Thursday before Memorial Day Weekend the weather was beautiful and the sunset was incredible. My high school friends Tracy and Amy joined me for the weekend and I had hoped we could cruise to a couple of islands in Buzzard’s Bay. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate with us. We were able to sail on Friday and we had a terrific day sail going around Prudence Island in Narragansett Bay. Then, the weather quickly turned sour and we had two days of wet north-easterlies. The wind was gusting over 30 on Saturday and Sunday so we stayed tied safely to the dock and got caught up together.
Typical view Saturday and Sunday (credit to Amy Koontz Knippel for the photo idea)
Still, we had a lovely visit, shared deep conversations, meals, and excursions to a Newport mansion and New Bedford. John and Libby had us over for dinner and it was a real treat for everyone who hadn’t seen each other for over 30 years. It was also fun to see two land-lubbers adapt to boat life (especially the heads!) Sans Souci has ample room for visitors and we all shared the space easily.
Of course, as soon as Amy and Tracy left for their respective homes, the weather started to clear. I called John to ask if he wanted to go for a sail and with no hesitation he agreed. I have a reaching spinnaker that appears to never have been used and I wanted to try flying it. After I hoisted the furled sail, I noticed that the furling line’s pully system was rigged backwards. The sail has a continuous furling system and the line wraps around a large wheel at the clew of the sail. No time to fix it before sailing, we went with it as is.
She’s a beaut! I love the colors and the sail seemed to add at least 2 or 3 knots to Sans Souci’s light-air speed. When it was time to return to the marina, I tried to furl the spinnaker up and I thought it wasn’t working correctly. Figuring something broke in the furler, I pulled the sail down manually and stuffed it down the companionway. I sat down to think about the problem now that the sail was down and googled it. I read “top-down furling system” and about slapped my forehead. Of course I didn’t look up as it was furling and what I thought was a problem wasn’t at all; it furls from the top- duh! I decided to put the sail back up and try the furling again and it worked as expected. So, another lesson learned!
I was able to shoot a little video this weekend and here is the clip:
I’m on my own this weekend as dad can’t take any nights away as mom heals and needs to be fed. I’m planning to sail out Friday evening and go SW for two nights at anchor. I have reversed the spinnaker’s furling system pullies and will plan to use the sail in the forecasted light winds. I’ll be cruising without the dodger panels as those went to The Canvas Lady on Tuesday and won’t be ready until next week at the earliest. The weather looks to be warm and fair this weekend so it won’t be a hardship to sail without them. I’m looking forward to the solo adventure!
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Had such a good time this weekend despite the weather and happy we got some time out on Sans Souci!