Endings and beginnings

I was supposed to be off on a flying trip this weekend, the kids were supposed to leave Indy Friday for St. Louis, and Deb was just trying to keep it all coordinated. My trip canceled at the last minute, Kristin and Brain needed a few extra hours before heading out, and so (much to our delight) Deb and I made it to the boat Friday night after all. As always walking down the pier to open up the boat marked the true beginning of the weekend. I just love clambering around little Nomad, opening ports, removing covers, topping off batteries, doing the engine checks that are a part of every pre-departure check list, and (given the outside air temp, "OAT" to a pilot) cranking up the heater. I also added a dock line from the stern, across the now open slip next to us, to the finger pier. With all the rain the lake is 6 feet deeper than it was two weeks ago, the "break water" that much shorter, and the building winds out of the WSW were shoving the boat against her dock. The added line pulled us off the fenders making for a much quieter night.

Kristin, Brian and Christopher arrived Saturday morning freed from the burden of home ownership and ready to start their big adventure in Cape Cod; their first stop being a visit on Nomad in hopes of joining us on the final sail of the season. Friday night things were looking a bit "iffy" in the sailing department but Saturday dawned clear, not as cold as we had feared, and with the winds fading to a much more reasonable Force 3 to 4. Brain and I made short work of hanking on the working jib, running the sheets and pulling the covers. The crew got bundled up and off we went on a really nice reach toward Coles Creek.

The waves were in the 1 to 2 foot range, mostly left over from the night's blow. Without a reef in the main the boat would heel over pretty hard in the gusts, but with Captain Christopher in the cockpit I would loose the main sheet to keep Nomad on her feet. Deb worked the helm pretty hard with me constantly changing her sail, but between the two of us we managed a heading that worked while keeping Christopher (and Mama) happy.

Even with her main sail being badly abused Nomad danced down the lake at better than 5 knots, sometimes topping 6, and a couple of times pushing hull speed. It was almost as if she knew this was the last romp of the season and wanted to show Christopher and his Mom and Dad the best that sailing can be. The good speed also meant getting back to the dock before the baby could get too cold, making this last sail as perfect as one could hope.

Sometime in the next week or so Nomad will endure being hauled up on the land and stuck in a cradle. Hopefully our reports over the off season will be of projects being started, (and finished) improvements being made, and the little things done that all sailors seem to do to make their boats "better." My list is up to 20 items, about half of which I consider as "must get done."