The Cruising Adventures of Wild Blue and crew...

Harvey - we rented a jetski once in Mexico... got a bit less instruction, but we didn't understand any of it, anyway. :wink: Not my idea of big fun, but we had to try it once. Like you, I prefer my boats to have a bit more... substance.

George - I was told that the marina at Wahweap stays open year 'round. I think Dangling Rope closes in November, so make sure you have plenty of fuel when you head out on the lake. Hope Mother Nature treats you as well as she has us this trip.

-------------

Meeting up with friends from home on the lake...

http://captnjim.blogspot.com/2012/10/a-bit-of-home.html

I know some of the Brats here know our friends Herb and Wilma. Here's a look at them heading out to their tug after happy hour on the beach...

HerbWilmaRowingHomeE.jpg

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
Great photos Jim. I plan to explore the lower end of the river near wawheap and gunsite, crossing of the fathers and cookie jar area so full tanks should be good. Plan on slo cruise this time. Travel safe and fun guys. George
 
Jim,

Nice Sunrise. I have had folks remark about being up at 05 to 06, that they didn't even know if those numbers on the really worked on that end of the day.

Well, we finally turned the corner here, after about 80 plus days of no rain. it has rained for parts of two days in a row now.

Enjoy your warm, there and travel safe.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon
 
Down to the dry ol' desert now, Harvey. Wild Blue is in storage for a week or two, and we are learning how to sleep in a rectangle bed again. Little Izzy wants to know if "this is where we live now?"

We are enjoying a visit with our daughter and son-in-law; heading for the Tropical Tip in a week or two.

Warm and dry here. The "search for summer" is working out well. 8)

Best wishes,
Jim
 
Welcome to the club Jim.

I have had three tires come apart with a lot less miles driven. One tire took my fender completely off the trailer and over a guard rail never to be seen again. Never had the steel belts wrap around the axle.

Sounds like the you received good service - it is nice when it works that way.

Steve
 
SeaSpray":ta0mpwjk said:
Welcome to the club Jim.

I have had three tires come apart with a lot less miles driven. One tire took my fender completely off the trailer and over a guard rail never to be seen again. Never had the steel belts wrap around the axle.

Sounds like the you received good service - it is nice when it works that way.

Steve
Click to expand...

Thanks for the response, Steve. Yes, the road service from BoatUS worked as we hoped. Especially considering where we were and the fact that it was after 5:30 on a Friday.

The only other tire incident we've had on the current boat trailer was 5 years ago, when we discovered a fist-size piece of tread missing (the steel belts were showing, the rest of the tire was decent). We were fueling up (we check the tires and hubs almost every time we stop), and there was a tire shop right next to the truck stop. This is the first time we have had to call for road service with the trailer.

This set of tires is about 3 years old, and has less than 15,000 miles. The tread still looks good, no weather-checking. I hope the other 3 aren't ready to let loose.

Sorry if this brought up bad memories of disappearing fenders. 8)

Best wishes,
Jim
 
Had flat on I-5 just after buying the boat...funny thing is, I was en route to Kitsap Marine to get a warranty done on the engine AND buy a spare. :roll: A phone call, Les Schwab, one hour and $90 later, I was on my way. He patched the tire on the side of I-5. Pretty impressive and it reenforced my stupidity of not being prepared w/ a spare and all the correct tools required. Never again.
 
Jim,

I'm glad that the tire blowout didn't do more damage. We had the same thing
happen back in 1982. We were on our way to Lake Powell with our brand new
SeaRay Cuddy Cruiser behind our motorhome. We were about 15 miles outside
of Cortez, CO when I got a frantic call over the CB from a trucker right behind
us telling us that a tire just blew. By the time I could get pulled over onto the
shoulder the right rear tire totally disintegrated and tore up the fender, wiring
and clearance lights on the fender. I also did not feel anything when it blew.
After changing the tire, we stopped at the Goodyear Tire store in Cortez, but
they of course did not have any trailer tires of that size so we had a non
trailer tire mounted up and motored on into Page and then ordered a replacement
tire. After that episode, I always carry (2) mounted spares and constantly
check the mirrors to observe the tires. In the desert, heat really takes it's toll
on tires as does underinflation. As a side note, when a tire blows or the tread
or belt separates usually there is a fair amount of blue smoke visible in back
of the boat trailer. I've seen it happen twice to folks pulling boats ahead of us.
I adjust the mirrors so that I can easily see the tires on both sides and constantly
scan the mirrors. (call me paranoid), but it is scary when it happens.
I'm glad that BoatUS came thru for you. I also have BoatUS and have always
heard good reports about their trailer service.
I also have Marathons on the trailer that are 5 years old so I think I am living
on borrowed time, so I will have new tires put on in the spring.

Happy Trailering,
Mike
"Allyson Marie"
 
Jim,

I'm glad that the tire blowout didn't do more damage. We had the same thing
happen back in 1982. We were on our way to Lake Powell with our brand new
SeaRay Cuddy Cruiser behind our motorhome. We were about 15 miles outside
of Cortez, CO when I got a frantic call over the CB from a trucker right behind
us telling us that a tire just blew. By the time I could get pulled over onto the
shoulder the right rear tire totally disintegrated and tore up the fender, wiring
and clearance lights on the fender. I also did not feel anything when it blew.
After changing the tire, we stopped at the Goodyear Tire store in Cortez, but
they of course did not have any trailer tires of that size so we had a non
trailer tire mounted up and motored on into Page and then ordered a replacement
tire. After that episode, I always carry (2) mounted spares and constantly
check the mirrors to observe the tires. In the desert, heat really takes it's toll
on tires as does underinflation. As a side note, when a tire blows or the tread
or belt separates usually there is a fair amount of blue smoke visible in back
of the boat trailer. I've seen it happen twice to folks pulling boats ahead of us.
I adjust the mirrors so that I can easily see the tires on both sides and constantly
scan the mirrors. (call me paranoid), but it is scary when it happens.
I'm glad that BoatUS came thru for you. I also have BoatUS and have always
heard good reports about their trailer service.
I also have Marathons on the trailer that are 5 years old so I think I am living
on borrowed time, so I will have new tires put on in the spring.

Happy Trailering,
Mike
"Allyson Marie"
 
Boont Boater":242wemz4 said:
How come my sunset/sunrise pictures never look that good?
Click to expand...

Thanks for the compliment. Even with a point & shoot, I expose for the highlights - in the case of this sunset, the brightest part of the sky. Fill the viewfinder with sky, press the shutter release button half way down, then (while holding the button) recompose. That should make the proper exposure.

And Joan made this observation: you just don't travel to the "exotic" places we do... like west Texas... or the metropolis of Rufus... or Beaver..." :wink:

The woman makes me laugh. :mrgreen:

Best wishes,
Jim
 
Jim,

Interesting point about the rear tires running a few degrees warmer than the front ones (on a tandem set up).

Three questions:
1. Is your trailer running level? (height of frame at tongue same as the aft most part of the frame).

2. Where are you measuring the tire temps? Side wall, tread or ???

3. Do the hub temps compare similarly?

Sure glad there was no damage to Wild Blue's hull. Way back in the early 70's on a pretty empty piece of freeway relestate east of Rufus (used that just because you mentioned that metropolis earlier, I had a pretty nice and new Corvette pass me. This was back when the speed limit was 70 in the neighborhood and he went past me like I was down a slow crawl. About a 100 yards ahead of me, and while he was still in the left lane, his right front tire blew out. That 'vette was covered in fiberglass until that moment anyway. He kept it on the road but scared the daylights out of me. It looked like it had been hit with a 155mm HE round. Lots of pieces, big and small, sparks and stuff, all over my windshield too. Most everything from the front center to the windshield all vanished. Fortunately he and we were OK, but it was more than a new tier for that fix. By the way, it was a Friday, which is the day I usually leave for my trips.

Safe travels

Harvey
SleepyC:moon
 
Hi Harvey,

I have been measuring the tires on the tread. The hubs have been pretty similar, but in the heat (I'll explain that for you PNW folks: the temperature gets to about 90º, and the sun shines. :hot :mrgreen: ), the sunny side has been running a few degrees warmer than the shady side. Yes, the trailer is level. We bought the drop for the receiver/ball when we set up the trailer - it's a good, level match.

All went well again today. We made it across west Texas. The usual 25¢ per gallon higher fuel prices in that area were only about 23¢ per gallon higher. The scrub brush was mostly green - they must have had some rain in the past month or two. The speed limit is 80... we still run at about 60 mph when towing.

Some of you know that I used to do seminars for professional associations before we retired. One of the more popular topics was "Giving Great Customer Service." An interesting contrast when finding a place to put Wild Blue this evening...

http://captnjim.blogspot.com/2012/10/a- ... parks.html

And, little Izzy in the truck...

IzInLapE.jpg

We're getting close!

Best wishes,
Jim
 
You two are just disgusting. W.Ee woke up yesterday here in northern utah to 6 inches of heavy wet snow containing 1.3 inches of water. Badly needed after a major summer drought up here. Love the snow, but I'd prefer to see it on television from some tropical spot like yours..

.
 
potter water":230ldltr said:
You two are just disgusting. W.Ee woke up yesterday here in northern utah to 6 inches of heavy wet snow containing 1.3 inches of water. Badly needed after a major summer drought up here. Love the snow, but I'd prefer to see it on television from some tropical spot like yours..

.
Click to expand...

Hi Harry,

I saw snow all summer... well, it was up on top of Mt. Baker, about 48 miles away... and that was close enough.

I remember the wet snows of early fall and late spring when we lived in the Black Hills - broken branches and downed power lines. Yeah, that was always fun. :roll: This will probably sound like a "When I was your age..." story, but we had one late spring (as in: May) snowstorm that left a drift that completely covered our garage! So wet and heavy that it broke power poles. The National Guard came out with heavy equipment to open up the road in front of our house, even opened our driveway. Yeah, those were the good ol' days.

In other news: Wild Blue went back into the water today. 8) Sunny, high in the 80s. We had the a/c on in the truck when we put the trailer in storage. Big "cold front" coming this weekend; supposed to knock our daytime high down to 73º. The 3 ton house air conditioner is being replaced today... at least, that is the plan... they already hauled off the old one, so we'll see.

All that is only disgusting when you are the one in the cold. Get yourself retired, hook up the boat, and head south.

Best wishes,
Jim
 
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