That's it for this year

[ACB]

Final sail last weekend; a nice sail on Saturday, and a foggy drift on Sunday. Now tucked up in a marina berth, for the first time in her life. I have been very slow to discover that, since boats made of the other stuff don't like to get wet, and have to come out and get dry in the winter, for fear of boat pox, the wooden boat, with no such concerns, can get a cheap marina berth in the winter months, in our climate!

[Scott Rosen]

Around here, keeping your boat in the water is called "wet storage." It costs half or less of what the plastic boaters pay for "dry storage."

I have a very cozy, well protected spot near the mouth of a small tidal river. The water moves just enough to prevent ice-up. The banks are close enough that there are never any waves and are high enough that my boat's in the lee all the time.

There's something reassuring to know that I can go down to the boatyard and get on my boat, in the water, any time of year.

[Donn]

Yep...it's nice to have her in the water. I spent saturday night on Loon, in the boathouse. The nor'easter gave her plenty of movement, and the engine compartment heater kicked in enough to keep me warm.

The best part is that if we have another winter like last winter, I can take her out when those weird 70 degree January days roll around.

[John B]

We are out for our first race on Sunday!

MY turn!. YEE haw. ( as Norm would say)

[NormMessinger]

[img]tongue.gif[/img]

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

Sunday we got 6 inches of snow. However the good news is that for a 36 foot boat I pay 1200 dollars american for winter storage and summer slip, and haulout. I hear prices are a little higher on the eastern seaboard.

[John R Smith]

So, Andrew, it's a marina rather than the mud berth this winter? Must be more expensive, surely?

John

[ACB]

John, the answer is "Yes, but not by as much as I had thought".

In favour of the mud berth - 45p per foot (37 of them) per week, as against a five month stay in the marina at a discount rate of Pds 624, which is an awful lot of money but must be balanced against:

In favour of the marina:

I don't need yard help to get the boat into and out of her berth - saving say Pds 80

I don't need to make a new gangplank saving say Pds 40 for materials

I don't need to find some "mud berth warps" to be ruined over the winter - saving say Pds 40.

There will not be any build up of "concretion" on the antifouling to be laboriously scraped off in the Spring - she can just go on the mooring after a scrub on the marina posts - which are "all in", saving Pds 20.

I am not dependent on a big spring tide to get in and out of the berth.

Better security, better access, and better shelter from the weather.

The ease of access will, I hope, result in my doing all the odd jobs that I have been putting off!

[John R Smith]

That's very interesting, Andrew. By my (admittedly shaky) math, you should actually save a bit of money and gain a whole lot in convenience and ease of winter access, as you say. I didn't realise a mud berth would be so expensive


John

[martin schulz]

Well no "mud-berthing" in the Baltic.

As for "end of the season" I still have to take part in our "Grogtörn" on the 26th of December. Everybody in the Museumharbour gets out the Flensburg harbour to sail a bit and, of course to have some grog - its cold out there guys.

[ACB]

Martin - what a wonderful photograph!

That is another thing, of course - if I want to go for a sail at Christmas, I can just take the cover off and go!

John, I am sure there are cheaper mud berths, indeed there must still be some that cost nothing, but not where the boat is - I scoured the river but could find nowhere cheaper than 45p per foot per week.

[martin schulz]

A friend of mine did that 2 years ago.

I am actually thinking on inviting some friends to party New Year on my boat ( I won't allow dancing on my 24ft boat though).

What would be even better is to drive around in Hamburg harbour at 0:00 when all the ships are out there making as much noise as possible - but I won't make it to Hamburg this year, and driving around in a crowded seaport in the night is also not very relaxing (not for the skipper, that is).

[Gary Bergman]

Left the slip this morning early; the full moon was still in sight as I slid out the harbor entrance. Up with the main, jib, and the mizzen. Sailed leasurely to the cityfront, out to Alcatraz, into the wind shadow behind the prison, and made it back to Richardsons Bay in two tacks. Really singlehanded as I'm waiting the approval of my shoulder surgery. Back in the slip, Hook up the electrical, turn on the computer and write this... Oh yeah, the header said somethin about thats it', screw that concept.......65 degrees and sunny

[Shang]

Now don't everybody move to the Missouri Ozarks when you hear that I pay ten dollars a month for a parking place for my boat.

(But that's assuming that I don't want to keep it in the slip, as I've done several times, for free.)

[skuthorp]

It's getting hot already here, I was swimming in the ocean sans wetsuit on sunday. Sailing the sunfish on sunday morning it was glassy early but a good breeze came up later. I'm a bit light for it in heavy weather by myself and I have to arrange some reefing gear this summer. I'm looking forward to the WB Festival at Goolwa in autumn but there's a summer of watery delights before that! Mike Field and I really relate to the talk of 'mud berths', are these are in a sort of semi dry marina, or hard stand?

[martin schulz]

No, I will not be envious (arrgh - I will not be envious, I will....)

Well, I wouldn't like to celebrate christmas without snow, no I wouldn't

[Dave Hadfield]

Drake is in a snowbank again, in Penetanguishene, rats, rats, rats, rats......

[PeterSibley]

You're all making me feel cold!I went for my first sail for the season too,unfortunately I forgot the blockout and got a nastily sunburnt nose !Gusting 20 kots,29 C and a friend's 21 foot cold molded double ended whale boat...gunter rigged and fast!Very very pleasant...

[B. Burnside]

We're still sailing too, at 49N123W more or less. We take my grandson out Sunday afternoons if the weather's ok. Meaning wind and not too much rain.

We had a good breeze last week, and where we are it's relatively sheltered, so we don't get big seas. We chomped along with the rubrail under, and once in a while a slosh into the cockpit, tacking just before we impaled Sidney Island on the bowsprit.

Gramma got all cross trying to start the alcohol/kerosene stove at that heel. With soggy matches. Eventually we headed for home, and I took the helm. Much less heel, dry matches, tea and hot chocolate. (Any fool can start the stove at 10 degrees of heel, mutter, mutter...) Our little navy runs on chips, hot chocolate, chocolate bars and tea. Being a grandparent is so great - they can't get malnutrition in one day.

But the light! Our wintry afternoon light with the clouds all everywhere, flying and tattered. Seabirds in their winter clothes, and us too, all snuggled up and warm in our cockpit.

A very fine afternoon.

Barbara

[John B]

Went out yesterday for a race. 3 boats in our division finished. we were one.
We got smacked around quite badly in gusts of 40 and wind against tide. It got unfun with a crash gybe all standing in 30 kts. ( never done that before under this rig)The second time around the course was miserable and cold. The sun is shining today ( monday)dammit. typical. rats.

[Hugh Paterson]

Jings the ice on the anchor alone puts me off, we are in the middle of the icicle season as well, one of my poor wee boats is still on her mooring in the river, I keep trying to convince myself that I WILL sail her now and again (weather permitting) this winter, but the honest truth is that I visit her at weekend to see shes snug on the mooring have a nip of grog and come home sighhhhhhh.
Shuggie.