We put "Mistress" on Medina Lake yesterday, partly to stress test mods made over the fall/winter/spring and also as a long planned overnight on the lake after watch fireworks. Winds were gusting 11-15mph, and at the south end of the lake, there is a narrow choke point where it turns east/west from north/south, so we decided to motor instead of beat into the winds in a narrow body of water.
The motor performed well, confirming the new emergency shutoff and neutral safety switch installations. The electric pump on the gallery sink is great!
The porta-potty leaked. Luckily, it was just lake water...... Rudder uphaul and downhaul - check; new radio installation to include running new wire in the mast and relocating the S/S antenna - check.
Now...the prop guard.....the first thing I notice was a seeming lack of power in reverse with the guard in place. Even though performance in forward was good, it wasn't real good. The test lasted for a full 15 minutes. Then vibration set in. At first it was light vibration, then it got worse. I looked over the transom and saw a piece of the prop guard trailing behind. We shut down the motor and I went over the side to check it out. It had started delaminating from the inside, and the piece trailing behind was almost two full wraps of fibreglass cloth.
The fix was simple. I broke the rest off, and we went on our way. We anchored in 83ft of water, 30 ft from a rocky shoreline, and thought we were safe from stink-boaters. At dusk, everyone started arriving for the fireworks. A couple hundred boats. This is where the "back-up light" came in handy. It's and underwater light that I installed at the bottom of the swim ladder. Every time someone wanted to anchor a bit too close, I'd simply plug it in. It's annoyingly bright, and they would leave. Better that than fouling my anchor line. There is no way I'd try to dive 80+ feet to cut loose. It was also great for deterring Parks & Wildlife from observing with night vision devices.
I did have a couple boat approach in the early hours of the morning wondering what "Mistress" was. There aren't many sailboats on Medina Lake, and "Mistress" also seems to be one of the larger boats.
It was a nice fireworks show, and a real peaceful overnighter on the water. We sailed back to our mooring under jib alone. Mistress now sits on her mooring for about a week so I can do some much needed trailer maintenance.
Happy 4th of July.
- James