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First Taste of "W" / Southern Ocean

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Sea Trac
Master Marine Consultant

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Vanuatu
1357 Posts

Initially Posted - 10/04/2004 : 11:03:11

Is it December already?

As I mentioned on another thread, the season's final regatta on Oklahoma's Grand Lake O' the Cherokees was this past Saturday. We had intended to troll for sand bass during the two hour motor passage up to the race venue. However, Mother Nature had different plans.

Friday night the wind clocked to due North and began blowing voraciously. Of course, we got very little sleep. On Saturday morning, we awoke at 06:00 to temperatures that had dropped from 75 degrees all the way down to 40 degrees. By our 08:00 departure time, the mercury had managed to rise five degrees.

The result, a two and a half hour slog straight into the teeth of a 35 knot Northerly that fetched down the length of the lake to produce steep three and four foot white capped swells. Spray flyin' everywhere and a wind chill factor around 30 degrees.

Thank heaven for foul weather gear and sailing clubs with big coffee makers.

As is typical in Oklahoma (Colorado, Kansas, Texas, New Mexico...ad infinitum), wait an hour and the weather will change; at our 12:00 start we were sitting around in shirtsleeves calculating how many minutes it was going to take the fleet to make the twenty yards to the gate.

J.B. Manley s/v Sea Trac Allied Seawind II #65
DPO s/v Antares Catalina 25 #4849
Association Treasurer 2002 - 2006
Association Bookkeeper 2002 - 2008
Association Quartermaster 2004 - 2008

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Frank Hopper
Past Commodore

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Pitcairn Island
6776 Posts

Response Posted - 10/04/2004 : 11:53:59

It hit Cheney Fri afternoon, late. We had some friends out to night sail. The halyards on the docks sounded like a hundred banshees flailing their captives. Our guests wondered what the ride would be like, (I had already exercised reason and broke out the food and drink at the slip) so I left the sailcovers on and even the cabin cover on and motored out past the breakwater. At Cheney the lake runs mostly north south and the club is toward the south end. The wind had been hard out of the south before it backed to the North, that set up the existing South rolers and chop that had not quite died off meeting the new Northern rolers and chop. My bow was lifting and falling about 10 feet. The waves broke over the bow and were clearing the transom. My guests were ... stunned. I drove a couple hundred yards into it and spun the boat around yelling, "everyone to the back of the boat". We kept the motor in the water and cleared the jetty in no time. The several other folks on various boats at the slips were not surprised by our short trip, neither was I. Back at the slip we contentedly ate, drank and agreed; anytime on a boat was a great time well spent.

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Sea Trac
Master Marine Consultant

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Vanuatu
1357 Posts

Response Posted - 10/04/2004 : 12:09:18

Thanks, Frank. You caused me to realize that I had forgotten to add the finale to my post.

WE HAD AN ASSUME WEEKEND ON THE WATER!

If there's too much wind or no wind at all, there's always good company, food and drinks to be had by all. Too much sun and heat, drink a beer in the shade. Too cold, drink scotch and coffee while reading a good book underneath the blankee or by the heater. It's all good.

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Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.