WEEK 2

WEEK 2  

We were up early on Monday morning the 8th to start our journey to Detroit Boat Basin to get our alternator repaired. We got there a little after 9am. We cleared in with US Customs. We met Dan Miller, the service manager, and we went over our alternator problems. I asked him about getting a heavy duty type alternator, such as a Balmar, as I did not wish to have any more converted car alternators with the potential to fail. I also gave Dan the installation instructions I had for a "Sterling Power AB12130 Alternator to Battery Charger" which was on board but not connected.  Dan stated he would start checking. On Tuesday morning, Dan reviewed what he got from Balmar. They wanted to sell a larger alternator, and a serpentine belt system to run it. About $2k worth. Dan gave me the contact at Balmar. I called them, and talked with a different person, as the Balmar rep Dan had talked with was out. It appeared to be an attempt to sell more parts. I looked for local Balmar suppliers, and came up empty handed for one on the shelf. I reached out to TransAtlantic Diesel, a Perkins rep, who I knew sold Balmar kits for the Perkins. By 3pm on Tuesday, I had a 100A Balmar with overnight shipping for less than half of Balmar's quote, but without the serpentine drive belt kit. On Wednesday, DBB surprised us by sending their marine tech over to install the Balmar alternator.

Balmar Alternator Installed on The Perkins

We had earlier been told that the electrical tech was on vacation, and getting the other mechanic would probably be late in the week as he was the only tech on duty this week. Mark was quick and accurate, but despite his efforts, the alternator did not function. A call to TAD was not a lot of help, other than their rep suggested a ground problem. It was the end of the day, and we agreed for a call back. Mark showed back up late morning on Thursday. He had other scheduled customers to take care of. The volt readings were all over the place, and he went to get a better instrument. It turned out the ground being used for the alternator was intermittent, and tied to the flybridge. A place where other electrical problems had been. New grounds, and the alternator was putting out a good charging current. Mark left after making some cables for me to complete the Sterling installation. I had sent the Sterling rep questions and photos of the Balmar Installation manual. No call back or answer to my Emails. I tried on Friday to complete the Sterling installation without input from the factory rep following the installation manual. The unit did not work, nor did the alternator. I undid the connections between the alternator and the Sterling unit, and the alternator went back to charging. We settled with Detroit Boat Basin, and thanked Dan for his help, and complemented him on Mark's determination.
        On Saturday morning, we prepped to leave DBB. As we were getting the holding tank pumped out, the showers came. We waited a few minutes for the shower to end, checked the weather radar on the gas dock's computer, and left for Port Huron, Mi where we had a docking appointment at Port Huron's River Street Marina. We had a 52 mile run to make and the GPS said we would get there about 6:15pm. We passed by a sailboat race taking place on Lake St Clair. They were getting good wind and moving at a good pace.

Sailboat Race taking place on Lake St Clair, despite scattered showers

As we were leaving the lake into the St Clair River a freighter was gaining on us. And there was a tug pushing a barge coming down the river. It looked like we all three were going to converge at the 100yd wide river channel at the same time. The tug passed, and then the freighter caught and passed us.

Freighter that Passed Us

 Later the second string of rain showers caught us on the river. We were about 2hr from Port Huron. The rain was hard enough that I operated SummerTime from the lower helm versus the flybridge for only the third time. The rain cleared, and we picked our pace back up so that we arrived at Port Huron's River Street Marina at 6:30pm. The staff is very good, and after we got everything settled with the boat, they drove us to a nice little Italian restaurant, Pompeiis. It was a good evening, that capped off a less than good week.
         We are sitting in Port Huron making our plans for next week. We are watching the weather for a window to cross and cruise the SE shore of Lake Huron and Canada.

WEEK 1 CONCLUDES

WEEK 1 CONCLUDES 

     Shortly after noon on Saturday the 6th of August, we arrived at Crystal Bay on the Detroit River across from Amherstburg, Ontario. We were about

Anchor Bay on a Saturday afternoon

the 8th boat in this protected bay area. It was full of water grass (weeds), to the point at one place on the way in the Perkins diesel started to labor. We had to find a more clear channel to get in. By dinner time (6ish) there were over thirty boats in this little area. When dark came, it was down to 17. The noisy boats had left with the arrival of darkness.  It was a pleasant night, quiet, no rolling, and only the sounds of nature. Sunday morning was just as nice. Just enough wind to keep the insect life down. We were anchored with the windows and hatches open, keeping it pleasant enough that we did not need to run the genset to power the AC. Sunday morning was different. I ran the generator long enough to power a stove and cook breakfast. Sausage, eggs, and homemade biscuits with jelly and honey. We also got some charging done to the Perkins starting and house batteries. I did not go to a church for the first time in months. Instead, I worked on a plumbing leak, and prayed  for forgiveness for not observing "The Sabbath". We had been loosing water; two people were going through about 20gal/day without taking showers on the boat. When looking for the alternator problem, I discovered water raining under the floor of the lower helm. Upon closer examination, I found a nylon fitting used to change the cold water pipe direction at the bulkhead was leaking. It had a pinhole in it, making a fine spray. It took most of the day to get to, remove, and replace this one ell. I had fixed some leaks two weeks prior at the hot water heater, and thought at the time I got the leaks all fixed. I also while wedged in this tight space under the salon floor, between the Perkins and the house batteries, straightened up  some of the electrical wiring and hoses that had come loose or been added carelessly over the years.
       I was pretty sweaty (read smelly) after being cramped in the bilge most of the day. I took a swim in the Detroit River (Crystal Bay actually) off of the swim platform to cool down. The river was actually pleasant temperature wise. But the weeds were there under the surface, and you would occasionally brush or feel one while swimming. After the swim was dinner, followed by a lovely sunset. I do not think photos could do the rose colors and setting sun playing off the clouds justice. But a photo is attached anyway.

Sunset over Anchor Bay

On Monday morning, we awoke early to head to Detroit for an alternator repair/replacement. One of the marinas/service facilities I had called on the past Friday had returned my call on Saturday. I scheduled us to be at Detroit Boat Basin for repair on Monday, 8Aug, at 9am. That is another post.

The JOURNEY Resumes

Approaching MBI

We have finally resumed our journey of the Great Loop on 3 August. It was 1600 when we got the boat ready to leave. It was late, but Barbara and I agreed that it was best to get started. We got into the river at 4:20 after removing our permanent dock lines and power cords. We cleared the Portage River Bridge at 16:32. We motored to the Middle Bass Island State Park Marina, arriving at 17:57. We tied up at our assigned slip given to us when we called and made reservations upon arrival. The staff was gone home, but the facility is still nice. Ohio has a nice Marina here.

Middle Bass Island State Marina, Ohio

We got up on Thursday morning and walked to the MBI village. A town hall, post office, and general store. We mailed some bills at the PO, a room on the back of a house, and had lunch at the general store. The "Italian" sub was great, and Barbara scarfed her Reuben down. We departed at 12:30 headed to Canada.
       The ride across Lake Erie on 4August was nice. The wind was just strong enough to make some ripples and keep it cool on the fly bridge. We passed Pelee Island by, as Barb reading the guide, pointed out it was mostly an agricultural island, producing great wines. We arrived in Leamington, Ontario at about 16:15. Very pretty marina. Lots of flowers hanging in baskets at the offices, and in the adjacent park. The staff was quite helpful in getting us registered, and pointing us in the direction to check in with Canada Customs. The phone wait was longer than the actual approval process.

Leamington Municipal Marina, Ontario, Ca

2016 Season Start

      SummerTime went back into the water and the slip at E-19 on May 17th. Took boat for a ride on 27 May and got 15.4 knots out of the bottom cleaning we did.  On 4 June we took an island hopping and dinner trip with old friends from past projects. We got back at dark in what became a heavy rain.  We docked in the dark for the first time. On 11June, I took some of the men from church fishing. Weather was not the best. A number of fish were caught by my standards, but as we caught no Walleye, the rest considered the trip a bust. Drifting with the anchor just touching to slow speed, we  snagged an abandoned fishing buoy marker and its block anchors. We did not realize this until we got in the river at the bridge and a couple of boaters pointed and stated we were dragging "our anchor" . It did not make sense as I could see the anchor in the bow roller.  We also put the "Trick Davits" back on with the distance shortened between arms. Barb and I could easily pull the dinghy on now. We went to PIB with my sister and her husband on 19June when they came to visit. We got the mooring ball on the first attempt. No more trips in June.
      Our house sold, and we vacated and moved aboard on 7 July. We had a lot of boxes we thought we needed on board, and it was congested. We spent the 8th resting after packing and moving. The 9th we tried to re-organize and stow all the items we had brought on from the house. We discovered we had things intended for storage, and things intended for the boat had not made it. Our goal was to be away from the port the week of 11 July, but it became apparent we were not going to make this. In the interim we did projects on SummerTime. We built in a settee/ sleeper on the port side. It gave us more storage space underneath. And it let us open the engine hatches while the settee is in position which the futon we had the first year would not let us do. In the second week I built the base for an hi-lo table, and mounted an oak table top I bought as a surplus item from Great Lakes Skipper. It works much better than the TV trays Barbara and I had been using. We can both sit at the settee and eat on  the table. The last week of July we upholstered the settee with a beach motif material that blended very well with the Mainship's tan/brown checkerboard curtains.
      On 2 August we finally got rid of the last land item (car trailer) keeping us from departing. On the 3rd, we cleaned out and organized the lazarette. We got out the 80# of play sand used for ballast in the aft port bilge that was put there by the previous owner for what reason we do not know. We said our good-byes on the afternoon of the 3rd to the  Brands Staff who have been so good to SummerTime and us since Sep2013. It was later than planned, but we were on our way.

2015 SYNOPSIS

SummerTime went back into the water late for the 2015 season. It was May 29th. The touch up paint and varnish on the exterior woodwork looked nice in sunlight. Boat was only run across the Portage River to the summer slip from the winter storage building. In June we completed the installation of the "Trick Davits" on the swim platform. We also put the dinghy in and ran the Merc for the first time since summer 2014. The video advertising for "Trick Davits" made it easy to slide a dinghy up on the trick davit, but we had to take the engine off to load the dinghy. And both of us struggled to get the dinghy on. We took a day trip to MBI State Marina Park and stayed one night. It was raining on our return trip. We swung by PIB as the brig "Niagara" was there on its summer journey. We also added a filter into our cold water at the galley sink. It is a US Filter that does 99.99% on cyst and other things your worry about. We only put the glass dispenser faucet on this filter. In July we completed a freezer installation in the galley. We put it in the dead space in the forward corner of the galley counter where there was a second opening for "?". We also took a day trip to Kelley's Island, but it was a busy weekend, and there were no slips to be had, even for lunch. In August we again took a vacation to the north, and up the Detroit and St Clair Rivers. We stayed in Milliken State Park Marina in Detroit again. We passed through the green algae bloom in Lake Erie on our way. In our wake it looked like the liquid with light foam that you get when you mix lime jello. We got to Port Huron State Marina, and made our way to Harbor Beach. Learned not to plot nav courses on the Garmin in large scale as we drove into a shallow rock garden about 10 miles south of Harbor Beach. Good thing that Lake Huron has very clear water. We found a nav buoy about 2 miles off shore after we turned out of the underwater rock garden. We were headed to Tawas City above Saginaw Bay, but Harbor Beach was as far as we got. The weather deteriorated to high winds with afternoon TS. We turned around the next day and came back to Port Huron. We apparently just missed a bad TS while coming back down Lake Huron. We made the journey on Friday straight from Port Huron to PC. Lake Erie was smooth again which aided good speed. We did two more day trips, and our last project for the summer included completing sensors for level on the water and holding tanks. We started this project before the vacation to Lake Huron, but the Holding tank sensor only worked to 1/4 at first. A call to Tank Sensor gave us a cure. I crawled into the lazarette with the router, and cut reliefs of 1/16th inch in the tank where the sensors mounted. Everything worked great after this. We never tried the dinghy davits after our experience in June. We figured it was too hard to get  the dinghy on, but we could launch it if we had to. The boat went into its winter storage on 31 October.

2014 Season Synopsis

"SummerTime" was put back into the Portage River waters by Brands' Marina in early May. We wanted to, and had to go in early as we were on the second row from the big entry doors. Brands had done the few things we asked over the winter, and we did some items on board ourselves. More importantly, Tibbels Fish Camp was a "USA Fuel" franchisee, and cleaned our diesel tank in mid June. There were some really big chunks of asphaltine waiting to plug a fuel line once more . The bottom of the tank was actually bright aluminum instead of black when they finished. We  did more one day trips over the summer. Our big vacation trip was over to the Detroit River, and up the river. WG Milliken State Park/Harbor in downtown Detroit was a pleasant surprise. Very new, clean, and in site of the tall downtown buildings. We crossed Lake St Clair, and got as far up the St. Clair River as Algonac City. We spent a night on the hook at Metro Beaches State Park. On the way back down the Detroit River, we were boarded by the USCG. They passed, did a quick three point turn in the river (sure sign they wanted to check something), and came back up to SummerTime's stern. I offered to stop, but they said "No", they would board while moving. Three of them came aboard, and the little patrol boat with two others followed at a safe distance. Barbara was surprised, and played host. I avoided traffic, including a large lake freighter going upstream. They completed their mission, gave us a "Pass" receipt, and left, all without stopping.
We did more day trips and miscellaneous small chores over the summer. The big surprise came on a September Sunday afternoon while stopping by to check on SummerTime. The bilge was full of water, and the two pumps were barely keeping up to the depth. I contacted Brands early on Monday morning, and they put a pump aboard, and lifted SummerTime out of the water. The "Garplug" in the keel had come out (inwards). Most of the lower threads were corroded away from years in salt water. They got a new one installed, and SummerTime was back in the water in a few days. SummerTime was put back in dry storage for the winter in early November.

2013 Synopsis

     We started our journey north with SummerTime on 25 May, 2013. Barbara, her brother Kenny, and myself. We left Carolina Beach, NC going up the ICW (Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway). Rod has to be back at work in two weeks, so this part of our Great Loop to move SummerTime to our work/residence on Lake Erie is going to be done without time for sight seeing. We anchored inside the yacht harbor at Camp Lejeune for our first night. A light rain fell before morning, and we discovered we had a leak over the berths. Things you do not find in a survey. We took the route through the Dismal Swamp Canal (built/financed by Washington & Jefferson): straight and boring. We did see our first Bald Eagles just prior to entering the canal. The ICW passes through the port of Norfolk, and the USN has a lot of taxpayer money sitting here. I think there were fourteen aircraft carriers of various types when we passed through. The Chesapeake Bay was an easy ride, just long. We were surprised to meet a freighter on the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.  There were more eagles in this area.  The Delaware City Marina and docks were a treat. One of our best stops. Great pizza at the local pizza parlor we walked to. Delaware Bay was a one day trip south, and we were in the NJ ICW. A two day trip up, the first night on the hook near Atlantic City. We fueled before leaving the Manasquan River Inlet. We did 50 plus miles on the Atlantic Ocean with following seas of 4-8 ft until we got into NY Harbor, seven and a half days after starting. Seeing the Statue of Liberty as you come in from the ocean was quite impressive. We motored on up the river to Nyack, NY where our daughter met us and carried us grocery shopping to a full size market. We anchored  for the night about two hours farther up the river. The Hudson is impressive as you enter the Catskills. Train tracks are  on both sides of the river. Amtrak runs this route a lot. Seeing West Point from the river was impressive.  It was also remarkable to see the small lighthouses in the river to mark the differing ports. There is still a tide all that way up the Hudson in Albany, and sea-going tugs and barges at their port docks.
      We entered the Erie Canal through the Federal Lock just above Albany. We got to lock #8 before the locks shut down for the night. My hopes for 100 mile travel days went out the window with the locks. In reality, we only had one hundred mile day to this point. A cruise ship passed through lock #8 after hours. We stopped at the town docks in Frankfort, NY a few days later, and there was a street rod cruise in going on. Wounded Heroes was doing a burgers grilling to raise money and  we ate cheap. We crossed Lake Oneida in the rainy remnants of Tropical storm Andrea. More water and cabin leaks discovered. Also, the alternator on the Perkins main appeared to have quit working. We kept the batteries charged by running the generator. We lowered the bimini and laid the mast over as we pass under the low bridges on the Erie Canal. We had to wait at one lock (Baldwinsville?) as there was a diver in it doing an inspection. We used the wait time to buy supplies at the local market and pick up a nice deli sandwich at the adjacent bar and grill. Traveling on the canal is nice. Every little city has docks, and different perks with them. There are fairs and festivals at each town it seems. We met people who cruised between cities, as they knew what was free (laundromats, shore power, dockage) on what days. The western part of the canal in the summer, and the trip up the Hudson would be worth doing again when time would not be an issue. We got to Tonawanda, NY, end of the canal on day 15. The Garmin said we had done 1182 miles since leaving Carolina Beach, and 175 hours had gone by on the Hobbs.
      And the most embarrassing thing happened. We had to be towed the last two miles to our new dock at Rich's Marina. The rolling in the Niagara River on less than a half tank washed up chunks of asphaltine that blocked the fuel line to the Perkins. We spent the rest of the summer of 2013 doing dinner runs and fixing the leaks from rain in the berth area. We had no luck in finding someone to clean our diesel tank, so we never let it get less than 3/4 full again.
       Labor Day weekend we moved SummerTime from Buffalo, NY, to Port Clinton, Ohio along Lake Erie's southern shore with the help of Tom, one of Rod's uncles . It was a three day trip with stops in Erie, Pa, and Cleveland, OH. From Port Clinton we made a few trips with friends and children over to Put-In-Bay. Brands' Marina put SummerTime in heated storage for the winter in November.