Virtual Ship's Log from Captain Hammer

'Cause I don't have enough to do already

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Last Day of Georgetown


It was a gray and windless Sunday morning with a light sprinkle. Unfortunately I wasn't able to sail, but I was able to find the springs (see video) and paddle back to the car easily. Here are the thorns and roses: general prep was very good- I had all that I needed. The sail rig worked even though I wasn't able to test it very much. And of course I will ALWAYS make sure that damn tie-down stays put. My next project is to straighten the canoe.
Sleeping on the canoe: critters don't get in your food, it's easy to set up shelter, and it's very clean. The only problem is that it's cramped. Camping in cold weather: no bugs, don't use as much water, food preservation is a non issue. The down side is that it's cold.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Georgetown Trip Day 2


Even subtracting 5 minutes for every time I woke up and turned over, I still slept for a cumulative 12 hours. Hibernated, really. It was 26 F according to my thermometer. The pic above is of the aft end of the boom, covered in little fuzzy ice crystals. I had rigged two old fiberglass tent poles to the canoe, and had thrown a tarp over them as a make-shift shelter to keep the frost off of me for the night.
I decided to paddle up stream (and against a light breeze) to lunch in the mouth of the San Gabriel. My plan was to then hoist the sail and cruise back to a camp site on the south shore. The water was calm, it was sunny, and I was pretty much alone on the river. Lunch was on shore, and I was feeling good. But then- well, sometimes you get the wind. Sometimes the wind gets you.
It kicked up to 10 knots, gusting to 20, and shifted to make my trip back to the lake quite an exercise. I could no longer ride the wind out of the river, as it was blowing straight in my face. Also, when alone in a canoe, sitting in the back forces the front end of the canoe up (even with my gear stored forward to balance, it wasn't enough to make it flat in the water), and every gust of wind pushes the bow to the left or right, making staying on track impossible. To counter I had to throw myself into the middle of the canoe each time the wind kicked up, and paddle hard to keep myself from regressing back up the river. All this (and a Dale's Pale) meant when I finally got to a camp, I crashed again for 11 hours. I only woke up when the coyotes started howling- but rolled over and slept some more after I was sure they didn't sound like they were coming closer. Pic below is lunch at Box Crossing.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Georgetown Trip Day 1.5



Ok- last we left off our trusty canoe had had a run in with a nasty harbinger of death. But, she was now floating gently (and without leaking) on the calm (but breezy) winter afternoon waters of Lake Georgetown. The sail rig was fitting well enough to try out. I paddled to a small cove and began running the lines, tying on the paddle/rudder to the stern, and zip-tying the sail to the mast and boom. I didn't feel safe in that temperature water (and with %50 of all the camping gear I own on board) going anywhere but downwind. And I did go. I raised the sail cautiously 1/3 up the mast, then 2/3 up, and caught a nice breeze that took me effortlessly about a mile upstream. The steering worked well, and tracking didn't seem to be a problem. The sun was going down quickly, though, and i figured I had a whole day ahead of me to test it more. So I stopped at a tree in the water, about 10 feet from the shore, and moored my keel to it. I used my coffee-can charcoal stove to cook some tortillas and sausages on the boat, and it worked well. The small plywood bottom also proved to be fairly comfortable as I rolled out my sleeping bag. My quarters were pretty cramped, though. A Dale's Pale Ale later and I was fast asleep.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Goergetown Trip, Day 1

Sandwiched between our CD release party on Thursday Jan 20th and a live radio performance (KVRX Local Live) Sunday, Jan 23rd, was my solo trip to Lake Georgetown. I had been working a lot on the sailing rig,
and accumulating some very good luck points for several days (making green lights I never make, "check engine" light on my dash turned off by itself, etc.). I was feeling good about the trip, even though I got
to the park a little late after finishing the hem and grommet installation on the sail. The gentleman at the park gate was friendly, and said i could have the run of the place, since I was the only overnight guest scheduled to be there. He gave me a map and pointed out a few good camping spots around the lake- he couldn't believe he had bought a canoe recently that was EXACTLY like mine (I thought I had seen one at an RV just
before the gate area. He confirmed it was his, and remarked he had never seen another like it until now). I was set with a map, a GPS, and a plan. I drove immediately to the boat launch. That's when it
happened.
The lazy end of the tie-down strap had worked itself loose during the drive to the park, but hadn't caused any problems until I started driving down the ramp. "CRUNCH". I had no idea what just happened. I got out to look, and realized I had driven over that loose end of the tie down, cinching down the canoe with such force that it bent the frame (and dented the roof of my car). I felt sick to my stomach. "All of this work and planning and dreaming, and now this freak accident!".
I went ahead and got it off the car and into the water to inspect it. The hull was in tact, the bottom was straight, but one of the gunwales was bent significantly. It was ugly, but it didn't look like it'd affect the performance. It did, however, affect how my rig fit. Then I had one of those moments like in the movies where the protagonist
looks up from what he's doing and into the distance, the camera zooms in fast on his epiphanous expression, and a film collage of previous bits of the movie starts to tell the story of what has just occurred
to him. You see, I hadn't been collecting good luck signs all week, I had been hemorrhaging good luck, spilling it onto trivial things. There was none left for my trip. Then I shuddered, mind reeling from the realization that just 5 minutes prior my canoe had glimpsed her own doppelganger. This was no freak accident. This is how the doppelganger works.
Stay tuned for pics, video, and the next installment of the Georgetown trip.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

One last post before I go:

This will be the last entry before the trip- too busy to blog again. Sail cloth came in last night, and the sail is taking shape. Forecast is for light winds (about 8 knots) from the North on Friday, which should be perfect (just enough to move me, but hopefully not enough to tip me over into a frigid lake!). It will be cold (overnight freeze), but should be sunny during the day. Estimated weight for all water, rations and gear is 60 lbs. A little more weight forward would be good to help counter all my weight aft, but I honestly don't know what else to bring. I'm sure I'll think of it when I'm there and it's too late. Maybe I should get a bigger anchor.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Inspiration Through Libation


I was feeling the stress of the time crunch with this sailing canoe project, wandering our local grocery store for dinner with my head somewhere else, when I found myself in the familiar territory of the beer aisle. It's like my subconscious was trying to tell me to relax. Not being one that dares neglect his psyche, I went ahead and perused. For the first time ever I found inspiration on a bottle, rather than in it. The picture above is from a Full Sail Amber label: early pioneers in Virginia sailing what look like canoes. It's hard to tell, but I'm going to go ahead and say they're canoes.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Countdown to Launch

I've decided on Lake Georgetown; it is much smaller, more trees (according to satellite detail from Google Earth), %50 of the shoreline is public park, and I've never been there. There looks like only 1 park that is not closed to overnight camping (due to renovations) and that has a boat ramp. Of course the boat ramp isn't required, but it sure makes things easier when I don't know what the terrain might be. "Is it so small you'll get bored?", my wife asked. Good question, but I think there is enough to do, and i can always paddle up the San Gabriel to see what I can see.
Sailcloth isn't here yet (it's held up by the winter storm that hit East coast), and there isn't one piece that's completely finished, but I've got one more weekend to get it all together. Take a look at the pictures from Google Earth taken at Russel Park (zoom in on Lake Georgetown, click on the little photo icons on the North bank towards the middle of the lake). I hope to add some of my own soon!

Sunday, January 9, 2011


The plan is, even though it's January, to spend a few days on a solo canoe trip either to Lake Travis or to Lake Georgetown. The problem is that I want this thing to sail, and the trip is less than 2 weeks away. This weekend and last I've worked on all the components: the yoke, the mast step, and the mast and boom. Sail cloth is being shipped from South Carolina (5 bucks a yard, 5.5 oz dacron sail cloth, ebay!). The paradigm has shifted: do not spend months trying to make a perfect rig- this will mean it never gets done. Instead just make the pieces, often out of scrap, and see how they work together. Then redesign and remake the beta pieces. If I think of it that way then everything moves much faster. But will it move fast enough for Jan. 21st trip? Pictured is the yoke, almost complete, standing on end without the keels attached.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

BELLS!!!


My first write up. Who knew when I was 2 years old, banging away on that rainbow-colored Fisher Price xylophone, that it'd ever amount to anything?