ANNIVERSARY... SIX YEARS !!
WELL, ANOTHER RECORD (for us), six years in one location !
Breaking our old 3 year stay-in-one-place record in an impressive manner.
CAST OFF !! 16 APRIL, 2017
On Easter Sunday morning (April 16, 2017) , at 12 noon sharp we finally threw off the lines and departed from G dock in Windy Cove - Salmon Harbor, Winchester Bay, Umpqua River, and got underway for the Florence/Siuslaw Harbor and our new permanent reserved dock space A-10 in the Port of Siuslaw (Florence).
This was our third attempt (in the past 10 days) to depart . . . and, perhaps our 50th watch-attempt to leave in the past six months. It was never our intent to stay at G-Dock as long as we did, it was either weather, sea conditions, or some new found repair status-preparedness that always acted as a canceller.
This time, after our 5 day dry docking, we had fueled up, and somehow... the winter gales subsided, (did not quit) and, we simply had delayed long enough !
On our first attempt, the notorious Umpqua bar conditions were NOT calm as the Coast Guard said they were.. not even close ! so we learned not to trust in the USCG reports (even though they were located only 2 miles from the bar, and have view-cameras) . . . our second attempt was thwarted when our old-tired Starboard engine began rattling 1/2 way to the entry, so we returned to fix four bent push rods, but, today... it was Easter Sunday, and even though it has been a winter of repeated storm-after-storms, all looked great ! a light rain, overcast, and anxious to leave.
Overcast, misty, 50 degree-2 foot wind waves, 55 degrees, 5 MPH winds, 4 foot swells, and a perfect-in-every-way day. We sat at the entry to the evil bar and watched, like waiting to join a jump rope...or surf a swell, then decided to go for it . . . as this is a 3/4 mile long shoot out the gate, once you commit, there really is no reversing, the current is too strong and fast, you "must" go for it... there is no going back.
About 1/2 way out, the wind shifted and the wave currents began to go white and move sideways in the channel, we took on a violent broaching side roll cycle that was ugly, as the bow was 45 degrees into the surges. So...fea has 660 Horsepower, so it was full throttle time in order to overcome the sea action (point and go). . . eventually after a 15 minute pucker factor 12, we broke free into flat open ocean, but, as we turned to head the 28 miles to Florence, that old Starboard engine was sooo noisy and blubbering, I simply had to shut it down.
Then (of course), the weather changed to angry grey overcast, light rain, and Easterly ashore blowing winds of 10-15 knots, the swells and wind waves followed accordingly, and it was a slow rolley-polly crawl on one engine weaving through the crab trap sets, and going further out all the way to the Siuslaw jetty, in an unfamiliar (first-time out) boat, in moderate siewash seas. Remember, we have five cats aboard and a dog... Bonnie simply slept, but the cats (locked down in the V berth) all got sea-sick-and terrified, and very noisy, simply stated, they made quite a huge horrendous/smelly vomit-shit mess.
The Siuslaw jetty has almost as bad (or worse !) a reputation than the Umpqua, and with one engine, the unfamiliarity, and a new unknown handling boat, the closer we got, the more fearsome the event loomed in my mind.
Then, I heard a 16 radio call to Coast Guard Siuslaw come in from Captain Thomas, the Sea/ocean tow boat, he was coming back from a Newport tow, and rendezvousing with his truck/trailer crew in Florence harbor... he was about as far North as we were South, and he was familiar with the Siuslaw bar entry, and the winding trip in, so, we followed on his tail, as he followed a Coast guard lead boat through to the coast guard station up river !!
From there, it was 5 more slow miles up river to a slow-single engine docking at A-10... and a free ride back to Winchester (to pick up our truck) from the Captain, on his way back to his Coos home port....
We tied up to A-10 Florence at 1700 hours high, I got the ride back to pick up the van, then drove back to Florence while any'ya shoveled out and detoxed the V bunk area, and reassembled from "sea conditions", we were storm-tied, had the dock power and water lines on, and were watching TV by 2100 eating a celebratory "take-out" dinner from ICM, before the super hard rain long night began.. (although not for long . . . as reality, and exhaustion took us all over). ...............................