The dinghy's dinghy

 

Three boats set off from Werribbee River on a falling tide, and a fine but light airs day yesterday, to make another attempt to get into Little River. Of course the falling tide meant sand bars and shallow water, and Jim with his heavy Drascombe was not keen on getting stuck in the mud, so we anchored a few hundred metres off for lunch. I was keen to see if I could get in, so I inflated the cheapie one person vynl toy dinghy and tried my luck.

It was neither dry nor easy to propel in any give direction but it was fun. I rowed in, and squelched through the dubious looking mud for a while, but it looked like the mouth was blocked by a sandbar and was well above the current water level. Thanks Gerard for taking the photos and motoring in to offer me a tow back.

It was a splendid adventure though, it feels very remote and wild down there. We saw dolphins, plus hosts of bird life. A great outing.

And here is some video from the day:

Dumb luck

 

Racing at AYC yesterday, and 5 Sabres got out in the mix. It was good racing, with positions changing multiple times over the two races. I was well back on the left side of the couse when a sudden strong wind change to SW had me on a perfect line to the top mark, and I was suddenly in second place in the Sabre pack. 

The Bom recorded 24 knots at 3.30, and it was a wild, exciting ride to the finish. I nearly caught Sandra but she saw me coming and got home ahead. It was a great day on the water. Thanks to Andrew on the crash boat for the photo.

Bling and half gunnelled

 

Four lovely bronze rowlock sockets arrived today. Boat bling. I think the Skerry will look extra snappy when these are fitted.

The pvc clamps seem to have done an ok job. The port gunnel stayed put when I took the clamps off this afternoon. The starboard rail now attached. One more on each side to go. Am I half gunnelled?  I certainly am tired. I went out for a sail for about three hours this morning , a funny sort of outing with the wind all over the place. It was a challenge to tack back to the club ramp as the wind kept shifting and dying. Fitting the rail is a major operation with lots of stages, and lots of cursing. So I will sleep well tonight I rekon.

Clamp

 

I epoxied on the first rail today. I think I could use about a dozen more c clamps at least. Coincidentally there was a post on the clc builders fb group with people discussing the merits or deficiencies of pvc pipe diy clamps, and the potential for boats to get out of plum when attaching one rail at a time. I guess I will find out tomorrow how effectice the clamps have been, and as far as I can tell boat is no less symetrical than it was. 

Putting the gunnels on really stiffens up a boat, i am looking forward to getting the other side done.

Rails

 

I had a fun few days ripping some of the oregon down to the right size for the gunnel laminations, the scarfing and glueing the pieces together. It is a bit of a 3d jigsaw puzzle trying to use the wood so as to minimize waste. I have also got the two halves of the mast. Really only the yards to go.

Today I trial fitted the inner layers of the rails. I was waiting for the wood to crack or split or snap, but the two sides went on fairly cooperatively.  There is a tiny gap at the stem that I can't close with pressure from screws and i can't think how to clamp, so that might be another task for that wonderful gap filling epoxy.

While the scarf joints were drying on the floor of the shed, the boat had to stay outside. Of course it poured that night, and despite a few half arsed tarps, the boat had about 50 litres of water slishing round in the morning. If it keeps water out as well as it keeps water in, I will be happy.

The other good news is that both sail and rowlock sockets have been despatched and should be here within a week or so. 

Wood

 

I finally managed to arrange a day to meet George out in his Laverton yard, and get a good load of his fantastic oregon. There is plenty to finish the boat, gunnels, mast and spars. 

I put the boat on the trolley that I got from Andrew from the WBA, so I can now move it relatively easily in and out of the shed. Very handy to be able to use the space and it will be good for the interior fibreglassing to be able to do that outdoors to avoid being gassed.

I ripped one set of rails today.  Not the nicest job but it is  doable. It was a nice counterbalance for the irritations of the day. It sounds like the sail won't be arriving anytime soon. Hopefully it might appear in time for the launching. But I am looking forward to having the Skerry as a good rowing boat. Better order some rowlock sockets.

Shiney

 

I sanded and put the last coat of epoxy on the hull today, rolling and tipping with a brush. The end result was pleasingly shiney. I can see why people go down the varnish track. But I  know how bad I  am at maintenance, so it will be painted.  

I should have filled the nail holes but an aggravating phone call from the yacht club distracted me. I rekon if I am painting I can fill before painting. 

Hopefully tomorrow i can get some oregon, otherwise the project will be grinding to a halt.

I have also decided to sell the Sabre and not renew the ayc club membership, which should help my liquidity situation and help me focus on the sort of sailing that interests me more, cruising and messing about in small boats.

Raft up

 

It was a lovely light airs day. I have been thinking that the Mirror has been neglected lately, so I decided to brush the possum poo off the cover and take poor old Peregrina out for this week's mjdweek sail.   The Mirror does pretty well in light air compared to Sabres and impulses. Not lasers though, Andrew vanished off into the distance.  Ian had his 14 foot trailer sailer out, and we rafted up for a cuppa. All in all a very pleasant sail. But I missed working on the Skerry, which is coming along.

 I am running out of tasks I can do without some more timber. 

Sparkle and sand and wood

 

Ian sent through a photo of Kirsty  Ann from Wednesday. It certainly was a lovely day on the water. We are incredibly fortunate to be able to get out there.

Today Anne helped me turn the Skerry over. I sanded the bottom for a couple of hours. The novelty wore off quickly, but it is nice to see the shape emerging. I came in covered in white dust.

I bumped into a neighbour yesterday and showed him the Skerry. We got talking about wood and what I need to get to finish. He very kindly donated a lovely bit of oregon, about 7 feet from a Mirror mast. By coincidence i have an old Mirror mast, about 10 feet, the same diameter. I think i can splice the two to get the 12 feet mast i need. 

Coffee klatch

Ian took Westy, I took Kirsty Ann, Kate and Sandra and Ozzie signed on as crew.  It was a lovely day for a sail over to the pier. Rob and Mary from AYC were out walking on the pier and saw us heading in. Tieing up with assistance didnt go so well, it is one of those cases where well meaning help can confuse everybody. I sailed off and tied up at the inner landing. It was a nice spot for a coffee. Heading off we got tangled in fishing lines off the pier, but i managed to sail us backwards and disentangle them. I hope no cameras running, both incidents would be bonehead boaters material. But it was a nice outing. I think I might try some solo outings for a while though.