Eliana

#63 Waikiki

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

One of Oahu’s modern myths is that Waikiki and Oahu are synonymous. Nothing could be further from the truth. Oahu is mostly rural and a land of contrast, densely packed with interesting choices. Little by little, we hope to begin peeling the onion. We’ve got our work cut out for us! But then, sparkling on the southern shore with the island landscape as a backdrop is Waikiki tucked neatly at the foot of Diamond Head. There, within Ala Wai Harbor lies the Waikiki Yacht Club.

We decided to spend a weekend at the club docks with Eliana and our friends from Kansas, Jeff and Tonya Poe. One of the best things about Hawaii cruising is one can move from place to place quickly, even in a boat! The trip from Ko Olina to Waikiki was under 3 hours. Even with winter swell coming in from the north, the trip was comfortable.

Fortunately, Don and Sharry Stabbert were already berthed at the WYC with their beautiful 75’ Northern Marine, STARR. So the combination of good folks and good boats in a beautiful place made for a very special time.

Waikiki Yacht Club was founded in 1944. Imagine that. Just three years after Pearl Harbor, the war in the Pacific was drawing to a close. A small group of sailors decided to begin refurbishing older boats and once again take advantage of the wonderful Hawaiian waters to promote yacht racing. Still active today, WYC views itself as the premier yacht club of the Pacific.

Ala Wai Harbor, Waikiki

An early photo of the same spot.

Debbie and Tonya enroute

Eliana berthed at Waikiki Yacht Club

STARR next door.

Blessing Of The Fleet
Every year, the club sets aside a day in February for the annual Blessing of the Fleet! The celebration is an all day affair with dozens of boats dressed up in all their colors. At noon the lines are thrown off and a procession forms to go out to sea where the Chaplain blesses each boat as it passes.

Eliana’s crew decided to join Stabberts on their boat. It was, as usual, a gorgeous day. STARR was blessed along with the rest of the fleet. The formality of the blessing was indeed moving and meaningful. I made a short movie of the procession out and the return back. Unfortunately, with the excitement during the actual blessing I missed the most important part. Oh well.

Getting lined up

Blessing Of The Fleet

Pearl Harbor
Being in Hawaii, it’s easy to get caught up in World War II history, especially the Pacific front. There is a lot to do in that regard, but the USS Arizona Memorial is absolutely a must. The visitors center contains a wonderful museum you can visit with or without the audio tour headphones. Then prior to boarding the boat across the harbor, they show a movie reliving December 7, 1941 as historically accurate as possible. The trip out and visit of the actual Memorial is well done and touching. I have already visited three times and still look forward to going again.

An amazing map of the Pacific painted on the concrete at the visitors center.

Looking out over the east loch of Pearl Harbor toward Ford Island. You can see the USS Missouri and the USS Arizona Memorial through the trees.

The boats that take you over to the memorial are operated by the US Navy.

USS Missouri open to the public to tour.

The Arizona Memorial

Shoptalk
It seems as though we’re always learning something new. For this entry, I thought back just in the past few days and came up with three revelations. My more experienced colleagues already know this stuff, but for me it’s a victory each time some nagging problem is solved. Here’s a picture summary...

We learned in Mexico to keep our spring lines super tight at all times, especially when there is surge coming into the marina. By doing that we eliminate a lot of the fore/aft boat movement which, in turn, keeps the bow and stern lines from total havoc. The only downside is it can begin to chafe the two springs which are crossed together. My solution is to tie the two together with a ball bunge. No more chafing.

OK, here's where I have to retract an earlier statement. I had reported that in waxing the easiest method we found was to apply and remove the wax by hand. Well, I was wrong. I decided to reevaluate the orbital buffer and found that using it to apply the wax at least DOUBLED the speed of the job and probably increases the quality of the work. Use a soft sponge pad and set the speed dial to "3". Always route the cord from above rather than below. Apply the wax in two directions overlapping 50% at all times. This system takes ALL the work out of buffing. No more elbow grease just to scrub off the excess wax.

The engine room bilge has seawater in it at all times due to the dripping of the shaft packing. This isn't normally a problem, but the water was developing an odor and turning black after only a week or two. I had to scrub and clean the bilge with bilge soap all the time. I found an easy solution. By putting a couple tablespoons of household hydrogen peroxide in the water after cleaning, the water stays perfectly clear and without odor.

In Closing
I can’t say it enough. Hawaii promises to be much more than we ever expected from a cruising standpoint. It’s a rich environment with dozens of diverse destinations not far away. The weather is beautiful year around. The water is warm enough to swim. Abundant sea life. So much to do, we’ll never do it all and probably won’t try.

Surprisingly, Hawaii is ranked 48th out of 50 states for number of boats per capita. That’s right, even Kansas has more boats per person. That means the island waters are pristine and uncrowded. We’re now absolutely certain we’ve got the right boat in the right place to keep us busy for awhile.

Thanks to our friends Jeff and Tonya for all their hard work aboard Eliana.

And most of all thanks to our faithful readers.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Ko Olina Marina, Kapolei, HI
Mileage: 11,174 Miles
Start your own blog now! Free!

Comment on: #63 Waikiki

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 21:16:56 GMT

We couldn't agree more with your comments about Oahu and the Waikiki YC. We are anxious to get back to Kokua in KoOlina slip E-21 (hopefully in April) and hope to meet you in person. Do not miss the East side of Oahu and especially the Kaneohe Bay and Yacht Club. The people are extremely friendly and the club is charming. Eb & Pamela Schenk

Comment on: #63 Waikiki

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 17:42:40 GMT

I've noticed from your posted photos that you didn't opt for the wide-body option, which then gives you sidedecks on both sides. Are you glad you went for this layout? Do you use the port side much for line handling, etc. Would you change your mind if you could do it again? Thanks Hi David, Good question. We like having a walkway on each side. Our standard setup is 4 fenders hung on the side rail either port or starboard depending on the situation. The fenders are set up with hooks on fixed length lines so they work on either side quickly and easily without alteration. Furthermore, we can move fenders quickly from starboard to port without having to drag them upstairs. We store the fenders on the port walkway when underway. When at docked with a port tie, we use the port walkway a lot. In the heat of the day, we appreciate having the port salon windows in the shade. When starboard tied, we like being able to wash the outside of the port windows. We also like it when deploying flopper stoppers and a few other tricky line handling maneuvers such as loading Sweet Charlotte in a rough anchorage. Our salon is a nice comfortable size. I would have a hard time justifying making it larger at the expense of not having the walkway we use all the time. Rick

Comment on: #63 Waikiki

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 11:17:43 GMT

Rick, Glsd to see you're doing SOME work in Hawaii. I'd hate to see you having all the fun while Debbie is breaking her back working. If you'vw gotten pretty good at cleaning that bilge, you might want a little more practice on the Merci. While ww haven't quite made Hawaii, Marcie and I have spent the last month at Red Coconut RV Park in Ft. Myers Beach, FL. Weather has been in the 80's with sun shining, Sure beats those Missouri winters. Keep the shiny side up! Bob```

Comment on: #63 Waikiki

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 10:34:06 GMT

We like the fact you are so industrious in researching products and have used many that you recommend. Now - what is the make of that orbital buffer? Thanks, and keep those blogs posts coming ( with recommendations of products you find useful!) Hi Charlotte, I got the orbital buffer from Griots Garage. Go to http://www.autoanything.com/car-care/65A4696A0A0.aspx?kc=ffproduct to check it out. Rick

#62 Ko Olina

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

First impressions are often predictably accurate. Tell tale clues, one at a time until suddenly a conclusive thought emerges. As Debbie and I visited recently, it hit me... "People here are generally happy." Probably not much to analyze . Smiles and neighborliness. A climate conducive to living outdoors and a front porch mentality. Maybe when we're happy, we imagine everyone else is too.

The Waianae mountain range parallels the coast. It blesses the whole area with calm, clear ocean waters coupled with a near perfect, 80 degree climate year around. For centuries, this stretch of coast was reserved for Hawaii’s royal families for vacationing. It has always been rural but with abundant produce, great fishing, and plenty of room for goats, pigs and chickens. Originally, the territory from Pearl Harbor all the way along the coast to the summit of Mount Ka’ala was called Ko Olina. Not surprisingly, Ko Olina from the Hawaiian language means “Place Of Joy”.

Today, Ko Olina is the name of the development that contains our marina. It’s an easy drive from Honolulu, east up the H1 until just after the freeway ends. Nearby is the non-touristy Kapolei, a clean town with almost anything one might need without going into the city.

Ko Olina itself is built around four spectacular lagoons connected by a continuous walking path and park environment. Each lagoon is unique in some way, but all similarly have massive beach areas with zero entry swimming. Immediately behind the beaches are zoysia grass and trees. Spotted along the way are public use bathrooms, beach showers and water fountains. I would say, round trip on the path is 3 - 4 miles.

Immediately inland from the lagoons are a series of properties including Marriott's beautiful Ihilani hotel and Disney’s brand new resort, Aulani. These are backdropped with a gorgeous golf course. It may sound crowded, but it’s not. The design is relaxed with amenities enjoyed by locals as well as visitors.

One interesting attraction of Ko Olina are the weddings. We’ve heard on average there is a wedding every 15 minutes. Chapels dot the way along the water front. Photographers and white limousines everywhere. I’ll admit, this would be a sweet place to have a wedding. Having seen a few, this way of doing it seems relaxed and everyone seems to be having a good time.

Sunset on Lagoon #4

Lagoon #3

Girls playing.

Walking path

Sunday Afternoon

New Year's Fireworks. Absolutely spectacular display shot simultaneously from all four lagoons. This photo was taken from Eliana.

Mother and daughter.

Lagoons protected by breakwater rocks.

One of several wedding chapels.

Ho hum. Another sunset.

Ko Olina Marina
That brings us to Eliana’s berth at the marina which is situated just behind lagoon #4. Chuck and Suzanne Krause team up to co-manage the facility keeping it in top notch condition. The surroundings are garden like. As Suzanne says, we wake up to the sound of birds singing rather than horns honking. Speaking of birds, we are shocked there are no gulls, herons or pelicans in the marina. The only birds around are land based species. The docks stay super clean.

Speaking of neighborhoods, there are approximately 25 live-aboard locals in the marina. Our dock neighbors have been awesome. Slowly, we’re learning the local ways and means on about any topic. Most of all, we're getting more local knowledge about Hawaiian cruising than you'll get in 100 cruise guides.

Home Sweet Home

Chuck and Suzanne, harbormaster team.

Harbor Setting

Friend, dock-mate, long time resident Michael Cornell

One of hundreds of species of beautiful birds. I think this one is a red crested Cardinal.

Before Signing Off
Eliana is in excellent condition. No problems I can think of to report. It's wax time again, so we're enjoying the project as a good excuse tospend more time outside. Debbie is really enjoying the local farmer's market in Kapolei early each Sunday morning. Nothing else exciting.

We love Hawaii so far. While here, we plan to visit each island over the next year or so. We’ll use Ko Olina as our home base in between. As we discover new things, we’ll do our best to keep you posted.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Ko Olina, Hawaii
Mileage: 11,127 Miles

Comment on: #62 Ko Olina

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 05:50:04 GMT

Hi Rick and Deb, Sounds like you guys are really enjoying the Hawaiian Islands. We have been visiting the Islands every Jan. since 2001. We spend our time on the Big Island, Kona side. We always make time to get in 4-5 days of sport fishing, gotta love that fresh Ono, yellow fin and Blue Marlin. If you guys are heading to the Big Island anytime from Jan. 29 - Feb. 12, let me know and maybe you could join us for a day of fishing off the Kona coast, you would enjoy talking to our Captain, he has spent years along the California coast. Best Wishes, Greg Lundquist Wabash, Indiana

Comment on: #62 Ko Olina

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 18:28:47 GMT

Dear Rick and Debbie, Well, I happened upon your blog in the Nordhavn site whilst deeply researching the 68, 75 and 76. (purchase hopefully this year or early next, we are Aussies but may purchase in the US) That was the end of it! I cannot pull myself away from your story...Rick, it is beautifully written with extraordinary photographs and with excellent technical advice particularly whilst we are planning what we need to option into our vessel. THANK YOU SO MUCH for taking the time and effort to give the rest of us a window on your paradise. ISN'T OUR PLANET AN AMAZING PLACE? Absolutely breathtaking. I was sold on Nordhavn well before reading your blog, but you have doubly confirmed our confidence. I am still reading November last year and am looking forward to catching up but not willing to miss an installment, purposely avoided reading the individual blog contained here LOL. Warm regards

Comment on: #62 Ko Olina

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 18:20:24 GMT

We are Eberhard and Pamela Schenk, Aliso Viejo, CA. We have been in slip E21 with our boat KOKUA at KoOlina for almost 2 years and love it too. We just returned on 12/31 to CA and missed the fireworks! Cheryl, Michael's wife, has done a great job taking care of KOKUA when we are not there. Loved your pictures very much and could not have described the KoOlina area any better. Plan on returning in April to sail to Molokai, Lanai, Maui and possibly the Big Island before heading back to So.CA. This is thefirst time I blogged, am I doing it right? Eb

Comment on: #62 Ko Olina

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:27:40 GMT

Hello in Hawaii! Here in Bellingham Washington we are SNOWED IN!!! Thinking of you in the tropics you lucky dogs. Really enjoyed all the photos, especially of your grand-girls. I'm asking for a camera like yours for my birthday, it's fabulous! Or maybe it's all in the operator. Keep those posts coming. We'll be on Maui in October, maybe we'll rendezvous. At the moment Bullfrog Boats are getting ready for the big Seattle and Vancouver BC Boat Shows coming up. Happy New Year. Love, Mr and Mrs Bullfrog :) Marian and Craig

Comment on: #62 Ko Olina

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 08:12:49 GMT

Great update - thanks! Shear Madness is finally back in the water and we're looking forward to being back in cruise mode very soon!

Comment on: #62 Ko Olina

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 21:51:26 GMT

Good job, you two! Keep on keeping on! At first I was apprehensive about a long ocean voyage w/only one main engine, but you've proved that by careful selection of engine and generators, electronics, etc., crossings can be done safely and sensibly. I'm glad to hear that the little engine that could is still purring along, no doubt due in large part to your preventative maintenance and prudent use thereof. Pls keep posting as time and circumstances permit.

Comment on: #62 Ko Olina

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 21:34:27 GMT

It has been a while so we wondered if you were still in Hawaii Curtis and Marcia

Comment on: #62 Ko Olina

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 18:17:40 GMT

Hi Guys, the photos look great. Where are you planning to head next? There is a boat show in Seattle (I believe you were in Seattle recently with Eliana?) We have been invited to a "Nordy Owners" get together. My wife and I are flying over for the boat show to look at some Nordhavns. Are you planning to go? Thanks always for the Blog updates, there arte great! Roger Hi Roger, Sorry we won't be able to make the boat show. Too many things on the calendar as it is! No idea where to from Hawaii. As it stands now, we'll head back to the mainland, but as you know, plans change. Rick

#61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Land Ho! Oh, what a feeling. The shape of Molokai is forming beyond a cloud just beside the setting sun. Suddenly, the few tiny spots on the chart are now real land, lighthouses blinking, the sky glow of Oahu back lights a perfect outline of terra firma. A warm breeze in the middle of the night feels good. Debbie is sitting with me in the pilot house. “Good idea, huh?” We’re not even there yet, but I must admit it was.

The passage is complete. Eliana is tied securely at slip address K-91 in KoOlina, 2,363 miles from Ensenada. The trip took 12 days including Thanksgiving. Our average speed was 8.1 knots. There were 289 hourly logs with 64 noted as Heavy or Very Heavy sea. Eliana along with all hands arrived healthy, happy and safe.

First sight of land after 12 days. Molokai dead ahead. Click to enlarge.

The fly specks on the chart are suddenly large.

A trip like this allows one time to ponder the big questions of life. After #60, Debbie remarked “Isn’t ‘Time Slowly Fleeting’ an oxymoron?”. She does that to me all the time. You know, using words I have to look up. Anyway, it is a contradiction, but the reason I liked the song is because it reveals a paradox. One that could be said of a long boat passage ... or life itself. How ironic to wish time could pass more quickly, then suddenly, ready or not, it’s over.

While Time Is Slowly Fleeting by Anael is the theme song for our trip because it ties in so well with this topic. In the last post, I shared a 4 minute video (now extended to 5.5 minutes) using the song as background music. Here are the lyrics I hope you’ll take time to read...

While Time is Slowly Fleeting
Long since begun, nurtured years of dreaming?
And faith has spun an altered sense of reason
As long as it's leading you, the mind will hunt the vision?
But time is slowly fleeting, it's fleeting from you?
And what can you do?

Define the sun: for each a different meaning
And who to judge the light redeeming?
That warms us each contrarily?
Mine has shown me another state?
One that fosters precision?
But time is slowly fleeting?
So tell me, what will you do?

She can't take what you have?
She'll chase you and dare you to dance?
But your fate's in your hands?
In your unsparing will to surpass?
Your path is sacred and drives the fear away?
So if time is slowly fleeting, know it's HIS way

Well now's the hour for dreaming?
Time to seek my newest Eden
I drift beyond to greet her?In a kingdom only we share
It's always wonderful inside of me?
To find the soul's been waiting?
And while time is slowly fleeting?
There's still so much here to do

©2005 Nurtured Spontaneity Publishing

At the end I have provided a link to the updated, 5.5 minute version of the video. It pairs the full length song by Anael with images from our trip start to finish. I hope you will watch it again, this time with the lyrics in mind!

As a bonus, I have attached the complete version of Linda’s Daily Journal. In it, she interestingly relates the experience through her own eyes. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Now for the details...

Ship’s Log
Each hour, at the top of the hour, a logbook entry is automatically started which marks the time, position, speed, heading and so forth. To that, the watch keeper can add notes including, but not limited to such things as throttle setting, sea state and water temperature.

One of the most important automatic items is the distance-made-good during the hour. I transfer the number to a spreadsheet so we can later analyze the data. On this trip, I wanted to better understand the relationship between engine RPM and speed. I also wanted to confirm my own suspicion that sea state affected hourly fuel consumption more than I previously assumed.

To get the RPM analysis, we never changed throttle setting except at the top of the hour. That way we could associate a particular RPM with the distance for that hour. For the first couple of days, we changed RPM every hour assuming average conditions would be similar for all RPM’s. As the pattern developed, we noted distance was markedly higher at 1500 than at 1400 without a large fuel penalty. Higher RPM’s such as 1600 and 1700 yielded very little in speed, but burned significantly more fuel. So for the remainder of the trip, we used 1500 as our standard RPM.

Then, the sea state question. To do that, I made up four distinct sea state levels based on how the vessel responded rather than on wave size, shape, direction or period. It made it easier for any of us to assign a sea state level each hour as follows:

1 - Light: Waves cause very little pitch, heading or speed fluctuation.
2 - Moderate: Waves cause mild pitching and/or heading variation, but no speed changes, no pounding, no spray over the rail.
3 - Heavy: Waves impact the hull forcefully and produce spray above the rail. Speed fluctuates up to 1 knot. One hand rule in effect on board.
4 - Very Heavy: Significant wave impact capable of blue water above the rail, producing speed fluctuations of 1 knot or more. Two hand rule in effect on board.

Each hour the watch keeper picked one of the above four to represent the previous hour. It was remarkably easy to agree which level should be assigned. We adhered strictly to the description above.

In addition, we took an daily inventory of fuel to compare fuel burn with the average sea state for that day. After 12 days of data, we measured the effect on fuel consumption and the results were dramatic. Our average fuel consumption was 9.58 gallons per hour when running in Light to Moderate sea. Outstanding! But when running in Heavy to Very Heavy conditions, our fuel burn averaged 13.69 gallons per hour. We found that high fuel burn occurred regardless of which direction the heavy sea was coming, the direction we were hitting it (or it hitting us) or what RPM we tried to run.

This is important information because it proves we can’t plan fuel consumption without knowing sea conditions ahead of time. That said, when planning long passages, we now have a benchmark to calculate from if we can at least estimate how much time will be spent in each of the four conditions.

The hourly spreadsheet.

Waves pounding the hull consistently causing spray over the rail constituted Heavy sea condition.

Thanksgiving
We wanted to make Thanksgiving normal as possible. We were blessed with beautiful skies and moderate sea. If ever there were there were a Thanksgiving to be thankful, this ranks right up there. Something about being in the middle of the ocean made our thankfulness even more meaningful! We set 2:00 PM as dinner time and enjoyed a delicious meal prepared by our three girls. We did miss football! Oh well, next year.

They brined the turkey breast. It was awesome. A little bit was left over to make turkey soup.

Thanks was given and we celebrated the gift of being OK in the middle of nowhere.

Weather
The weather threw us one curve ball after another. The only thing we knew for certain was that each day’s forecast would be different from the day before. Finally, I decided it made no sense to outguess it, but rather make a straight course to our destination and take what comes.

Because we were recording sea state each hour, I can definitively say that we had 122 hours of 1 - Light; 104 hours of 2 - Moderate; 45 hours of 3 - Heavy; and 19 hours of 4 - Very Heavy conditions. The worst came in the last three days. It was interesting to see how Eliana handled it. The waves towered higher than I’ve ever seen before. To estimate wave height, I sight it from the wheelhouse, a height off the water (~20 feet) and add my estimate of the wave portion above the horizon. There is no doubt in my mind we had several instances of combined waves in the 30’ range for several hours. They approached us from various angles on our starboard beam. Eliana rode up and down like an elevator with a decent ride most of the time.

Occasionally the shape of the wave would throw her off and we would have a brief roll. Anything on the counters or tables unsecured would crash to the floor. The Trac stabilizers have always done a magnificent job of preventing most of the roll, but believe me, these waves were so large and moved so fast it was virtually impossible to prevent all of it. We also took two or three significant blue water hits to our salon windows. I was so thankful for the storm plates we put on in San Diego.

Not to give you the wrong impression, we also had many days of good weather. One in particular was absolutely glorious so a lot of time was spent out back in the cockpit.

It's hard to do the huge waves justice in a picture. From a 20' high eye level, they still towered way above us. Click to enlarge.

Another one. These push up way above the horizon. Click to enlarge.

Sunsets were always glorious.

A perfect afternoon on the patio.

Random Notes
We decided to set ship time to Hawaii on November 25 at 12 noon. Linda offered to make the watch accommodation by lengthening hers to five hours. Otherwise watch schedules remained the same.

Wish we would have known we could have had a flying fish smorgasbord. We threw off dozens of them during the trip. Don’t ask, I have no idea why they jump in but they do.

One day, Peter put two lures out the back and within a couple hours hit two Mahi Mahi. He thought it was a male and female. I don’t know, but I do know we had fresh fish that night and it was good.

Mechanically, we were very lucky. Only one slightly problematic issue. The controller board on one of the generators went bad which prevented it from running. Nothing wrong with the generator itself, just an erroneous fault message that wouldn’t go away. We ended up running the 40KW the whole way and it never missed a beat. Based on our fuel tracking, it must have been extremely efficient. Better than I thought it would be. Anyway, I was glad we had a third generator to back it up.

As the sea and water temperatures rose, we ended up running the air conditioning most of the way. It was good to have the doors and windows closed when the weather kicked up.

Two Mahi Mahi Peter caught.

Before Closing
You may recall from Linda’s Daily Journal that she got sea sick in the first days of the trip. I’m happy to report she was a regular old salt by the end of it. I’m no expert on seasickness, but one thing I’ve noticed is that a strong will usually figures something out. We were thankful Linda was a trooper and hung in there.

As promised, here is the link to While Time Is Slowly Fleeting, the 5.5 minute version of our official Hawaii Passage video.

Also, don’t miss Linda’s Daily Journal.

We would like to thank you for your interest in Eliana's Journal and for your warm comments and best wishes. The crew of Eliana wish you and yours a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Ko Olina, Hawaii
Total Mileage: 11,127 Miles

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:10:06 GMT

This is my first day on your blog--lost Rick's card--it was in calendar left in KC while we were in Hawaii. Really enjoyed the visit to your site and particularly following Linda's diary. What an experience! Rick, you have inspired me to try a hand at blogging. Don't know if you recall meeting me at Loyd Davis's funeral. You will enjoy Hawaii and be sure to get to Kauai if you can. Check out Kauai Photo Tour in Kauai for a 5.5 hour photo excursion--a highlight of our trip. I will check back in on your blog site. Thanks!

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 17:32:53 GMT

Captain Rick, Have you heard the news about the 62 Nordhavn, Grey Pearl? She was a complete loss from a fire while tied up in Phuket, Thailand. A terrible tradgedy. I just got it on my computer from the Ken Williams blog. Hopefully we can all learn what caused the fire. Bob Danelz Sacramento, CA Hi Bob, We got the sad news. It's heartbreaking, like having a death in the family. Our best wishes go out to Braun and Tina. Rick

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 06:54:32 GMT

Rick, I read an analysis in the Glacier Bay OSSA Powerlite material/advertising regarding fuel burn vs. sea state some time ago. Unfortunately I deleted it. It explained why you saw what you experienced and how a diesel/electric propulsion system mitigates this. From memory (which is the first thing to go...or is it the second?) going up hill and down applies a varying load to the prop. The change in load causes the boat to slow or speed up respectively. The diesel/electric drive provides near contant RPM whereas a straight diesel is normally constant fuel flow. You might be able to graph this by taking data from an inclinometer. Your rough approximation on sea state is a good start. I suspect that integrating the number of times you are headed up and how far will yield the energy required. 20' seas at 10 sec is double 20' at 20 sec. Since height and period are available ahead of time you might be able to reduce this to a simple spreadsheet application very similiar to what pilots do in preflight. I look forward to your corrections and advancements upon my theory.

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 16:55:02 GMT

Hello Rick and Debbie! I'm so pleased to be able to read your posts and watch your videos--yay! It sounds like all is going well and someday I hope to follow in your tracks. Happy Holidays! John Z Holiday N6050 La Paz

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 07:04:13 GMT

Hello Rick and Debbie,I have followed you since day one and have enjoyed your voyage very much.I have a couple of questions;(1) Has your projected budget been exceeded by much.(2)What has been the greatest unexpected expense so far if there is one.(3)The price of fuel at the moment here in Central Queensland is AU$1.56 per litre,have you budgeted for fuel price increases as our price has increased by 10cents in a week.Love your blog,may your God continue to sail with you. Raoul. Hi Raoul, Our expenses have actually become less than we originally thought they would be. This is, in part, because we tried to imagine worst case on most line items. We originally budgeted for a captain which, for us hasn't been necessary. Two expenses that were more than expected are our spare parts inventory and electricity when docked. Fuel is a big item, as you say. But it's related to how many miles we go in a year. If we wish to control our fuel budget, we simply move fewer miles. I suspect when we come to Australia, we'll slow down and enjoy being there! Rick

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 02:38:55 GMT

Dear Rick and company, I have really enjoyed your commentary and especially the videos which really let us travel along with you. You have a nice easygoing way of imparting information. I live about 30 miles due east of Dana Point and have been a Nordhavn fan for several years. I have a couple of questions. First, do you find that the motion in the forward Master stateroom uncomfortable in heavy seas due to being forward of the ships center (due to having an aft deck house)? Secondly, how do you manage the dinghy , i.e. placing in the water and loading. Do you all enter it from the forward deck or do you bring it around to the stern? Is it difficult to manage entering it from the forward deck? Would you have preferred having it available at the stern as in most other Nordhavns? Thanks in advance. David Hi David, The lower bedrooms are good in any sea due to being low and central, but the master bed is uncomfortable in big sea. Surprisingly it isn't as much the pitching motion, as it is rudder effect. The huge rudder on Eliana is very quick keeping the boat pointed in the right direction in big sea. But that causes a side to side jerk that rolls you in bed. If it get's uncomfortable in the master, we always go back to the salon, Debbie on the couch and I right beside her on the floor. It's very comfortable there and easy to go right to sleep. Putting Sweet Charlotte in the water requires a ladder from the rail down to the water. We lower her down with the davit, then scamper down the ladder, jump in, unhook and go. We then take her around to the swim step and tie up there for easy passenger loading. Usually, I leave the ladder installed until we get ready to reload. The ladder is stowed in a bag inside Sweet Charlotte. So SC is normally tied up on the stern when she's in the water, but in a rough anchorage, we will raft her to Eliana with fenders and a standard four point tie. Rick

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:50:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Time Slowly Fleeting The video with the music was just wonderful. Thanks for posting this. I've watched it a couple of times and was transported to the ocean crossing. It was just great.

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:26:35 GMT

Captain Rick and crew, Congratulations on your successful voyage. Your blog is great. I must admit to my astonishment of you deciding to go to Hawaii and then doing it in just 8 days. I'm sure having a quality "ride" helpped to make the decision faster. You have all accomplished a great feat - and should feel like modern poineers. Captain Rick, can you feed us "gear heads" some information on fuel burn specific to the trip? Like total fuel burn. Total run time. The generator consumption. It sounds like 1500 rpm is Eliana's sweet spot. What percentage of full power would that be - and did you open it up from time to time to exercise the engine? I drive a 43 foot diesel boat out of Sacramento and a shipmate of mine from our yacht club is constantly reminding me I run my engines to slow and will damage them with a constant lower rpm. My sweet spot is 1800 rpm and 8 knots. I'm sure you've heard the theory. By the way, you said you saved 1.25 per gallon in Ensenada. What was the price there? We just had a new fuel pump open at our local marina and diesel is 4.99. Ouch! My last fuel-up at Pittsburg, CA marina was 3.94. Just curious going south of the border - how much difference it is. Anyway, love to hear the technical stuff about your trip. Keep it coming. Oh, the flying fish. As I remember from my Navy days. In rolling seas they come out of the swell and go for a spin via their wings. What rotten luck to have all that ocean out there and they have to run into a ship passing in the night. We would get them on the second deck of our destroyer all the time. Probably 20 to 25 feet off the sea. Enjoy our 50th state on your gorgeous boat. Bob Danelz Sacramento, CA Hi Bob, We burned 3,000 gallons for an overall average of 1.2 gallons per mile or 10.28 gallons per hour. That's propulsion and electrical generation together. If the fuel flow meters are accurate, the generators were pulling .6 to 1.2 gallons per hour depending on load. So the rest was the main engine. Had we not had heavy sea, the overall average would have been much better. 1500 RPM is about 50% load, much lower than what the engine would like. But we've been assured by the manufacturer we're not hurting the engine. We do run wide open throttle twice per day to give it a good work out, and occasionally run an hour or so at 80% load. We paid $2.68 per gallon in Ensenada. Hope this helps! Rick

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 18:10:00 GMT

SUBJECT: Voyage to Hawaii Dear Rick:I continue to enjoy every one of your postings, but especially your voyage to Hawaii. Because of your wonderful writing ability I feel I have come to know you in a way that was not possible by seeing you from time to time at the National. Your latest posting answered several questions I have always wanted to ask about the performance of your boat. Like you, I am a disciplined numbers person and believe in training, preparation and performance under trying or emergency conditions. So I particularily enjoyed the details of your spread sheet and easily understood descriptions of various sea conditions. I have a couple of other questions. (1) Do your nautical charts show routings similar to victor airways?(2) When nearing land do you have the equivalent of "approach plates" for your final approach and "landing?" While I am not volunteering, I think with some training I could become a very dependable deck hand that you would identify with. Thank you again for allowing us to share your journey and we send our best wishes to you and Debbie for your continued safety. Incidentally I thought of you back in September while passing through Colby and enjoying the vastness of the land, which I think has it's own unique beauty. Jim Hi Jim, Good questions. The charts do not include standard routes. The route taken is based mostly on mother nature, particularly ocean currents, wind and sea. It's interesting to note that there is remarkably little traffic out there. It's easy to go days without seeing another vessel of any kind. On only one occasion did we find it prudent to alter course and that was to give us a little more spacing to a tanker enroute from Japan to Panama. There are published 'approaches' or traffic lanes into and out of heavily traveled ports. Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles would be examples. They are often accompanied with Vessel Traffic Service (VTS is the marine equivalent to ATC) which is operated by the Coast Guard. They are primarily used by high displacement commercial ships, but I've found it to be the easiest way to arrive and depart with Eliana, especially since we're equipped with AIS. They take you by the hand both ways and that's pretty nice. If they feel bridge to bridge communication should occur, they'll often make the introduction between Eliana and another ship, and then it's up to us to work things out. Honolulu does not have enough traffic to justify this system, however, the Coast Guard is always on call for arrival questions or assistance. No doubt in my mind you would be a natural at this stuff, Jim. Rick

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 13:48:38 GMT

The story, the adventure, the pictures, the video, the people; all Excellent !!!

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 13:10:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Appreciation Dear Rick & Debbie I wanted to add my thanks for your taking the time to share your adventures. In my minds eye I can see Diamond head from offshore. Many journeys and experiences live in my memories and you thoughtful notes bring them back to me. In the late 50's my family moved aboard with five kids bound for Samoa. Many boats, many years have passed with 22 trips from Florida to New England. Then when I turned the ripe "old age" of 18 I took off for another six years on my own logging 35,000 miles in the Caribbean. In later years, Japan, China, Hong Kong aboard a 62' Nordhavn. Each adventure treasured! So it is with you too - Memories are what life is all about. People, Family, friends, places ALL LIVE ON IN OUR HEARTS! So, thanks for your efforts in rekindling our memories, hopes and Dreams! Gerry Irons Sent from my iPhone

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 10:28:00 GMT

Rick, Debbie, Loved our time with you aboard our "Reunion" at Kona Kai in San Diego. Pam and I trudged over in the rain after the Trawler Fest show on Saturday afternoon the 12th, but Eliana was pretty much battened down and we figured with all the preparations underway for you departure to Hawaii that upcoming Wednesday, you were exhausted or away picking up your crew. Followed your adventure to the islands and we can hope our paths cross again someday. WE will move the boat to Ensenada this month and later to Seattle in the spring. Our best for your island time and your next adventure. We enjoyed meeting you both and staying in touch. Frank and Pam, Reunion N4066

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 00:39:47 GMT

So happy to see that you've arrived safe and sound! What a wonderful blog post, thank you! We can't wait to follow your adventures in Hawaii. Steph & Martin

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 22:29:31 GMT

Thanks for sharing the excitement of your successful journey. So glad you reached your destinations safely - God does answer prayers! The "high" waves made me seasick just looking at them. Keep your e-mails coming about your voyages. Jackie/Neil and family were here this past Friday for a "late" Thanksgiving gathering. It is so wonderful that we can be together and watch the grandkids grow up. Jim is running for a seat in the Iowa Legislature. His area has grown so that a new District was established. First hurdle will be the Iowa Caucus and then the primary - if he wins that, he feels that his election is a shoe-in. Best to you all - Jaynell

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 18:11:52 GMT

Just want all of you to know how you've impacted my life and my dream of owning a Nordhavn and seeing the world from the water! Making the time to share Eliana with me... with all of us is very much appreciated. Your words and your images are incredibly powerful! Enjoy your time in Hawaii, your walks, and your "in the moment" awakenings. Warm regards... Patti DiMiceli author, "Embrace the Angel"

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 12:45:28 GMT

Hi Rick & Linda, I have been following you Blog since you got your boat. I love it! Makes me feel like like I have been with you. I've met Peter and his wife as they are friends of my dock neighbor. I'm in Dana Point and have a Catalina sailboat.Last year we just missed you as we did the Baha Ha HA. We were in La Paz when you were in P.V. Hopefully we can meet some time when you get to Dana Point again.I'm Jerry Bryan and are Boat is FLY'N-BRY'N. Have a great Christmas and New Year!!!!! Jerry

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 08:50:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Congratulations! We haven,t met yet but we would like to! We have Starr, a Northern Marine 75, moored at the Waikiki Yacht Club. We are currently in Seattle but will be back on Starr December 12 and will be on board till March. Will you be around so we can meet you? Don & Sharry Stabbert 206 963 9058 Starr.talkspotblogs.com Hi Don and Sharry, We've always wanted to meet you. Yes, we will be here. Let's touch base after the holidays! Rick Sent from my iPad

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 08:10:11 GMT

Hi Rick, Thanks for the regular updates. It's a pleasure watching your journey. I'm curious about the timing of the Level 4- Very Heavy seas. Were they around the same time each day and hour? You mentioned they were mostly during the final 3 days into port. Looking forward to seeing your safe return to KC. Hi Paul, All of the level 4 condition happened in consecutive hours on days 10 and 11. They were bookended by about 10 hours of level 3 conditions. It was the result of a massive front that organized up north picking up wind and sea with it, then crashing south across our route. It was a sight to behold. Rick

Comment on: #61 Time Is Slowly Fleeting (2)

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 01:51:46 GMT

Aloha and welcome to Hawaii. We've been expecting you. Very happy to follow along and glad to know all are safe. Enjoy your time while you are here. It's time to relax and be on Hawaii time for a while. All the best!

#60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Tue, 22 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Imagine the pioneer in a covered wagon moving slowly across the continent to California. His family and all their possessions move little faster than a walking pace. No sign of civilization, roads, buildings or people along the way. The path he takes is of his own choosing. Always present in his mind is the raw fact that they’re on their own.

From San Diego, the distance is greater to Hawaii than to Maine. The Pacific, at 64.1 million square miles covers about a third of the earth’s surface. It’s larger than all the earth’s land mass combined with enough left over to fit in another Africa. At it’s deepest, the Mariana Trench is over 35,000 feet deep. A boat in the Pacific is nothing but a tiny micron of matter. There will be no signs of civilization. No gas stations, hotels or people for that matter.

I don’t mean to compare what we’re doing with the faith and courage of the pioneers. On the other hand, setting out to cross 2,400 miles of the Pacific feels eerily different from what I imagined five minutes before we decided to do it. Let’s see ... what might go wrong. Well, there’s Mother Nature for example. Hmmm, she holds all four aces so we can’t assume a winning hand. Murphy’s Law? Of course, but we’ll do the best we can and pray for the rest. Just like our pioneer forefathers, we won’t be the first ones to look upward for assurance.

Sunset over the Pacific. (NASA) - Click to enlarge.

Debbie brought up the idea of going to Hawaii on Sunday morning. We made the final decision on Tuesday and left Wednesday, eight days later. This entry is about getting ready to go, and the first few days at sea. I have included a four minute video at the end entitled “While Time Is Slowly Fleeting” about our first days at sea. As a bonus, I’m including Linda’s Daily Journal. It’s about life aboard Eliana from her perspective as a crew member. It’s very interesting and has a lot more pictures than what I’m providing. I encourage you to open it for a good read.

Eight Days of Preparation
Because of the distance, we thought it was important to learn a bit more about Hawaii because it’s now our thought this will be an extended stay, probably several months. It’s too far not to stay while. We found Ko Olina Marina to be clean, well managed and moderately priced. Hawaii doesn’t have predatory taxation on visiting boats so we’re safe on that point. It allows us to set up our home in the heart of the 50th state and gives us plenty of time to choose the right season to explore different parts of the islands with Eliana. We have all the current charts.

I contacted our insurance carrier, Pantaenius America and sure enough required an addendum to our policy to cover us while in Hawaii and including the transit both ways.

Next is crew. We were able to quickly assemble a pick-up team of five that has incidentally turned out to be a good combination. Peter and Paige St Phillip are boat dock friends from Dana Point. They are both experienced at sea, in excellent health and fortunately were able to work this into their schedule on short notice. Debbie’s sister Linda also accepted our request to help with watches. Another duty of hers is to write the daily journal from her perspective. She teamed up with Peter to have him take pictures. Debbie and I knew the chemistry would be good but are finding this is a nice ratio. The three women, two men combination seems to work, although would have loved to have Linda’s husband Bill with us. Good food and a happy household goes a long way to making a pleasant trip.

As you might suspect, I shopped fuel and found prices $1.25 cheaper in Ensenada, MX, just 60 miles south of San Diego. That meant we had to check in and out of Mexico at the same time, fill up with fuel and be on our way. The exercise cost us a day, but was well worth it.

I updated all the run-times on equipment with hour meters and checked near term ‘future’ preventative maintenance to do anything I could in advance. Checked spare parts inventory. One never knows for sure, but I thought we were in pretty good shape.

Valley Power visited to inspect the main engine and adjusted valve lash and injector heights. Afterwards, we completed a sea-trial to verify the engine was purring like a kitten.

I was suspicious that one of our water makers was not working up to par so Village Marine came down and sure enough there was a slightly defective membrane that needed replacement.

All safety and emergency gear was double checked and organized. I realized we had never practiced putting out the sea anchor. For that matter, I didn’t actually want do it for real because we would just have to clean it back up and repack it. I did think it might be a good idea to do a dress rehearsal, lining up all the parts stored in a single locker within the confines of the Portuguese bridge. We then connected all the parts as they would be used and rehearsing the procedure for launching it. The sea anchor consists of a 28’ under water parachute with a combination of tow harness and line totaling 730’.

We also installed storm plates on the salon windows. All the other windows and hatches are storm proof, but the large plate glass windows have enough extra area, they need protection. Since they are a little awkward to mount, I thought it would be a good idea to put them on before we leave and not worry about it.

To be safe, we installed an additional covering on the upper aft deck settee which not only protects the settee, but that’s where our emergency gear, ditch bags, etc. are stored adjacent to two 6-man Switlik life rafts.

Debbie and Linda did a magnificent job of provisioning. The pantry, freezer and refrigerator were all full. They laughed because the last trip they made was ONLY done because there was just a wee bit of space left.

The Eliana Crew L to R: Debbie, Linda, Paige, me and Peter

Protective plexiglass storm plates were installed on the salon windows.

The sea anchor is stored in this locker with all components in order, ready to go.

Conducted the monthly test on the EPIRB in case we need search and rescue.

A cover was made for the upper aft deck settee which is where much of our emergency gear is stowed.

Getting Underway
Initially the forecast looked favorable for the entire trip hence the haste to get moving. I like using the .grb weather files that download to MaxSea. They are usually pretty reliable especially in the short term. I also use passageweather.com. For such a long trip, I consulted with Bob Jones from Ocean Marine. With all the best planning possible, we finally defaulted to a direct route via great circle navigation. It’s the absolute shortest distance so unless weather pushed us off, there would be no reason to divert from it. The alternative would have been a rhumb line on a constant heading all the way to Hawaii which would have built in a southward bend.

As luck would have it, one day into the trip the forecast abruptly changed and a series of fronts were forming that threatened to push south of our route. Looked like the rhumb line route might have been a better choice. We knew it wouldn’t be comfortable, so I immediately diverted southward to a 230 heading hoping to be south of 25N latitude by Sunday when the first front was predicted to pass. The cautious move gave me some peace of mind and the weather did develop with 15’ to 20’ sea (mostly swell) in 25 - 30 knot wind. Turned out not terribly uncomfortable, so we decided to continue with slightly more confidence directly to Honolulu. Now we reassess each successive front 2 to 3 days in advance to see if any other correction might be necessary.

Eliana at the fuel dock in Ensenada.

The great circle route vs. the rhumb line route. The GCR (top) appears curved, but on a globe is straight. The rhumb line appears straight, but on a globe curves to the south. Interestingly, the GCR requires slight periodic heading changes to achieve a straight line, whereas the rhumb line is one constant heading all the way.

Meals have been spectacular thanks to having three great cooks aboard.

And so has the scenery.

Peter washing off salt from two days of bad weather.

Before Closing
As I write this, we are at 135W longitude, nearly half way to Hawaii. All is fine aboard Eliana and with her crew. I am planning to debrief our readers after we arrive. Then I will report any problems we have had, speed and fuel performance, plus anything else noteworthy.

Please don’t forget to watch the 4 minute video “While Time Is Slowly Fleeting”. I named it after the song I used for background by Anael who I think is great.

The other bonus is the first six days of Linda’s Daily Journal. She has been sending this to her close friends by email each day, but I have assembled them all in one document for your enjoyment.

In the meantime, the crew of Eliana wishes you a very Happy Thanksgiving! Be sure to leave your comments and questions at our web site by clicking the link below. Feel free to track our progress using "Track Eliana"

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Underway: Position 26.1N 135.1W
Miles so far: 1,055
Miles to go: 1,330
Total Mileage: 9,805
Track Eliana

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 17:12:05 GMT

hello, Aphoto shows you cleaning on the boat deck. Can you say the manufacturer of the gray tender with the Honda outboard? Thanks Hank Hi Hank, Our tender "Sweet Charlotte" is built by Bullfrog Boats in Bellingham, WA. Craig Henderson is the proprietor. He uses roto-molded sides so they are soft but not inflatable. Then builds a double wall hull with aluminum and puts it all together. You can find him at www.bullfrogboats.com! Rick

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 15:41:42 GMT

Merry Christmas Rick and Debbie, And to think it all started aboard a 38' Meridian at the Lake of the Ozarks. I'm jealous! We're at a new marina after our old dock was sunk by a tornado. Fortunately, none of the boats on the dock were hurt badly. They just floated down the lake and were picked up by marina service personnel. Any time you decide to forgo your Pacific adventures and come back to southern Missouri, just paddle up the Osage River, go over Bagnell Dam and stop by the Ozark Yacht Club.

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:28:42 GMT

Congratulations crew aboard Eliana! SPOT on! Have fun! Aloha

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 20:38:05 GMT

Rick, Debbie and crew, It's been a few days since your last blog. At least on my computer. Your tracking position is progressing and your're almost there. We would love to get an update with Thanksgiving and your progress. How is Linda's sea sickness doing? I'll bet she is cured after those first few days of suffering. We just got back from Bodega Bay and had all the World famous clam chowder and fresh crab we could eat. Boy at low tide you sure see why you have to stay in the channel. (We drove over by car) Looking forward to your next entry - and your arrival to the land of Hawaii. Bob Danelz Sacramento, CA

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 22:44:08 GMT

Hi Peter & Paige: Tracking your progress and living vicariously through your amazing adventure! Enjoy your remaining days at sea and we look forward to hearing your tales when you return. Cheers!

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 22:27:39 GMT

Rick & Debbie - and crew, Peter, Paige & Linda, I am sitting in Sacramento, having just signed on to your blog for the first time. (I was looking at Yachtworld.com and came across you guys) I love boats, I love Nordhavn's -and someday I will be doing what you're doing. I am so excited for all of you. Linda, your writing of your personal adventure on this trip has rekindled my memories of being at sea. I would like to help you with your sea sickness. I know exactly what you are (were, as of this writing) feeling. In 1967 I left Norfolk, VA on a Navy Destroyer for Viet Nam. I remember the last vision of land, like your picture, as we headed out to sea. In my heart, I was panicing. I was "sick" from Norfolk to Panama City, about 4 - 5 days. Everybody made fun of me. I remember one old sailor saying, "wait until Friday and they serve fish - being the smell from the steam line in keeping the food warm. He was right. I survived on crackers only. The good news. After that ugliness, I was cured. I stepped out on land, in Panama, to take the garbage to shore - and I noticed I thought the land was moving. Wierd. But I never had sickness symptoms like that ever again. We were in seas so rough in the South Pacific that it was just as easy to walk on the bulkhead as the deck. That's a 45 degree roll. No stabilizers. It just made us tired - and yes - you can sleep forever - but no seasickness. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving - and I'm sure your Thanksgiving dinner and celebration, on board will be different than you have ever had before. I applaud you all. I will follow your progress with incredible interest. I do remember one more memory that happened while steaming from San Diego to Hawaii. I went on deck one morning when Diamond Head was looming on the horizon. I can only assume (now) we were about a week at sea. As the land mass got larger, and the excitement built in all of us (to see land again) you could smell the sweet smell of moist earth. I had never left "earth" long enough before, to smell it again for the very first time. Of course, it's Hawaii. Kinda new for this Minnesota boy. I will contine to follow your adventure on the good ship Eliana. Happy Thanksgiving and God Speed in your incredible adventure. Bob Danelz Sacramento, CA P.S. I like the Deadliest Catch TV reruns to while your hours away.

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 16:01:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Wishes from an admirer Michael and I have been following Eliana and your progress - what an amazing adventure! Love all the entries and throughly enjoy reading about the trips. Wanted to wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving!! Speedy landfall. with best wishes,Mike and Joanne Masin

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:20:14 GMT

All I can say is wow. You must feel so blessed to experience the world in this way. You video really brought it all home. A Thanksgiving at sea, truly wonderful. I look forward to seeing Linda's next collection of journals as well as your continuing posts. Thanks so much for continuing to inspire,

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 14:56:51 GMT

Rick, Debbie & Crew, Not forgetting beautiful Eliana You inspire us with our own personal dream of a Nordhavn 68, the dream will become reality. God speed, a safe and enjoyable passage to all. Rick and Linda, keep up your journals and more videos as time permits please. Phill & Patricia

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 14:01:05 GMT

Looks amazing! Since you guys are going to be in Hawaii, has there been any thought of going over into the Asian islands and Australia? Hi Sam, It's an option for sure. We've got some time to think about it. When we decided to come out here, it was with the thought of returning east, but as we all well know, we can change our minds at any time! Rick

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 13:20:00 GMT

SUBJECT: hello from the silvers, friends of Paige and Peter Hi! we were forwarded your blog by Jerry Brian. I would love to post a comment but cannot seem to find the place on the site to write. If Im really lucky, this will get posted so here goes! We are green with envy after hearing of your voyage and your beautiful boat. We are delighted that you took Peter and Paige, two good friends of ours who were so excited when they told us about this trip. Peter is the most organized maintenance oriented boater I know and Paige is just a lot of fun, a great cook and a sweet girl! Enjoy! We look forward to hearing more and more about this trip. We are boaters also with a sailboat who can only imagine the comfort level you are enjoying. Janet and Ken Silver

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 10:24:48 GMT

Hi Rick and Debbie, I am green with envy and bursting with pride. I LOVED blog #60- especially the video. There is a certain peace and rhythm that settles in on a long passage. Food is tastier, sleep is delicious, jokes are funnier, conversations are deeper, music is better and a general sense of well being takes over as the gentle purr of the MTU and the water rushing along the hull provide a gentle soothing backdrop. This condition doesn’t have a name, but I know it when I see it.. and I see it on the happy ship ELIANA. As always.. thank you for showing us the way… Vicariously, Dan Streech PS: I have made the passage to Hawaii twice.. on Mason sailboats. Both times, we achieved the harmonious state described above.. and, both times, I didn’t want to arrive- didn’t want the magic to end or to break the spell. It also happened to me on the passage to Bermuda on Sans Souci during the NAR. I wrote about it at the time and it is buried somewhere in our web site.

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 09:50:51 GMT

Debbie and Rick, My husband and I stayed at the Marriott Resort in Ko Olina...it's a beautiful and very peaceful place, you will enjoy it there. Walking paths along the ocean, calm bays to swim, yoga in the morning by the sound of the surf. How blessed you are. I enjoy following your adventures, thanks for keeping us all updated. Have a great winter. Aloha, Molly Nagle..aka..Dan Shanks little sister

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 09:50:29 GMT

Rick, Debbie, Linda, Peter, and Paige... thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for inviting me (via the Nordhavn Dreamers group) into your life and onto your lovely yacht!!! I am having SO much fun crossing the Pacific with you. Despite the distance between us (I am in Annapolis, MD), I feel as though I am on Eliana at this moment. The 4 minute video was magical and Linda's journal is "edge of your seat" captivating! Going through the "day to day" brings my dream into fruition, if only for a few moments. Please know that you are touching lives and feeding dreams! Looking forward to the next entry!!! “Let your mind start a journey thru a strange new world. Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before. Let your soul take you where you long to be...Close your eyes let your spirit start to soar, and you'll live as you've never lived before.” —Eric Fromm

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 09:12:54 GMT

Rick Thank you for the wonderful video, please post as many more as you wish ?. Love the technical aspect as well as the beautiful scenery. This is all priceless to us dreamers. Thanks again and enjoy this wonderful journey. Chris

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 06:39:41 GMT

Congratulations to all of you on a great adventure but special kudos to Linda. Anyone who's ever suffered seasickness would be amazed at your humor and ability to keep a daily journal when you are feeling like that! You can crew for us anytime.

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 03:38:50 GMT

Rick and Debbie, congratulations on leaving for your passage. I remember when we had dinner last spring you said you weren't sure yet about doing a Pacific crossing, but clearly your experience this summer changed your mind. We wish we were in Hawaii so we could be there to welcome you!

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 01:39:46 GMT

Hi guys! So happy to read your post and know that you're doing so well. We've been thinking of you these past couple of weeks. Lovely video. Also hope that Linda continues to feel better! Hugs to you all. Steph & Mart

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Tue, 22 Nov 2011 22:16:44 GMT

Rick, Debbie, and crew: Still with you on your fantastic adventure. Your account is very interesting and Linda's journal evoked both sympathy and laughter at the same time. Eagerly await the next episode. Best wishes. Tom and Janet

Comment on: #60 Time Is Slowly Fleeting

Tue, 22 Nov 2011 21:22:57 GMT

Linda, get well! Thanks for your entry, photos and audio/video! Great stuff! Enjoy your journey and Happy Thanksgiving y'all. Aloha!

#59 Full Moon

Sun, 13 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT

It must be a full moon. Autumn in San Francisco ... Halloween in Dana Point. We have much to talk about, but first I would like to announce we have changed our travel plan, diverting to Hawaii instead of continuing to Mexico. More on that later. Let’s catch up first...

San Francisco
As we began preparations to move Eliana to Dana Point, we decided to put on our tourist hats. The weather couldn’t have been nicer and we knew life was about to get more hectic so we took a break. Here are a few photos of our time in San Francisco.

Cheese counter at the ferry terminal. Good thing I don't walk by here on my way home from work every day!

The iconic Trans America building.

Cell Block C, Alcatraz

Chinatown. Did you know Chow Mien was invented here, not China?

We had to buy something. Debbie purchased this beautiful pillow case.

SF to Dana Point with Roger & Rich
Tim Juan is President of the Ta Shing factory in Taiwan where Eliana was built. Some months ago he called, offering the services of two engineers to come aboard for a thorough vessel inspection and to help us crew during a live passage. I jumped at the chance and thought this would be the perfect opportunity since San Francisco is a reasonable connection from Taiwan, then likewise the return would be from Los Angeles.

Roger and Rich came with a gift of Pineapple Moon Cakes. Tim sent them along knowing I love them. These are traditional during the Chinese Moon Festival but you can get them any time. With only two days to get ready for departure, Debbie prepared a delicious meal of pork chops, rice and veggies. For desert we celebrated their arrival by toasting a sip of 1986 d’Yquem which went perfectly together with the Pineapple Moon Cakes that were incidentally formed in the shape of the Taiwan Island. Strangely enough, we toasted to a full moon with moon cakes!

It was interesting to see Eliana through their eyes. They already knew every square inch having spent months building her layer by layer. This was, however, their first opportunity to enjoy the finished product as a functioning home. Roger remarked that his biggest surprise were the various sounds. He knows the systems and what they do. He just couldn’t get over the subtle clicking, whirring and gurgling sounds that soon become familiar.

The trip to Dana Point was flawless. It took slightly more than 50 hours nonstop, an easy trip but still comforting to see our old familiar spot there. Garrett Severen, our project manager greeted us at the dock.

Roger, Rich, Debbie and I

Our little celebration. Sorry we forgot to take a picture of the moon cake before we ate it! The wrapper will have to do.

Full Moon rising over San Francisco Bay

Rich checking bolt tightness on an exhaust flange.

Roger took copious notes in his book. I was amazed. It was page after page. Every detail was meticulously recorded.

Important Guests
As expected, our activity level in Dana Point shot way up. We had the honor of receiving Tim Juan and Jessica from the Ta Shing factory to visit Eliana. They were traveling on their way home from the Ft. Lauderdale boat show. Dan Streech, President of Nordhavn, was also back in town so was able to join us. Jeff Leischman stopped by for a long visit. It was a unique and memorable experience to have all these remarkable folks together at once.

As luck would have it, we also had the opportunity to meet Kristin and Reinhard, a wonderful couple from Munich (currently living in Mallorca). They are building a Nordhavn 76, so we were fortunate to spend time with them, too. Kristin brought her parents, Matthias and Renate who were a lot of fun. Together we talked boats, boating and boat design endlessly. It was fun to put lines on paper again and dream of better ways to do things.

While we had the folks from Ta Shing, Nordhavn, Kristin and Reinhard there, we decided to take Eliana for a sea trial. Nothing like a boat ride to get everyone smiling and having a good time!

Tim Juan, Jessica and I

Visiting with Dan Streech while under way.

Arriving. Dan, Matthias, Reinhard and me on the bridge. Renate and Kristin on the foredeck. Garrett on the dock.

Kristin and Garrett having fun.

Halloween
You may recall a post I did on July 4, 2010. We were in Dana Point then too, and I decided nobody celebrates Independence Day better than Dana Pointianites. Well, I now believe the same is true for Halloween. We laughed and laughed at the costumes going by. Here are a couple pictures...

Must be something in the water at Dana Point. They definitely know how to have a good time.

Definitely a full moon thing. I think this guy gets the blue ribbon.

Hawaii
Here’s the scoop on Hawaii. We were visiting with friends a few days ago and they were telling all the things they loved about Hawaii. I knew it got Debbie thinking but she didn’t say anything until the next morning; “So what do you think about Hawaii?” I knew right then any argument was hopeless. We were definitely going. Before the day was over we had arranged berthing at Ko Olina Marina and started to prepare for the 2,300 mile trip.

Getting ready for something like this isn’t to be taken lightly. There is a lot to do. But for quite a few reasons we need to get moving if we're going to do it. Our departure is set for Wednesday, November 16 and we’ll make one stop in Ensenada, MX to top off the fuel tanks, then we’ll be on our way. Should be about 11 days across, which is the longest non stop passage to date for Eliana and for us.

We have an excellent crew of five selected. Peter and Paige St Phillip, good friends and an experienced cruising couple will make the trip as will Linda Waldroop, Debbie’s sister.

I plan to provide one or two journal updates along the way. In the next one, I will write about a few of the things we did to get ready. In the meantime, you can follow us by clicking the “Track Eliana” link below. Since we will be leaving the AIS range used by Marine Traffic, I will upload our positions manually.

More to come! As always, please post comments or questions on our website by clicking the link below where it says “You can access the blog entry here.” I will do my best to answer questions. And please invite others you think may be interested in following along, too.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: San Diego
Mileage: 8,695 Nautical Miles
Track Eliana

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Tue, 22 Nov 2011 00:08:35 GMT

Hi, Rick and Debbie. I have had the dream of a live aboard lifestyle for some time now. I am a native San Diegian and absolutely love the ocean. My best friend is on the list for a 48' slip in Dana Point to upgrade from his 28' slip. I am visiting PAE next week to start the process of acquiring the 76' Nordhavn "Take Five" or one of the other 76-86' Nordhavns on brokerage through PAE. Your blog has convinced me this is to be the lifestyle for me and my family. I just turned fifty and plan to retire within 5 years. My oldest son is off to college next year and my youngest son is 10 and we will homeschool him as my wife is a Phd college professor. Thank you for giving us your insight and confirming that life aboard a Nordhavn is indeed an excellent adventure.

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 12:51:47 GMT

Rick, Looks like you're just about to the point of no return, all things being equal. Hope you are enjoying your passage. Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving! Grant T

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Sun, 20 Nov 2011 13:29:16 GMT

Rick, I am watching you as you make your way across the Pacific. That has to be an adventure beyond words. Be safe and have fun.

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Sun, 20 Nov 2011 01:46:57 GMT

Just heard from Peter who is on watch as I type. Also heard from Jerry Bryan, our dock mate, that he was following your blog, as we now will. Glad your weather is great so far. Jealous of your fabulous adventure. We will stay tuned. Hi, to Peter and Paige.

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 22:10:26 GMT

My wife and I found your video on you tube while searching for real life experiences on Nordavn Yachts, and found it very interesting. We are sttarting our search for our retirement boat. We ave been avivd boaters our whole life, but just have not had the tiime over the years to venture to far. We have been up and down the East Coast several times,but never had the time to enjoy each of our stops along the way. We currently have a 47 Sabrelne we bought new 10 years ago. While it is a great vacation and weekend boat, we are looking for a more substantial boat,and Nordavn is on our list. While doing our research we are finding the real life adventures of people living our retirement dream very informative and extremely interesting. Thanks to your generous Webb site,we will actually get a real life,real time look at our future. I will look forward to your travels and more importantly your day to day experiences. God Speed Rob and Patty Lombard

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 22:48:38 GMT

Enjoyed the photos and your blog. Just to let you know that my husband (Tom) and I are friends of Peter & Paige. We will be praying that your trip to Hawaii is beautiful; that you will have calm seas; that your time in the islands is magical; and that you all remain in good health while on this grand adventure. What fun!

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 19:36:14 GMT

It's great seeing the author in some of the photos! Look's like you guy's are having a great time!

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Sun, 13 Nov 2011 23:03:17 GMT

Did you expect some of us to recognize cell block C in Alcatraz? Thank you for all your efforts in keeping us posted. It's just wonderful.

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Sun, 13 Nov 2011 21:39:55 GMT

Wow! Hawaii! Congrats! A friend, Don Stabbert, just brought his boat back from there, after being there for a while. He was able to get moorage for a similar sized boat right in the heart of Honolulu. Let me know if you want me to connect the two of you. I'm looking forward to reading about the passage. -Ken Williams N6805, Sans Souci

Comment on: #59 Full Moon

Sun, 13 Nov 2011 20:13:30 GMT

Congrats and have a fun trip! Just started following your blog and have really enjoyed it! Someday I am hoping for a Nordhavn myself!

#58 Imagination

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT

The phone rang recently. It was our 5 year old grand daughter Anna who politely asked to speak to Mimi. Debbie took the phone and Anna blurted tearfully “Mimi, mommy says my imagination has gone wild. What should I doooo?” Debbie consoled “Anna, there is nothing wrong with your imagination. What she said is just a figure of speech. It’s OK to use your mind to imagine things.

Anna was quickly calmed, but it got me thinking as I looked out the window. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined having a home overlooking San Francisco Bay. Yep, a quiet gated community with easy access to all the surrounding communities. Minutes from wine country to the North, Berkeley to the South and San Francisco minutes away on the BART train. Even more incredible, our spot is only temporary during two gorgeous months of the year. I decided my imagination is no match for reality.

Beautiful San Francisco Bay from Marin Highlands

Richmond Shipyards
Richmond Bay Marina where we stayed is situated in a quiet residential neighborhood. During World War II, however, Kaiser shipyard #2 occupied this very spot. It was anything but quiet. More ships were built here during the war than any other yard in the country.

With multiple fronts and a major submarine threat, the country needed ships quickly. More than 747 Victory and Liberty ships were built here during the war, a feat not equaled anywhere else in the world before or since. What’s more, they built them in two-thirds the time at one fourth of the cost of any other yard of the time. Henry Kaiser and his workers applied innovative techniques bringing pre-made parts together, moving them into place with huge cranes. They were then welded or riveted together in the yard using unskilled laborers to do the repetitive jobs required. This effort opened up jobs to women and minorities.

By 1944, the yard could assemble a ship from start to finish in just two weeks. When challenged, they produced the Liberty ship SS Robert E. Peary in just 5 days. For the first time women were employed in massive numbers. The population of Richmond grew almost overnight from 20,000 to 100,000. Now that’s imagination!

Richmond Marina today.

Our slip is where the number 2 is in this photo.

'Wendy the Welder'. Women served the war effort in mass numbers. There is also a 'Rosie the Riveter' memorial on this site.

The Red Oak Victory, one of the last remaining ships of the era. This photo was taken just two months ago before being put into dry dock for new paint.

The Red Oak Victory returned to her berth just as we were leaving so I snapped this photo of her. What a difference. This one may be the only one that will be preserved for future generations to see.

Google
Michael Jones is Chief Technology Advocate for Google. He is an amazingly interesting and quick minded guy. Michael is also a serious student of all things boating. Among his diverse boating interests, he follows Eliana’s Journal. So when Eliana arrived to town, Michael invited us to the Google campus for a tour. Debbie and I jumped at the chance.

Google was incorporated in 1998 as a private company with the mission statement “to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful”. The name Google was a misspelling of googol, the term representing the number 1 with one hundred zeros behind it. Today, Google manages data centers around the world processing over 11 billion core searches last month alone. In fact, the term “to google” is now considered a verb in several languages.

The Googleplex in Mountain View, CA is staggering in size. Over 40 buildings, each is dedicated to various departments and portions of the business. The campus is up and running around the clock. Employees enjoy a culture of innovation and problem solving while being cared for in every possible way. The magnitude of the impact Google has on humankind is difficult to grasp. And to think this has been achieved this in only a decade. It makes me wonder what may be possible in the next decade. I can't imagine. Can you?

Viewing a portion of the campus using, you guessed it, Google Earth.

Debbie printing her visitor badge.

Building to building transportation is fast and efficient on company provided bicycles.

One of the buildings.

Google's first production server. I have no idea how many they have now, but it's a lot.

This monitor in the front lobby scrolls real time searches being done all over the world. Of course, it only shows a tiny fraction of the millions of searches every second, but it was fun to see what people type in to search.

Michael Jones with his demonstration booth. It allows the user to stand in the middle with a joystick and fly all around the world seeing it in spectacular realism.

You can even fly it to the moon or mars.

Shop Talk
A few weeks ago I posted #55 Milestones and Mistakes. In it I related the account of losing our main engine power as we approached San Francisco. Later, the topic resurfaced in the Nordhavn Dreamers forum with concerns about our steering and backup configuration on Eliana. By the time I got to it, the thread had ended so I thought this may be a better time to review as I know many of my readers subscribe to the forum and may be wanting answers.

You may recall that we ran out of fuel because I unintentionally turned the wrong fuel valve. This particular valve is out of sight so I got in the bad habit of turning it by feel and I simply grabbed the wrong one. It was an error of execution, not omission. I performed the step, just didn’t do it right.

Furthermore, in the story, I related what happened in sequential order. I shared my thoughts, describing the recovery steps in exactly as they occurred. What I didn’t mention (and should have) was how long it took. Despite having never rehearsed an engine out recovery, only a few moments elapsed (30 seconds tops) to regain propulsion, steering and stabilization.

There were comments questioning our steering arrangement. Eliana’s steering was designed by Kobelt. It is essentially the same simple and basic system used on most working boats such as the Alaska fishing fleet. The benefits of it are high performance (responsive rudder), ease of use and supreme reliability day in and day out.

Here are the components...

Rudder post on the right. Steering cylinders and simple hydraulic control blocks behind the cylinders.

Steering hydraulics and oil reservoir is dedicated only to steering. It does not receive power from or rely on the ship's general hydraulic system.

The primary hydraulic pump is attached directly to the main engine and provides steering power at all times.

The backup pump should the main engine fail. It's powered by the 32KW generator which is often already running, but if it isn't, it starts in just seconds.

Finally, many thanks to those who provided advice to us on this topic. Especially Ken Williams and George Laycock who wisely advised changing the procedure which eliminates tank switching altogether. As Ken says “If you are constantly fiddling with the fuel valves, you will run out of fuel sooner or later”. Another important take away for us is to practice engine out procedures regularly.

Before Signing Off
Eliana has completed the transit from San Francisco to Dana Point. We would like to express our appreciation to our readers for your interest and for your comments or questions. Please click on the link below to go directly to the website where you can post. If you know of others you think may be interested, please do pass along the link to our home page where they can register to receive each post.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Dana Point, CA
Mileage: 8,629 Nautical Miles

Comment on: #58 Imagination

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 23:33:49 GMT

Ooops! Sorry Rick, didn't mean to mess up your name. Galloping brain fade on my party, no doubt. Mea Culpa!

Comment on: #58 Imagination

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 23:31:12 GMT

Yet another in a long series of fascinating posts, Ken. Many thanx for taking the time and making the effort for the rest of us. Keep on living the dream, and we'll keep on dreaming the life. Enjoy!

Comment on: #58 Imagination

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 23:09:28 GMT

As is your norm, Rick, well done and informative. I know I speak for all of Eliana's followers when I say, "thank you so much. We appreciate and learn from your post.". All the best to you and your, Mate.

Comment on: #58 Imagination

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:36:20 GMT

Hey Rick, Along the lines of your fuel valve saying that Ken mentioned, the same holds true for pilots. My flight instructors always said when flying on complex aircraft with retractable gear, it's just a matter of time before you land without your full set of wheels for one reason or another. I always have that in the back of my mind as well. It's how well you train yourself to react to a problem, so when that problem happens you know how to react correctly and not make even more mistakes which cause a much larger problem. Thanks, Chris

Comment on: #58 Imagination

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:17:07 GMT

Looks like S.F is treating you well. Meeting Michael Jones would be exciting and informative, especially in the Google corp. context. I had hoped you were planning to attend the TRAC seminar in Santa Rosa and actually drove to Bodega Bay expecting to see Eliana moored there. Fortunately, they serve great sea-food chowder Manhatten style at the Landing, so I warmed up before heading back inland to the hotel.

Comment on: #58 Imagination

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 18:17:24 GMT

rick, is there a reason why the backup hydraulics for the steering are not on the wing engine instead of the generator? i thought the wing engine had its own separate fuel supply whereas the generator runs off the main's fuel. looking at the picture you have a set of racors by the generator so i assume you separate its fuel from the main. jon Hi Jon, You're on top of it! I knew someone would ask, but you got on it quick. The reason is because our wing engine does not have a PTO to drive it. The one it has is used for the primary ship hydraulics which is used to power our thrusters and windlasses. If there were another PTO, I would use it. However, the 32 KW will run quite awhile just on the long lines and filters going to it. Unless we completely run out of fuel, we're OK. Not ideal, but I'm OK with it. Rick

Comment on: #58 Imagination

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 17:58:38 GMT

Great update! Nice photos of Google and Michael......

#57 Wine Country

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT

I'll admit it; we love wine. It adds so much to a conversation or meal. We’ve found it pairs well with any sunset, real or imaginary, just about any time. After a day of hard work, we like to think of the traditional pour as a ‘reward’. About the only time we don’t have wine is when we’re underway. Otherwise, you can be sure as Debbie prepares the evening meal, there will be a bottle opened.

Eliana has a small wine cooler on board. We usually keep a few bottles of red and white in there. We tend to purchase only a few bottles at a time, usually at Costco or the grocery store. However, knowing we’re leaving the country soon, we thought it would be a good time to stock up. What better timing than to be within driving distance of California’s wine country!

Road to Healdsburg
My background is in Agriculture so I thought this might be a good time to go a bit beyond the tasting rooms and tours. Debbie recalled that Rebecca (you know Rebecca, my pilates instructor from back home) has a sister, Theresa and her husband, Brian in Healdsburg. You won’t believe it, but Brian represents Canton Cooperage, so he calls on the wineries and supplies some of the finest oak wine barrels in the business. Theresa is the high school principal in Cloverdale. Between the two of them, there are no strangers in the community. So we hit the jackpot, what can I say!

Coincidentally, this is a beautiful time of year in wine country. It’s harvest time so the grapes are coming in at a furious pace. Everyone is incredibly busy, but what an interesting time. Anyway, we made our way to Healdsburg to get our bearings. Brian and Theresa were the perfect guides for us.

After a short tour of town, Brian made up a map for us of suggested visits. Knowing we were more interested in the nuts and bolts, he suggested Dry Creek Valley as a great area since we only had limited time. Unlike more commercialized areas, this one is dominated by small, family owned vineyards and wineries.

Healdsburg is a charming town. A great place for foodie's.

Brian prepared a map with advice for each proposed visit.

Healdsburg and Dry Creek Valley to the North.

Dry Creek Valley
Dry Creek is bordered on the North by Lake Sonoma and is a tributary into the Russian River. It’s not on the beaten path, but may be one of the most pastorally, captivatingly beautiful places I’ve been. French and Italian immigrants first planted grapes here in 1870. The geography reminded them of their homeland’s Tuscany and Piedmont.

The well drained, fertile soils of the valley floor rise to meet a large area of bench land vineyards on the East and coastal mountain vineyards on the West. Zinfandel is the signature grape. The valley is renowned for Old Vine Zinfandel, much of which was planted in the early 1900’s. But the cool climate is also perfect for Bordeaux and Rhone varietals. We found properties with as many as 17 different types of grape which are then blended in pleasing ways.

The farmers of the valley are small to medium sized and are commonly multi-generation, family owned establishments. The vineyards are integral with olive groves, orchards and vegetables. One shouldn’t be surprised to see chickens, goats and a whole host of other barnyard animals! Reminds me of home.

It's actually not too hard to find what you're looking for here.

Aerial view of the valley.

Grapes about to be harvested.

Ferrari-Carano, one of the larger and a beautifully maintained estate along Dry Creek.

Michel-Schlumberger, an older estate on the bench land has been managed agriculturally the same way for many years.

Wine Making
I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised that individual growers and masters have widely varying ideas on best practices. Passion is one thing they all have in common. “Good wine starts with the grape. It all happens out there, not in here ...”; “No, it’s the soil. Otherwise, you’re fooling no one.”; “All good wineries need a chief wino, and I’m him.”; “Nobody can pick grapes with a machine and make good wine. Only hand picking gets you want you want.”; “Small vats are the way to go. Stay away from the big tanks.” I had to smile as it so reminded me of coffee shop chatter growing up on the farm.

Harvest is a madhouse. One of my misconceptions was that harvest was synonymous with crush. Well, it is, and isn’t. The grapes aren’t crushed as they come from the field, they are cleaned and sorted, but then fermented in controlled conditions before pressing the juice from the solids. It was amazing to see the wine makers brooding over the grapes as they were being picked, then nursing each little batch along. Makes me appreciate even more the wonderful quality of a good glass of wine.

Checking temperature on newly vatted Syrah grapes.

Winemaker Steve Law (Maclaren Wine Company) keeps careful records on each batch. He is passionate about Syrah.

Purchasing some unbelievable zinfandel from Michael Talty (Talty Vineyards). He and his wife Katie do a fantastic job.

Preston Vineyards advocates more than just a sip or two. But please drink responsibly! Debbie also got some olive oil produced on this farm.

Aging barrels at Quivira Winery.

Conclusion
I now have a huge appreciation for the dedication of the farmers here. How they love the land, the science and the art of their work. There are a few widely recognized labels in the valley, but most are small and pay close attention to every detail of their production. Spending time with Brian and Theresa left us with the positive impression of a close knit community living and working together. I like it that the world class wine isn’t going to their head, so to speak.

Theresa and Brian with us at Quivira. They were awesome.

And yes, we did find Canton barrels everywhere. Brian must be doing a good job!

Before Signing Off
Thank you again for following Eliana’s Journal. We’re not quite finished in San Francisco, but by the end of October will be picking a time to move south to Dana Point, CA. We love hearing your comments so please visit our web site by clicking on the link below.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Richmond Bay Marina
Mileage: 8,214 Nautical Miles

Comment on: #57 Wine Country

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 13:10:59 GMT

Our little new N40/II is at Dana Point now and we will be aboard her the second week of November and will take her down to San Diego for the TrawlwerFest 10-12th. Back to Dana Point and depart for New Mexico again on the 15th. Hope to see you and Debbie there and that we can share a drink. Know we enjoy your travels.

Comment on: #57 Wine Country

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 08:46:14 GMT

Truly a slice of Heaven on Earth !!! Fabulous pictures .... the scenery is just amazing ! Will have to check out that area on our next trip out ! xoxo Candi

Comment on: #57 Wine Country

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 21:13:56 GMT

We are in the San Francisco area from time to time and am so disappointed that it hasn't worked out to be there at the same time as you. It seems that we are always a step behind you wherever you are. Would love to see Eliana and meet up with you and maybe it will happen some day. In the meantime, it is fascinating to read your blogs. Keep them coming. Claire

Comment on: #57 Wine Country

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 21:13:28 GMT

#56 Wax On, Wax Off

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT

A scene from “The Karate Kid” in 1984 stands out in my memory. It was about a young man Daniel, who was challenged to compete in a karate tournament by bullies. He turned for help to their apartment’s caretaker, a humble but eccentric Okinawan immigrant named Mr. Miyagi. Miyagi becomes his teacher and surrogate father figure who begins Daniel’s training by assigning him to menial tasks such as waxing cars. In the scene I recall best, he shows how to apply the wax using one hand in a circular motion, then remove the wax with the other hand in the opposite direction.

Miyagi: “Wax on, right hand. Wax off, left hand. Wax on, wax off. Breathe in through nose, out the mouth. Wax on, wax off. Don't forget to breathe, very important. ...” After Daniel finally expresses his deep frustration seeing no reason he should have to do this, Miyagi reveals that Daniel has been learning defensive blocks through the muscle memory of his chores.

So this entry of Eliana’s Journal is to describe how Debbie and I plan to become world class karate punch blockers capable of defending ourselves in any situation. Read on...

Here’s The Problem
We love a clean boat. It’s wonderful. We admire others who keep their boats nice. Research proves most people are generally happier and function better in a clean environment. This is good thing, right? No, it’s bad. There is an unachievable standard for what a clean boat is. I’m not sure Intel keeps their ASIC lab as clean as boats are often expected to be. To the fastidious owner, it doesn’t take much of a tarnish or smudge to make an otherwise perfectly functional finish unacceptable.

You may also recall me saying once that an N76 is easily manageable by two people in every respect except exterior maintenance. Truly, the outside surface area is daunting. I have no idea how many square feet of gelcoat and lineal feet of stainless steel there are, but it is significant. No question, right out of the box we agreed, all exterior maintenance should be hired out. Well, that’s easier said than done.

We’ve found it difficult to consistently find good contractors. When we do, they are often under staffed, difficult to schedule, charge outrageous prices and deliver questionable workmanship. Now that’s not universally true, but I would say the majority of time we struggle with it. Because we are constantly moving, finding and vetting a new crew each time hasn’t been easy.

The Solution
It’s now obvious we have to be able to wash and wax ourselves. Doesn’t mean we won’t hire help when we can. But the Catch 22 is that if we delay doing what needs to be done based on availability of help, it only compounds the work quickly. Once problems begin to appear, remedial work mounts at lightning speed. Washing and waxing regularly eliminates humongous amounts of work.

So we set out to discover the easiest, fastest, and most effective ways to wash and wax. Through experimentation, we are honing our technique and it truly is doable. Not saying easy, but every improvement we make takes us one step closer to self sufficiency which we so desire.

Washing
We wash every couple weeks variable by conditions. We tried using a pressure washer. It works OK, but I found managing the hoses, electrical cord, soap and the unit itself is work. Honestly, it doesn’t clean very well either leaving a scale of dirt that would otherwise come right off with a gentle wipe.

We tried the rinse-only method. In fact, we still use rinse-only for the swim step, transom, sides and anchor platform upon each arrival. But the rinse-only method for the whole boat isn’t even close to a wash and can’t substitute.

We tried the dew-wipe method for a couple months last winter. Using a chamois to soak up morning dew does an amazing job of cleaning at the same time. Problem is it took us 45 minutes each morning to do it. By washing regularly, we only wipe dew from living area surfaces which only takes a few minutes.

The easiest and fastest way for us to wash is the old fashioned way. I call it the soapy-mop-rinse method. Wet the surface with fresh water, mop with soapy water and give it a low pressure rinse. We use Meguiars Flagship Wash & Wax soap. Using this product, the rinse water sheets right off so there is little drying and minimal water spots. The soapy-mop-rinse method works perfectly on gelcoat, stainless, windows and settee cushions.

We have gotten better and faster at washing. A good wax job REALLY helps. Simple things like reducing the paraphernalia to drag around and strategic hose routing speeds up the work. Waterproof bibs and gumboots are essential to stay dry. I can do the wash myself with Debbie following about half time to touch things up. She trades off between that and wash day housekeeping. If we start in the morning, we’ll be done by just after lunch.

Bucket, soap, wash pad and wash mop. These simple items and a garden hose are everything needed to wash Eliana quickly. The key tool is the mop. It's head can flex in any direction to easily transition to all surfaces while you move along. If the mop doesn't work, switch to the pad.

Waxing
I experimented with all kinds of polishes and waxes. One really needs a whole cabinet full of ‘products’ if remedial work is necessary. We’ve been there and done that. Now be it resolved that the easiest way and least work is to keep things protected routinely so the special forces aren’t necessary.

It doesn’t make much sense to wax without a light polish to remove any remaining dirt or stain. I’ve tried waxing alone and the two step process of first cleaning, then waxing. I’ve concluded it makes no sense to do it either way. So I set out to find the best Cleaner + Wax product that would clean and wax in the same pass.

After sampling several products I found the best and fastest results were with Meguiars Flagship Cleaner Wax. It cleans aggressively without requiring heavy pressure on the pad. Plus the wax buffs out beautifully and is longer lasting than anything else we tried. And another very important feature, unlike most others, it can be applied in direct sunlight with no problem. The only downside to this product is it doesn’t like water. So if the surface is the least bit wet, you better get it dry.

Like washing, I began by assuming mechanical help was necessary such as an orbital machine. I thought it would be the only way to go fast. Wrong. Like the pressure washer, it’s a pain in the you know what and logistical nightmare. I also found it gets heavy when you have to reach with it.

The method we found that works the best is the old fashioned way. I use a sponge applicator to apply the wax. Knock it down with a clean microfiber towel. Then buff with a baby diaper (available at West Marine). This system works for everything. Big areas, nooks and crannies, railing, window frames, everything. Most of the time I’m working over my head, below my feet or in a cramped area and yet with these very light tools you can wax on, wax off with the best of them.

A few additional tips: First is to wear kneepads. Amazing how it makes the job easier. Second, I place the applicator pad in a zip lock bag between sessions and it stays perfect. Third, have a big supply of knock down towels and buffing diapers, keeping them constantly clean. Cuts the work dramatically and is worth doing a washer load each evening.

Now, though, I will reveal the most important secret discovery for making boat waxing easy. A ladder. Not just any ladder. Nooo, this ladder is PERFECT and I love it. It’s called the LITTLE GIANT, extends up to 15’ and can serve as an adjustable step ladder accessible from both sides. Best of all, it weighs only 35 pounds and stores in the wash locker with the rest of the stuff.

One other problem we solved was how to do the bow and anchors. We twisted Eliana in the berth so the bow paralleled the dock and the anchors were over the dock. Then with the aforementioned PERFECT ladder we were able to knock out the bow in no time. To get the other side, we just reversed her position on the same dock. No fuss.

We set up our supplies bench in the cockpit.

The ladder isn't necessary for washing, but is essential for waxing. It can contort to different shapes and lengths to work everywhere.

Here the LITTLE GIANT works perfectly as a two sided step ladder.

We've found this simple combination helps us immensely.

By putting Eliana in a twist, her entire bow parallels the dock.

Here's the view from the front.

The anchors are then perfectly positioned for the stepladder.

We wax every square inch we can get to, even the inside edges of hatches. Here, we even waxed the inside trim pieces between the outside glass and screen.

Screw and bolt heads are sometimes hard to get wax in, so I use Boeshield T-9 or Corrosion Block. Squirt and wipe.

Notice how neatly the awesome LITTLE GIANT fits in the wash locker!

Before Signing Off
Anyone that has tips of their own on washing and waxing, please share them in the comments section. Simply click below to go to our website where you can add a comment. We're interested in anything that makes it easier, faster or better.

As always, we appreciate our readers very much. Please pass along the EJ link to others you think may find it interesting.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Richmond Bay Marina
Mileage: 8,203 Nautical Miles

View Larger Map

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Sat, 15 Oct 2011 17:07:35 GMT

One more idea. Wax the shower walls and it makes it easy to keep soap scum from building up. If you wax and then remove and wax again the finish will be easier to maintain the next time. Just like multiple wax coats on any vehicle will make it easier to clean the next time.

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Sat, 15 Oct 2011 17:02:54 GMT

I could offer some advice on car wash products that I used on a 32' Regal, which should help you keep your boat clean. A website, www.vaughanind.com is where the products came from and I can attest that the Special Detergent works well as a soap that helps to preserve the wax and shine. Cotton towels washed and then fabric softened are great to remove wax. The Fast Break worked to eliminate water spots but you lack a proper applicator to make it useful. The 403 works great as a glass cleaner with just an ounce or two in a quart spray bottle, then filled with water. Just spray on then wipe off using a terry towel that is damp in a horizontal stroke. This helps to eliminate streaks and even if it does streak, it doesn't inhibit sight lines. I have no connection to Vaughan Industries, just used their products for 25+ years.

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 09:45:06 GMT

Great stuff Rick! I find it amusing that I can be so interested in someone sharing how they clean and wax their boat! I was telling my wife about your most recent entry and all I got back from her was a blank stare... then she smiled and patted me on the head as she walked away...I guess not everyone appreciates every detail of the boating life! I sure do so keep the entries coming!

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 03:00:18 GMT

Hello Rick and Debbie, I am really enjoying your site and the wonderful story of you and your vessel. I share your dream of cruising the oceans and exploring the world via the seas. The only significant cruise I have made so far is the trip from Los Angeles up to Marina Bay, a mere 400 miles, but I loved it. I am your neighbor, for a while at least, while you are here. You may have noticed my old, small vessel which I live on, along with my small dog, Gromit, about 20 feet from the lovely Eliana. My vessel is a 1979 CHB trawler, just 41', single diesel and full displacement hull in the spirit of the Eliana. You met my friends, Darrell and Gloria, with the 40' Hershine Trawler. Very good people, and it was very nice to have them here at the dock for a few days. Thanks for sharing your boat and your adventures; look forward to the next chapter. Tom Store Manager, West Marine

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Sun, 09 Oct 2011 13:43:28 GMT

Did you enjoy the play Don Hi Don, We went to see Rita Moreno tell her life story. It was incredibly well done. Loved it. Met Christine afterward for gelato. She was charming. We had an interesting visit. Rick

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Sun, 09 Oct 2011 01:35:47 GMT

Hi Rick, Were you and Deb able to see any of the fleet week highlights today? Hi Bob, We have company this weekend so weren't able to go over to see things first hand. We did see the Blue Angels performing. At one point they swooped around nearly right over the marina. Amazing. Rick

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Sun, 09 Oct 2011 00:01:24 GMT

We use a water filters with our hose.stainlesssteelwaterfilters.com No water spots! Thanks for the tip about the mop, I have been looking for something like this and have ordered one from Griots.

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 17:43:07 GMT

Rick good for both of you for doing that work. I would love to know what the mop is that you are using. Mike Hi Mike, I got two of these online from Griots. The mop handle is amazing. The head rotates 360 degrees and flips back and forth 180 degrees. With a little practice you can go from floor to wall, to top of rail to outside wall to ceiling just by manipulating the handle a little. The handle is also extendable so when working in a narrow walkway, you use it short. But when going over a big area, I extend it long and use sweeping motion to get over ground fast. Rick

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 17:36:23 GMT

Rick and Debbie Thanks for the help. Getting away from the dock in Richmond. With the wind and rain, it almost got ugly. Thanks again !!!! Bailador Darrell & Gloria

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 20:00:44 GMT

The Karate Kid is one of the all time great movies!

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:52:20 GMT

Kudos on keeping your ship in shape! One question I have is do people complain about the run off going into the water? I boat on a crystal clear lake in Maine, to 15' or 20' deep anyway, and there are people (I am one of them) who take the water quality very seriously and it is quite a "no-no" to do anything like wash your boat, dirty dishes or hair in the lake. Are the Meguiars Flagship products eco - safe or is it just a regular event that all ocean boaters understand? I am not trying to stand on a soap box (eco - safe or otherwise) just curious. Thanks for the great blog. Dear Tony, Thanks for a good question. We try to keep all the products we use inside and out to be as environmentally safe as possible. Honestly, though, I hadn't checked these. Here is what I have gotten from Meguairs.... "While all of Meguiar's car wash soaps are biodegradable, none of our other products are currently being marketed specifically as green/eco friendly. We have regularly altered formulations to stay in keeping with ever changing regulations concerning VOC emissions, etc. In some cases we have been able to successfully alter the formulation of a given product without compromising it's effectiveness, ease of use, etc, but in others (M16 Professional Paste Wax comes to mind) we could not alter formulation without negatively impacting the product. That is something we refuse to do, so rather than produce a compromised product we cease production of it." Rick

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:32:29 GMT

that is one gorgeous yacht both inside and out. takes pride of ownership to a high level. would love to see a complete shot of the yacht after being waxed, almost looks like the hull has a mirror finish. quite envious. great blog, jon

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:06:15 GMT

Interesting blog. I bet you two are in great shape because of this frequent workout. The pictures really show off the sheen! Good job!

Comment on: #56 Wax On, Wax Off

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 15:52:37 GMT

Ok, so for those of us who have not waxed our car/pickup for over a year - I'm feeling like a total failure. Won't sign my name but you know who I am in St. Joe (and you have my email).

#55 Milestones and Mistakes

Sun, 18 Sep 2011 00:00:00 GMT

We gave each other an exuberant “high-five” as the Golden Gate came into view. We had completed our longest passage to date; 822 nautical miles in 100 hours, just the two of us. Our goal was to see if we could successfully manage multiple overnights maintaining constant watch without additional crew. Once again, weather became a factor. Compounding that, I made a critical mistake resulting in parlous suspense at a very bad time. As much as I swore never to let it happen to me, it did. In the event telling the story will help someone else avoid the same error, I’ll debrief later with a blow-by-blow account. Also, I made a short 1.5 minute video which I’ve placed at the end. Here’s the story from the beginning...

Trip Planning
The West Coast is a treacherously unpredictable place for mariners. It takes the full brunt of everything the Pacific has incoming. The coast is rugged so when conditions turn bad unexpectedly, reentry to safe harbor can be dangerous especially when lacking local knowledge. Good weather, when you can get it, is golden.

We thought about breaking the trip into two legs with a stop in Astoria, Oregon. It’s a nice place to visit and we thought it would give us much needed rest. However, we wanted to be flexible if conditions appeared favorable to do the entire trip.

We’re finding there is no better way to get miles behind us than nonstop, around the clock. The opportunity can develop quickly leaving us little time to assemble crew. So being able to transit 800 miles off shore on short notice with just the two of us is an important arrow in our quiver.

I gave Bob at Ocean Marine a call to get his take on the forecast. High pressure centers repeated across the North Pacific pushing low troughs in between. They were coming rapid fire with sporadic areas of pressure gradient in the pattern making it difficult to forecast wind. Oh, but there was an apparent break that could give us 3 to 4 days of steadier conditions. Swells out of the WNW 6 - 8 feet and northerly winds under 20 knots. We made the decision to plan a nonstop and set the departure time pending one final weather check before pushing off.

I further decided on a bluewater route further off shore to take advantage of its simplicity and reduce the coastal affect on currents. Also, crab pots, fishing boats and kelp are not our friends at night. More offshore is better.

Day 1
Departure time was based on two factors. First knowing we would go through a full tide cycle before reaching sea, we decide to go into the flood to start, and then ride the ebb the rest of the way out. That put us by Neah Bay at about midnight, which would give us the first night at sea with the least wind.

Second, we wanted to arrive San Francisco with a flooding current. Prevailing winds are nearly always from seaward so we would get a double push and better ride going in.

So after returning the rental car, we were able to cast off at 10 AM Saturday morning. We decided to alternate three hour watches during the day using the free time to nap. We agreed to divide nights in half with me taking from 6 to 1, then Debbie from 1 to 6. I did engine room checks and switched fuel tanks every 6 hours at 6 and 12.

Passing Orcas in Puget Sound. Amazingly synchronous swimmers.

Our departure route

Saying goodbye to the now familiar company of the cruise ships.

Day 2
Our watch schedule worked well at first, probably because we started well rested. The second day became more difficult and was probably the most difficult part of the trip. Sea conditions were good, but I found it difficult to sleep when I was supposed to. Debbie was sleeping better than me, but still not as much as normal.

Both of us pushed through fatigue determined to get a pattern down. We decided cardinal rule number one was not to have both of us on watch at the same time which we like to do, but nobody gets rest then. Second is to be more vigilant when on watch, managing by walking around, staying occupied and alert as possible. Third to be more purposeful about getting rest when not on watch. It was easy to stay busy if we weren't feeling like going to bed. We agreed not to set the alarm. Better stated, never awaken one who is managing to sleep soundly ... let them sleep if they can.

As day two was nearing nightfall we were passing our intended stop, Astoria. Almost like someone turned a switch, the weather changed radically. I couldn’t believe what was happening. Swells were coming in at 6 to 9 feet, wind was about 25 knots and current was running about 2 knots. None of which would normally be a problem. Then I realized the swells were arriving from the northwest, the current going from northeast to southwest and the wind had shifted to the south. I knew then we were in for a ride! I took a couple of video clips (included below) before it got dark as this condition was beginning to form.

We started calling this the "Sleep Chamber" where you go for 'mandatory' sleep. Blackout shades and the steady drone of the engine help. It also helps to get really tired first!

Nothin' but us birds out here. This hearty species seemed to be prevalent most of the way. I haven't had a chance to look him up, but I'm sure someone will help me fill in the blank.

Day 3
The uneasy sea state seemed to hit us from every direction the rest of the night. On top of that, we met with a huge fishing fleet on our route which was exactly what I was trying to avoid. Amazingly, we got a great night's sleep so day three felt much better. Debbie prepared oatmeal for breakfast, had a big pot of soup on, plus we had ham sandwiches. We double downed on water to stay hydrated.

As the day went on, the wind switched back around to the North confirming a good decision to stay the course. We started a larger generator to make water in the afternoon and air condition the pilot house. Otherwise, we didn’t need any air conditioning or heating the entire trip.

By nightfall though, it was apparent we were in for another round. The ocean swell began to grow to an average of 12 to 15 feet with greater frequency. Nothing like forecast. They hit us on the starboard quarter making the steering and stabilizers work hard. Regardless, it wasn’t uncomfortable so we pressed on.

I'm hungry. I'm tired and thirsty. Haven't seen land in days. Got somethin' for a guy down in his luck? This poor fella showed up and flitted outside the window like he wanted to be let in. Must have been tame. He had a yellowish breast and a yellow patch on the underside of his tail. Anyone know this one?

Day 4 and “The Mistake”
I used to love reading the Pilot Error' column in flying magazines and can remember shaking my head at the dumb things people do. Sadly, this is one of those stories.

The day of arrival finally came. Almost like an alarm clock, I woke up at 6, jumped out of bed ready to start the day. Debbie was getting along perfectly despite a still rough sea. We were nearing our final approach right on schedule. It was my turn for watch only this time I would take it the rest of the way in for an approximate 2 PM arrival. I hurried downstairs to do the normal engine room check and tank change.

Once back at the helm, I checked radar for traffic. There were several freighters and a tanker in the system. I thought it prudent to join San Francisco VTS (Vessel Traffic Service) operated by the Coast Guard who coordinate arrivals and departures.

We set our course for the “SF” sea buoy which marks the beginning of the final channel into San Francisco. This is a precautionary zone where vessels coming from different directions converge and space themselves in or out. There was a pilot boat cruising that area, but otherwise it appeared we would fortunately have the zone to ourselves. I called VTS and requested transiting the zone north of the buoy to cut off a couple miles, although it placed us in the path of any oncoming traffic for about 10 minutes. No oncoming traffic was imminent and permission was granted.

We entered the precautionary zone normally and took a heading direct to the inbound lane. The current was coming on our stern just as planned and everything seemed perfect. The pilot boat came out to parallel us as we transited the outbound traffic lane.

Then suddenly, without warning, our main engine quit. It became very quiet. My mind raced as I watched the RPM’s drop to zero. What happened? What do we do now? In an unexpected moment, Eliana was directly exposed as she had lost all propulsion, steering and stabilization. Debbie rushed up to lend assistance. I had rehearsed this situation a hundred times in my mind, but we had never actually done an engine out drill. No time to think, though, we’ve got to do it NOW.

I glanced at the on-line generator and it was running normally so we had electricity. I started the wing engine, engaged the wing propeller and hydraulic pump. Now we had propulsion and hydraulic pressure, but still no steering or stabilizers. Steering trumps, so I started the 32 KW generator which provides emergency steering power. Bingo, we had steering. Finally, after powering down and restarting the stabilizers, they began to work again. We were wounded, but safe for the moment.

After a quick call to VTS to explain our erratic behavior, we set our course northbound out of the control area. Then Debbie took the helm while I went to the engine room to figure out how to get the engine restarted. It’s got to be fuel, it’s got to be fuel I kept thinking. But how in the world. The wing engine is running yes, it has its own tank. The generators are running but they pull from the same tank as the main so there MUST be fuel there. I threw open the engine room door, wheeled around to see, to my horror, the fuel supply tank sight gauge was completely empty. How? Both main tanks had at least 900 gallons each. Then it occurred to me that if the supply tank is indeed empty, the generators won’t be running for long and we would be in a heap of trouble. I rechecked the fuel valves which were set to pull fuel from the port engine room tank, so I opened the starboard and closed the port. Instantly, fuel began filling the supply tank. I breathed a sigh of relief.

Back upstairs, Debbie did a great job of guiding Eliana generally toward safer water. With fuel back in the supply tank, I made several attempts to restart the main, but to no avail. There is no air bleed provision on the engine, but I knew there must be a way to do it. I called Garrett Severen at Nordhavn who got the answer from Joe Ascona in about 2 minutes. He instructed me to loosen the JIC fitting just past the fuel filter, then crank. I did that until fuel seeped out, then tightened the fitting and cranked again and voila, she started. Five minutes later we had everything completely back to normal and recovered our approach into San Francisco.

The Golden Gate

Closer Up

Post Mortem
Even as we tied up in Richmond Bay Marina, I still didn’t know how we ran out of fuel. But after reenacting the final hours, I figured it out. In haste that morning, I opened the wrong valve to the supply tank. There are TWO valves located under the floorboard of the engine room out of sight. I’ve opened and closed the correct one hundreds of times with no issue. Admittedly, I used to stick my head under there to read the label as I turned the valve, but eventually got to where I did it by feel. This time, I mistakenly grabbed the valve to a forward tank that was empty.

To assure this never happens again, I will be removing the handle entirely from the forward tank valve and tying it off to the side. The other procedure change is to go back to a 4 hour tank switch instead of 6 hour since the supply tank doesn’t hold quite 6 hours. Any misalignment would be caught that way before running out of fuel.

The two valves in question. Both are under the floorboard. The upper one is the correct one.

Before Signing Off
I’ve attached a brief 1.5 minute video which has three short clips. First, departing Puget Sound alongside the cruise ship at sunset. Second, the sea state at nightfall when the sea was starting to kick up. And finally, the entry under the Golden Gate as the fog horns were going. Click Here.

We’re thoroughly enjoying the Bay area. We’ll rest here for a good month and a half before moving further south. As always, comments and questions are welcome. Just use the link below to go directly to our web site. All the best to you and yours.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Richmond Bay Marina
Mileage: 8,203 Nautical Miles

Comment on: #55 Milestones and Mistakes

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 06:37:24 GMT

Using the flying analogy, you forgot the GUMP check on final approach (at least the G part). There's a reason professional pilots use a checklist and don't rely on memory. I'd have a laminated checklist available to mitigate forgetting something or doing it in the wrong order.

Comment on: #55 Milestones and Mistakes

Tue, 20 Sep 2011 20:56:02 GMT

Rick, Congrats on a personal milestone and another feather in your 'I can fix that' cap. Fortunately the satisfaction of finding and fixing a problem usually outweighs the pain of making it in the first place, otherwise we'd all stay home. Two questions, though - first, on a boat as large and inherently complex and expensive as a big Nordhavn, why is there no low-level indicator / alarm at the helm for the day tank? And second, why do you alternate tanks at all - are you isolating polished quantities of fuel? Curious comment from a wannabe captain, so it's worth what you paid for it. And many thanks (to you and Ken) for sharing your adventures; it's a joy to experience this vicariously for those of us who aren't out there yet. Hi Chris, Good questions, both. The day tank (sometimes called the supply tank) is a small tank all the engines use from and return to. It is continuously fed from any one of five main tanks. On Eliana it has a capacity of about 40 gallons and is equipped with a sight gauge. It's also equipped with a water sensor that would alarm should any water enter into it. I believe adding a level alarm would be valuable and may add one myself. The two largest fuel storage tanks are outboard of the engine room and hold about 1,450 gallons each. So the customary practice is to feed the supply tank from one of these tanks. To keep the boat trimmed, we alternate back and forth using approximately equal amounts from both sides. It would be nice if they could be tied together so they both come down together, but what really happens is the fuel starts flowing from one to the other causing a list which triggers continued flow to the lower tank until the boat leans far to the side. Therefore, we have to only use out of one tank at a time. Rick

Comment on: #55 Milestones and Mistakes

Tue, 20 Sep 2011 02:08:32 GMT

Rick, You asked, "How often do I replenish my starboard main..." Sans Souci has three fuel tanks; a Forward tank with 1,000 gallons, and two side tanks (port and starboard) with 950 gallons. I'm not sure how this compares to your boat. I use the starboard tank as my 'day tank' and have valves closed to all other tanks. Nothing feeds the supply tank, except the starboard tank. Prior to a trip, I make sure I have enough fuel in the starboard trip to make the run. If it's an overnight passage, then I burn approximarely 12 gallons an hour, or, 300 gallons a day. If we're running for several days, I transfer each morning. Normally I transfer from the forward tank, until it is empty, and then start working off the port tank. That said, where I transfer from depends on balancing the boat. If the forward tank is empty, and I'm moving from port to starboard, I can get in a situation where I can't completely fill the starboard tank, or the boat will get lopsided. That said, I've never had less than a couple days fuel in the starboard tank, had the boat lopsided, or run out of fuel, or touched a fuel valve (other than for fuel transfer) in over 40,000 miles and three years. It's a system that has worked well for me. -Ken Williams N6805, Sans Souci PS One side benefit -- all fuel gets filtered prior to use! I usually transfer as much fuel as I can to the starboard tank, prior to fueling the boat. I don't like putting fuel directly into the starboard tank, because it hasn't been through cleaning. I usually have fuel transfer happening while fueling the boat, so that I'm not leaning over, if the starboard tank is full, and the others empty.

Comment on: #55 Milestones and Mistakes

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 15:05:30 GMT

My daughter lives in the Bay area, works at Berkley Rep. Theater. Email me and I will put you in contact with her and she can get you tickets to plays. Don

Comment on: #55 Milestones and Mistakes

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:52:58 GMT

I had a look at your bird pictures, and I think that the flying seabird is a dark phase Northern Fulmar and your perched passerine is a Yellow-rumped Warbler. I may be wrong on the passerine as it's from the other side of a continent and the other side of the pond from me!

Comment on: #55 Milestones and Mistakes

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 10:01:20 GMT

Rick and Debbie - As always, your description of the event is amazing ... my heart was racing worried about what was going to happen next ...knowing all was going to be OK --- quite the adventure !!! Enjoy your time in the Bay area ... there are so many fun places to go!!! ENJOY !!! xoxo Candi

Comment on: #55 Milestones and Mistakes

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 09:48:56 GMT

Hello Heiniger's, I really love reading about your experiences on Eliana. My husband Walter and I own, and crew ourselves, Downtime, Nordhavn 5026, and have done so since 2005. Our prior experience with boating was similar to yours in regards to experience and knowledge. Unlike you, we have been taking it rather slow in our travels as retirement is still a ways off. Currently, Downtime is in Guatemala (Rio Dulce). We eagerly await the chance to take off in your fashion! Regarding your most recent trip, Seattle to San Francisco, I am wondering whether you would have repeated the decision to do the 800+ miles sans additional crew, given the engine failure that occurred. Congratulations on figuring it out though in no time! Sincerely, Mary Smithe Hi Mary, Good question re: crew. If we had crew, I probably would have trained someone to do the e/r check and tank change when I'm asleep. I also would have increased frequency to four hours rather than six. That said, I honestly believe my error was more haste than fatigue. Maybe it was a little of both. In any event, regardless who is doing the e/r checks, I'm determined to make the system impossible to screw up. Rick

Comment on: #55 Milestones and Mistakes

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 00:11:52 GMT

Rick, Congratulations on a great passage! Don't beat yourself up too much over the fuel issue. You would not believe how many Nordhavns I've heard of this happening too. I have a system I use which you may want to consider.... It seems strange, but has served me well. If you are constantly fiddling with the fuel valves, you will run out of fuel sooner or later. The system is too complex, to always get it right, particularly when tired. On Sans Souci, I NEVER touch the fuel valves. I have ALL the supply fuel valves closed, except the flow from the starboard tank. In other words, no fuel can reach my supply tank, except via the starboard tank. I treat the starboard (900 gallons) tank as a large 'day tank.' Then, I use fuel transfer to add fuel to the starboard tank as needed. 900 gallons keeps me running for at least three days. Thus, as long as I glance at the sight gauge on the starboard tank at least once every three days, I won't be running out of fuel. In actual practice I log the fuel every couple of hours, and add fuel about once a day to the starboard tank. Hopefully, this makes sense. Enjoy your trip south! -Ken Williams N6805, Sans Souci PS Where are you returning fuel to? The Nordhavn standard seems to be to return to the supply tank. However, this created problems for me. THe fuel became too hot. I've had much better luck since I started returning the fuel to the starboard tank. Hi Ken, Your system is an interesting option I hadn't thought of. I think I'll try it for awhile and see how I like it. I DON'T like having to change tanks every few hours. How often do you replenish your starboard main? My returns all go to the supply tank. It gets slightly warm, but never been a problem. Rick

#54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Today, we’re going through stuff. Our house sold in early summer and fortunately the buyers wanted most of the contents, all except personal things. We’re sorting into three piles: necessities, memorabilia and garage sale. Not surprisingly, the only “necessities” remaining from a fully furnished home all fit neatly in one box and a hang up bag each. No regrets, that's just the way it is. The reality of a plan we put into motion three and half years ago is now taking its true, although somewhat unexpected form. One set of keys (our boat home), two backpacks and, well, that’s it.

A different perspective.

Recently one of our readers posted the following questions; “Do you miss land life? What is your long range plan? Anything you’d change especially regarding the size or type of vessel? What words of advice or caution to others considering this lifestyle?”

After some thought, we decided there are no short answers. Perhaps it’s time to revisit a discussion of our evolving life. Last year, as we were getting ready to leave for California, I wrote the article “Reflections ... Leaving Home” about the process of leaving our comfortable land based life. Here’s a paragraph from that entry:

Reflections ... Leaving Home (June 5, 2010)

“So at this moment we're finding it helpful to remind ourselves once again and say out loud what our reasoning is. After a lifetime of stepping off into thin air, it seems to us as though faith in a power greater than our own is the exact quality that binds us. We don't want to get so comfortable that we forget what it feels like to live each day as it is given, not fully knowing what tomorrow will bring. Is an unknown destination with uncertain cost unreasonable? It's been said that people in their final days are more regretful for what they didn't do than for what they did. Like us, everyone seems to know where their heart is leading, but often can't overcome the fear of actually doing it or even the discomfort of explaining it. It absolutely means leaving the familiar for a heaping dose of the unfamiliar.”

That was the perspective from a year ago. Herewith, now, I enclose several ruminations on our evolving formula. Two disclaimers: First, this is only a snapshot in time. Our ideas are constantly changing. Second, this isn’t for everyone. Only what we think works for us.

Less is More
Migratory boat life has been one of the most invigorating, challenging and vocationally satisfying retirement occupations imaginable. Our sense of accomplishment is high. It keeps our minds and bodies exercised to the fullest. But the unvarnished truth is: it requires the full-time attention of both of us working together and does not yield well to legacy obligations. We can’t keep our past life’s plates spinning and do this at the same time. As we shed assets and commitments, we have rediscovered an age old truth first hand ... less is more. Fewer things is good for us.

Faith and Family
We don’t view our life aboard as escapism or vacation. The fundamentals of life’s rules don’t change even though our surroundings do. We are sensing a greater awareness of personal identity, family, faith and mission.

The challenge is we miss the support structures of home such as our church and those we trust implicitly through experience, maybe to the point of complacency. Boat life is forcing us to take more initiative in living out our faith. We have our ups and downs, but it seems as though making the effort provides us with comforting stability.

Then there is family, particularly our children and grandchildren. We don’t see them every day as we used to. We’re thankful our two daughters and their husbands are good parents which grants us peace of mind. Every six weeks or so we’ll travel home and move into alternating households for a week devoting nearly all our time to family. This super immersion is giving us a completely different grandparent experience than we had before. They all love Eliana too, so occasionally we get the chance to reverse roles.

Communication
Internet is an important part of the formula. One that wouldn’t have been possible until recently. Our KVH V7 satellite service comes with two Kansas City phone numbers 24 / 7 and full time Internet about the speed of DSL. Our cell phones work OK domestically within range of a cell tower. They are, however, unreliable in places we often go and data service is usually not good or outrageously expensive. Local WIFI hotspots are notoriously hit and miss. In my opinion, the structural integrity and ubiquitous coverage of the KVH is a necessity, not a luxury.

We have used the KVH even more than we thought. It goes without saying we use it for family and business. It’s also been invaluable for planning routes, destinations, arranging services, getting news and entertainment, tracking weather, placing orders for delivery to our next destination, driving directions, banking and paying bills. With KVH we’re only minutes away from essential answers to questions and problems. In an emergency, it’s comforting to know we can make a telephone call at any time. The KVH is without question the most important safety equipment aboard.

We get all of what’s left of our land mail by Internet. It’s forwarded to Janelle, who opens, scans and places it in our Dropbox account which automatically downloads to Eliana’s server. All of our records are stored electronically, so this step dovetails with the rest of our document storage.

The flip side is television. We elected not to have a satellite television receiver on Eliana. Missed it at first. We selectively download a couple of favorite shows and will watch an occasional movie. Honestly, there isn’t much worth watching. News and current events come from the Internet.

Health
Good health is part of the formula. We believe our physical and mental well being is critical. With an increased awareness of health we have targeted four things: eating right, plenty of rest, exercise and safety.

Debbie cooks almost every meal so we know what we’re eating and rarely eat out. Her method is (as she says) “simple ingredients prepared simply”. We have found fresh fruit and vegetables to be abundant and inexpensive except in the most remote areas. Proteins on the other hand are feast or famine, so we are learning to freeze fish and meat in two person portions. We like at least 60 days worth in the freezer. Every night she pulls out the proteins she wants for the next day to defrost. We drink water and a glass or two of wine each night.

The cardinal rule given to all guests staying aboard Eliana is to get plenty of rest. Force oneself to rest. Food digests better, activities are safer, energy is higher which improves alertness on watch. In a year where we had a number of guests get seasick, we’ve found getting more rest helps prevent or combat it. Conversely, nothing good happens when people are tired.

Living aboard is good exercise by itself. Not as much cardio, and nothing as good as Rebecca’s Pilates class, but still boat activity promotes strength, stretching and balance. We also work to find opportunities ashore for cardio such as running. One of the most effective workouts we’ve discovered is washing Eliana. It’s about 5 hours for the two of us but when we’re finished, it feels like we spent an entire day at the gym.

It’s easy to get hurt on a boat. Once I hurried outside barefooted and caught my toe on the edge of a scupper hole. Broke the toe, and definitely slowed me down for a while. So now we intentionally go about each activity slowly and methodically keeping safety in mind and, of course, wear shoes outside when working!

Car Rental
We sold the cars and now rent which fits our new formula well. We always have a clean, maintained car that way and can match the type of vehicle to the situation. Nobody has to pick us up at the airport or take us back. No worries about garage, tires, cleaning, maintenance or tags as we used to. Since we only rent a portion of total days, it’s cheaper.

We have learned a couple of lessons. First is to focus most of the rentals with one company rather than shopping each rental. It’s easier and through loyalty benefits we believe we’re paying less and getting better service. The other lesson is rental insurance. Daily coverages are expensive, so we decline all of them. American Express has an outstanding rental car coverage for $25 per rental with no deductible regardless of how many days the rental is. It’s a great program.

Budget
While pricing a marina last year I commented to the salesman that I felt the rate was too high. The salesman said they charge a higher rate for bigger boats because they don’t think the owners care and slip fees must be pocket change for them. I told him that as logical as that may sound, in our case it isn’t so. We think controlling cost is important for sustaining a successful, full time cruising career.

Our priorities are almost exactly reverse of the seasonal boater. We aren’t as concerned about ownership cost because it’s spread over an entire year of full time boating. Besides it doubles as a home. There isn’t much we can do about it anyway. Ongoing expense is more important. The six primary expenses in order are fuel, internet, travel, insurance, maintenance and slip rental. Being astute with these makes up for a multitude of errors on everything else.

The most important budget lesson we’ve learned is to do as much as we can ourselves. The more we do, the less we spend and the happier we are. We make fewer phone calls, interview less, wait less, give fewer instructions, oversee less and have less to dispute later. Remember, that as we move from place to place we have to deal with a new set of vendors and all the rigamarole that goes with it. So as part of our formula, self sufficiency is the key to freedom. We’re learning to do everything possible ourselves, even things we haven’t done before.

Boat Choice and Boat Life
The boat that works into our formula is one that functions like a home in every way we were accustomed to. It doesn’t need to be as large, but it must serve the same purposes. Eliana is proving to fit that requirement. The space works well for just the two of us or with guests. In answer to the question, “Do you miss land life?”, My response is ... other than the changing neighborhood, there isn’t that much difference. In fact, when not underway it’s easy to forget we’re living on a boat!

The next point is Eliana must be manageable by the two of us. If she requires paid crew, the idea loses its appeal. To do that, we have divided responsibilities. When at rest (which is most of the time), Debbie focuses on household and I on the boat. We thrive on routine mental checklists for our duties. When underway, we divide tasks and coordinate each step by discussing it before and after. By talking through and rating how things went, we have improved many processes through time. Cross training or alternating responsibilities haven’t worked as well for us. One activity we do together is exterior washing. Even then we work better by dividing the task. I wash while she dries. I like it this way because it gives me complete control of the hose so I can spray her down if she gets out of line.

The third part of the boat formula is flexibility and safety. Because of her weight, Eliana is supremely safe and comfortable at rest or underway in a wide variety of sea and conditions. Coupled with fuel efficiency and range it’s possible to make travel decisions that a coastal boat might not consider.

Did we choose the right brand and model? Nordhavn isn’t the only company to build great boats. I believe, however, the Nordhavn philosophy matches our objectives the best. All the models are built to high standards with the above cruising formula in mind. Any are perfectly satisfactory based on personal preference. Just because we chose as we did, I wouldn’t question for a second the competency of other sizes or arrangements.

Future Plans
In our first year of cruising we spent most of the time learning and boating. We put almost 8,000 miles on Eliana, spent hundreds of nights at anchor, visited dozens of marinas and had many guests. Her systems are now well tested. Any defects have been exposed and fixed. Everything is becoming more routine for us. We think we’re ready to modify our travel formula by expanding our activity beyond the boat.

During the coming year, we plan to slow the pace and travel more land side by car. This requires us to select a few locations along our itinerary for an ‘extended stay’ of at least one month. Most marinas offer lower monthly rates and the slower pace reduces the planning that accompanies each movement. Of course the journey between each extended stay will be made up by a combination of many short stops and/or long multiple day passages as we’ve gotten accustomed to.

Over the next 12 - 18 months we plan to progress toward the Panama Canal. Extended stays of one month or more will begin with San Francisco, then southern California, two or three stays in Mexico, a stay in El Salvador, possibly Nicaragua and finally a long stay in Costa Rica before reaching Panama. All subject to change!

Before Closing
I intended to report on the annual inspections which are just finishing up for Eliana and her equipment. Most of it I was able to do myself. There isn’t much to report as everything is in excellent shape and ready to go. I may cover some of it in future posts.

Thanks for reading Eliana’s Journal. We appreciate your interest. Please feel free to post your questions or comments. The link below will take you directly to the website. Also, if interested you can go back to the original “Reflections ... Leaving Home” post from June 5, 2010.

We’ll be looking for a weather window for our first move south approximately mid September. You may use the Track Eliana link below to follow our progress.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Mileage: 7,378 Miles
Lying: Seattle
Track Eliana

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 00:12:06 GMT

Hello Rick and Debbie. I have been reading your blog and found it to be very interesting. Your trip to San Fransico sounded like a great trip. I have two questions for you the first is when you purchased you boat you ordered a single main engin configuration. After a year of operation have you had any second thoughts about this and felt that the extra power of twin engins were needed at any time considering the size of your boat. My second question is have you found that your operating expeces for the boat,( fuel,insurance,boat maintenance and or repairs,moorage,shore power, etc) not including food and entertainment were what you expected. I am a wnanabe yacht owner but I am more inclined towards the Nordhavn 68. Hope to hear from you. Hi Sheldon, We have found the single engine to be adequate. In fact, we struggle to keep it loaded well. At normal cruise, the loading is about 35%. We never use more than 50% unless we're running WOT to exercise it. From a handling standpoint, I prefer the main / wing configuration over two mains. In the main / wing configuration, the wing is running at high RPM during docking and anchoring which provides 100% thrusting power at all times while the main is idling for delicate forward and reverse. Our expenses are actually lower than we expected in the beginning, mostly because we anticipated needing to hire far more things than we do. The more we do ourselves the less our expenses are. We use less slightly less fuel than we thought we would. And here's another good example: We thought our insurance would be between $40K to $50K per year based on the percentage of boat value we had heard from other boat owners. Instead it's $21K for a full coverage policy. Moorage is a big item when not traveling, but then we don't have fuel expense then. We have spent a lot of money building up our spares inventory, but we're getting near the end of that. All in all, our expenses are lower than we spent on a land home, what with property tax and all. Rick

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 09:15:57 GMT

Rick and Debbie, congratulations on leading the larger Nordhavn owner/operator group. You will be an inspiration to many. You have a lot to look forward to. Scott and Mary m/y Egret

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 21:13:27 GMT

Hello Rick and Debbie: I wanted to extend an invitation to you when you head towards the Panama canal. I live in Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico and have met many Nordhavn owners passing through on their way up or down the Pacific coast of Mexico. It would be great to meet the two of you. Let me know you schedule and if I'm in town I would love to welcome you to the area. The name of the local marina is Marina Chahue so if it's in your plans to do a layover in Huatulco be sure to give me a shout out via an email. Thanks to the both of you for helping me keep my dream alive.

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 17:50:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Thank you! Dear Rick and Debbie: It is a rare event in our lives when we are brave enough to face the unknown by going after a dream. Your dreams have been large and we greatly admire what you are doing. We especially enjoyed your last posting. Thanks for keeping us so well informed of your journey. www.jimloveartist.com

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Fri, 09 Sep 2011 09:09:17 GMT

Rick & Debbie - Great update! We just closed on the sale of our house on Wed, but I don't think we've done nearly as good a job as you of divesting things! Hoping we'll meet up with you in a couple years or so, after you get through the Panama Canal! Bradley & Kathy Shear Madness

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 14:23:32 GMT

Great blog! Seems like you've taken to boating like a duck to water. I'm really interested in your checklists, what you do at the dock and while cruising. It must take a lot of care, and I'm quite impressed that the two of you are handling such a large yacht. If you have your routines down, though, it must make life easier. All The Best, Ken H. Hi Ken, We began with written checklists and followed them faithfully. But it didn't take long for us work out a mental image of the tasks and order in which they come that we no longer needed to carry paper and place check marks. Getting underway works like this ... I start in the engine room and work to the wheelhouse preparing the boat. Debbie is securing the interior at the same time, then moving to the deck / dock to get her part ready. Once both have finished their preparation, we always meet together to discuss things like wind, current, traffic, things to watch for, etc, etc. Once that's done, running the boat and handling the lines are relatively easy as we do it slowly and methodical. Arrivals work the same way. We always begin with a planning meeting between together before we even get close. Eliana always arrives slowly (or I like to say stately). Usually no drama. Rick

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 11:40:57 GMT

Hello Rick and Debbie Thank you for such an incredible update on Eliana and your new life. It is more than gracious and important that you have shared your experiences of the first year. Most couples, such as myself, planning on cruising within the next year are beginning the process of arranging, letting go of and wondering what it will be like. It brings me great comfort to read about your journey not just because of the technicalities that you present but by the display of following your faith. Following your knowing and following your inner calling does not always seem logical to the mind and yet, isn't that the biggest reason we are alive. There is something about sharing that aspect of yourself that has validated my own inner quest to follow a silent intelligence that says...get on your boat and go now! I love that you both do not watch TV. Our family has given that up several years ago. We enjoy the occassional movie as you too have and appreciate your view of it aboard a boat. I also love your sharing about grandchildren and family. This is important to me and I enjoyed hearing your solutions to it. I am looking forward to reading more about the adventures of Eliana. Maybe we shall meet on the water too. Blessings and adventure Robin and Vickie Helm

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 02:12:51 GMT

Hi Rick and Debbie, Like many others I thoroughly enjoy your blog. The pictures are always fun to look at and your commentary is very well written and informative. I found one comment in your "Reflections ...a year later" post quite interesting and I can't wait to see the picture related to it (if it's ever taken). This would be the picture of you about a minute after you hosed Debbie down for getting out of line! ;o) Kidding aside, thank-you for sharing your travels with us and keep safe. Best regards, Brian Vancouver, BC

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 23:42:08 GMT

Rick, I must say that reading your blog has been enlightening to me. I thank you for your insight on living aboard as thats what I would like to do on a Nordhavn. I am one of the NH Dreamers and have been following Eliana for some time. I am trying to convince my wife about this exciting alternative to buying a house in Florida and tying myself to one place. My problem is she just doesn't think of it as a substitute for a home and she doesn't think I can run it. That's why I am so encouraged by you and your wife. I think it's a healthier lifestyle with so much going for it. I was also a little daunted by size that can be handled by two people. You seem to be doing just fine with a 72. Please don't stop writing. It's one of the things I look forward to. Mike

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 22:37:46 GMT

Hey there! No questions this time, just a great big thank you for sharing your reflections. It's always a pleasure to read your prose, Rick. Now, give us techies some boat stuff!!

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 21:30:52 GMT

Bravo! Thank you for sharing your life's adventures. Cheers!

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 21:17:24 GMT

Not trying to hijack your thread or anything, but there is a face book group called Nordhavndreamers full of information about people that have the same interests as you, and in fact the same boats. Feel free to peruse the page if you wish. Here is the link: http://www.facebook.com/NordhavnDreamers?sk=wall : ) I enjoy anything and everything you post especially the pictures. <grin>

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 20:10:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Planning our first trip Rick, You cannot imagine what enjoyment I have gotten since George shared your adventure with me. The last posting was exceptional, my wife Claire and I just bought a 12 meter Trojan double cabin and are planning to set off Labor day next year form up state NY, the Capital Region to GA. Then start exploring FL and who know where else. The questions that came up first is while a Garmin Chart Plotter 3010c is well suited for the boat, what charts complement traveling and planning the best? I am a pilot so very familiar with Jeppsen, but truly I am looking for advice. “ Summer Daze” the name of our new boat has a satellite system on it that currently supports three televisions, I expect that is going to help us make the transition from land to boat. Does the same satellite system accommodate communication also? I understand weather satellite is an absolute necessity, any preferences? I must stop, I have dozens of questions as I lay in bed at night thinking about this trip. I have included a picture of “Summer Daze.” Twin CAT 3208T with a 10kw genset and 2500w inverter. She has been to FL once with the current owner. Stan and Claire Charlton, NY Hi Stan, The best US charts in my opinion are the NOAA raster charts. Outside the US, that's not always the case. That said, I believe it's important to have redundancy. The second set should be vector charts because they are easier to read in a variety of situations. For example, you can read depths clearly regardless of zoom setting. Of the vector offerings, I use Jeppesen on Eliana. The satellite receivers for television are separate from ones designed for telephone and internet. They both require mounting in a dome with a clear, unobstructed view of the sky. Eliana has just one dome for Internet and telephone. With Internet we can get virtually any weather information there is although we have to go to the computer to get it. We have not subscribed to Sirius Marine weather which does conveniently show up right on the chart plotter. Rick

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 19:58:03 GMT

i laughed when i read "we drink plenty of water" because i remembered when i was there, you had your cup next to the little sink and i kept putting them in the dishwasher thinking, "where do these cups keep coming from??" it took me a day or so to figure out that was your "safe place" for your drinking glass. HA! but i would still be most willing to teach you guys First Aid and CPR and such things if you're still interested! i'm so glad that this has been everything you hoped it would be and more. i would love to learn more about it, as i was completely and totally romanced by the life style when i stayed with you guys! and i'm excited to see all the other adventures that you embark on. -- (niece) emily.

Comment on: #54 Reflections ... A Year Later

Wed, 07 Sep 2011 19:46:20 GMT

Rick and Debbie, Thanks for your wonderful Blog! Although I have never met you, your writing tells me tons about you. May God continue to bless you on this Great Adventure of Life! Cheers, Farley Shane

#53 Baranof Island

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 00:00:00 GMT

I had reset the mileage counter in Victoria, British Columbia which seemed like ages ago. Glancing up, it read 1,234 nautical miles. It's been just the two of us since Campbell River. We had gone as far north as planned, but now wanted to go westward and explore the less traveled Chichagof and Baranof Islands. We lost telephone service. No dialtone. I looked out the window and sure enough the mountains alongside Lisianski Strait were so close and vertical, they were blocking the satellites to the south. There hadn’t been any other boats for miles other than some fishing boats clustered around Cape Bingham. But now wasn’t the time to worry about that. We needed to pass a narrow, rocky bar to the Pacific before heading back south. The serene, protected water we had enjoyed throughout the Inside Passage was about to become less comfortable.

I had checked weather, although I’ll admit a bit casually. Crossing the bar was no problem. But conditions on the other side were not as forecast. It was apparent conditions were changing quickly. We set our course for the nearest shelter we could find looping back coast wise through rock banks and islands. Conditions gradually became more protected until we were finally able to slip through a narrow inlet to a place called Porcupine Bay. We dropped anchor as darkness fell and it began to rain. So much for our good luck with weather.

The forecast was now calling for a solid week of rain and wind. We decided with regret to skip the beautiful Chichagof Island. It would be impossible to explore using Sweet Charlotte outside the tiny cove we were in due to rough water. So we prepared a southbound route offshore, then via Peril Strait to Baranof Warm Springs. Under the circumstances, natural hot springs sounded nice.

Baranof Island
The name Baranof was given in 1805 by the Russian Navy to honor Alexandr Baranov who ultimately became the chief administrator of the area. It’s slightly smaller than the state of Delaware with one major city, Sitka. Otherwise, today the island is mostly wilderness and lies within the Tongass National Forest.

This isn’t a place you have to fight the crowds. A few cruise ships visit the town of Sitka, however the remainder of the island is a rich wilderness with few visitors other than commercial fishermen.

I have prepared a short, one minute video called Baranof Island Waterfalls. The link is at the end of this post. Otherwise, here are a few pictures from our stay...

Our snug little anchorage near Warm Springs.

Most of Baranof is nature untouched.

A family of brown headed ducks pass by. Maybe someone can help me again with the species. I can't find it in Sibley's.

Baranof Warm Springs. It once had a post office. Today is comprised of only a handful of summer cottages.

Residents built a boardwalk to mark the beginning of the trail back to the natural hot springs.

But the further we went, the less marked the trail became until we were pushing brush aside to get through.

Debbie, towel in hand, ready to get in the hot, 103 degree pool which coincidentally is at the top of a huge 100' waterfall.

Speaking of waterfalls, this beautiful one in Red Bluff Bay is representative.

Baranof has no black bears, but is famous for grizzly. Note the eagles in the background.

Small World
We continue to be amazed at coincidental rendezvous of old friends and other boats we’ve seen before. Here are even more examples.

We celebrated a reunion with the crabbing boat North American and her skipper Barry Nichols who we first saw going through the Ballard Locks in Seattle just two months before. Since crab is off season, she is serving as a fish tender between the local fishing boats and the cannery. North American was one of the vessels in Season 4 of "Deadliest Catch". Both of us stopped completely side by side to visit by VHF radio and take pictures of one another!

Here's our first rendezvous with North American. Had no idea we would see her again so soon.

This must be the zillionth time we've stopped within camera shot of National Geographic Sea Lion. The first times were in the Sea of Cortez, but over time we keep seeing her wherever we go. From the perspective of a complete tour boat novice, I believe the Nat Geo itinerary goes to the coolest, out of the way places. Like Eliana, they drop their anchor and launch dingys for their guests. Very cool.

Yet another Nordhavn! This is Doug and Stephanie Klappenbach on N7611 Tango based in Sitka. We met Doug and Stephanie while we were building Eliana as they allowed us to come aboard Tango for ideas. They, like us, have sold their land home to live aboard full time!

Shop Talk
Recently I wrote about replacing the pump impeller on our hydraulic oil cooling system. It’s been working well since then so you can imagine my surprise when during a routine engine room check, the hydraulic oil was beginning to heat up again. I took a flashlight to view the sight glass flow indicator and sure enough, no cooling water was flowing. Starting at the beginning, I checked to see if seawater was able to flow freely to the inlet strainer. Turns out it was plugged. I removed the hose from the fitting and found seaweed had jammed tight in the through-hull fitting. I was able to clean the inside portion easily with a hook shaped pick. But that left the outside portion still plugged. Since there was an elbow fitting, I couldn’t find anything to bend around the elbow and through the valve. So I magic taped the end of a garden hose to the fitting, turned on the faucet and applied house pressure (about 60 psi) to the plug from inside out. It blew the obstruction out completely. After reinstalling the inlet hose, we were right back in business!

Strainer in the foreground. Behind that is the through-hull fitting and valve plugged with seaweed. The garden hose is attached with what I call magic tape. It worked, but I will probably build a better fitting to do it right next time.

Before Signing Off
We are currently southbound enroute to Bellingham and then Seattle. You may now use the “Track Eliana” (link below) feature again! Both Eliana and Sweet Charlotte are celebrating their first birthday so our next post will be focused on the annual checkup.

As always, we appreciate you, our dear readers and hope you enjoy Eliana’s Journal. Don't forget to visit our website to leave comments or questions. I promised a short 1 minute video: Baranof Island Waterfalls.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Hammond Bay, BC
Total Mileage: 7,220 Nautical Miles
Track Eliana

Comment on: #53 Baranof Island

Wed, 31 Aug 2011 08:12:38 GMT

All I can say is WoW!! what an adventure!! The learning curve alone must have been massive just to learn how to operate the boat..then the actual navigation and driving it (not sure if that's the right nautical term..ha!). If I were making the choice to buy either an RV or a boat to travel with, the boat would win hands down. Good decision. The pictures...(in my best Harry Carey voice) Holyy Cowww!!! I enjoy reading your posts as well. God speed and have fun!!

Comment on: #53 Baranof Island

Mon, 15 Aug 2011 13:51:52 GMT

Welcome back to Seattle (AIS is so interesting!) and congrats to you both on a wonderful odyssey. Yourselves, mv Dirona, mv Last Mango, etc etc etc. It's all such a tease yet such a thrill as well. Special thanks to all of you that take the time to share your experiences with the rest of us. It's very much appreciated. Rick, your tech entries have always been a special treat for me; as such, I'm very much looking forward to your annual maintenance report. By the way, noticed the videos in your gallery.me of the stabalizers; what was up with that? It seemed like there was a high-frequency oscillation from the controller; was the sensor bad? Again, thank you so much for sharing, Rick. Best to Debs. Cedric, The stabilizer video you saw was part of a troubleshooting exercise between me and ABT. The stabilizers were operating fine, but we were getting an odd sound coming from them. It later turned out there was some seaweed caught on the outside rubbing against the hull each time the stabilizers moved that caused the sound. So all is OK. Thanks for the question. Rick

Comment on: #53 Baranof Island

Fri, 12 Aug 2011 16:10:55 GMT

Your brown-headed ducks are Goosanders as we over here in the UK call them or Common Mergansers as you over the pond call them. Scaly-sided Merganser are from the other side of the Pacific and are rather rare, not a species to be expected where you were!

Comment on: #53 Baranof Island

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 21:09:55 GMT

Rick, I recently started reading your posts, and I'm working to get caught up. Thanks for including us in your journey. Beautiful photos, as usual. You might have mentioned it in an old post, but what camera are you using? I'm planning a father/daughter trip to Alaska and will use your posts as a guide to the coastal regions. Smart thinking on the cooling pump. As I was reading, I wondered if you'd be able to backflush the inlet. Seems like something you'll add to your regular maintenance activities, and it might be worth contacting the builders about. Adding a dedicated backflush circuit would be a welcome feature. Say hi to Debbie from the Kimble family, and thanks again for keeping us Kansans up to date. Shawn Hi Shawn, My main camera is a Canon 7D. It's quick and can do both stills and video. Lens selection is important. I interchange between a standard angle and a telephoto. If you don't like to carry that much around, I also occasionally use a Canon SD4000IS pocket camera. Doesn't do a bad job. Rick

Comment on: #53 Baranof Island

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 18:02:24 GMT

Rick, Bernie Francis told me years ago about a great fitting for blasting out anything that is plugged up. You can see it at: www.blastitout.com Keep the reports coming. Cece and I enjoy them very much. We met at that flea bag hotel at the Nordhavn rendezvous in Bristol, RI a few years ago. Alex

Comment on: #53 Baranof Island

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 17:38:17 GMT

Hi Rick, The brown headed duck you saw was a scaly-sided merganser. The females have brown heads and the males have black. :) - Payton

Comment on: #53 Baranof Island

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 16:08:00 GMT

Kudos on yet another highly entertaining blog post, with pics to die for! And you deserve additional strokes for effecting that repair of your plugged-up thru-hull fitting. I'd have had to call the Coast Guard - or worse! Keep on living the dream for the rest of us, and I'm anxious to know how the one-year haul out will go. Do keep us posted, please. Enjoy!

#52 Glacier Bay

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Writing about Glacier Bay isn’t easy. There is no single superlative that adequately describes it. No matter how prepared you think you are ... you’re not. The place evokes emotions that can only be known by physically being there. We arrived early on a Thursday morning, same as any other day. But like Alaska itself, Glacier Bay is so big and so wild it’s impossible not to be a little overwhelmed. All the photos below may be enlarged by clicking on them. I made a short, 2 minute video. The link is at the end of this post, but here’s the story...

Sitakaday Narrows, Willoughby Island ahead

Arrival
Visiting in one’s own boat isn’t without a couple of hurdles. The incredible distance to get there aside, entering the park is by permit only. The total number of private boats allowed in the bay is limited to 25. Only two cruise ships are permitted to be in the park on a given day so you might see one of them. We were only able to secure a two day advance permit with hope that there may be cancellations allowing us to extend our stay. We had two strokes of good luck. First, we were able to get an extension. Second, we hit the weather jackpot! It was beautiful.

Before crossing the line of demarcation, we radioed the ranger station to get permission to enter. We were instructed to go directly to Bartlett Cove just inside the park entrance where we received an “orientation” mostly involving the extensive park rules. We noted many of the permitted boats for the day were anchored right in Bartlett Cove and had no intention of making the long trip into the back country.

Glacier Bay ranger station

The Fairweather range about 40 miles distant as seen from the ranger's station. That's where we're headed!

Geography
Geologists believe the basin existed through a minimum of four ice ages. The last one of those is called the “Little Ice Age” which ended about 1750. About that same time the first recorded exploration of the area was beginning. At the time, it didn’t look like a bay at all. It looked like a mountain of ice. In 1794, Joseph Whidbey, master of the ‘Discovery’ during George Vancouver’s expedition reported that the “coastline was blocked by a wall of ice two miles wide and 3,900 feet thick. It stretched as far back as the eye could see.”

The ice field described in 1794 melted rapidly as the region warmed. By 1890 the entire basin was replaced by 700,000 square miles of clear, blue water much of which is over 1,000 feet deep. As the ice receded, the tundra surrounding the water was completely barren, scarred from centuries of glacial grinding.

Rising high above the water is the Fairweather range of mountains, the highest of which is Mount Fairweather. Despite the name, it's famous for very bad weather. At 15,325 feet in elevation it is one of the highest coastal mountains in the world. Snowfall is estimated at 1,000 inches annually, building layer upon layer, year after year. The weight of the snowfall compresses to exceptionally dense ice formations. Once a formation begins to move by it’s own weight, it officially becomes a glacier. Should a glacier reach the sea, it is termed a “tidewater” glacier. There are about 50 named glaciers in Glacier Bay flowing out of the mountains, a few of which do reach the water.

Mount Fairweather from some distance away. This has the appearance of being taken from an airplane.

Mt. Fairweather, 15,325'. Mt. Quincy Adams, 13,556' slightly left.

Plants and Animals
What I find most interesting isn't so much about glaciers and ice, but how mother earth is replacing it with a vast biosphere of forest, plant and animal life. The glacial scarring is clearly visible on the mountain walls, but in most areas it’s all been covered over. Hundreds of species of moss and lichen grow on the rock which support plants, flowers, grasses and trees of every description. The pine and deciduous forests began to grow during the big melt 200 years ago, so the oldest forests are that old, huge and thick. Each year new species of plants and animals are repatriating new areas of the region and a more virgin, pristine biosphere would be hard to imagine.

Glacial scarring several thousand feet up, evidence the entire valley was filled with ice.

Repatriation of vegetation over the tundra.

Diverse vegetation supports the wildlife.

The sea otter. Common in Alaska but only recently populated Glacier Bay.

The Tufted Puffin. About the size of a pigeon but weigh twice as much. Historically hunted for food with the skins made into parkas, feather side in.

A Black Oystercatcher. They don't swim, but eat things along the shoreline at low tide.

Margerie Glacier
Margerie Glacier is 21 miles long. It’s a tidewater glacier originating on the south slope of Mount Root in the Fairweather range. It terminates at the head of Tarr Inlet just perpendicular to the Grand Pacific Glacier which does not quite reach the water, but itself is nearly two miles wide.

Debbie and I chose Margerie Glacier to visit. It’s a day’s journey to get to and from with no opportunity for overnight anchorage in between. We wanted to see a few other things along the way. For instance, Johns Hopkins Glacier isn’t far off Tarr Inlet. This glacier is advancing rather than receding, but is currently calving off so much ice the path to it is literally blocked off. I didn’t want to risk damage to Eliana and we were plowing enough ice chunks as it was.

Approaching Margerie, my first impression was that it was rather small. But as we drew closer, the perspective of true scale became apparent. The exposed end of the ice is over a mile wide and 350’ tall! For comparison, the statue of liberty is 307’ tall. We got no closer than 1/4 mile from the actual ice face because there were pieces about to come off that would dwarf a small office building. Even at 1/4 mile, we felt very close.

An interesting observation was that both the ice and the water around it were blue. The reason has something to do with the way it refracts light, but honestly I can’t explain it. We noticed as we got closer and closer to the glacier, the water got bluer and bluer.

For miles, Tarr Inlet looked like this, a good sign of a glacier ahead.

The American Bald Eagle can live for up to 40 years in the wild.

Approaching Margerie Glacier to the left, Grand Pacific Glacier dead ahead. This is where I had the mistaken impression it was small.

Getting closer we realize it's HUGE.

It's over a mile long and 350' thick.

The ice itself is very blue and the sounds of crushing and breaking ice was incredible.

While at rest in front of Margerie Glacier. This position 59N - 137W became the highest latitude and longitude Eliana has ever been and probably will be for some time. This calls for a toast!

Windflight
I mentioned there were few other boats in the bay due to limited number of permits. You can imagine our surprise when as we passed an anchorage, tucked back in there were Neil and Margery Hokonson on their Nordhavn 68 ‘Windflight’. As you know, I love coincidences. Eliana and Windflight were built nearly simultaneously at the Ta Shing factory in Taiwan. We decided to photograph them together as they’ve probably not been this close since before they were born!

Sister ships side by side in Glacier Bay, AK.

That’s all for this post. As always we love and appreciate our dear readers. Please go directly to our website at the link below in to leave a comment or question. I normally don’t respond to comments, however they are an important and permanent part of today’s post. I do try to answer questions the best I can.

I promised a 2 minute video of Glacier Bay. Click Here to see it.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Redbluff Bay, Baranof Island, AK
Total Nautical Miles: 6,504
“Track Eliana” will return when we get back to civilization!

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 20:16:48 GMT

I finally had a chance to read some of my "existing" emails. Your trip of Glacier Bay was one of them. I would just like to take this opportunity to thank you both for all of the info you have shared with us over the years.

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Sun, 07 Aug 2011 09:04:33 GMT

Hello Eliana, Noticed you have added 2 kayaks on the deck. What kind and are you enjoying them? Thinking of adding some but deck space is premium. Also, do you carry another tender stored onboard? I like a small 8-10ft inflatable just in case (as you know that crane isn't always as reliable as you hope). Enjoying the Alaska documentary immensely, bow turns your direction each time I read a post. Hi JC, We added two Hobie tandem kayaks. We love them because they have paddles AND peddles. With peddles we can go long distances with less fatigue and still have hands free for photography, etc. We do not carry another tender. We would use the tandem kayak for that purpose. While we do use the davit to put the kayak out, it isn't necessary. I think the kayak weighs about 70 lbs. Small tender vs. tandem kayak? Well, the question with small inflatable tender is you need motor to go any distance or get out of strong surf. But motors are a hassle for a lot of reasons and are theft target. So we chose to go with kayak with peddles. One other point. The kayak can easily be slid onto our swim step at water level. So for short moves anchorage to anchorage, just slip it on, then off again no hassle.

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Sun, 31 Jul 2011 10:56:25 GMT

Great photos! What kind of camera are you using? We are in the midst of maintenance work now - can't wait to get back on the water! Hi Kathy, I interchange two bodies and two lenses, a Canon 7D and a 5D combined with either a wide angle or telephoto lens. The 5 has a full size sensor for great panorama shots, but the 7 can do either video or stills at the flip of a switch. The equipment is great. The weak spot is the photographer! All the best to you guys. Rick

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Sun, 31 Jul 2011 00:40:26 GMT

Rockin' good job, y'all. It kills me that we won't hear from you again until you return to "civilization." IMO, life gets no more worthwhile than where you are right now, so why bother returning to anything else? Cool seeing the other Nordie up there. Stay safe, and keep on living the dream for the rest of us.

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 21:30:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Glacier Bay I’m so glad you had good weather and what looks like a memorable experience in Glacier Bay! It’s hard to compress that experience into a series of photos and a short video, isn’t it? Mike

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 19:22:56 GMT

The Video did open and it was delightful. I had to install Quicktime, which is fine. That is also the first time I have ever heard the purr of a Nordhavn underway.

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 19:10:18 GMT

There are a lot of people out here that are following your e-mails. Thank you so much for your pictures and National Geographic type commentary! OMG we wish we could be there! We only have a 37' trawler and live in Fla. so probably not possible. Please keep the e-mails coming. We envy you guys!!!

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 19:05:50 GMT

Thank you so much for the wonderful post, the glaciers are absolutely amazing. I have been following VOE the "Voyage of Egret" for over 5 years and it's a pleasure to add you to my reading list. It's wonderful that I can travel the world from my computer screen.

Comment on: #52 Glacier Bay

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 17:19:10 GMT

Happy Sailing...Nice Blog. Couldn't open the 2min. video?

#51 North To Alaska

Tue, 19 Jul 2011 00:00:00 GMT

“Way up north; way up north, north to Alaska, you go north, the rush is on...”. I can’t get that old Johnny Horton song out of my head. I was 7 or 8 when it came out. Now that we are pushing north, what was once my imaginary Alaska is turning into reality. Each degree of latitude posts silently on the panel and I start making my own version of the song. “North, dum de dum, to Alaska, I said North, dum de dum, no time to waste...”. OK, in MY mind it rhymes!

So we’re moving almost every day. It’s just Debbie and I for this part of the trip. Lot's of daylight so we pack a few miles on each day, then spend the night in some quiet cove usually by ourselves. Summertime in Alaska is glorious with a mix of sunny and rainy weather. We haven’t used heating or air conditioning for weeks so much of our time at anchor is spent on battery. Not even the gentle hum of the generator to disturb the natural sounds.

Because of it’s proximity to Kansas City our family has spent many a pleasant summer vacation in Colorado. More than once I’ve reflected on how much the Inside Passage landscape reminds me of that. If you filled the Colorado Rockies part way to sea level I think it would be a similar picture. I knew this felt familiar! Oh well, meaningless reflection.

Here are a few highlights of the last few days....

Eliana at one of our night stops. See, it's like Colorado with water! Click to enlarge.

A nearby fresh water lake spills into our bay with a water fall.

At low tide, the water fall gets pretty high. The increased agitation of fresh water falling into salt water makes these foam balls which float into our anchorage.

Scenery along the way.

Shared with the occasional cruise ship passing by.

Shearwater
You may remember Dan Shank and Janet Jordan who helped us move Eliana from California to Seattle in May. Well, their summers are spent in Shearwater which made this a major stop for us.

Shearwater has a colorful history which began at the onset of World War II. The site was chosen by the Royal Canadian Air Force as a reconnaissance base because of it’s location and protected harbor. Built for over 2,000 people, the base supported a fleet of amphibious aircraft. After the war the base closed, but the property was bought by Andrew Widsten of nearby Bella Coola. Andrew had plans to rebuild it as a community serving the central coast with marine services. Now, after more than 60 years of hard work and dedication, Shearwater is beautiful, still owned and managed by the Widsten family. The people of Shearwater today serve the boating and recreational fishing industry in a place that couldn’t be more perfect for it.

During our stay in Shearwater, Dan and Janet took us for a Sunday trip up Roscoe Inlet on Dan’s boat “Makaatur”. We were able to cover distance quickly to reach all the way to a beautiful Quartcha Bay with a river inlet where the Salmon will be gathering soon. We dropped a couple of crab pots for dinner that night. Best of all we had a great time AND we left Shearwater with the freezer full of salmon.

Shearwater's waterfront park.

One of the original hangar structures remodeled to serve the community.

Nicely done local shops.

Recreational fishing is the main business. Fishing vacation for a week is about $2,500 all inclusive. And believe me the fishing is good.

Janet Jordan with Debbie and I on a rock in the middle of Roscoe Inlet. Click to enlarge.

Quartcha Bay. Soon, this water will be teaming with salmon returning to spawn.

We got a huge catch out of the two pots that soaked only two hours. Dan holds one up for the camera.

Ketchikan, AK
All boats arriving to Alaska check in at Ketchikan hence the nickname “Alaska’s First City”. Because of it’s location, Ketchikan has a unique mission that has evolved through mining and fishing to now include being a major transportation hub. The narrow strip of water called Tongass Narrows in front of the city is alive with cruise ships, float planes fishing boats and ferries all seemingly going in different directions. But it’s still a real town with real people. Mike Youngblood is a bank executive in Ketchikan with a passion for Alaska and a boater himself. He lives in the perfect place to see just about every boat coming by on the way north. Mike has been following Eliana’s Journal so he knew without doubt we would be stopping and was eager to welcome us to his home city. I liked having a local give us a walking tour, share some of the history and show us where the post office is. In fact, I think we should make a point to find someone like Mike everywhere we go.

Ketchikan, population 18,000.

Ketchikan has no flat ground. What isn't built out over the water goes up the side of the mountain.

Mike Youngblood. A boater himself poses beside his Mainship.

Petersburg, AK
Half the fun of Petersburg is getting there. I’ve heard all the forewarnings and harrowing tales of Wrangell Narrows. Yes, it is a technical stretch. I probably wouldn’t do it at night. Honestly, though, navigating through Wrangell Narrows is straightforward. I timed the two hour passage one hour before to one hour after slack tide. It was well marked and depths were EXACTLY as charted so there was no doubt or any surprises. Petersburg is strategically located at the north end of the narrows so we stopped in for a visit.

I’ve never been to Norway but I did go to high school in Powhattan, KS which had a strong, hard working group of families with Norwegian background in the community. What makes Petersburg stand out in SE Alaska is it’s Norwegian heritage. It’s called Alaska’s “Little Norway”. It only seems natural that these hearty Scandinavians would have come to a place so similar to their homeland doing they have done so well for centuries ... fish. Fish and seafood processing is the dominant theme of Petersburg. No cruise ships stop here. Nothing to see other than the real Alaskans working hard and proudly building their community. We enjoyed our visit and were treated well by the friendly people in Petersburg.

Wrangell Narrows. Click to enlarge.

Historic "Sons of Norway Hall" stands on pilings at the entrance to the saltwater inlet.

Downtown Petersburg AK, population 3, 080. Reminds me of my hometown, Hiawatha, KS.

That’s all for now. I will continue to place the “Track Eliana” link below, however coverage is spotty up here so we may not be visible for a few weeks now. Once back in civilization, it will work again.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Cosmos Cove, Baranof Island
Mileage: 6,092 Miles
Track Eliana

Comment on: #51 North To Alaska

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 07:51:34 GMT

rick, another great posting. it must be quite something for both of you to wake up in the morning and instead of having to drag garbage to the end of the driveway be able to look around at a secluded bay with mountains rising up into the clouds, bliss! curious, do you keep a log for eliana? daily, hourly or just to record mechanical problems that come up? jon Hi Jon, We maintain three separate logs for Eliana. Eliana's Journal serves as our social log. It doesn't have everything in it, but nothing could. It has helped us many times reconstruct details of where we've been, who's been aboard, etc. The maintenance log is very detailed and covers every system and piece of equipment on the boat. We use Wheelhouse Technologies website for this purpose. Finally, we keep an underway log. Each hour of underway all of our vital statistics are automatically recorded into a database. We can add additional entries to note anything unusual we want. This logging is done using the MaxSea software which is always running anyway when we're underway. Rick

Comment on: #51 North To Alaska

Sat, 23 Jul 2011 11:47:24 GMT

"the battle of new orleans" is my favorite Johnny Horton song.

Comment on: #51 North To Alaska

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 20:54:35 GMT

Rick & Debbie, I ran across your blog after reading one of Debbie's posts on facebook and am so excited for you. George and I are about to cruise the Inside Passage July 29 - Aug. 5th. Perhaps our ships will pass one another. What a wonderful dream come true for the two of you. I'm enjoying your posts. God Bless, Ruth & George Ellis

Comment on: #51 North To Alaska

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 08:56:27 GMT

Beuatiful photos and a great write-up. Alaska is high on our list, but probably not for a few years. Too much to see and do on the east coast, Europe and South America first! Can't wait to meet up with you guys somewhere along the way! Kathy and Bradley Shear Madness

Comment on: #51 North To Alaska

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 04:20:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Registration Question Hi Rick, Mike Mix here. Don’t know if you remember me but my wife and I know Debbie from High School. Jan and I recently purchased a Fairline Turbo 36 (Why Knot II) that we keep moored on the Thames River here in the UK. Our travel is nothing compared to yours but we did bring her around from South Hampton through the Solent, past Dover, and up the Thames estuary and into the locks on the Thames last December. It was a wild trip as it was -10 C and our heater quit. We faced moderate seas and gale force winds and we not only had a 6” snow storm that paralyzed London, but we also saw the marina we were headed to freeze over forcing us to seek refuge temporarily on an ice free mooring right on the river channel. The ice was a cruel blow as we were stopped just two short miles from our intended destination. We made it 158 miles out of the 160 miles planned. It took us 3 days to go that distance but an additional 2 weeks for the ice to clear. We looked more like Elk hunters in Colorado than seaman (photo attached). Our vessel was manufactured in England and is known for its sea worthiness. We purchased it with the intention of travelling across the English Channel and up and down the French coast. Our second daughter married a Dutchman and we want to visit his parents there. Our other idea is to take it into the rivers and cannels in France as far as we can go. However, I ran into one snag on international registration that I need to take it into foreign waters. Since I am not a British resident I can’t register it here in the UK. When I looked into registering it in the states, Delaware seemed to be the least complicated location, but I was told that technically it should be moored in Delaware waters for at least of any given year. Where did you register Eliana? I thought I saw that you have Kansas City designated on her. I have registered several ski boats in Kansas and Missouri but never thought of trying to register her there. Any insight you can offer is appreciated. The Alaska photos are simply fantastic. Mike Mix Project Development Manager Bechtel Civil - Infrastructure London, UK EC4V 6RN Phone - 00-44-207-651-7672 Dear Mike, It's great to hear from you. Debbie comments about you guys regularly saying she wants us to meet. Eliana flies the US flag under Coast Guard documentation. She is not state registered in any state since she would never stay in any one place long enough to require it. Sweet Charlotte on the other hand needed to be. Otherwise I would have no documentation that gives me clear title to her. So I registered her in Delaware for the same reason you stated. So far, we've not been to Delaware. Best of luck on that. Rick

Comment on: #51 North To Alaska

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 03:30:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Thanks Hi Rick &Debbie, When Donna got back from her short visit with both of you, she shared the link to your blog. I have been reading & enjoying your narratives & pictures. I remember 1 summer when we went to NY& traveled with Richard's parents on their cabin cruiser around New York City, up the Hudson River into Lake Champlain & Mallet's Bay. It was one of the most relaxing trips, even with 2 kids, & beautiful scenery. On parts of the Hudson River, you could see West Point with the sun bouncing off the bluffs, the water rushing up the shores. I always wanted to take a trip through the Erie Canal, also I would have loved traveling the Intercoastal from NY to Florida. My inlays only made it once & then left the boat in Florida. I enjoy having our boat @ Lake of the Ozarks, but wish we could travel further. You might consider that trip up the Hudson, in the fall. It would be beautiful with the changing of the leaves. They could give Hiawatha a run for color. I just wanted to thank both of you for your journaling, pictures & sharing it with all of us. Enjoy, have a great time, travel safe. God bless both of you. Kathy Ellner Sent from my iPad

Comment on: #51 North To Alaska

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 02:29:22 GMT

Welcome to my home state, folks. Don't live there now, but while you can take me out of AK, you'll never get AK out of me. Majestic. Humbling. Extraordinary. Words still fail to capture it's essence. Enjoy, but be forewarned, AK will tug at you forevermore. Best to you both. Cedric

#50 British Columbia

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Eliana is on the move. It brings to mind the age old, unanswerable question... Which is more important, the journey or the destination? We’re finding both in British Colombia. Before departing Sidney, my Dad (Wayne), his wife Florence and her sister Doris came aboard for the first few legs north. I am slowly realizing each step in the journey IS the destination. As sights and sounds unfold before us, we share them together. Just that once, never to be repeated again precisely in the same way.

As I write this, we are at anchor in Frypan Bay on Penrose Island just north of Cape Caution. No other boats in here. It's one of uncountable anchorages in thousands of miles of island and coastline. The beauty of British Colombia simply can’t be described. How is it possible that pine trees grow prolifically on vertical granite mountain walls? We’ve heard there is almost no topsoil, that the roots weave into rock crevices and lichen. The shape of the land hasn’t changed in thousands of years because it is solid rock. Abundant rain and sun support vegetation towering thousands of feet in the air. Towering waterfalls come seemingly from points higher than what we can see. On cloudy days, they cascade out of the clouds with the sound muted by trees and echoed by granite. Occasionally, a gravel slide will cause trees and all in it's path to pour into the ocean. Otherwise there is very little erosion, which makes for a naturally pristine ocean water.

I made a short, 2 minute video with highlights of the past few days. I put the link at the end.

Kwatsi Bay
Case in point is our last stop, Kwatsi Bay. We heard about Kwatsi from friends. It’s located just off Tribune Channel on the eastern side of the Broughton archipelago. The tiny bay is surrounded completely by 4,000‘ tall, nearly vertical granite. Words, even pictures don’t describe it.

Kwatsi Bay is blessed with a charming family who live there. Max and Anca have two children, Russell and Marieke. Since 1995 they have welcomed visitors to the bay with the warmest hospitality possible. There is some space to anchor, but they’ve constructed a float on logs in front of their home where a handful of boats can tie up. Through time they’ve added a small store and cabin. Max generates electricity with a water powered generator he built himself. Through necessity they are capably self-sufficient for all essentials. Port McNeal is two hours away by boat and otherwise their only neighbors are the bear, mink and otters.

Eliana resting in Kwatsi Bay. Click to enlarge.

Kwatsi Bay entrance.

Max and Anca's store.

Nearby waterfall. As we hiked to see it, Debbie was singing "Mares eat oats, does eat oats and little lambs eat ivy" at the top of her voice to ward off the bears. Ummm, none came.

The Cedar Tree
One evening, as a dockside potluck dinner was wrapping up, Jim Roby (a semi-permanent guest at Kwatsi Bay) offered to take us to a nearby place called Watson Cove to see if we could find the ‘The Tree’. It’s a cedar tree discovered back in the 1800’s that is estimated to be 3,700 years old. This tree would have been alive in Moses' time! It’s lived through millenia.

It was late in the evening and the sun was getting low. Jim knew where the tree was, but to be sure, we took Russell (Max and Anca’s son) to show us the way. We hiked through timber, logs, underbrush and bog to find it. Debbie carried her air horn in case of a bear.

The tree was magnificent. A giant among the tall trees surrounding it. The forest was thick and dark enough there was no way to actually see the top of the cedar up through the canopy. But the base left no doubt about the credibility of the claim. We won’t soon forget this tree and pray that 3,700 years is just the start!

Russell showing us the way to the tree. He grew up here and knows every square inch.

The Cedar Tree - 3,700 years old. Compare it to the 60 - 70 year old trees surrounding it. No point in taking a picture up. You can't see the top. Click to enlarge.

Pender Harbour (Fourth of July)
This year, since we were in Canada, we found ourselves celebrating Independence Day in conjunction with Canada Day. The celebration is nearly the same so we enjoyed the parades and fireworks of Canada Day. On the fourth, we found ourselves in Pender Harbour on the northern end of the Sechelt Peninsula. The weekend crowd had left so we had our own little party.

Fireworks I photographed from Eliana. This was on Canada Day, but for us it was our reminder of Independence Day. Notice there is a sailboat mast in this photo. Click to enlarge.

Eliana proudly flying Old Glory on the fourth.

Pender Harbour. A popular summer vacation spot for British Columbians.

Dad, Debbie, Florence and Doris at the Garden Bay Pub and Restaurant.

Underway Notes
So far we’ve found navigating the Inside Passage to be more technical than what we’ve seen in the past. The extreme tides and currents present a challenge, but it’s more a matter of good planning than anything else. We have witnessed two incidents which hold important lessons for all of us. A 45’ trawler entering the marina just behind us was swept into the breakwater rocks due to a 4 knot current across the entrance. Instead of establishing her approach from some distance out, she attempted to 'turn in' with the current on her stern. Later we saw a large yacht turned almost completely around in a swirling tidal eddy at the entrance of Seymour Narrows. No apparent damage there, but the danger was clearly marked on the chart.

The positive of cruising the Inside Passage is there is virtually no ocean swell or big waves (that we’ve seen yet). And if I haven’t emphasized it enough, the scenery along the way is so breathtaking. This must be some of the most beautiful cruising anywhere.

Sunrise on Malaspina Strait. The sun's light is broken by the jagged mountain peaks behind. Click to enlarge.

Dad and I.

Approaching Seymour Narrows.

Johnstone Strait.

Barge traffic is common through here.

Logging stations like this one were also common along the way.

As we snaked through the various passes, I turned the display to 3D beforehand to help visualize what we were going to see. It really did help given this was our first time through.

Shoptalk
Another lesson learned.... Yesterday, as we were underway the hydraulic oil temperature started rising. As we came to the anchorage and started the windlass, the temp alarm went off. We barely got the anchor set when it all shut off that quick. Starting at the cooling water intake, I verified there was ample sea water flow to the hydraulic driven Jabsco cooling pump. I opened the pump and looked at the impeller which appeared to be OK at first glance. Hmmm, what else could it be? I decided to replace the impeller anyway. After removing it, I found the impeller HAD actually failed and was no longer pumping. The fins had worn nearly through at the midpoint making them unable to hold any pressure. A new impeller immediately solved the problem.

Looking at the maintenance log, I had performed an annual inspection about 6 months ago and remember removing the cover, looking at the side and declaring it in good shape. Here are three lessons:

1. Inspecting an impeller means REMOVING the impeller completely to inspect it. Simply taking off the cover doesn’t guarantee all is well.
2. The blue Globe impellers I use don’t come apart like the black rubber ones do which is good because you don’t have to go searching for rubber bits clogging up the heat exchanger, but just because the impeller looks intact doesn’t mean it isn’t worn out.
3. Now that I know the wear cycle, I have replaced the word “Inspect” with “Replace” on the annual maintenance instruction.

The worn out impeller. All the lobes are still on, but each one is worn to the point it had no spring left to pump.

That’s all for now dear readers. Please visit our website with comments and questions by clicking on the link below. I appreciate the many encouraging comments we receive and if you have a question, I’ll do my best to get it answered promptly right in the same comments section.

Also, be sure to view my video: Sights and Sounds of British Columbia - July 5 - 8, 2011.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Frypan Bay
Total Mileage: 5,580 Miles
Track Eliana

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 16:05:16 GMT

Hi Rick, great journal. Did you every get to Desolation Sound Marine Park? If not, it is a must stop in the cruising grounds not far from Cortes Island...

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:38:04 GMT

Hi Rick, Nice tip on the impeller. Naughty little things. Mine is a pain to inspect and changing it instead of inspecting is a much better idea. Mark

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Wed, 13 Jul 2011 10:40:01 GMT

SUBJECT: Re: #50 British Columbia Hi Rick! Love your well-written blog! That 3700 year old cedar tree is amazing! Reminds us all who is really in charge here --- Mother Nature! Was just chatting last night with a guy who is working as weather adviser and safety contact for 46' Vahalla -- they left Hawaii on June 28 and are 4 days out from Dana Point. They only have paravanes and apparently they snagged a free-floating fishing net along the way and actually bent one of their paravane arms. Isn't that wild? He said they are doing OK --- they took fuel bladders with them since at one point they were going into 30 knot winds and making only 3. And now they just have one paravane! Don't you love these Nordies? Getting ready to send our new Newsletter out announcing our new store and redesigned site! The marine supply business is picking up! Safe Travels to you guys. Whitney

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Mon, 11 Jul 2011 14:11:48 GMT

Hi Rick and Debbie WE (Janet and Chris + x 4 kids) are from the prairies in Canada...(Kansas aka Saskatchewan!) We enjoy visiting the Pacific Northwest every summer and kayaking for 3-4 weeks... We have read every book on trawler travel that we can... Just wanted to let you know that we realated immediately to your trawler travel writing style and honest experiences. Your blog emails are now a very exciting part of our lives !! A real pleasure to read along with the fantanstic pics. Thank you very very much from the Exner family for all of your sharing. Take Care and God Bless, Janet

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:00:04 GMT

Rick (and Debbie), Another great post. What breathtaking scenery! The photo of Eliana at Kwatsi should be on the cover somewhere! It proves a Nordhavn can go anywhere. Your video was beautiful as well, and what a great time to be able to share it with your Dad. My Dad plied some of those same waters on his way to surveying the Alaskan Highway in the 50's. Thanks for sharing it. One question, what camera did you use to video, and were you using some kind of stabilization? Grant Hi Grant, I like to use the Canon 7D body with either the 70-200x2.8 or the 24-105x4.0 lens. The camera can do either stills or video at the flip of a switch. Yes, stabilization is critical since a tripod is impractical to use out here most of the time. So both lenses have built in stabilization which helps quite a bit. Then when I process the video, I can apply additional stabilization which all together does an amazing job of smoothing out those moments when I simply can't hold the camera still. Rick

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Sun, 10 Jul 2011 15:18:55 GMT

Rick, Fascinating and thought provoking, as always. We love the posts and hope that you'll continue them for a very long time to come. Two queries: 1) in looking at the wear points on the impeller, it appears that the outside diameter is a tad too large; perhaps the mfg's conversion (recommended part number) is incorrect? And 2) have you set any plans yet for the next passage? Clearly still some months of warm (ish) cruising left in the PNW, but what's next? Cedric Hi Cedric, Good observation on the wear pattern. You may have a point, but the new part slipped in just right and is pumping perfectly now. I'll recheck the wear pattern on the next change and see if it's the same. After leaving Alaska and BC on the way south, we plan to travel all the way to Panama with three major stops in California, Mexico and Costa Rica. Once on the Carribean side, we'll work out a plan for East Coast US. Stay tuned! Rick

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Sun, 10 Jul 2011 08:39:26 GMT

Rick thank you very much for posting the pictures. I used to live in Gibsons Landing BC and the pics you posted brought me back in time.I have a brother that lives on a boat in Gibsons Landing and one that lives in Sechelt BC. I now live in Emerson MB, which borders with Pembina ND.The view is nothing like they have on the west coast, but we do have the Red River.Thanks again for your posting and enjoy the trip.

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 21:06:23 GMT

Vic, In answer to your second question... Our original teaching captain in Florida was Chris Day on a Grand Banks. That area had many entrances that were narrow and shallow. He taught to set up the approach some distance away, but line up with the intended path through the entrance. Then as the approach is made, to set the proper crab angle that corrects for wind and current. This was the technique I used in Campbell River and it resulted in about a 30 - 40 degree crab going in. Coming from the up-current direction, I'm not sure I could have gotten Eliana's stern around fast enough. Rick

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 19:58:38 GMT

Why can't the X#@%&^*X impeller be made out of ordnance-grade stainless steel, instead of jive-time rubber? That metal would never rust and never lose its temper, unlike myself, who routinely loses his temper when expensive machines are brought to a halt by cheap (?) parts that wear out, while endangering the lives of all those on board in the process? What am I missing here? IMO, planned obsolescence has no place in ocean-going equipment. Growllll...... When time permits, pls explain what you did that the 45' trawler behind you did not do. Did your bow & stern thrusters come into play while negociating that 4-kt current? Is that what made the difference? Spooky.... Hi Vic! Two good questions. The impeller must be flexible because the fins expand and contract to provide the pumping action. I actually love the Jabsco design because they operate simply and one wear part repairs virtually the whole pump. Our bilge pumps for example have quite a few moving parts and rebuilding is quite a chore. I gave this pump a complete overhaul in about 10 minutes! Changing the impeller is so easy and inexpensive, I don't know why I don't do it regularly and keep a new impeller in there all the time. I'll answer your other question with another comment because I hit the word limit.

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 19:34:56 GMT

Rick, Your impellar problem had me wondering if you use a monitoring system? (Krill, Simon, etc) Does the hydraulic system require/need a pressure and temperature monitoring? Having worked with hydraulic systems before we could see temperature rise as pressure reduced. Industrial systems. For Eliana I could imagine a monitoring system is money well spent, then again if you don't have one you did catch the issue without it. Enjoying your journey and destination adventure deskside for now, have a great summer. Hi JC, Eliana is not equipped with a Simon or Krill system. They do a great job of catching issues quickly although in this case the failure was immediately caught by the ABT alarm in the pilot house. It started with a gentle beep and light. I went down to see what was going on and found no cooling flow and the oil around 110F. Came back up and finished anchoring and just then it went into auto shut down. The hydraulic temperature normally varies up and down from about 85F to 95F. But when the impeller failed, the temp shot up through the 110F point to 145F almost immediately. Not a show stopper except for anchoring. I would have to shut off all hydraulic power which only affects stabilization until the oil cooled off enough to run the windlass. Until I spring for the full monitoring, I will continue to diligently monitor critical systems manually. And better yet, I plan to keep that impeller like new! Rick

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 19:23:19 GMT

Great Blog entry Rick. Maybe the frequency on that hydraulic cooling pump impeller should be semi-annual - it works pretty hard. Personally, i like the Globe impellers for the rare occasion that you start up the system with the suction valve closed. However, the failure mode on the Globes is that they melt if they overheat (about 15 minutes if run dry) rather than fall apart like the black impellers do (in about 5 minutes). Fabulous pictures. All the best to you and Debbie. Barry Kallander

Comment on: #50 British Columbia

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 18:50:17 GMT

Rick, If you put a blue globe impeller next to the black OEM impeller you will notice that the OEM impeller is better bonded to the shaft than the globe impeller. I had a globe fail by spinning on the shaft and after looking at the two side by side decided to go back to the OEM black impeller that I replace every season.

#49 Victoria

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Ahhh Victoria ... not just the provincial capital of British Colombia. This is one of the most captivating sea ports in the world. The “City of Gardens” is quaint, utterly beautiful and chock full of old-world charm. Victoria’s namesake was the great Queen Victoria. The stamp of Victorian England is indelible. But stuffy? Anything but. Victoria is a melting pot of nationalities of all ages. The city is interesting and vibrantly alive.

Founded in 1843 as the old Hudson Bay fort, downtown Victoria was built around the inner harbor, literally surrounding it. It’s a cauldron of commercial activity during the day. Ferries, sea planes, cruise ships, water taxis, sight seeing, whale watching, etc. etc. It’s probably not the best place for a private, home-like boat like Eliana to be moored permanently. But Eliana isn’t anywhere permanently, so for a few perfect days it was fun to be right in the middle of it all.

We were berthed on Ship Point Wharf directly in front of The Empress Hotel and Parliament. Adding to our enjoyment, we had guests come aboard in Victoria. Donna and Jennifer Boos traveled from home to share time with us. And as outings were often described in the Fairview (KS) Enterprise ... “And a good time was had by all!”

Eliana on Ship Point Wharf. Parliament nearby. Click to enlarge.

"The Empress" graces the inner harbor with a stately presence.

High Tea in the afternoon in The Empress' famous tearoom. Another check on the bucket list.

World's cutest water taxi's. Reminds me of the London taxi.

Rogers' Chocolates started in this store in Victoria and made famous by the delicious Victoria Creams. Yes, I bought several. OK, a lot.

Every boater should visit the BC Maritime Museum. It's in the original Victoria City Hall.

The Royal British Colombia Museum is the perfect place to begin a summer in BC. It covers science, history and culture. We also took in the IMAX theater housed within the museum.

La Loupiote
The day after our arrival in Victoria, a yellow sailboat, La Loupiote, tied up next to us. I didn’t recognize it at first, but slowly my memory began to connect. A woman with a heavy French accent emerged producing a small piece of paper. It explained in English that she and her husband perform a circus act right on their sailboat. She stated that they use the mast for the aerial portion. OK ... this does ring a bell. Yes, this is the couple, this is the boat we saw in Puerto Vallarta last winter. Hailing from France, the man (Franck) and his wife (Delphine) were very charming and had two young daughters living on board. We saw them in PV and had every intention of seeing their act, but it never worked out. Life is full of coincidences, but we all realized simultaneously that somehow after 5 months and a few thousand miles (them via Hawaii), we were tied 10 feet from each other and once again given the opportunity to see their show, only this time in Victoria’s inner harbor.

Despite the unusually cold temperatures, their shows went on and they dazzled the crowd with two performances. The first was a very funny comedy and the other a poetic love story. All the acting, dancing and acrobatics were done to music, but without words. Obviously they were well practiced and required incredible strength and skill.

I was impressed at the thought of this couple sailing around the world in a home-made sail boat funding the entire project with free-will proceeds from their circus act. To meet them and their girls, you can visit their website. If you ever get close to where they are, please see them. It really is phenomenal.

"La Loupiote" It's the stage and set as well as home and transportation. On show day they advertise by displaying a simple black and white sign "Two Circus Shows".

Franck and Delphine performed well-told stories to music, but without words. Click to enlarge.

One story was serious, the other a comedy called "Navigators" poking fun at how couples sometimes work together on a boat ... or not.

Butchart Gardens
Oh, yes everybody knows about Butchart Gardens. I did. Or at least I thought I did until I actually went. In 1904 Jennie Butchart decided the limestone quarries used by her husband’s Portland Cement company needed some beautification. Over 100 years later the result is 55 acres of jaw dropping beauty amidst the remains of a cement plant. These photos are just a sampling. You'll want to enlarge them but it's hard to describe the gardens with photos alone. Even with other people around there is a sense of peace and tranquility. As you stroll along, the smells, sounds and sights are breathtaking.

Blue Poppy Restaurant surrounded by beautiful gardens. There isn't a bad view in the house!

The Rose Garden.

The Sunken Garden

The Bog Garden

Craigdarroch Castle.
One neat tour in Victoria is the Craigdarroch Castle. Completed in 1890, Craigdarroch was built by Robert Dunsmuir who was a coal baron who’s business began on Vancouver Island. The interesting thing about Craigdarroch is that it epitomized the Victorian style of the day. It was only a home for a short time until Joan Dunsmuir died. After that it has been used a number of ways including as a military hospital during World War I, and later became Victoria College serving over 5,000 students from 1921 to 1946. Returning servicemen swelled enrollment to over 600 students. It’s just not that big, so the college was moved. Today it’s being restored accurately to the original Victorian style the Dunsmuir's intended. Here are three photos. These are also larger photos so you can click them to enlarge.

That’s all for now. We are now beginning our northwest trek toward Alaska over the next few weeks. I encourage you to visit our website where you can post a comment or question. Thank you for reading Eliana’s Journal.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Sidney, BC
Mileage: 5,267 Miles
Track Eliana

Comment on: #49 Victoria

Sun, 03 Jul 2011 22:17:56 GMT

Hi Rick and Debbie Looks like you guys are enjoying your selves, I picked up your AIS about 2:30 today you guys were out in the middle of strait of Gerogia passing Nainamo, enjoy your trip to Alaska! Roger

Comment on: #49 Victoria

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 12:34:23 GMT

Ha ha ha. I just realized I wrote "there's something special about exploring your own country" in a comment on a post about Canada. <sigh> /afb

Comment on: #49 Victoria

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 09:35:34 GMT

Rick, We really enjoyed the photos from Victoria. Thanks for sharing. -Wayne

Comment on: #49 Victoria

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 01:26:20 GMT

Hi Rick and Debbie. Just had a chance to catch up on your adventures since our dinner in San Diego. What fun! I have to say -- and this will probably be considered wildly inappropriate if not downright heretical -- I'm a little jealous. Or perhaps homesick is a better word. As amazing a time as we're having (and yes, blog updates are coming), there's just something special about exploring in your own country. And of course we loved Roche Harbor too, the site of our first real Nordhavning. But Polynesia is absolutely incredible, as well as diverse in ways we couldn't have imagined. Debbie, I'm definitely not bored any more! Take care -- hope to cross paths soon. /adam (and eve)

Comment on: #49 Victoria

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 11:22:28 GMT

Each one of your blog "posts" is more intriguing than the last! Keep living the life and providing motivation for the rest of us. I'd personally like to hear more about the unusually cool weather; down here in the DC metro area, temps are in the 90s, with high humidity as well. Not a pretty picture. Can't wait to see your pics of Alaskan glaciers and snow-capped mountains. Rock on, y'all! Later.

Comment on: #49 Victoria

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 10:15:08 GMT

Hi Rick & Debbie, I too am a Nordaholic and am a Dreamer that follows your blog. I have your beautiful boat on my desktop as a backdrop and am looking for the day I will be free to roam about as you folks do. Have fun and enjoy a little bit for me too. Mike Rankin Chula Vista CA.

Comment on: #49 Victoria

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 02:42:15 GMT

Hi Rick and Debbie, I noticed that you're now in Sidney. Be sure to check out the Thursday evening market, from 5:30 - 9:00 pm, if you're still in town. Beacon Ave will be closed to automobile traffic and becomes a fun pedestrian mall. By the way, I love your blog. I'm a passionate Nordhavn follower and your entries are always very informative and insightful. Enjoy your trip up the coast! Don't forget to stop in the three bays, Cowichan, Genoa, and Maple. Doug H Victoria

#48 Ballard Locks

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT

The discussion began innocently enough. It had to do with how much fuel we might require on the way up and back from Glacier Bay. We can purchase fuel along the way, but hear the prices can be high. A tank check using pre-calibrated fluid pressure on each tank indicates we’ve got 1,935 gallons on board. Based on past fuel consumption records, and with 15% reserve that’s enough for about 1,480 miles. Enough maybe, but as busy as we keep Eliana the fuel doesn't get stale so why not purchase some peace of mind now, especially if we can find a good price somewhere around Seattle. There are enough other things to think about this trip so the decision was made to add 2,000 gallons.

We don’t purchase fuel often, so when we do it’s usually for enough quantity to be diligent on the price. The Puget Sound is a good place to shop. There are several excellent, high volume docks in the area but the best price I could find was Covich-Williams. One reason may be because they are located in Seattle’s Ship Canal beyond the Chittenden Locks. This would require taking Eliana through the locks in and out. Was it worth a few extra cents per gallon? Herein lies the story....

Now the fuel discussion has evolved to be completely about locks. As Debbie often says, our learning seems to come in layers. Each new experience weaves in with already acquired skills creating yet another layer of capability. For one thing we will likely transit the Panama canal next year. Wouldn’t it be a good idea to get some lab time in a real life setting beforehand?!

Still, we decided our first time through would go better if we had someone along that knew the system. Don Kohlmann at Nordhavn's northwest office graciously offered to help. That's like hitting the jackpot. Balancing our relative inexperience is Don's immense competence coupled with a quiet, confident manner that puts one at ease. Needless to say we were extremely grateful for his presence.

The Ship Canal and Locks
Seattle’s ship canal is a busy place. It’s a deep fresh water channel serving Lakes Union and Washington. But it’s also home to dozens of ship yards and businesses that serve the maritime industry throughout the Pacific Northwest to BC and Alaska. Some of the best talent in the business is right here. Very impressive.

To get into the canal, you must pass from sea to canal level through one of two locks. Completed in 1917, the Chittenden Locks are locally referred to simply as “Ballard Locks” after the community bordering on the north. Designed similarly and second in size to the Panama canal, the locks maintain canal level approximately 20 - 22 feet above sea level and also serve to separate salt water from fresh water. Salmon migrate via a fish ladder feature built into the dam. All of this is interesting enough that the Ballard Locks are one of Seattle’s top tourist attractions attracting more than one million visitors a year. The Corp of Engineers have incorporated a park like atmosphere into the complex including salmon viewing and botanical gardens.

Step By Step
There are two locks, one small and one large. The small one utilizes floating bulkheads and is faster. The large one can transit large vessels, or many smaller boats simultaneously but is slower and requires careful line handling during the transition. Our hope was that we could take one on the way in and the other on the way out. Fortunately, our wish came true and we got to do both. Don was kind enough to take some pictures for us since we were too busy to pick up a camera and otherwise wouldn’t have had anything to show you. I’ve placed the following narrated photos in chronological order going in, and then coming back out.

Entering from Salmon Bay, we're looking beyond the railway bridge to the small signal lights. You can barely see them in this photo, but they are red so we hovered downstream of the bridge. Finally, we got the green light.

Once past the railway bridge we got a clear view of the open lock. This is the small one which has ample room for Eliana. To the right is the river overflow and fish ladder. With this much water coming over, there is a considerable current passing our starboard hand as we enter the lock.

We approached slowly keeping Eliana's center-line aligned with the center of the lock.

The wing wall shields us from the current making handling more predictable.

For a brief moment I thought we should recheck dimensions to make sure things fit.

As we approach our lift position, Debbie already has fenders set and readies her line to place on the bulkhead bollard. Lock personnel are up top ready to help.

I moved outside to get a better view of our port side fenders. After coming to a complete stop and once securely tied, the only job for me was to keep the fenders slightly off the bulkhead using the thrusters.

Debbie secures the stern breast line while Don takes care of the bow. The gates close behind us and the lock fills.

Nearing canal level.

View off the starboard beam. Water is misted over the fish ladder to keep birds from preying on the vulnerable fish.

Once in the canal, we see "The Wizard" from Deadliest Catch off to the side.

Approaching the fuel dock shared by another commercial crabbing boat.

We salute "Lugger" as we pass in the canal. We love our Lugger wing engine.

Floating homes reminiscent of the movie "Sleepless In Seattle".

Waiting for lock instructions to exit the canal. Ultimately we were assigned #2 in line going into the big lock behind "North American". We were to be tied to the wall, then have a work boat rafted on our port rail. A flock of other boats came in behind.

Tie up on the big lock is different. The bollards are fixed on top. Therefore we have to gradually let out line fore and aft as the boat is lowered to avoid getting hung up. That means the big lock is definitely a three person job. The wall position is interesting due to the park like atmosphere. Onlookers are only a few feet away and wanted to visit. "How in the world did you get here from Kansas City?" It was an odd feeling to have our work day being observed and photographed!

Debbie's got the stern line ready. Other boats tying up behind us are also inside the lock getting ready to be lowered.

So the locks are an engineering marvel and a festival of onlookers. We were treated professionally by the lock personnel and amazed at how routine the movement of traffic is. At least we now have a concept of the process and I'm certain we'll be able to do locks whenever we need to. There is a first time for everything.

That's all for now. Thank you for following Eliana's Journal. You may go directly to our website (link below) for adding comments or posting questions which I will try to answer if I can. Feel free to pass along the link to someone else you think may be interested. They can sign up by entering their email address in the registration box of our home page. All the best to you and yours.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Ship Point Wharf, Victoria, BC Canada
Total Mileage: 5,240 Miles
Track Eliana

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Sat, 25 Jun 2011 06:44:47 GMT

Hi, y'all! My latest issue of "Showboats" arrived in the mail yesterday, and I was surprised and delighted to see a nice photo spread and story about the Eliana and its intrepid crew! Good job, people! Anxiously awaiting your next entry. Later. Stay safe.

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Wed, 22 Jun 2011 19:12:49 GMT

Thanks for the update - another step in your great adventure! We are looking forward to getting started with ours! Wishing you continued success! Kathy Shear Madness N7202

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Mon, 20 Jun 2011 09:21:32 GMT

Bravo Ric and Debbie, Great Job piloting through all that. As you said in another response, moving that much weight slowly is dream as long as you understand the basics of physics, right Rick? Thanks so much for continuing to share your adventure with all of us "outside the locks". Grant T PS Happy belated Fathers Day from one Dad to another

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Mon, 20 Jun 2011 03:20:44 GMT

I loved the narrative of the locks adventure. Thanks for wonderful pictures too! Two years ago, our school brought the 6th-8th grade to visit the locks, museum, salmon ladder, etc. Being a teacher, I never tire of learning something new. The larger lock was under inspection and we were able to see it totally empty! Wow, was that ever interesting. People were down inside cleaning the walls and inspecting the gates. They were absolutely tiny! Growing up in Wisconsin, I was only exposed to the 'Wisconsin Navy' by traveling on the Tiperary, a vessel used to transport cars from one side of the Wisconsin River to another. No locks in that general area! Thanks, Marjie

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 21:37:40 GMT

Hi Rick, We love your blog posts, Eliana and reading about your adventures. But what impresses us the most is how well you captain Eliana with very little, or no boating experience. It appears that the small lock only allowed 2-3 feet on either side of Eliana. Guiding in an 80ft, 300,000lb boat with a 21 foot beam for the first time would have certainly elevated my blood pressure. But, you and Debbie made it look like a commercial for how to do everything right. My wife and I were just wondering what you attributed this to? For example; Is your N76 that easy to handle?, etc. Thank you for the great posts, Rob Wade Hi Rob, Thanks for a very nice compliment. I often think about Scott Flanders' (Egret) words when my doubts start to creep in. He would say that he and Mary were ordinary people doing things that to us seemed spectacular, but anyone can by taking it one step at a time. Of course, the take-away was don't be afraid to take the first step. But I've found confidence in his words on each subsequent step as well. Don't get me wrong, my heart rate is running faster than usual when we're doing stuff like this but I continually remind myself not to stop thinking and trust the preparation we did beforehand. But giving credit where credit is due, Eliana is absolutely forgiving to whomever is at her controls. Because of her weight, she moves steadily and predictably with few surprises. The other thing you don't see from the photos is how slow everything takes place. It gives you time to maintain a presence of mind. Thanks again for following our blog! Rick

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 17:01:29 GMT

Debbie and Rick - Absolutely fascinating!! I understood how locks work but it was so much more interesting to hear your story of actually doing it. I don't think you two are afraid of tackling anything!!

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 14:17:15 GMT

Good news from ELIANA after the "Bum News" from SAN SOUCI. My Son-in-law works for NORDHAVN in Dana Point. Jeremy Henderson. I have a dozen friends, I pass along your interesting Blog.

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 13:09:07 GMT

What was the price per gallon (pre tax)? Chuck Chuck, It was $3.478 per gallon paying with either check or cash. Rick

Comment on: #48 Ballard Locks

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 13:07:51 GMT

Among all of Eliana's unique features, I love the most that it has Kansas City as it Home Port. What an eye catcher!

#47 Roche Harbor

Fri, 10 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Pardon me while I reach back when we were dreaming about migrant life on a boat; what it might be like, highs and lows, possible show stoppers, etc. So many things we couldn't foretell, but one thing sure and certain was that we must keep our family connection. Home may be where you are, but it is also who you are. We agreed to visit our family every 6 - 8 weeks regardless, even if only for a few days. It’s been an adjustment, but we’re learning to focus on quality time occasionally rather than a daily routine we sometimes took for granted. And on the rare occasion, we dream of our family coming to visit us on Eliana. By coming to us, our grandchildren hopefully understand and relate to the other aspect of their grandparent’s lives not unlike having children go to work with their parents for a day.

Janelle and Nathan hadn’t an opportunity to come aboard Eliana as a finished boat until this past week. They were both able to get a week vacation and school's out for Anna and Elisa. This is the week we had dreamed of. Eliana was named after our eldest granddaughters and this would be their first functioning visit aboard.

The DeCaro family made themselves right at home which pleased Debbie to no end. A small amount of TV time was spent alternating between ‘Scooby Doo’ and the chapter story ‘Anne of Green Gables’. The girls like to play games. Anna loves Parcheesi and would play it endlessly if she could. Elisa does pretty well at Memory. They both like playing dolls. Anyone that doesn’t look busy WILL get roped into their activity. Surprisingly, though, the girls slept more than usual even ASKING for naps. By the way, that’s a good thing! They slept together in the port bedroom. We placed a folding two-step ladder alongside the foot of the bed so they could get in and out without breaking something. Neither had ever taken a shower before so in a week full of firsts, the girls overcame their skepticism and cautiously stepped in. Both came out wet headed and giddy. Yep, another good thing...

She's pretty good at it, too. I still think she moves the cards around when I'm not looking.

Steps made it easy for the girls to get in and out of bed.

Getting Ready
Day one was spent getting ready for the trip to Roche Harbor ... mostly food. Nathan is a truly gifted chef (not just a proud parent's opinion) and we knew he would be at home in Debbie’s galley. We decided to let him shop Pike Place Market in Seattle for ingredients for the week. Prices are a touch on the high side, but the selection and quality was unquestionable. The meats, fish and produce were out of this world. Of course, the place was a madhouse as is downtown Seattle anytime, but the girls were good sports. Their highlight was to pick out flowers for the week.

A madhouse, but incredible one-stop shopping.

Endless variety of quality fruits and vegetables.

Whole fish is much cheaper. They filet and package for free.

Anna loves flowers so the girls got to pick some out for the week.

Roche Harbor
The short trip from Seattle to Roche Harbor was uneventful. These waters are incredible to cruise. Smooth as silk even in a brisk wind. Timed right, we were able to catch the current like a conveyer belt. Upon arrival we noticed another Nordhavn at anchor in the harbor. Soon smiles and waves were coming our way and we knew immediately it was Daniel and Sharona Feller, good friends we hadn’t seen in awhile. Not long after tying to G-dock, they came calling in their skiff and warmly welcomed us with abundant local knowledge and good wishes. While we normally would prefer to anchor out, being docked allowed the kids to walk ashore any time they wanted to. We off loaded Sweet Charlotte and the two kayaks so there was plenty of transportation.

Roche Harbor is a sheltered harbor on the northwest side of San Juan Island situated along Haro Strait and the Canada - US border. It’s incidentally a port of entry with a Customs office right on the dock. Once a company town involved in limestone mining, the site has become a popular family resort. Although busy, I wouldn’t call it touristy and definitely not crowded. It’s not that easy to get to. Your options are private boat or airplane, float plane service, or ferry to Friday Harbor on the other side of the island and come across by bus or car. That’s it.

While getting to Roche Harbor might be a challenge, a more idyllic, wholesome place for a family vacation would be hard to imagine. Swimming, hiking, good food, art, gardens behind white picket fences and history everywhere. Chapel bells ring through the village morning and afternoon coupled with the famous colors ceremony each evening at sundown performed by the Roche Harbor honor guard. When Anna first went ashore and looked around she said "Is this for real?". Interesting comment from a 5 year old. That made me think that yesterday's reality may have arguably been more real than the artificial pressure of today's marketing, suburban sprawl and abstract social agendas.

The story of Roche Harbor began more than 200 years ago, in 1787, when Captain de Haro and his crew became the first Europeans to actually sail among the forested San Juan Islands. A hundred years later, in 1886, John McMillin transformed the sleepy Hudson Bay camp into a full-fledged lime works and company town with a population of more than 800 residents. Seven decades later, the Tarte Family restored the buildings to function and cleared the way for Roche Harbor’s transformation. Since then, the resort has returned to its community-centered roots with the reestablishment of neighborhoods and a village center. Still, the McMillin era is apparent and interwoven thoroughly into Roche Harbor. A short hike into the woods reveals the McMillin mausoleum where the ash remains of the family are buried.

Eliana on G-dock.

Roche Harbor village.

DeCaro family and Debbie in front of the original De Haro Hotel.

A real town and still has a post office. It's only a cubby, but gets the job done.

The girls looking for art they like.

Original McMillin era cottages have been restored for people to stay in.

Sweet Charlotte was a perfect taxi to the swimming pool dock.

A short hike to the McMillin mausoleum. Very neat. Click to enlarge.

Colors ceremony at sunset.

Life's grand when Nathan is cooking. We ate well all week long.

Life's also grand when Mimi's girls are here.

Our next stop will be in Victoria, BC for a short stay, and then we’ve decided to make a run for Alaska this summer. Stay tuned.

With great appreciation to our dear readers, we wish you and yours the very best.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Seattle, Washington
Total Mileage: 5,153 Miles
Track Eliana

Comment on: #47 Roche Harbor

Mon, 13 Jun 2011 23:46:39 GMT

Rick and Debbie, It was a pleasure meeting you and your family in Roche Harbor and thanks again for the tour of your home, it was one of the many highlights of our trip North on Sandstone. After Roche, my father, Matt, and I headed up to Montague Harbor, Pender Harbor, and then into Desolation Sound for a few days. Enjoy your trip north, stay safe, and keep the posts coming! Thanks again, Greg Paulsen

Comment on: #47 Roche Harbor

Sat, 11 Jun 2011 08:21:06 GMT

Rick and Debbie, What a wonderful joy it must be to share your new home with your family after cruising for a while. As a father of 8 and 4 yr old girls myself I can really appreciate the joy and wonder in your granddaughters eyes. That is truly what the cruising lifestyle is about, sharing wonderful memories with those you care about most. As I have said often I hope to be doing what you're doing someday. Just need to change someday to soon. Could you expand on your on the water experience in the region. How has Eliana handled, how long was the run up to Roche Harbor, etc. Thanks, Grant Hi Grant: Eliana handles like a dream up here. There isn't much, if any swell so only wind waves and currents which sometimes combine with tide rip and eddys. 99% of the time you can walk around the boat with a cup of coffee and not even realize you're moving even with 2 - 3' wind waves running outside. Occasionally a current will hit us sideways and throw the heading off a few degrees, but the autopilot will correct it within a few seconds. I have noticed the stabilizers will sometimes be deflected in one direction and just stay there. I'm marking that up to a steady cross current, or steady cross wind. Our run to RH was about 8 hours. The children were pretty excited for the first hour, running around the house with their binoculars, but then started playing games and took naps. Absolutely no drama at any time. Much different than the Pacific west coast and Mexico. Rick

Comment on: #47 Roche Harbor

Fri, 10 Jun 2011 18:07:01 GMT

So wonderful seeing the Girls have so much fun !!! Something they will ALWAYS remember!!! Miss you Guys ... see you soon! xoxo Candi

Comment on: #47 Roche Harbor

Fri, 10 Jun 2011 16:12:15 GMT

I've been checking in with your posts for the last several weeks and look forward to reading your latest one. You have a beautiful family and I'm glad you get to enjoy their visit. Thanks for letting us cruise with you, however vicariously. God Bless JG

#46 Seattle

Tue, 17 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT

We made it! You can’t imagine the feeling as we approached Cape Flattery at dusk and the beautiful tree covered mountains came into view. For the first time the sun was setting behind us as we entered the Strait of Juan De Fuca. We had gone 1,188 miles since leaving Dana Point along a most challenging route. Other than one rest in Bodega Bay, the full transit was made non stop. We were tempted to pop a cork on something alcoholic, but resisted the temptation knowing we had an early morning arrival into Elliott Bay Marina in Seattle.

Cape Flattery coming into view.

The cape lighthouse with the misty, majestic Olympic Peninsula in the background.

Immediately after departing Bodega Bay we encountered heavy sea and near gale force headwinds, but the forecast was improving for points north so we decided to gut it out for the first two days in order to time better conditions off the Oregon and Washington coastline. As we had experienced before, Eliana gave us a decent ride, but the head current and wind slowed us down to under 7 knots much of the time. It would have been inhuman to be outside as cold temperatures combined with constant salt water spray over the whole boat. We operated the windshield washers about once an hour.

North of San Francisco, we followed a route called the “Express Route” This course offers some coastal protection since it is never more than about 5 miles off shore and is supposed to be crab pot free for night running. We followed this route until we got past Cape Blanco, Oregon. Because the weather was improving and we were still having to deal with crab pots anyway, we decided to head more off shore. All went smooth from there. We noticed, interestingly, that each successive day was longer than the one before it. By the time we got to Seattle, we were enjoying more hours of daylight.

Another interesting side bar is we never know what mechanical issues we'll have to deal with along the way. We try to be as prepared as possible, but one just never knows. This trip was no different. Immediately upon start up in Bodega, our 40KW started and then immediately shut down with an "EXHAUST OVERHEAT" fault code. I didn't have time to figure it out then, so started the 32KW which had a fresh oil change and was ready to go. After we got underway, I changed out the seawater impeller on the 40, but it didn't solve the problem. Looks like the 32 will have to get us to Seattle.

Also as we were getting underway and turned on the autopilot, it showed a 17 degree starboard deflection when I knew the rudder was straight. I immediately knew this wouldn't work and sure enough when we switched to AUTO, Eliana proceeded to make a sharp port turn. So Dan hand steered for a few minutes while I reconfigured the stand by autopilot and we were back in business. Still no idea how the settings got off in AP1.

These are just two examples of why redundancy is so important. Without backup, either one of the above problems would have prevented us from continuing the passage and taking advantage of a desirable weather window.

Seattle First Impressions
Approaching Seattle from the sea etched some new impressions for us. After having ocean swell for almost 5,000 miles, it felt luxurious to have the Puget Sound protection. We could actually walk around without having to hold onto something. And for the first time since taking delivery of Eliana 9 months ago, it rained. Boy howdy did it rain, and we needed it too. There were at least several layers of salt that found it's way back into the ocean.

From a water vantage point, the surrounding mountains were tree covered and snow capped. And then approaching the city we saw the skyline as never before. We weren’t alone as this is one of the busiest seaports in the world with traffic everywhere. Cruise ships going north serve thousands of customers each day. Ferries are whizzing here and there as routine transportation for local residents.

A stunning photo of Mt. Rainier from Eliana. Click the picture to enlarge.

The Seattle skyline is brilliant at night too.

Our Seattle home is Elliott Bay Marina near downtown. Brian, the harbor master is personable with a capable staff of folks who have made us feel welcome. It’s only a short drive to Pike’s Market, the giant REI store or Seattle Center. There is so much to do in town, we’ll never get to all of it. Nordhavn has quite a presence here at the marina. The Nordhavn Northwest office and Emerald Bay Marine are both onsite. This is perfect the perfect situation as we begin to configure for our expedition northward.

Elliott Bay Marina

Clean and well managed.

Girl rigging sailboat next to us.

Glaucous-winged gull playing with a starfish beside Eliana.

Nordhavn office nearby.

Dan and Janet
I had mentioned earlier that we had Dan Shank and Janet Jordan help us crew on this passage which we anticipated would be difficult. I’m pleased to report they met the challenge well sharing boat and household chores. With four doing watches, everyone had 9 hours off twice a day which was a luxury especially in rough water. Both of them are originally from the midwest (Indiana). Dan’s previous life was in plumbing and later as a McDonald’s franchisee owning stores in Colorado. Janet, a senior bank executive in her previous career is easy to be around with good people skills and a great cook. They now do this type of crew work together as a vocation. Knowing how tough it is to find good crew, we feel fortunate this worked out well.

Dan watching for crab pots.

Janet on watch ...

... and whipping up something good in the kitchen.

Shop Talk
Eliana is equipped with a Glendinning shore power cord retrieval drive that extends and retracts our 100’ of power cord. The cord is heavy so the drive makes a difficult job easy. Well, that is until you clean the cord! Here’s the story.... Eliana’s cord had picked up dirt along the way from docks and soot from other boats. Dan and Janet offered to scrub the cord clean and we found that the best way was with Mr. Clean sponge pads. But now with a clean cord the retrieval drive suddenly started slipping. The cord wouldn’t budge. Well I was puzzled. The cord wasn’t slick. It was clean and dry. So I called the folks at Nordhavn in Dana Point and slowly we zeroed in on the problem. Turns out that the drive wheel sheaves have a textured surface that helps them grab, but the texture itself was packed with dirt and now glass smooth. In fact, it looked clean but wasn’t. So we scrubbed it with a dry Scotchbrite pad and took off so much black stuff you wouldn’t believe it. But it sure works like a charm again! We’re learning something new every day.

Shore power cord in Glendinning drive. Scotchbrite does a great job of cleaning the sheaves. Notice how much dirt is still rubbing off on the nice clean shore cord, even after wiping them off with alcohol.

Before Signing Off
As always, we immensely enjoy hearing from our readers. I don’t respond unless there is a question, but then I do try to answer questions as well as I can on our web site. I have had several ask how they can get the comments and responses by email. To do that go to Eliana’s Journal, click on Journal at the top. Then wave your mouse over “Blog Home”. Click on “Email Options” and then choose “Blog Entries with Comments”. You'll then get an email each time someone puts a comment in so don't do it unless you don't mind getting them.

As always if you want to post a comment, click the link below to go directly to our website. Once you’ve navigated to this blog entry, scroll to the bottom where you can post. And thank you for joining us.

This is one of my all time favorite sunset shots. Great atmosphere. For you photographers, I stopped the exposure down three notches to make the masts turn black. Click to enlarge.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Elliott Bay Marina, Seattle, WA
Mileage: 4,962 Miles
Track Eliana

Comment on: #46 Seattle

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 11:32:38 GMT

Hi Rick - thanks for the great blog. About cleaning shore power cords: I have been using toluene (which can be bought at West Marine, among other places) for cleaning the power cords. Like some other chemicals, it makes the cleaning as easy as simply wiping a cloth along the cord. Unlike some other chemicals, it doesn't eat away at the cord itself, or leave it "slick". With toluene, cleaning our 100' of cord is a 15 minute job. Dan Freedman www.ourseaspirit.com (another blog powered by Ken Williams' TalkSpot)

Comment on: #46 Seattle

Tue, 17 May 2011 16:54:34 GMT

Hi, Cousin Rick! Seattle looks the same as when we were there three years ago this week on the beginning of a cruise to Alaska with Lisa and her husband and his parents. Thanks for the wonderful pictures! Hi Cousin! The cruises look like great fun. It's amazing how many of these HUGE ships come and go each day. We saw a Carnival one today that had a water slide that rose stories above the top deck and descended into parts unknown in the boat. Can't even imagine doing that on a boat! Rik

Comment on: #46 Seattle

Tue, 17 May 2011 14:33:43 GMT

Rock on, guys! Great post. Do enjoy your PNW cruise this summer, and rest assured your blog will be eagerly anticipated and followed by your loyal readers. Keep living the life for the rest of us! Being completely "mechanically challenged," I'm somewhat rattled by the mechanical difficulties you encountered on your trip north. You have a rock solid yacht, and spared little expense equipping her with the best gear available, yet your AP and maibn generator both left you in the lurch, requiring back-up systems to get you to your destinations. I'm baffled (and dismayed) that it's not possible to simply order A-1 quality gear and run same w/o incident for thousands of hours. Good on all of you for attending those training classes before setting out on your own. Would appreciate learning what happened to main gen and AP on your next blog. I'm assuming that Seattle Nordhavn office will repair same under warranty. If not, pls advise. Take care and Godspeed. Hi Vic, You would think after every painstaking detail has been attended to that we wouldn't have any problem whatever. But the sea is relentlessly abusive and we have learned to expect breakdown (like Murphy's Law), just not certain what it will be. Most of the mechanical problems I would place in the category of new boat issues. Every system gets stress tested through the manufacturing, delivery, commissioning and first 5,000 miles revealing the weakest links. I love and thrive on the CSI aspect of figuring out what went wrong and why. My goal is to gradually stress, break and improve to the point that a 3 year old Eliana is actually more sound than when new. We now have the generator problem solved. I had replaced the impeller which had lost one fin. I never could find the lost fin until today. It was stuck inside a bend in the hose and was restricting flow which in turn caused the exhaust temp to increase beyond normal. The system shut down to protect itself. So in this case, the shut down mechanism worked correctly and flawlessly! Maybe that's the bright side! I replaced the old impeller with a globe impeller which in my own humble opinion is much more reliable than the factory one. I'll place chips on the table this problem won't be repeated, but we'll see. Also regarding factory warranty, Nordhavn has been more than fair on issues I've brought to them. If there is any question as to manufacturing or design correctness, they have humbly accepted responsibility. No complaint from me on their warranty. Thanks for your excellent questions. Rick

Comment on: #46 Seattle

Tue, 17 May 2011 13:21:36 GMT

Would encourage you to consider enjoying two seasons in the PNW. We found one season not enough to experience all the magnificence. Bowen Island (Union Steamship Marina)near Vancouver, BC is a great place to leave the boat while away. Don't miss Grenville Island and the Farmers market...great produce from the Okanagan Valley. Oh, and Glacier Bay is a not-to- miss. Enjoy...de the crew of Ocean Lady. Hi Crew, Thanks for the tips. We plan to cover as much territory as we can this summer and then decide. You're right there is almost too much for a lifetime! Rick

Comment on: #46 Seattle

Tue, 17 May 2011 13:00:31 GMT

Really enjoy your entries as well as the photography. In the future do you think you will make the trip from Mexico to PNW yourself or hire that out? You hired crew anyway, is the trip enough of an "experience" to make it worthwhile? You will love the PNW, have chartered there four times now, again in June. Both the San Juans and Gulf Islands are great. Hi Alan, I'm sure our view will change over time, but now we're having a great time with the longer passages. I can't even imagine hiring someone else to bring her up. Rick

#45 Bodega Bay

Thu, 05 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT

While waiting for offshore weather to improve, we decided to stop in at Bodega Bay. It’s situated north of San Francisco in southern Sonoma County. A quiet spot off the beaten path with a secure harbor many commercial fishermen call home. The stop was intended to be brief considering we thought the weather would be improving soon. Honestly, we could leave now, BUT ... we like it here! Neat, clean, with friendly people and the crab is sensational. Here’s the story...

Bodega Bay, CA - Population 950, Elevation 45'

Dana Point to Bodega Bay
The trip up the coast went smoothly. Point Conception was bumpy with gale winds forecast as we passed. Combined waves were in the 10 - 12’ range on 8 second intervals but shaped well enough that we rode over them comfortably. Soon after Conception the sea settled down and the rest of the way was smooth. We kept a remarkable 8 knot pace even though we had significant head current.

Approaching San Francisco there was a slight haze and large ships arriving and departing the bay area. AIS again proved invaluable, especially since we were crossing the traffic lanes at roughly a right angle. It enabled us to have easy vessel identification and bridge to bridge communication. Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) chimed in cheerfully to help coordinate crossing paths so there was absolutely no drama.

Nearing Bodega Bay, we encountered hundreds of closely set crab traps which required hand steering. Suddenly we spotted a small crabbing boat with the occupants waving arms overhead. At first we thought they were waving us off their gear, but then realized they were yelling “HELP”. We turned about and approached slowly. Sure enough, they were dead in the water and wanted to know if we could provide a tow. The wind and waves were quickly escalating, so even though the Coast Guard was nearby, we made the decision to get them to safety.

Towing stranded fishermen in.

Salmon Is Back!
Recent years have not been kind to the local fishermen. They’ve not been allowed to fish Salmon for a long time driving the fleet into aging disrepair and more dependent upon crab. Even so, optimism is high as salmon fishing has now been reopened. King salmon is most prevalent in this area and early reports look good. Salmon is paying $7 - $8 per pound at the dock!

A small part of Bodega Bay's fishing fleet.

Lester with Miss Hailey. This could be his best year in awhile.

Making badly needed repairs long overdue.

Replacing a 20 year old radar unit.

Crab
Did I mention how fine crab is here? Like salmon, prices are also at all time highs in the $4 per pound range. The local crab catch has already surpassed 3,000,000 pounds this season and although most of the boats are now refitting for salmon. Crab is highly sustainable since only large males are harvested leaving females to reproduce and young ones to grow. Like most food, fresher is better. I can’t remember tasting crab this good.

This spot is just a few steps from our dock.

Today's catch on ice.

Tender crab salad on toasted bun.

These are brand new traps ready to go.

Early morning ... going crabbing ...

Shop Talk
Seems like we have boat maintenance going on in the background every day. Much of it is simple inspection, but it’s amazing how many things we discover that aren’t necessarily a problem now, but will almost certainly be one if not addressed. Along those lines, I just changed the oil and filter in the 32KW generator. It has a long 350 hour oil change interval which is nice, but I want to make sure the engine is healthy, so we caught a used oil sample for lab analysis. Seakits makes this easy for us by providing pre-prepared sampling kits. We just catch the sample and drop it in a mailbox and a few days later the results are emailed to me and are automatically recorded in the engine’s maintenance log.

Oil sample goes in the larger black jar, then drop it in a mailbox.

Sample ID is included which is affixed to the new oil filter.

Before Signing Off
We plan to depart this weekend for Seattle and hope to run it straight through with no stops. In the last entry, I provided an incorrect link to Marine Traffic so if you had trouble and still want to follow our progress I've placed the correct link on the sign-off below.

First rate crew: Janet Jordan, Debbie and Dan Shank.

Eliana tied up in Spud Point Marina, Bodega Bay

Home made cherry pie and ice cream. Reward for good behavior.

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Lying: Bodega Bay, CA
Total Mileage: 4,202 Miles
TRACK ELIANA

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Wed, 11 May 2011 20:47:09 GMT

G'Day Ric, Debbie Many thanks for the video you both answered a lot of questions for us,you both make handling of a 76 look sooooo easy!

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Wed, 11 May 2011 20:05:42 GMT

Thanks loved your video it brought back some great memories! We were fortunate enough to sail, on a smaller scale, a 40 foot ketch. Absolutly loved Mexico and the sea of Cortez we spent lots of time north of Lapaz. We also sailed up the coast and although your extra size and weight will help it is not Mexico!!! If you make it up to Canada, Victoria and the inside passage are worth checking out. I totally want to say if you need a crew mate for anything let me know. My greatest memories are of being offshore at night, quiet peaceful and amazing stars. We met two Nordhavn's on our adventures Beso and Starweather, I have no doubt that you have made the right choice of boat. Live the dream and after you visit Victoria, HEAD SOUTH! LOL Best wishes and happy sailing, Mike

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Wed, 11 May 2011 18:34:30 GMT

Rick and Debbie, Congratulations on your passage Bodega Bay to Seattle! It is interesting to see your track on marine traffic as you cozy'd on up to the face pier. Great Job. Grant T

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Mon, 09 May 2011 17:43:49 GMT

Hello Rick: I was checking on your position and noticed you have another Nordhavn (Nordsail One) about 20 miles in front of you with a similar heading. Be sure to give them a shout out when you pass them some time tonight. I'm sure I speak for my fellow dreamers when I say thank you for providing the link so we dreamers can follow you and your wife on your journey.

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Sat, 07 May 2011 10:15:55 GMT

Wow looks like a wonderful place! I can't imagine but feel like I am there when you show your pictures! I would love to be there and you know Janet... I am a golfer, if that place is like a Pebble Beach as one person mentioned, Rick and I are on our way! We love crab and salmon too, sounds like a really neat place to visit and a place I never would have heard of if it wasn't for your travels! Have fun!

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Fri, 06 May 2011 14:25:58 GMT

I've sailed the west coast for about forty years and that stretch of water is about as bad as it gets. Six years ago three of us brought my new 47 foot sail boat "Moments" up north from San Francisco to its new home in Portland, Oregon. During that trip on one cold and wet night I had a "moment of clarity", my next boat would be a trawler, I was getting too old for this. Nonetheless, I'm not quite there yet as I still face the wind when it blows. The northern California coast to northern Washington is what's called the slog. Not to make it sound worse than it is lets just say it's bumpy. I'd expect 6 to 8 foot seas 8 seconds apart, winds 15 to 20 on the nose gusting higher. There are a number of places to pull in if need be. At the speed you travel you could make Newport in 30 hours and that's a easy entrance. Another 16 hours will put you at the Columbia River Bar at Astoria. That one you'll want to time to slack tide just before the flood, they don't call it Cape Disappointment for nothing. Channel 16 gives bar conditions as well. I've never stopped in Grays Harbor as I've always just beat through it. Eliana is beautiful and capable boat and no doubt will take you through anything. Good luck and thank you for all your postings, I really enjoy them all. >> >> Best regards to you and yours, >> Mike Holloway >> SV Moments

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Fri, 06 May 2011 14:12:58 GMT

Hello Rick: While you're still in the Bodega Bay, and if you're a golfer, area be sure to stop by the golf course for a round of golf. The course is a great and even if it's a bit windy you will still enjoy your day. The views from the course are beautiful and you won't be disappointed. Oh, and one final item... Please be sure to send me one of those wonderful crab sandwiches prior to your departure this weekend. Those are some of the best crab meat sandwiches I've ever eaten. Yummy! Hi Monte, I hadn't spotted the golf course yet, but I got another comment offline from someone else that has entertained there several times. He describes it as Pebble Beach only cheaper! Rick

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Fri, 06 May 2011 13:23:47 GMT

looks like a beautiful stop to be at, my oh my that crab sandwich looks good!!! are you planning on stopping at victoria or vancouver BC on your way north? jon Jon, Our plan, although somewhat tentative, is to be in Victoria the latter part of June, then Vancouver area the first part of July. Rick

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Fri, 06 May 2011 13:01:23 GMT

You're makin' me hungry!!

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Fri, 06 May 2011 12:58:04 GMT

That's the best part about cruising, only having a general schedule! Looks like Bodega Bay was a great stop. It is incredible how accurate Marine Traffic/Google Maps are - right down to the pier you are tied up on. Looks like you are one of the larger vessels to visit there. Any problems with the depth in the channel/fairways? Fair winds on your cruise to Seattle. I'm looking forward to reading all about it. Grant, There is a somewhat complex channel system leading to the marina, but depths are fine at all tide levels. The larger end-tie docks were all empty when we arrived so there was plenty of room. I'm sure as the season progresses, there will be more frequent larger, transient vessels. Rick

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Fri, 06 May 2011 11:04:06 GMT

Not that Dan and Janet are crew for this leg, I am really into you email reports...and know that I will continue to be after they are off. I have been on your blog from the time Dan told us about the boat. Wish I wre with you, but I would be of no help except kitchen duty. Julie Shank Hanchar

Comment on: #45 Bodega Bay

Fri, 06 May 2011 10:32:50 GMT

Wow! What a fun blog to read & track your progress! Janet has been a long, long time dear friend of mine! She's a very special friend whom I've shared a few fun travling adventures with in our lifetime. I'm sorry that I didn't get to see her when she was in Ft Wayne a month ago - I was in Europe on vacation! This is another fun adventure to follow you on! You look fantastic! I'll keep following your track up the coast - I love the great blog stories! Travel safe & have a wonderful time! Beth Crilly

#44 Tracking Eliana

Sat, 30 Apr 2011 00:00:00 GMT

At 0830 this morning we departed Dana Point, CA bound for Seattle. We are expecting a weather wait in, or near San Francisco. Dan Shank and Janet Jordan are aboard to help crew as we will run around the clock as long as the going is good. So far, all is well.

You may track our progress online at Marine Traffic. Bookmark, then follow the latitude / longitude (map) link.

This is ATA MARIE, a Nordhavn 56 Motorsailor underway with us.

All for now,

Rick Heiniger
N7617 Eliana
Underway: off Santa Monica Bay
Total Mileage: 3,833 Nautical Miles

Comment on: #44 Tracking Eliana

Thu, 05 May 2011 19:46:42 GMT

Rick, Is the next safe haven north for you, Eureka and the Humbolt Bay area? I was playing around with Google Maps and looking at feasible entry points to safe water for a 76. Seems like a long run if that's the case, Hope the weather has broken and you are pushing off soon. Grant Hi Grant, There are anchorages spotted along the way in case we need to turn in, but we're waiting for a long enough window to make it to Seattle. Right now that appears to be departing Saturday morning. We could actually leave now as it's not that bad, but since we're not in a huge rush why not choose smoother weather. Thanks for watching for us. Rick

Comment on: #44 Tracking Eliana

Mon, 02 May 2011 20:49:41 GMT

I noticed you stopped in Bodega bay. I'm curious, was that in your original itinerary or did you have mechanical issues? Hi Monte, Based on the weather forecast when we departed, we knew we would be stopping in the San Francisco vicinity. No doubt Eliana would have been fine going straight through, but Tuesday - Thursday looked to be high wind and waves so we decided to hole up and wait for another window. The next segment is Northern California, Oregon and Washington which are notoriously uncomfortable. Looks like we could have another break by week's end. Rick

Comment on: #44 Tracking Eliana

Mon, 02 May 2011 17:46:24 GMT

Rick, I swear I just saw Ata Maria (along with N43 Rogue Manor and N55 Phoenix) at the Newport Boat Show yesterday, and it was "boat locked" deep in the docks. When was the picture taken? Took Stef to NBS yesterday for her first face-to-boat with the Nordhavns. She fell in love with them. Check. Next..! AIS is so slick. Watching you (or rather, your icon) pull into Bodega Bay Harbor now. Very cool. As always, I'm enjoying the heck out of your blog. Keep up the great work. Best to Debbie. Cedric Hi Cedric, We took the photo of ATA Marie near Newport Beach, but we both departed Dana Point together. I believe they have stopped in San Francisco. AIS is a very important tool, and we are very thankful to have it. While we traversed the SF traffic lanes this morning, we were glued to the screen and it aided communications, bridge to bridge with the other vessels to coordinate passing. One thing you may not have picked up on AIS is that we had to stop to help a boat out in the bay that was dead in the water. We towed them inside to safety. Yet another interesting experience!! Good luck!! Rick

Comment on: #44 Tracking Eliana

Mon, 02 May 2011 08:50:03 GMT

Hi Rick, I am a friend of Janet's and I am so excited to be able to follow your journey. Sounds like a dream come true and I am sure Janet and Dan are loving it! Eliana is beautiful!

Comment on: #44 Tracking Eliana

Sun, 01 May 2011 23:10:02 GMT

SUBJECT: Hello from Dana Point Hi Rick & Debbie, I have enjoyed reading about your voyages these past 5 months. I now I look forward to hearing about your trip to Alaska. Thank you! Tomorrow you will be close to one of my favorite spots along the Calif coast...Monterey & Carmel. One interesting fact...Monterey Bay is very deep. It could contain the deep of the Grand Canyon, It was created by the Salinas River.. Be safe.. Sandy Wheeler Sandy, We miss you!!! And especially the interesting factoids you always seem to have at a moments notice. Thanks! Rick

Comment on: #44 Tracking Eliana

Sun, 01 May 2011 20:09:12 GMT

Thanks Rick! Hope Eliana is able to keep up with Ata Marie? Enjoy your journey.

Comment on: #44 Tracking Eliana

Sat, 30 Apr 2011 21:58:16 GMT

How are you enjoying having my brother Dan and Janet along with you for the ride? I know that they are thrilled to be a part of this voyage. Safe trip. Enjoy following the boat on the marine site. Julie Hanchar Hi Julie, They are both doing well and we are thrilled to have them. Thanks for following us! Rixk

Comment on: #44 Tracking Eliana

Sat, 30 Apr 2011 19:28:55 GMT

Rick: The link was bad, for the tracking, in the blog entry you sent out. I patched it, but did not resend you blog. The link should be: http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shipdetails.aspx?MMSI=367461250 Have a good run! I bet you are tired of going uphill! See you in Seattle. -Ken W Thanks, Ken. Your assistance is greatly appreciated. Rick