Mirror Dinghy

I am the proud owner of a new Mirror dinghy. No previous sail boat has ever felt do right, the scale is just right for the sailing I want to do.

There are many obvious repairs and adjustments to be made to boat and trailer. Apparently the boat was imported from South Australia many years ago (?) and the trailer has never been registered in NSW. She is unmanned so that's good, I'm thinking of the Norse, "Laguz", something about flowing water energy.

Going Sailing

I have realised that dinghy cruising is more than the classic middle-aged man's folly, it's a grasping for wildness that beats on the heart of us all.

I often wonder each dawn as I sit here on my back deck, two teens still asleep, 80 acres spread before me part noose around d my neck part buffer from the insanities of suburbia, about whether I will ever again live a seasteading life. But this morning in the wake of listening to a Jim Brown podcast in which old guys muse on whether the Constant Camber 37' is as good as the Searunner 34', I realise that I will never go a seasteading again. The reality is that trading in all my chips for a swapping vessel is hard enough, but having the bucks to shell out for annual slipping, mooring fees, engine overhauls and so on is both unlikely and undesirable.

So, I ask myself, what is it about dinghy cruising that feeds my appetite? The answer is complex, but one aspect I'm tuning into this fine morning is that it offers man a link or outlet for his wild drives. Buried deep inside many of graying, girth-expanding fellows lays a wildness that manicured couch lawns, flat screen tv's, fast internet or a new car, cannot touch. It's that drive that has us yearning for the beautys, fears, discomforts and freedoms that only dinghy cruising can offer. That little box under the tarp at the bottom of the garden can launch us into situations beyond our making, all in one day we can be thrilled, contented, soaked, scared and slightly mad without the (ex)missus, kids, neighbours, employers or government departments knowing a scrap about. It's that little bit of f you world that burns within getting some air time.

At Peace on My Local River

  I am often envious when reading about happy couples cruising happily together. Too many years ago, while anchored off Whitehaven Beach, my girlfriend turned the air red with a raging argument. Her rage was so extreme and incomprehensible that it totally marred my memory of one of the most beautiful beaches in the world as well as my love of sailing.

For reasons unclear to me now, we went on to  get married. Increasingly sailing was a love I was made to feel ashamed about and any time spent sailing or preparing the boat became a major hassle. Eventually I got the point where my boat became a haven of peace, a place for me to de-stress and spend a few hours of quiet solitude, being on the water, dreaming.

Finally my wife and I separated and she served up a cauldron of cold bile as she parted; all aimed at belittling anything I love, sailing included. My changed life circumstances left me no prospect of bluewater sailing so my dear Folkboat 'Bohemian' had to go. 

But there is good in a simplifying one's life and my attentions turned to 'Misty' my little 19 foot trailerable sailboat. Over the winter I lavished my love on her and made her ready. The hope of one day soon launching her on the local river kept a flicker of flame burning in my heart.  Today this happened and as we ambled downriver the old feelings of peace and freedom returned, my senses tingled with excitement, new dreams began to conceal in my dancing mind.

Many a sailor is dashed onto a lee shore by storms while others have their hopes slowly crushed by sharks on the shore. But I urge you to hold onto your dreams and never give up on yourself!

The dog's smile reflects my own.

Ready tor Lift-Off

After beetling about with paintbrush in hand through our winter, multiple Hunter 19 'Misty' is ready for the water.

School holidays begin in two days' time, so I may have a for'ard hand, my son Joe. He can't go too ling without broadband access so that will be our largest obstacle. I hope to launch just a few miles from home and cruise about 50 nm's to the Pacific Ocean.unfortunately, due to the number of low bridges the first half with rely on engine power or drifting; shanty boat style.

Ramping it up

Over winter I've been escorting my Hunter 19 trailer sailed, Misty. Mostly this has involved just cosmetic work, sanding and painting, repairing cracks in the rudder assembly, trailer lights and varnishing any timber exposed to the elements.

Last Sunday week ago, as the weather was heating up I thought it might be time to check out the revamped boat ramp on the Paterson River.  Due to Misty's exposed centreboard casing I was mainly interested in the water depth and I could tell right away that it was fine. Feeling light hearted, that I now had a perfectly good boatramp just minutes from home, I went for a quick rockhop along the shore. As my weight bore down on a particularly large boulder it rotated rapidly sending me downwards onto my ribs. A painful week later I was referred for a liver scan to check for possible haemorrhaging. It will pass, I will get on the water.

Jack de Crow

There is such a paucity of dinghy cruising literature available to the enthusiast. One is compelled to return to the meagre offerings available through blogs, ebooks or real books, for inspiration.

This is often a frustrating past-time due to the content or the author's lack of engagement with the reader. Rarely does the reader find themselves transported in mind and body to drift along a peaceful river smelling blossom to the chorus of finches in the brush, but yesterday I resumed my third read of Jack de Crow and am living the good life I  between all  the drudgery and effort of being a single dad. Though yesterday my 'baby' daughter took to the roads behind the wheel of my car for the first time which  was ah, exciting. Perhaps in time I will be able to relax enough to read Jack de Crow and be transported off while being transported to?

For an unbiased review go here: http://www.smh.com.au/news/book-reviews/the-unlikely-voyage-of-jack-de-crow/2008/09/05/1220121506663.html?page=1

Phoenix?

Around the time of my last post the Paradox build got the better of me and I put her into storage. But .... well a 25 year relationship with my partner ran aground and after tidying up my "maritime assets", resuming my Paradox build is exciting me like never before. The prospect of cruising off alone akin to the blog "Jim's Times",
; launching, cruising, towing her home, is just the ticket. So drop by another time, the flame is still  burning brighter by the minute!