(Posted on the TSBB (Trailer Sailor Bulletin Board)
If it’s Saturday morning, it must be time to head for Jordan Lake and a little cruising
The skies were dark and foreboding as I pulled away from the storage yard with the pup in tow. Yet another chance of rain - which would be just fine by me as I could sit inside the pilothouse all cozy and dry and laugh at the rain. Been trying to do that for weeks but the darn sun keeps coming out and turning the days nice.
Yet another drama-free launch (ok, forgot to unhook the bow strap) and I was off for another taste of adventure. Today’s float plan included cove hopping at the northern end of the lake. I also needed to put a couple of hours on the engine so it would be ready for its ten hour checkup at the dealer. While it was in for the checkup, I planned to have a few minor repairs made (factory issues) as well as a couple of installations that I wisely did not trust myself to do.
I was really looking forward to having a chartplotter/depthsounder/fishfinder installed so that I could tell where I was, where the fish were and whether I was afloat or not. Depth sounders really aren’t that essential on boats with six inch drafts, unless of course you wander into water less than six inches deep. At that point, you’d be aground anyway so they aren’t much use then either!
I went under the highway bridge and altered my float plan without bothering to notify the United States Coast Guard. I saw boats pulled up to the campsites on the western side of lake and thought it might be nice to cruise alongshore and see all the happy families out for a day of bug bites and sunburn.
I knew there was standing timber down the middle of the lake and, to keep out of it, I had always stayed to the east side but, and this is a crucial point, the campground was on the west side. I carefully consulted my lake chart, saw that there was, indeed, plenty of water over by the campgrounds and a clear path between the submerged timber and shore. I also saw a few boats pulled up to campsites.
Confident of my navigational knowledge and skills, I throttled up and headed for the campground. It wasn’t long before...
THUNK!!!!!!!!!
I knew immediately that I had hit a stump. A 20 foot tall stump to be sure but a stump nonetheless. The engine was still running fine but the propellor was no longer propelling. It being a nice day and therefore having no need for ambient heat, I shut the engine down and considered my plight - if I had a plight at all.
I figured I had probably whacked the prop all out of shape but in my experience (and, yes, I have a little experience with whacking props all out of shape), you can usually limp back to port (or ramp as the case may be) with a whacked prop.
I raised the 50 HP Honda and took a gander. Hmmm, the prop looked just fine. That just might mean that the engine has worked as the engineers intended and THAT would be bad for me - at least in the near term. I recalled the dealer telling me that the Honda had no shear pin. If the prop hit something, the shock was taken up by a rubber sleeve of some sort that would separate the prop motion from the shaft. In order to get the prop reset...well, by then I had stopped listening so I had no idea what I would have to do. Maybe if I just restarted the engine, everything would be hunky dory.
I lowered the engine and, much to my pleasant surprise, started it with no problem. It positively purred and did not bother to throw bit and pieces all over the place. So far, so good. Now to see if the propellor could be induced to propel me once again. I shifted into forward and ... well, never quite got it there. The shift lever refused to to go into forward or reverse. The purring coming from the transom was comforting but useless.
I decided to think through the issue but quickly became bored. I picked up the chart again and figured my position. No stump or timber marked where I was. That didn’t surprise me as the last stump I hit (in a different boat) had not been marked either. I pulled out my iPhone and fired up the way cool Navionics chartplotter app and zoomed in to my location. Lo and behold, there was stump marked right next to the little boat figure on the chart. Either Navionics knew about the stump or it had somehow deduced the location from some weird Big Brother feedback loop activated when I hit it. I now had dual confirmation (dead prop and electronic chart) that the stump existed. In this case, knowledge did not constitute power.
Having the phone at hand, I decided to issue a Pan Pan call to the TSBB figuring that some mechanical brainiac would have quick solution to my problem. After fiddling about quite a bit with the password generating function (doesn’t the webmaster know the bulletin board is an emergency response system?), I was able to post a message describing my situation.
I then pulled up the website of the C Dory dealer and called them for advice. I seemed to recall him telling me about a neutral safety switch so he should be able to tell me some trick to get everything back shipshape. I described my problem to the co-owner who handles sales. She said she was glad to hear that I was getting on the water and enjoying the boat. I thanked her and said getting on the water had not been a problem and the boat was great. Getting off the water was a bit problematic. She went to fetch her partner who also handles the mechanical side of the business.
When he came on the phone, I described my problem and waited for that magic “just push this button” response. Unfortunately, there was long silence instead. Uh-oh.
“Sounds to me like you bent the shift linkage. You’ll have to bring it in for repair.”
“No problem! I was planning to come in anyway. How do I get there?”
“Just come down highway 70 and ...”
“How do I get the boat back on to the trailer so I can come down highway 70?”
“Don’t know about that. Guess you’ll have to get a tow.”
Fortunately, just last week I had renewed my U.S. Boat membership and added the full on-water towing package! Unfortunately, there was no tow service on Jordan Lake. Made a note to myself that with all those stumps out there, I might just have stumbled on to a business opportunity. Cashing in on that would have to wait at least until I got ashore.
Saturday mornings tend to be pretty quiet on the lake which is why I go out then. A little too quiet for my taste today as I could not see any boats within hailing distance who could give me a tow. Hmmmm....
I fiddled with the shift lever a bit more and gave a few mighty heaves and hoes to see if I could get it unjammed. I feared, however, that some safety mechanism had kicked in and that the most I could accomplish would be more damage but then, the lever went into reverse! Happy day!
I had propulsion in reverse but just at idle speed. I tried forward again but to no avail. At least I could back my way to the ramp. Slowly.
After ten minutes of very slowly going backwards, I realized that I was so far out that it could take me many hours to get back to the launch ramp. I had plenty of gas but I really wasn’t sure how long the engine would want to run at such a slow speed in reverse. Maybe until the gas ran out, maybe until it decided it didn’t like reverse any more than forward.
I remembered that there was a very rudimentary ramp serving the campground. Getting the boat there had several advantages. It was much closer. I wouldn’t have to go under the bridge - which would have been interesting with the slow idle and less than ideal steering control. There wouldn’t be many people at the ramp for me to entertain. It was really that last reason that made me choose the campground ramp.
According to the chart and Navionics, I was a little over a mile from the ramp. I just had to navigate through a large stand of submerged timber (with which I was now quite familiar), go around a couple of bends and keep clear of the shore. No problem.
The C Dory normally goes backwards quite smartly. Going at idle speed is not really normal or smart. The boat wandered quite a bit and I performed more than one 360 degree turn. Didn’t make much progress towards the ramp either. Fortunately, I had had the foresight to purchase a five foot paddle for fending off docks, close quarter maneuvering and emergency propulsion. Not sure about the first two purposes but it didn’t work real well for the third. Going backwards or forwards, the boat wanted to turn with every stroke and then I’d be on way around another circle. I suppose I might have been able to paddle myself more straightly if I knew all about J strokes and whatnot but I don’t, so not.
I put the engine back in reverse and slowly zig-zagged my way along. I was rapidly running out of food and the Mountain Dew was getting warm so I began to worry a bit about survival. Fortunately, I had drunk eight ounces of orange juice this morning so I didn’t have to worry about scurvy for at least a few hours. Unfortunately, I had left all of my fishing gear ashore so sushi was not an option for dinner.
Being a glass half full kind of guy, I realized that motoring slowly along and enjoying the scenery was exactly what I’d had in mind today - and I seemed to be doing just that so I could count the day as a success! I had no similar plans for the night but by the then the glass would be all the way empty so I’d deal with that later. In the meantime, I enjoyed watching the kids fishing from shore and the eagles fishing from the sky.
I kept an eye on the Navionics chart to estimate when I would arrive at the ramp. It annoyed me that its precision had suddenly gone walkabout. It had told me precisely where the stump had been but now it showed me as having passed the ramp. I looked ahead over the transom and saw nothing but trees. Humpf.
Then I turned around and look backwards over the bow. Well, lookee there - a nice campground ramp!
My slow progress now seemed distressingly swift as I neared shore. Out on the lake, poking along at idle speed was frustrating. Near shore, idle seemed way too fast but I could no more slow the engine down than I could speed it up. The True Mariner in me came out just in time and I deftly propelled the boat to shore (as if I could have missed if I’d tried!).
I secured the boat to a tree - which I’ve always wanted to do because it looks so cool - and headed for the truck.
I love walking through the forest. I really love doing it as part of a plan rather than out of necessity but there I was and there the truck was not so I tried to enjoy the stroll. I realized that with my hard won new fitness I could actually jog, perhaps even run, to the truck. Cool! Not that I did it but I could have. Maybe.
After two and half mile of nature appreciation, I finally came to the parking lot and checked to see if I had the truck keys. Sorry to disappoint you but, I had them! I passed by a couple of guys rigging two sailboats and said hi, hoping that they were not TSBBers who might mock my apparent boatless state. I jumped in the truck and headed back the way I had come in considerably more comfort. I once again appreciated nature. I appreciate it more when accompanied by air conditioning and a comfortable seat.
The campground ramp had no dock. This presented me with a Learning Opportunity as I had only launched and retrieved at ramps with docks. In fact, I had also always retrieved from the same ramp I had launched at. All kinds of learning opportunities. I am so lucky.
Being a sailor, I can never have enough rope lying about and so the boat was over-equipped with long lines just perfect for walking the boat onto the trailer. I put on my sea boots, gave the boat a shove and started walking it to the trailer. It was going to be tricky to get the boat in just the right position without getting very, very wet but, just in time, a guy appeared out of the woods to admire my boat. He had been camping with his daughter and her Brownie troop. We talked a bit about boats and he told me some good ramp stories of his own. Then I walked onto the trailer and he gave the boat a perfect shove off from shore so that it lined up perfectly with the trailer. I pulled it in, hooked it up and pulled out with no problem whatsoever. Got road ready and headed back to the storage yard with nary a problem.
All in all, not a bad day. Got to float, deal successfully with yet another boating issue and got in a little exercise as a bonus. I’ve had worse days.
________________________________________
Now about that engine. Of course I will have a professional repair it but today taught me that I should probably have reliable auxiliary propulsion. The paddle was insufficient. My shirt would have been ineffective as a sail. Poling in 30 feet of water doesn’t work well. Drifting ashore would be fine with me but not if Spike was aboard.
I don’t think an electric motor would get me out of anything but the easiest situations. It just wouldn’t have the range. I think a lightweight gas motor hung from the transom would do the trick. To be truly redundant, I suppose it should have an integral tank that I keep filled instead of relying on the main gas tank. It should also be tiller steered in case of a problem with the boat’s steering system. Four stroke too so the main gas would be available if necessary for longer runs. Pull start so I don’t have to rely on the main battery or carry an extra battery.
Best of all, I could use the kicker whenever I started poking around in the shallows or trees. That way if I did hit something, I would still have the big Honda to get me home. Using the kicker frequently would also help to ensure that it would be ready should need arise in an emergency.
Any suggestions for a reliable, easy to start, four stroke outboard that could push a 1000 pound 16 foot boat?
If it’s Saturday morning, it must be time to head for Jordan Lake and a little cruising
The skies were dark and foreboding as I pulled away from the storage yard with the pup in tow. Yet another chance of rain - which would be just fine by me as I could sit inside the pilothouse all cozy and dry and laugh at the rain. Been trying to do that for weeks but the darn sun keeps coming out and turning the days nice.
Yet another drama-free launch (ok, forgot to unhook the bow strap) and I was off for another taste of adventure. Today’s float plan included cove hopping at the northern end of the lake. I also needed to put a couple of hours on the engine so it would be ready for its ten hour checkup at the dealer. While it was in for the checkup, I planned to have a few minor repairs made (factory issues) as well as a couple of installations that I wisely did not trust myself to do.
I was really looking forward to having a chartplotter/depthsounder/fishfinder installed so that I could tell where I was, where the fish were and whether I was afloat or not. Depth sounders really aren’t that essential on boats with six inch drafts, unless of course you wander into water less than six inches deep. At that point, you’d be aground anyway so they aren’t much use then either!
I went under the highway bridge and altered my float plan without bothering to notify the United States Coast Guard. I saw boats pulled up to the campsites on the western side of lake and thought it might be nice to cruise alongshore and see all the happy families out for a day of bug bites and sunburn.
I knew there was standing timber down the middle of the lake and, to keep out of it, I had always stayed to the east side but, and this is a crucial point, the campground was on the west side. I carefully consulted my lake chart, saw that there was, indeed, plenty of water over by the campgrounds and a clear path between the submerged timber and shore. I also saw a few boats pulled up to campsites.
Confident of my navigational knowledge and skills, I throttled up and headed for the campground. It wasn’t long before...
THUNK!!!!!!!!!
I knew immediately that I had hit a stump. A 20 foot tall stump to be sure but a stump nonetheless. The engine was still running fine but the propellor was no longer propelling. It being a nice day and therefore having no need for ambient heat, I shut the engine down and considered my plight - if I had a plight at all.
I figured I had probably whacked the prop all out of shape but in my experience (and, yes, I have a little experience with whacking props all out of shape), you can usually limp back to port (or ramp as the case may be) with a whacked prop.
I raised the 50 HP Honda and took a gander. Hmmm, the prop looked just fine. That just might mean that the engine has worked as the engineers intended and THAT would be bad for me - at least in the near term. I recalled the dealer telling me that the Honda had no shear pin. If the prop hit something, the shock was taken up by a rubber sleeve of some sort that would separate the prop motion from the shaft. In order to get the prop reset...well, by then I had stopped listening so I had no idea what I would have to do. Maybe if I just restarted the engine, everything would be hunky dory.
I lowered the engine and, much to my pleasant surprise, started it with no problem. It positively purred and did not bother to throw bit and pieces all over the place. So far, so good. Now to see if the propellor could be induced to propel me once again. I shifted into forward and ... well, never quite got it there. The shift lever refused to to go into forward or reverse. The purring coming from the transom was comforting but useless.
I decided to think through the issue but quickly became bored. I picked up the chart again and figured my position. No stump or timber marked where I was. That didn’t surprise me as the last stump I hit (in a different boat) had not been marked either. I pulled out my iPhone and fired up the way cool Navionics chartplotter app and zoomed in to my location. Lo and behold, there was stump marked right next to the little boat figure on the chart. Either Navionics knew about the stump or it had somehow deduced the location from some weird Big Brother feedback loop activated when I hit it. I now had dual confirmation (dead prop and electronic chart) that the stump existed. In this case, knowledge did not constitute power.
Having the phone at hand, I decided to issue a Pan Pan call to the TSBB figuring that some mechanical brainiac would have quick solution to my problem. After fiddling about quite a bit with the password generating function (doesn’t the webmaster know the bulletin board is an emergency response system?), I was able to post a message describing my situation.
I then pulled up the website of the C Dory dealer and called them for advice. I seemed to recall him telling me about a neutral safety switch so he should be able to tell me some trick to get everything back shipshape. I described my problem to the co-owner who handles sales. She said she was glad to hear that I was getting on the water and enjoying the boat. I thanked her and said getting on the water had not been a problem and the boat was great. Getting off the water was a bit problematic. She went to fetch her partner who also handles the mechanical side of the business.
When he came on the phone, I described my problem and waited for that magic “just push this button” response. Unfortunately, there was long silence instead. Uh-oh.
“Sounds to me like you bent the shift linkage. You’ll have to bring it in for repair.”
“No problem! I was planning to come in anyway. How do I get there?”
“Just come down highway 70 and ...”
“How do I get the boat back on to the trailer so I can come down highway 70?”
“Don’t know about that. Guess you’ll have to get a tow.”
Fortunately, just last week I had renewed my U.S. Boat membership and added the full on-water towing package! Unfortunately, there was no tow service on Jordan Lake. Made a note to myself that with all those stumps out there, I might just have stumbled on to a business opportunity. Cashing in on that would have to wait at least until I got ashore.
Saturday mornings tend to be pretty quiet on the lake which is why I go out then. A little too quiet for my taste today as I could not see any boats within hailing distance who could give me a tow. Hmmmm....
I fiddled with the shift lever a bit more and gave a few mighty heaves and hoes to see if I could get it unjammed. I feared, however, that some safety mechanism had kicked in and that the most I could accomplish would be more damage but then, the lever went into reverse! Happy day!
I had propulsion in reverse but just at idle speed. I tried forward again but to no avail. At least I could back my way to the ramp. Slowly.
After ten minutes of very slowly going backwards, I realized that I was so far out that it could take me many hours to get back to the launch ramp. I had plenty of gas but I really wasn’t sure how long the engine would want to run at such a slow speed in reverse. Maybe until the gas ran out, maybe until it decided it didn’t like reverse any more than forward.
I remembered that there was a very rudimentary ramp serving the campground. Getting the boat there had several advantages. It was much closer. I wouldn’t have to go under the bridge - which would have been interesting with the slow idle and less than ideal steering control. There wouldn’t be many people at the ramp for me to entertain. It was really that last reason that made me choose the campground ramp.
According to the chart and Navionics, I was a little over a mile from the ramp. I just had to navigate through a large stand of submerged timber (with which I was now quite familiar), go around a couple of bends and keep clear of the shore. No problem.
The C Dory normally goes backwards quite smartly. Going at idle speed is not really normal or smart. The boat wandered quite a bit and I performed more than one 360 degree turn. Didn’t make much progress towards the ramp either. Fortunately, I had had the foresight to purchase a five foot paddle for fending off docks, close quarter maneuvering and emergency propulsion. Not sure about the first two purposes but it didn’t work real well for the third. Going backwards or forwards, the boat wanted to turn with every stroke and then I’d be on way around another circle. I suppose I might have been able to paddle myself more straightly if I knew all about J strokes and whatnot but I don’t, so not.
I put the engine back in reverse and slowly zig-zagged my way along. I was rapidly running out of food and the Mountain Dew was getting warm so I began to worry a bit about survival. Fortunately, I had drunk eight ounces of orange juice this morning so I didn’t have to worry about scurvy for at least a few hours. Unfortunately, I had left all of my fishing gear ashore so sushi was not an option for dinner.
Being a glass half full kind of guy, I realized that motoring slowly along and enjoying the scenery was exactly what I’d had in mind today - and I seemed to be doing just that so I could count the day as a success! I had no similar plans for the night but by the then the glass would be all the way empty so I’d deal with that later. In the meantime, I enjoyed watching the kids fishing from shore and the eagles fishing from the sky.
I kept an eye on the Navionics chart to estimate when I would arrive at the ramp. It annoyed me that its precision had suddenly gone walkabout. It had told me precisely where the stump had been but now it showed me as having passed the ramp. I looked ahead over the transom and saw nothing but trees. Humpf.
Then I turned around and look backwards over the bow. Well, lookee there - a nice campground ramp!
My slow progress now seemed distressingly swift as I neared shore. Out on the lake, poking along at idle speed was frustrating. Near shore, idle seemed way too fast but I could no more slow the engine down than I could speed it up. The True Mariner in me came out just in time and I deftly propelled the boat to shore (as if I could have missed if I’d tried!).
I secured the boat to a tree - which I’ve always wanted to do because it looks so cool - and headed for the truck.
I love walking through the forest. I really love doing it as part of a plan rather than out of necessity but there I was and there the truck was not so I tried to enjoy the stroll. I realized that with my hard won new fitness I could actually jog, perhaps even run, to the truck. Cool! Not that I did it but I could have. Maybe.
After two and half mile of nature appreciation, I finally came to the parking lot and checked to see if I had the truck keys. Sorry to disappoint you but, I had them! I passed by a couple of guys rigging two sailboats and said hi, hoping that they were not TSBBers who might mock my apparent boatless state. I jumped in the truck and headed back the way I had come in considerably more comfort. I once again appreciated nature. I appreciate it more when accompanied by air conditioning and a comfortable seat.
The campground ramp had no dock. This presented me with a Learning Opportunity as I had only launched and retrieved at ramps with docks. In fact, I had also always retrieved from the same ramp I had launched at. All kinds of learning opportunities. I am so lucky.
Being a sailor, I can never have enough rope lying about and so the boat was over-equipped with long lines just perfect for walking the boat onto the trailer. I put on my sea boots, gave the boat a shove and started walking it to the trailer. It was going to be tricky to get the boat in just the right position without getting very, very wet but, just in time, a guy appeared out of the woods to admire my boat. He had been camping with his daughter and her Brownie troop. We talked a bit about boats and he told me some good ramp stories of his own. Then I walked onto the trailer and he gave the boat a perfect shove off from shore so that it lined up perfectly with the trailer. I pulled it in, hooked it up and pulled out with no problem whatsoever. Got road ready and headed back to the storage yard with nary a problem.
All in all, not a bad day. Got to float, deal successfully with yet another boating issue and got in a little exercise as a bonus. I’ve had worse days.
________________________________________
Now about that engine. Of course I will have a professional repair it but today taught me that I should probably have reliable auxiliary propulsion. The paddle was insufficient. My shirt would have been ineffective as a sail. Poling in 30 feet of water doesn’t work well. Drifting ashore would be fine with me but not if Spike was aboard.
I don’t think an electric motor would get me out of anything but the easiest situations. It just wouldn’t have the range. I think a lightweight gas motor hung from the transom would do the trick. To be truly redundant, I suppose it should have an integral tank that I keep filled instead of relying on the main gas tank. It should also be tiller steered in case of a problem with the boat’s steering system. Four stroke too so the main gas would be available if necessary for longer runs. Pull start so I don’t have to rely on the main battery or carry an extra battery.
Best of all, I could use the kicker whenever I started poking around in the shallows or trees. That way if I did hit something, I would still have the big Honda to get me home. Using the kicker frequently would also help to ensure that it would be ready should need arise in an emergency.
Any suggestions for a reliable, easy to start, four stroke outboard that could push a 1000 pound 16 foot boat?
. Great story, I still think this guy MUST be our Jim incognito !