday with a Wednesday departure, now direct to Nova Scotia. Captain and crew and doing just fine - so not to worry!
More soon and maybe while the repairs are being made, we'll get a blog posting from Woody. We'll keep you posted though as we hear more.
Tracy
Time of Report: 2115 Z
Position: 32.62 W 77.64 N, at 1600 Z, 58 miles from Cape Fear
Heading: North, Northwest
Speed: Not reported
Engine problems continue so have turned back and are heading to Cape Fear for repairs and plan to arrive on Monday afternoon. The hope is repairs can be made on Tuesday with a Wednesday departure, now direct to Nova Scotia. Captain and crew and doing just fine - so not to worry!
More soon and maybe while the repairs are being made, we'll get a blog posting from Woody. We'll keep you posted though as we hear more.
Tracy
Not One of the Finer Days
Day #3, Saturday, May 29, 2010
Time of Report: 2200 Z
Position: 32.30 N, 78.43W
Heading: NE
Speed: Did not report speed but the winds were from the east at 15 knots with heavy chop an foot seas
JD and Woody continued sailing in the Gulf Stream and experienced some rain but managed to avoid the thunderstorms. They were being pushed northeast due to unfavorable winds and current. They started having engine problems and suspected it was the filters and were going to try and fix it. The weather forecast for Sunday was favorable winds from the South, Southeast with winds freshening from 10 to 15 knots - so hoping for a better day.
More soon! Tracy
Time of Report: 2200 Z
Position: 32.30 N, 78.43W
Heading: NE
Speed: Did not report speed but the winds were from the east at 15 knots with heavy chop an foot seas
JD and Woody continued sailing in the Gulf Stream and experienced some rain but managed to avoid the thunderstorms. They were being pushed northeast due to unfavorable winds and current. They started having engine problems and suspected it was the filters and were going to try and fix it. The weather forecast for Sunday was favorable winds from the South, Southeast with winds freshening from 10 to 15 knots - so hoping for a better day.
More soon! Tracy
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Slow Goin'
Day #2, Friday, May 28, 2010
Time of Report: 2100 Z
Position: 32.11 N, 79.29W
Heading: 140, bearing 128
Speed: Apparent Speed is 3.4 knots; Actual Speed is 2.5 knots
In every blog posting, we’ll be using the format above. For those who are not as “tuned in” to all of the nautical lingo, here’s a quick lesson on a few things:
1. When we talk about time in the report, ‘we’re using Zulu time, which is Greenwich Mean Time. During daylight savings, East Coast time is minus four hours, so in this example, 2100 Z is the same as 1700 EDT
2. We will show two types of speeds, Apparent (through the water) and Actual (over the water). Here’s the difference, the Apparent speed is the speed of the boat relative to the water with which it is in contact and Actual speed is the speed of the boat with regard to a fixed position.
3. A Rhumb line is a line crossing all meridians of longitude at the same angle, i.e. a path derived from a defined initial bearing. That is, upon taking an initial bearing, one proceeds along the same bearing, without changing the direction as measured relative to true north.
Rewinding to Thursday, on their way to sea, Woody & JD spent a little time on a sandbar. The incoming tide allowed for them to gracefully slide out around 2030 Z, but due to unfavorable tides and wind, they had to motor out of the Sound. Thursday night, the winds were light and they motored part of the night to keep moving. JD reported an incredible sunrise on Friday morning, as he had the 0400 to 0800 watch. He said it was one of those that you in religious/spiritual materials and I got the feeling it was a wonderful way for him to welcome in his first day at sea. Friday was spent with adverse light wind, right on the nose and an adverse current and they spent the day tacking back and forth with 120 degree arcs (typical tack arc should be 90 degrees, to give you an idea). It sounded pretty frustrating but they were keeping their spirits up. Dinner was Chicken Alfredo, and Woody described their rations to me. The have three large black trash bags, one is for mutal rations, such as the Chicken Alfredo, and the other two are for individual rations. They expected to enter the Gulf Stream on Saturday morning which will fetch them North, and by the Spot-Finder, it looks as if they are right on track.
Bill Tumlin (BT) is expecting to hear from Woody tonight at 2200 Z to give him a weather report, and Alice (his wife) talked with him and got a report once they hit the Gulf Stream and said it was a beautiful indigo blue, and that they were speeding along.
On another note, here’s the link to the YouTube that Parker, Woody’s son put together for him for the Bon Voyage that we weren’t able to view that evening: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axBufuE4qHo&feature=email
And for one of the most famous quotes of sailing times…. There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats. - Water Rat, Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows
More Soon! Tracy
Time of Report: 2100 Z
Position: 32.11 N, 79.29W
Heading: 140, bearing 128
Speed: Apparent Speed is 3.4 knots; Actual Speed is 2.5 knots
In every blog posting, we’ll be using the format above. For those who are not as “tuned in” to all of the nautical lingo, here’s a quick lesson on a few things:
1. When we talk about time in the report, ‘we’re using Zulu time, which is Greenwich Mean Time. During daylight savings, East Coast time is minus four hours, so in this example, 2100 Z is the same as 1700 EDT
2. We will show two types of speeds, Apparent (through the water) and Actual (over the water). Here’s the difference, the Apparent speed is the speed of the boat relative to the water with which it is in contact and Actual speed is the speed of the boat with regard to a fixed position.
3. A Rhumb line is a line crossing all meridians of longitude at the same angle, i.e. a path derived from a defined initial bearing. That is, upon taking an initial bearing, one proceeds along the same bearing, without changing the direction as measured relative to true north.
Rewinding to Thursday, on their way to sea, Woody & JD spent a little time on a sandbar. The incoming tide allowed for them to gracefully slide out around 2030 Z, but due to unfavorable tides and wind, they had to motor out of the Sound. Thursday night, the winds were light and they motored part of the night to keep moving. JD reported an incredible sunrise on Friday morning, as he had the 0400 to 0800 watch. He said it was one of those that you in religious/spiritual materials and I got the feeling it was a wonderful way for him to welcome in his first day at sea. Friday was spent with adverse light wind, right on the nose and an adverse current and they spent the day tacking back and forth with 120 degree arcs (typical tack arc should be 90 degrees, to give you an idea). It sounded pretty frustrating but they were keeping their spirits up. Dinner was Chicken Alfredo, and Woody described their rations to me. The have three large black trash bags, one is for mutal rations, such as the Chicken Alfredo, and the other two are for individual rations. They expected to enter the Gulf Stream on Saturday morning which will fetch them North, and by the Spot-Finder, it looks as if they are right on track.
Bill Tumlin (BT) is expecting to hear from Woody tonight at 2200 Z to give him a weather report, and Alice (his wife) talked with him and got a report once they hit the Gulf Stream and said it was a beautiful indigo blue, and that they were speeding along.
On another note, here’s the link to the YouTube that Parker, Woody’s son put together for him for the Bon Voyage that we weren’t able to view that evening: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axBufuE4qHo&feature=email
And for one of the most famous quotes of sailing times…. There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats. - Water Rat, Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows
More Soon! Tracy
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Woody & JD Depart for Bermuda
At 9:43am this morning, Woody Norwood & JD Shiver set sail from Beaufort, SC to Bermuda. Some friends from Beaufort, Jim Travis and Reggie followed them out for a bit, and thanks to Vosbury's for taking the pictures! For those of you who are wondering who is behind the keyboard, my name is Tracy Tumlin Allardice and I am one of Woody's very proud nieces. My husband, Darryl and I are the Communications Crew and will be updating the blog while Woody is at sea.We expect to hear from him daily via his satellite phone and he will be checking in with my father, Bill Tumlin (BT) for weather updates.
If you would like to receive updates from the blog via email, please get signed up, but clicking on the orange icon, just to the left to get signed up.
Here's a note Woody sent early this morning:
" We are definitely departing today. The sun is shining and we should have generally northerly wind all day, getting stronger as we get offshore. I expect 15 to 20 knots (kts) this afternoon and tonight. There are no tropical storms in sight. However, we will be going through the Gulf Stream (GS) all day tomorrow, and with a northeast wind at around 15 kts, opposing the direction of flow of the GS, the wave heights will be significant (8 +feet) and steep. By tomorrow night we expect calmer seas. After sailing through the GS we will have to dodge the northern curl of an eddy. This eddy is termed a "warm eddy", spinning off the GS and rotating counterwise. We will sail south of the rhumb line Sunday-Monday to avoid the adverse current and maybe even pick up a boost on the south edge of the current.
Longer term the wind looks light and will be adverse for a couple of days. If it is light and adverse we'll use the engine some. We have enough fuel for roughly 200 miles.
The boat is loaded. We are running last-minute errands this morning, including a run to the dump with trash. We bought more food than we need (or could possibly fit on the boat. Tha addage is, "Don't send a hungry man to the grocery store". We will leave this legacy to our neighbors at Carriage Court in Beaufort. Enough Ramon Noodles to put a young person through a semester of college.
~ Woody"
I did hear from Woody & JD around 2:00pm today. On their way out to sea, they took a short cut through Bay Point Reach, but the tide was not their friend and ran out on them which caused them to run aground - just in the sand. So they jumped in the water, cleaned the bottom of the boat and did a little swimming and R&R, waiting for the tide to come in. They were expecting to be back at sail around 5:00pm, spirits were high.Bill Tumlin (BT) is serving as Weather man and was ready with a report at 5:00pm for Woody. BT had been tracking the progress (to do so, click on the Spot Finder to the left) and noticed the tracks stopped around 12:30pm and figured he must be off the coast. Little did he know that he was literally on the coast. We expect to get tracks around noon each day from the spot tracker.
Last Saturday night about 40 people gathered for a Bon Voyage party for Woody & JD. We had such a great time and Woody's kids, Liz and Parker and their families joined us via conference and sent YouTube videos. I'll post the links of their videos and pictures of that evening in the days to come.
In closing, please find one of my favorite quotes:
There are good ships, and there are wood ships,
The ships that sail the sea.
But the best ships, are friendships,
And may they always be.
More soon! Tracy
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Bon Voyage Party; departure postponed
On Saturday evening friends and relatives from Beaufort, Atlanta, Savannah and Charleston attendeda Bon Voyage party in honor of JD and me held at the Beaufort Yacht and Sailing Club. This had been organized primarily by my sister and her family (Atlanta) and my good friend Frank Pontious in Beaufort. After everyone toured "Jubilee" the 30 to 40 of us enjoyed libations and a dinner of hors d'oeuvres, toasts, and friendship for a wonderful send-off.
Our departure, which had looked good for Sunday evening just 3 days ago has been postponed due to a forecast of gale force adverse winds and predictions of 15-foot waves related to a low pressure systems emerging out of the Bahamas that might become the season's first named tropical storm. This system would have crossed our path Monday-Tuesday just as we would be crossing the Gulf Stream. Packing winds in excess of 30 kts from the northeast, this system will likely be creating conditions that even large ships try to avoid.
It now looks like Thursday morning we will head down the Beaufort River and out to sea bound for Bermuda. The good news is that this gives us a few relaxed days to do some additional preparations and to be fully rested before leaving. The week leading up to departure on an offshore voyage is a lot like the week before opening night in a theatrical production. Inevitably there are a thousand things to be done. I will be away from home nearly 3 months. That alone is a big deal in terms of preparations. Then the boat. My rigger, Greg Pittrizzi, installed a new throttle control Friday and new fresh and sea water pumps yesterday(Saturday) morning. Other, less major, items still need attention.
Our departure, which had looked good for Sunday evening just 3 days ago has been postponed due to a forecast of gale force adverse winds and predictions of 15-foot waves related to a low pressure systems emerging out of the Bahamas that might become the season's first named tropical storm. This system would have crossed our path Monday-Tuesday just as we would be crossing the Gulf Stream. Packing winds in excess of 30 kts from the northeast, this system will likely be creating conditions that even large ships try to avoid.
It now looks like Thursday morning we will head down the Beaufort River and out to sea bound for Bermuda. The good news is that this gives us a few relaxed days to do some additional preparations and to be fully rested before leaving. The week leading up to departure on an offshore voyage is a lot like the week before opening night in a theatrical production. Inevitably there are a thousand things to be done. I will be away from home nearly 3 months. That alone is a big deal in terms of preparations. Then the boat. My rigger, Greg Pittrizzi, installed a new throttle control Friday and new fresh and sea water pumps yesterday(Saturday) morning. Other, less major, items still need attention.
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