Cruising Checklist

[mikeyroberts]

Well, here's the checklist I came up with. Sorry about the format, the board doesn't seem to accept word or pdf formats. If you want a printable/editable copy send me a message and I'll send it to you.

The trip went well on the beautiful turquoise waters of Cockburn Sound accompanied by flying fish and dolphins. The checklist covered all the stuff I needed to take. If anything, it was a little too much stuff. A few points though:

1). I might consider splitting this up in to stuff that should permanently live on the boat (on a mooring 1/2 hour from home) and stuff that I need to make sure not to leave home without.

2). An esky full of food strapped down under the forward berth is fine, but not very accessible when underway. I knew there was a chance we would be sailing over lunch time so I should have had some lunch premade and ready to eat one handed whilst tending the boat.

3).Ticking a box on a checklist doesn't mean that the stuff is on-board. Don't assume - check. After a 5hr sail in the sun and a few beers at the club I really needed a pain killer for my headache - but there was none in the medicine kit. Lessons learnt: stay hydrated, don't overdo the post sail drinks and check the medicine kit is complete.

[mikeyroberts]

Here are a few photos from the weekend.

Finally out on the ocean after dropping the mast to negotiate the Fremantle traffic bridges. In the background you can see the Fremantle Sailing Club offshore fleet:

The Captain.jpg

This is the view from the cockpit as we head south toward Woodman Point. The land on the horizon is actually Garden Island. There is a fantastic sounding spot on the north end of the island called Herring Bay - but that will be for another trip:

Heading South.jpg

After getting to Woodman Point we found it was too uncomfortable to anchor there, so we headed straight in to Fremantle sailing club where we spent the night alongside their visitors jetty. Our two, small trailer sailors felt very small amongst the massive, expensive cruisers, but we felt very welcome at the club none the less:

At FSC preparing for the night.jpg

[Michel]

I am curious! What are these two nice small boats?

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Your list is shaping up nicely.

Not to be alarmist, but your first aid kit should include a couple large sterile pads - 4" x 4" minimal, 5" x 9" preferred. Nothing more helpless feeling that looking at a large gash and wondering how to hold it all together with Band-aid strips or even gauze tape. Twice I've been in situations where we had a 4" gash to close or keep pressure on and used a large sterile pad after a stove alcohol rinse. One was a swimmer that stepped bare-foot on a broken bottle in a muddy river and the other was a gash in the scalp from hardware on gybing boom.

When you get up sore a few Aleve tablets can add a lot to a trip. Plain 'ol aspirin are better than nothing (you have those). If you have any prescriptions/maintenance medications have extra aboard. Also a spare pair of eyeglasses if you're a mole like me.

One of the handiest things we keep aboard is a small Dacron "ditty bag" of about football size full of small lines in various lengths and a few extra sail gasket/ties. Anything from 100 ft of 1/8" "parachute cord" to six foot lengths of larger sizes. Thousands of uses on a trip. I hate to cut lines and having dozens of "ready" sizes handy is a helpful thing.

If you spot a worn halyard being able to run a small messenger line through and then pull the replacement back is a Godsend. Which also brings up: have one spare halyard large enough for the longest halyard in the running rigging.

And I am really, really surprised that your list does not include a compass. I assume you have a fixed mount but would suggest a hand bearing compass as a back-up to both the main compass and the GPS.

Extra points for the Ukelele - I'm hacking away trying to teach myself to play one. If you find one floating it may be because THE ADMIRAL jettisoned mine.

[Michel]

I recommend a plastic Uke for keeping in a boat. It might not sound as good as a wooded one but it will stay together better in the humid atmosphere of a boat.

A tune of circumstances very soon!
http://youtu.be/FLGuSvU1RY4

[lustyslogger]

Well, here's the checklist I came up with. Sorry about the format, the board doesn't seem to accept word or pdf formats. If you want a printable/editable copy send me a message and I'll send it to you.

The trip went well on the beautiful turquoise waters of Cockburn Sound accompanied by flying fish and dolphins. The checklist covered all the stuff I needed to take. If anything, it was a little too much stuff. A few points though:

1). I might consider splitting this up in to stuff that should permanently live on the boat (on a mooring 1/2 hour from home) and stuff that I need to make sure not to leave home without.

2). An esky full of food strapped down under the forward berth is fine, but not very accessible when underway. I knew there was a chance we would be sailing over lunch time so I should have had some lunch premade and ready to eat one handed whilst tending the boat.

3).Ticking a box on a checklist doesn't mean that the stuff is on-board. Don't assume - check. After a 5hr sail in the sun and a few beers at the club I really needed a pain killer for my headache - but there was none in the medicine kit. Lessons learnt: stay hydrated, don't overdo the post sail drinks and check the medicine kit is complete.

I don't have enough room to carry the check list on my boat much less all the stuff on the list!!

[mikeyroberts]

I am curious! What are these two nice small boats?

Hi Michel, my boat (the white one on the left in the photo) is an Australian Sonata 6 designed by Jim Veysey in the 1980s in Victoria. I bought her as a fixer-upper a couple of years ago. I haven't made much progress towards smartening her up. It seems that for every one job I do I uncover two more. So far I have only managed to get her to the point where I can sail her safely and not worry about things breaking off.

The other boat is a Farr 5000 trailer sailer with a swing keel. The skipper on that boat is very experienced and has been sailing in Western Australian waters for decades. He knows every sailor, every boat, their history and has sailed, constructed or maintained many of them. I learnt so much about cruising just by spending a weekend with him.

[Michel]

Thanks! I have a similar boat : A Sandpiper 565. !8.5 feet with a dagger drop keel. I like to learn about small sail cruisers from all around and under...

[mikeyroberts]

Hi Charlie,

thanks for the suggestions. I suspected the first aid kit would be inadequate, but the list was actually copied directly from the Yachting Australia requirements for Category 6 inshore racing. I guess they take in to consideration the presence of a support boat that can deal with major injuries.

Yes I do have a fixed mounted compass on board, but a spare hand bearing compass would be good for more accuracy. One of the other things I learnt on the trip is that my navigation skills need to improve, and I rely on my mobile phone GPS way too much!

Mike

[lustyslogger]

I don't have a check list because with lake sailing I am never very far from land. However I do carry a lot of what is on your list. I don't carry much in the way of spare hardware other than clevis pins and some nuts and bolts. I need a compass like I need a 40 hp motor but I do have both a fixed and handheld compass along with charts (maps on the lake) dividers, rulers. I used to carry a log book but found on a small boat like mine I never had time to fill out the log while under way. I do carry a small hand held tape recorder to record information which I transcribe after I get ashore.

One thing I didn't think of before was a first aid kit. I don't have one but in thinking about what Charles posted I can see that although I am "close" to shore that may still be 45 minutes or more. If I cut myself all I can currently do is wrap it with a cleaning rag and head for shore. Not very wise when I think about it. I also don't generally wear sun blocker. However, I just returned from a visit with a dermatologist and while I got a clean bill of health I also got a 30 minute lecture of the dangers I am putting myself in. So, I have learned something once again.

Thanks