A Winter's Sail

[Ian McColgin]

What a nice little sail today. We (Marmalade and I) fooled around a bit after noon, but in the end we had to suit up and sail. The southwesterly Moderate Breeze (Force 4, under 15knots) and the afternoon sun were just too seductive.

After victory laps around Lewis Bay and the two coves we beat out past Kalmus and then I had the bright idea we could cut west across the end of the jetty and along the beach to Hyannis Port. Judged the spot just a tad wrong and dug the centreboard pretty firmly in the sand. We rounded up on that so once I had the board up enough that we could move, I had to back us out of irons. It was a bit dodgy as we were backing down on the jetty. As I held the helm and stared at the approaching jetty’s end, I snugged the cuffs and thigh straps on the Gumby and generally made ready for partial immersion incase I had to hop on the jetty to fend off. I guess Marmalade decided not to be sodomized by the jetty and we bore off west to whisk along about 100’ off the beach to where the old railway pier went out. I tacked there and stood out till I could tack again to swoop the Hyannis Port Yacht Club dock.

After that we romped out past the end of the Hyannis Port breakwater, beat west to Craigville and then an lovely downhill slide home. We sailed through a flock of diving ducks - harlequins or something - that declined to be frightened of us but the ones that we threatened to run over dove under the boat, bobbing up on the other side with a “who me?” look.

I am getting slowly used to having a sail up at the dock. Given her snub bow, Marmalade is pretty happy held tightly by the bow and once the sail’s up she actually likes to be sheeted in, letting the stern and sail move with the wind together. If I make a habit of this, perhaps I shall accent the tugboat look of her bow with a nicely combed out pudding.

[anniebskipper]

Ian, have you a picture of Marmalade somewhere?

[elf]

http://www.wickedlocal.com/dennis/fun/x1992198743

[tchiffriller]

Yes, I would like to see it.

[tchiffriller]

nevermind. looks like you answered before i could even finish writing that down. haha

[P.L.Lenihan]

Yup.Each time Mr.McColgin takes MARMALADE out and decides to entertain with a story,he should really include lots and lots of pictures for us illiterate types who enjoy drooling over pictures

Thanks for the link ELF but I already have those saved.What we needs is fresh ones taken by a professional ...hint,hint.............

And thank you, Mr.McColgin, for a fine (too short!) recounting of a fine winter sail!!


Peter

[elf]

Well, here's one from last summer:



Marmalade on her way to a windless catboat rendezvous off the mouth of Bass River...

[P.L.Lenihan]

Merci Beaucoup! Encore!Encore!!


Peter

[elf]

C'est tout, je regret.

Soon it will get warm, Ian will haul her for scrubbing and work, and we'll get to go out on new adventures.

[J. Dillon]

That shot by Elf is great . It really gives a sense how roomy that Marmalade is. It some how kind of fits her owner well.

JD

[Ian McColgin]

So today's (Monday) show-off moment was as I tacked past the Hyannis Yacht Club I was looking at all the pilings without their floats and thinking that it looked like a slalom course.

Ah Ha.

I made all the gate clean.

Today Marmalade and I just played at maneuver and finished off with an absolutely perfect landing at my dock.

Finastkind day.

[rbgarr]

The sail over the Craigville Beach sounds nice. What direction was the wind blowing again?

[Ian McColgin]

Southwest. A beat.

[Plover]

Ian, Sounds like you got cabin fever pretty bad! Nice pics!
Paul

[Ian McColgin]

Not cabin fever. It was just a better two days for sailing than for attacking the water pump or what's left of the old head's plumbing or any of the other eight thousand four hundred and twenty six tasks on the list.

[johngsandusky]

I took a winter sail yesterday, in my Melonseed. Still plenty of snow on the hills, but it was 44f with a light breeze and sunshine. Pulled the trailer across the snow, towed to the ramp, off we go! Spent a pleasant hour and a half poking around and through the marshes.

[Ian McColgin]

John, aren't you down near my home waters? I grew up in Setauket and sailed out of Port Jefferson. If I have the right place in mind, what on earth is snow doing left down there. Sure is gone here.

[johngsandusky]

Ian, yes, I sail out of Mt. Sinai. That's the harbor in monday's sail. We had about 6" of snow on friday, followed by enough rain to clear the streets. Yesterday it rained all afternoon, washed all the snow away. I sailed in PJ harbor in january, to the outer beach by the cove.

[Ian McColgin]

Man, I looked at some arial photos. Way built up. There was a tiny boatyard owned by a neighbor and really nothing but woods going east. We used to hunt (fox, with hounds and horses and all) Mt. Sinai past Miller Place pretty much uninterrupted. In one hunt, I was the only one who swam my horse across the creek to follow the hounds and fox swimming ahead of me.

We called the spoil hole (left from trap rock mining) on the east side of Port Jeff "Pirate's Cove." The beach on the west coming out from Old Field Point had two little duck hunting shacks that we'd camp in.

[johngsandusky]

Ian, you're showing your age. I grew up in Mt. Sinai during the 60s. People still call it Pirates Cove, though I don't remember haering that as a boy. I always thought that cove was from sand mining. It's parkland now, there are no cabins, just remnants of the mine operation, and the wreck of the Park City. The Davis Island boatyard was moved to the north side years ago and renamed Old Man's. Bob Zumft who ran it died only a couple of years ago. Robbie Darling is still there. Ralph's Fishing Station also moved, and Ralph also crossed the bar. I've seen enormous development over the years, and I miss the island I grew up on. But Mt. Sinai is still a very beautiful harbor, and I have to sail in the present.

[Ian McColgin]

Sometime in mid-August I'll be sailing down the Sound, pick up my brother and sister in Stratford (easy access for one flying in to Bradley the other driving up from Philly, and Mom & Dad driving down from Bridgewater to see us off) for a sail across and a sentimental bit around. Maybe see you then.

When I was little and Bob was a teen and young man, I remember his biking past our house. I used to go down to his yard when I was old enough. I know that Setauket Yacht Club (we were a founding family) moved from the old Bayless Dock and the old Harborside Hotel (a whore house) vanished decades ago.

But everything is built up. I went to Stony Brook but before it was ever built, when the land was still Woods Dairy and owned by Ward Melville, we hunted that land. And the potatoe fields ran rught up to Port Jeff Station. And caulliflower fields surrounded Setauket School (then K-9) so on a warm moist autum day after harvest the rank stench of that most plastic of veggies hung heavily in our lungs.

[rbgarr]

I was looking at Mapquest aerial image http://tinyurl.com/3y396h and am wondering if the two arms of water to the west of Pt. Jeff harbor have names. I remember spending a night at anchor just inside the breakwater in the 60s but don't recall the coves off there.

[Ian McColgin]

Conscience Bay and Setauket Harbor. I don't recall any particular name for that part of PJ harbor that's just behind the west sandspit and forms the approaches to Conscience Bay and Setauket Harbor.

[johngsandusky]

It was all still pretty rural when I grew up here. We picked berries and played in the woods. PJ was a sleepy town, we'd bicycle there to see movies or fish off the dock, and visit the soda fountain. It's lively now, but still nice. Let me know when you come down, I'll buy you a beer.