June Maintenance

This is the year of battery replacements. I always dread this, as it is drudgery. After 3 days of wrestling them in and out of the boat, up and down the dock ramps, in and out of the car at the battery store, and then reversing the process for 3 batteries my biceps are sore, my back has been stretched to the limit and even though I am older it seemed easier to get it all done.

There are always surprises and this year there were some that torqued my mind into maizes wondering how I was going to get myself out of the situation. But as usual, people popped up from strange places to bring order to chaos.

I have owned Shatoosh since December 1999. I have lived with the belief system that the starter battery was hooked to switch number 1 and the house batteries were hooked to switch 2. In hooking them up again it became clear that information  was not true. My batteries were wired to the switch with the starter battery being number 2 and the house batteries were wired to number 1. This means for 14 + years I have started my engine on the house batteries and ran all my house items off my starter battery. How did I not know this? This is the third time I have changed out my batteries and I am just learning this! I went to my original diagram that I made when I bought Shatoosh. This shows how each battery is connected and wired. I use it to follow when I hook the batteries back up. I realized that I have never really looked at the switch wiring and there it clearly stated the engine starter battery was hooked to #2 switch and the house batteries were hooked to #1 switch. Oh boy, I am surprised that I never ran into any load issues.

The other issue was I discovered a loose connection on an espar heater connector. I found my way to a local auto store and they did not have a part but another one did. The man standing next to  me said he lived close by and he could hook up the new connector in his shop. In minutes he had me back on track.

 The next day I checked the transmission oil and it was fine, but as I was screwing the dipstick into place it broke off at the neck of the handle( made from plastic). Now I am waiting for a new dipstick to come from Seattle and will need to extricate the remaining dipstick from its inner cave.

The diesel mechanic came to change the oil, filters and salt water impeller and was instrumental in sorting out the wiring problems. The diesel I had bought the previous day to fill the fuel filter turned out to be gas. Gads can this project get any more distorted. Well,  this has been quite a long weekend, but lots got done in addition to all the above. The guys on my dock are so great and helpful all the time. Thanks for all the people who just happen to show up and help me get out of tight situations.

Another First

I've been working on Shatoosh on and off in May to get her ship-shape, but today was Pashmina's turn.
I took her up the Foss Waterway to an old dock at the fish market. No one was there, the skies blue and the the wind was less than a  knot.

This will be the first time for me to take Pashmina off the hardtop by myself. Everything went well. EZ PZ Done.

Kenmore Airlines Flying in and out of Tacoma at Foss Waterway.

Sue Schaeffer of Tacoma Waterfront Assn hails me down in a new boat of hers. This looks interesting.




















Afterwards, Pashmina got a good bath and we went rowing around the marina looking at boats.
A great day.

Olympia Wooden Boat Show

I looked at some lovely and unique classic boats last week.
Enjoy

Spring Cleaning

Foss Harbor Marina does not allow any boat washing with soaps, so I used vinegar and scrubbed like a wild woman making good headway on dirt, grim and green stuff. The docklines came home for washing and became crystal clean and like new.

The inside of Pashmina looks bad from the gulls pooping everywhere in spite of a tarp. This will have to be addressed on another day. I did get a larger tarp in place, which should help. The guy down the dock has a power washer which should be the right solution.

I took Shatoosh out for a run up to the opening of the Foss Seaport Museum. I tied up next to my favorite vessel in all of Puget Sound, the Grand Dame, The Thea Foss. Boy, is she a beauty!

I ran into some ladies from the marina so we quickly untied Shatoosh to give them a boat ride. A severe rain storm hit us as we departed the dock. We could not see a thing, so returned  to my slip. It is nice meeting more people at the marina. I will have to see the Museum another day.

A busy but fun day. It is good to begin getting ready for some cruising. This is the first year that I am not making a major voyage on the first week in June. I heard from Too Tall he will be coming in late June rather than August. I best get going.

The Daffodil Yacht Parade-Tacoma Yacht Club

Berthing your boat at the Foss Harbor Marina certainly had its advantages. They put on a Pancake Breakfast and then we had front row viewing of the annual Daffodil Parade, which I have never seen. The Skagit Valley is noted for its tulips, but the Puyallup Valley is noted for its Daffodil farms and parades.

Daffodils See google images

Welcome 48 North Readers

Today, marks a new beginning. Richard Hazelton, the editor for 48 North has officially added The Adventures of Shatoosh and Pashmina to their list of special cruising blogs. 48 North is a sailing magazine for the Pacific Northwest and an important one because of the volumes of readers around the world. While all the other blogs mentioned are out sailing the open oceans of the world and circumnavigating the globe, I choose to remain within sight of land and enjoy flat water most of the time. Many thanks Richard for giving us a spot to park ourselves within the covers of your wonderful magazine.

He also has printed in the 2014 April issue a Letter to the Editor which I wrote about the Peter Puget Memorial Project and its blog. See pages 6, and 13.

If you are reading this blog for the first time, Welcome. Shatoosh(my Albin 25), Pashmina(my dinghy) and I have lots of fun cruising the Salish Sea and working on the Peter Puget Memorial Project. We love having new readers, so please let me hear from you by email(hirareid@gmail.com).

www.48north.com

www.pugetmemorial.blogspot.com

A Musical Interlude on Shatoosh

26 Feb 2014
The sun Gods appear and welcome aboard new compadres on Shatoosh. Lance, Jeff, and I gather to meet and get to know one another better. We are all local LifeVantage Distributors and have taken this opportunity for Lance to share his love of his numerous flutes.  Jeff is a long time family friend and expert fisherman. His mother Ann, is one of my faithful crew, but he has never been onboard before.

We depart the slip and head outbound of the Foss Waterway and shut her Volvo off and drift with the ebbing tide into Commencement Bay. I point out the Seaport Museum, my proposed Vancouver Notch and then Lance starts bringing out his cherished Shakuhachi flutes and ukelele. He beautifully plays as Jeff and I sit quietly and absorb the notes deep within our beings. A harbor seal circles Shatoosh along with gentle rips tides. The waters are flat with a gentle bounce that seems to be keeping time with the music. **I am having trouble inserting the video.

Our time, while short, is wonderful. These are 2  talented team players and we look forward in working together and deepening our newly found friendships.