B4B2

I've arrived in the northern hemisphere!

While in Tasmania, I was working 10ish hour days for a demolition company in Hobart. I didn't pay much attention to e-mail over a busy few weeks. During that time Alex found a small sailboat on craigslist in Washington state. At the end of each workday I glanced through group e-mails and pieced together what was happening in the north. 1) Alex agreed to buy the boat, 2) my sister in Oregon agreed to pick it up and trailer it across the State line to park in her driveway, 3) Alex entered the two us in the Race to Alaska, and 4) all that was needed from me was to send funds for the boat and gas. I'm fairly sure I agreed to all this at some point, but those few weeks really were a blur.

So now I am in Oregon, with Alex and the freshly christened B4B2. B4B2 is the amalgamation of Berrimilla4 and Bob2. Alex's Berrimilla is already on the fourth edition and, while Ugly Bob (the first Bob) hasn't officially been launched yet, he has already claimed the title as first in the Bob fleet.

B4B2

B4B2 needs a bit of fresh fiberglass, some of the inside lumber needs replacing, and Alex is working on the rigging and shroud replacements. We'll add a few extra bits and pieces for the race and strengthen the deck below the mast. We're watching the R2AK website and waiting for more teams to register. Thus far, we're in good company with another craigslist find!

Looking back at old posts, I remembered Collins Falls, a fairly pathetic example of the noun (23 Jan 2017.) I went back several months later and found it in much better form.

Collins Falls, looking much better in April.

A Short for a Cloudy Evening

In June I went to see my favorite band from when I was about 11 years old; Hanson! They eventually lost my favor to Glenn Miller and Modest Mouse, but until then they held the heart of an adolescent. I heard they were in Sydney and happen to have a few tickets left. I ended up on the dance floor with 200 of my fellow 30ish-year-old fans who have followed them for the last 20-odd years. One has not lived until singing MmmBop with Hanson.

A small accomplishment was finally catching a lizard on film. These little guys run all over Sydney, but always dive for cover the moment I walk by. This fellow was sun bathing and posed while I hovered with a giant lens. He's about 2.5 inches long and laying on the corner of a cinder block.

On a side note, I applied for a second year visa in Australia. My application was rejected, so I am heading back State side in a couple weeks. More travel plans in the works! In the meantime, here's a picture of me tickling a shark.

-M

Addendum to Critters

1) A friend in the house. She's a huntsman and keeps the bugs away.

2) This WAS my bed.

Bob's Brother and Strange Critters

Way back in February, I went to the Hobart Wooden Boat Festival. There were square-rigged ships, dinghy kits, and lots of home-made boats on display. I had heard that a certain boat and its builder were going to be at the festival so mostly I made the journey to find them. Peter Deck lives a bit north of Hobart and brought in his own home-build, 14-foot, lug-rigged Houdini! It was a complete example of Ugly Bob! Alex met Peter last year after looking for Australian builders of the John Welsford boad designs. They met and Alex connected Peter and me. At the festival, the small boats were scattered throughout a large parking lot. I recognized the Houdini from half a block away and went right over to Peter. We talked boaty stuff for a while and he let me climb into Dexterity and look in hatches, under floorboards, and wiggle everything that moved. There were one or two details of the design that neither of us understood and we were relieved that we had come to the same conclusion and made similar modifications. Peter has taken the time to make a beautiful Houdini, where Ugly Bob is more of a rough cutout. Bob will sail just fine and will likely have to put up with rougher waters and greener sailors. The only modification I made that no one else seems to have done (Peter or builders from online forums) is widening the forward hatch. I found that by making the hatch two inches (5cm) wider, I could fit my shoulders through and work on the inside. One of the few advantages to being a (relatively) small builder is having one or two more sizing options on boat hatches, window cutouts, and water tanks. (John, owner of the BAB/Excentrique was very excited that I fit head-first into the water tank to make repairs rather than needing cut a larger hole in the lid.) I left Ugly Bob unfinished in Alaska and I am constantly annoyed by the thought of an unfinished project. Now that I have met Dexterity, Bob has some craftsmanship to look forward to.

Peter, me, and Dexterity

On a completely unrelated note: I met my first echidna. (ek-id-na) It's like a giant hedgehog.

Welcome!

Hi Mike and Wilma!

Tasmania and the BAB

I have been in Tasmania since mid February, helping a friend with his boat. Excentrique is a 51-foot Beneteau sailboat who broke her mooring during high winds two years ago and sailed herself from Kettering to Bruny Island where she decided to take a rest on the rocks. Though she was immediately missed, she was left to her vacation for a week. By the time her transport home was organized, she had over indulged in her new-found freedom and in her island tanning rotation, she wore holes into both sides of her hull and needed a lift home.

Excentrique sat on a hard stand for a year before the previous owner and insurance company came to a resolution; after which she was auctioned off and bought in part by my friend John. John has been been working on the restoration for over a year and asked if I'd be in the area and able to help speed up the progress. I immediately began calling her BAB (Big-Ass Boat.) After two months of full-time toil, BAB is close to going back in the water.

Aft interior. Floor removed, dust from fiberglass sanding.

I've been fiberglassing, painting, cleaning, epoxy/resin/gluing, bolting, rigging, and plumbing. All but the electrical work. Wires and buzzy electrical things is the big black hole in my building/restoration knowledge.

New engine and bench installed.

Holes patched and new paint.

Throughout the weeks I have had opportunities to wander Tasmania. My favorite trip was a run to Cape Pillar. Alex came down from Sydney to help on the boat for a couple weeks and we decided to condense a two-day hike into a one-day run. From the campsite at Fortescue Bay to Cape Pillar and back is 30 kilometers/18 miles. We made it out in 2.5 hours and back in just over three hours. Off the end of the cape is the famous Tasman island. Alex has sailed past and between the cape and island many times. This is the first time either of us has seen it from land. My goal now is to see it from the water.

Tasman island with Cape Pillar on the left.

Tasman island from Cape Pillar.

I am heading back to the mainland at the end of April and hope to do more sailing in the coming months.

Urban Exploration

Sunday in Sydney is $2.50 public transportation day. This includes bus, train, and ferry. So each Sunday I wander out into the world and ride to far and distant corners of the city that are generally an expensive transit. This past Sunday I decided to go waterfall hunting. I took a bus, ferry, then walked a few kilometers to get to Spring Cove, a small beach near Manly.

Collins Falls were dry; still a very good beach find. I'll bring my swimming gear next time.

Some of the local architecture along the ferry ride back.