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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

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Chick-a-pea has a new berth

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Ben - FL
Admiral

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880 Posts

Initially Posted - 05/30/2007 : 20:22:57

After doubling my slip fee a few months ago I just got a letter less than a week until the first of the month that my slip fee was once again going up. And they are charging me for a thirty-five footer. So Amity Marina, LLC is no longer getting my money. Chick-a-pea is now berthed another 20 nm South on the St. Johns R. at Brother Dave's. It is getting further to drive but not costing me anything. However there is not enough depth at the end of his 300 ft dock to float her. And the dock is old. So I will be looking into a good deal on a dingy. I'll have to invest in another solar charger too because the last on was destroyed in high winds. But there is plenty of water still. I was a 15k to 20k sail down there yesterday. I had been at Amity Anchorage about six years with Chick-a-pea and previously Desiderata. There are no words I can write to express my emotion as I looked back after leaving. But, The Adventure Continues...

Safe voyages,
Ben
sloop Chick-a-pea,
C250wk#364

Edited by - Ben - FL on 05/30/2007 20:28:38

Tom Potter
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1913 Posts

Response Posted - 05/31/2007 : 13:47:09

Its sad to see what is going on in the coastal marinas. Is there enough water you could go in (after dark)

with a power boat and kick out a ditch so you get to the dock?

Edited by - on

frog0911
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1349 Posts

Response Posted - 06/01/2007 : 00:15:33

Shame on you Tom Potter, for suggesting such a thing!! The water police will get you for those kind of things.

Ben, I will give you a call when I get home from my Texas trip. Maybe we can work something out.

Edited by - on

britinusa
Web Editor

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USA
5404 Posts

Response Posted - 06/01/2007 : 07:03:45

Wow, 300' of dock... are you going to help convert it to a dockominum?

Paul

Edited by - on

Tom Potter
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1913 Posts

Response Posted - 06/01/2007 : 07:38:30

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by frog0911
 Shame on you Tom Potter, for suggesting such a thing!! The water police will get you for those kind of things.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Not that I would do such a thing!

Edited by - on

Ben - FL
Admiral

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880 Posts

Response Posted - 06/02/2007 : 19:20:09

The good thing is that I am that much closer to Lake George for when we do our cruise to Silver Glenn Spring.

Bother Dav's dock is too old to hold Chick-a-pea so she has to be anchored out.

And now on the first day of hurricane season we have tropical storm Barry bearing down on us. So lets talk about anchoring.
I spent Friday driving the fifty miles back down to Dav's and dropped another anchor off the bow. I did this with a 15# navy type anchor with a 5 ft. 1/4 inch chain. I shackled the smaller anchor onto the primary anchor's rode and let it slide down until it just touched the bottom in 5 ft. of water. There I cleated it off. Is ths what Leon has refered to as a "kellet"? The idea being that the secondary anchor whill drag the bottom and help weigh the prmary rode down. It should also keep the boat from hunting. And the two anchors should not be able to get tangled up together. I've had that experience and it is very troublesome.

Edited by - on

ClamBeach
Master Marine Consultant

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3072 Posts

Response Posted - 06/02/2007 : 21:30:26

I'm concerned for the safety of your boat.

My first big worry is your water depth. You're in 5' of water? What sort of fetch is available at your anchorage? Storm winds that generate a modest 3' chop will mean that the boat is effectively a couple feet of water between peaks. 'Pullout' of shallow water from high winds can make this worse.

"a 15# navy type anchor with a 5 ft. 1/4 inch chain "

Second worry. You should have at least 5X as much chain. A rule of thumb is the chain should be at least the length of the boat. I'd try to get some on there before the storm shows up.

Third worry. IMHO: The holding power of 'Naval Style' anchors isn't highly regarded in weights less than a ton or so. I'd use that setup for a 'picnic' anchor and get something with more holding power ASAP.

"Is ths what Leon has refered to as a "kellet"? The idea being that the secondary anchor will drag the bottom "

Sort of but not really. A 'kellet' or 'sentinel' is a weight added to the anchor rode to put more catenary (sag) in the rode. This helps keep the pull on the anchor at a smaller angle to the bottom, reducing upward breakout force. It also helps keep the boat from pulling the rode up too tight (straight-lining) and generating shock loads. The weight of your second anchor is kind of acting like a kellet, but kellets usually don't 'interact' with the bottom.

How much rode do you have out?

Edited by - on

sweetcraft
Admiral

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USA
816 Posts

Response Posted - 06/03/2007 : 00:53:53

I have given up my slip as going North this season and staying in a budget don't compute. I have stay on a mooring for 20 years and it is always a concern for the safety of the boat. I appreciate Bruce's note for anchoring as the check list I would use. I did build my own mooring with an oil drum of concrete and a plated 5/8 eye. This would be a hazzard in 5 feet of water and the C25 in a blow would drag the drum. We now have to have a permit for the mooring as the bottom of the lake belongs to somebody. Good luck on your new home base or piece of real estate on the bottom.

Edited by - on

Brooke Willson
Admiral

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USA
983 Posts

Response Posted - 06/03/2007 : 06:05:10

Years ago on the Eastern Shore of Virginia lived a waterman known as "Dynamite" Custis. The legend is that when the creeks got silted in and the channels too shallow, ol' Dynamite would go out in the night when the water cops were asleep and "dredge" a new channel.

Brooke

Edited by - on

pwhallon
Admiral

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USA
694 Posts

Response Posted - 06/03/2007 : 09:05:00

Hi Ben,

That's a bummer about your slip fees. They just don't make enough money off us 25-footer guys. Boo Hoo!

Up here in GA we are getting a-lot of visitors...i.e. house hunting...because the cost of living is getting so high in Floriduh.

What's the deal? Is Florida becomming a "mege wealthy" only state

.

Example:

Brother-in-law buys a 300K house in Cooper City. Bubble begins, house appraises for 850K now. Dont' forget the hurricane issue.

Today he is paying $14,500.00 a year for property taxes and insurance.

OUCH!!

PW

Edited by - pwhallon on 06/03/2007 09:07:37

Ben - FL
Admiral

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880 Posts

Response Posted - 06/03/2007 : 11:00:49

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by ClamBeach
 
What sort of fetch is available at your anchorage?<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
I'm not sure what you mean by "fetch"? The St. Johns R. is huge. Waves may build to two feet at most however unless we are in a real hurricane. In that case I plan to haul out.

My primary anchor has a boat length of 3/8" chain on a 15 lb. Danforth and 7:1 rode of 1/2" nylon which has never failed me. I didn't want to put the boat too far out because all I have is a rubber raft with oars right now. And it would be very hard to row it out if the wind was blowing much. But off course that is when I would want to go sailing. So I wanted to keep it close enough I can walk/swim to it and deep enough it does not hit the bottom. It is five feet deep at low tide. I only need 3'-4". Another reason for staying close to the end of the dock is that this far up river there are alligators. I've seen a 10 footer. I am researching a way to perhaps make a trolley line for the raft out to the boat like the old ferry men used to do. But then it would have to sink to the bottom after use so as not to decapitate a passing fisherman.

Edited by - on

Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 06/03/2007 : 11:38:10

"Fetch" is the term for the length of open water over which the wind can build waves. However, you're probably right about the wave height--in water that shallow, they can't build much higher because their length is too short--the tops blow off in high winds.

Another small issue is how shallow might the water be in an exaggerated tide, as in or after a storm? And how hard is the bottom?

If you're going to stay there for a few years, you might want to look into a proper mooring anchor--such as one of the types that screws into the bottom, an old RR car wheel, or similar item. The tradtional mushroom would be a bad idea in water that shallow--the spike can be quite a hazzard.

In the meantime, I'd suggest much more than 7:1 scope for your primary anchor in a storm--you could go 20:1 easily by just letting out about 100'. Of course, you have to do it far enough out that enough depth in any direction, but it could be just a temporary position.

10' gators, huh?

I'd get a BIG, hard dinghy, thank you!

Edited by - on

DaveR
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
2015 Posts

Response Posted - 06/04/2007 : 08:14:19

HI Ben,
I was going to mention the gators. Of course when you're in the dinghy they're not a problem but when you're in the water with them ....... you're putting yourself at risk. And I guarantee there's gators larger than 10 foot out there, probably a hundred per mile (go out on the dock after dark with a good q-beam and count the glowing eyes). I bet you can pick up a used john boat real cheap, but please don't wade out there!

Edited by - on

Frank Hopper
Past Commodore

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Pitcairn Island
6776 Posts

Response Posted - 06/04/2007 : 08:52:06

I have always preferred the 250 WK over the WB but maybe you should find a WB. Blow the ballast to get to the dock, refill as you leave the dock.

Edited by - on

Ben - FL
Admiral

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880 Posts

Response Posted - 06/04/2007 : 13:35:24

My last boat Desiderata was a swinger and I decided I would not have another.
It is now Monday and there have been lots of Westerly winds fetching across the 3 miles and Chick-a-pea is fairing very well. Brother Dav is at home a lot and has kept an eye out. So my anxiety has waned. I was just very nervous having just moved her and three days later on the first day of Hurricane season we have our second named storm. I will be putting a bigger mooring out though. Besides, my anchor rode will be really nasty after staying in the water all the time.

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