All posts by Jane Chambers Evans

Boat Troubles 2 – The Day After

Readers of my Boat Troubles post (who know too much) have been clamoring for the  rest of the story.  As a kindness to my readers (if any) I decided to leave my previous post with a happy ending but those in the know want to be able to read the sad details of the day after.

I apologize for the dearth of pictures in this section (please stop reading now!) but as you will see if you read on I was in no mood to record what followed.

After the stem repair, which was documented in my first Boat Troubles section, we had the launch on May 17th and, as I wrote earlier, the stem didn’t leak.  The rest of the boat, however, did.  A lot.  This is not a huge surprise as wooden boats always leak when they first go in the water until the planks swell up and close off the cracks between them.  Old Trillium though, was outdoing any and all previous records to the extent that when we puttered out of the gates at 1.30 am to the aforementioned cheers of those still hard aground we kept it to a sedate three knots.  The hull was leaking badly and I didn’t want to add any strain by speeding up to our usual break-neck speed of, well, six knots.

I was confident we wouldn’t sink because I have equipped Trillium with two electric pumps on independent float switches and backed up by two batteries, although they are on a switch. You can use one or the other or both.  We got to the marina and monitored the situation.  The pumps were both doing their job, the system was on battery one, the smaller pump was able to handle the influx by itself, so I was quite confident.  A friend at the marina was charged with the duty of staying till all the boats were docked which would be after 3 am, so I asked him if he would move the switch to battery number 2 before he left.  This he did.  Two pumps, two float switches, a fresh battery taking over at 3 am, me returning at about 6.30 am, it all seemed safe at the time…  A sensible, sane, responsible, careful and thoughtful person would have curled up in a forward bunk just to be sure.  Apparently I am not that person!

I awoke around 5.30 and thought I’d doze for a few more minutes, then got up PDQ at 7.30.  Arriving at the marina I had never seen the boat so low in the water.  The water inside was an inch or two ABOVE the level of the bunks!  It was halfway up my newly (and expensively) restored engine.  Floorboards and hatches were floating aimlessly about the cabin.  Not a favorite maritime memory.

Reminding myself that the best bilge pump in the world was said to be a scared man and a bucket, I decided to test the theory, and grabbed a bucket.  The trouble was when there is that much water it is difficult to tell if you are making any progress.  I decided there had to be an easier way and went to get the battery out of my car, but the pumps wouldn’t work.

People with the intelligence to have slept aboard their boats were starting to surface.  I now realized that I was bucket bailing with my favorite massothérapiste looking at me like I was obviously ruining what was left of my back for all time.  (Things weren’t improving but at least they were starting to get funny!)  And I still didn’t know if the water was going out faster or coming in faster because I didn’t know why it was leaking so badly.

The poor guy that stuck his head out of his cabin in the closest boat to me got pressed into service.  The only sure solution was to beach the boat and for that I needed help.  There was still an hour and a half of falling tide so I grabbed him and together we pushed, paddled and wished the boat onto the beach near the Zodiac docks.  I have legs to keep the boat upright and now it couldn’t sink.  I needed an anchor to be sure the boat wouldn’t slip back so when we ran aground I went forward, stripped down to my boxers and went over the side, carrying the bow anchor up the beach.  A leg on each side, an anchor forward, the boat was secure.

The husband of my back repair gal, Charles, had run all the way around and was now at the end of the Zodiac dock asking if he could help.  Knowing how people want to help in these situations I asked if he could get a dinghy to take my press-ganged crew member ashore so he wouldn’t have to get wet or wait for the tide to go out.  Before he could move my worthy crew said not to worry, he’d just go over the side like I did.  (My guess is he couldn’t get off the boat fast enough.) But when I turned around I realized that he hadn’t stopped at his boxers and was taking care, in the middle of a waking village, that his clothes stayed high and dry.  I thought, “Aren’t I a prude,” for having stayed somewhat decent but then noticed Charles’s wife and two small children who had followed him to the dock beating a hasty retreat in the opposite direction from this way too early in the morning sight drip drying on the edge of the beach!

Beached
Beached

The dropping tide revealed an open seam about three feet long  just at the turn of the bilge on the starboard side and water actually started pouring out of it as the tide fell.  As I tried to temporarily caulk it, thigh deep in water, a whole crew of whale watchers showed up and their captain was giving them the instructions they needed before going out.  I was half-listening and when they all burst out laughing I rapidly tried to remember what had just been said.  Translating furiously I realized that he’d said “Don’t worry.  We’re not going out in that guy’s boat over there!”  By the time I figured it out the moment was past so I missed my chance for an enraged sounding “J’AI ENTENDU CA!!!”

The boat at that time was just off the end of the dock in the right of the photo above as that was as high as we could get it.  With the next rising tide I moved the boat up to the above position where I could caulk it properly.

When I finally got the water out I discovered the problem(s).  The first pump, in spite of a screen around its base, had eaten a sliver of wood, jammed, and died.  The second pump had taken over as it should but its float switch, in spite of being properly oriented, had remained open.  The pump drained the boat, didn’t turn off, drained the battery, and then the pump had no power and the boat filled.

My mechanic expert cousin visited the boat and gave the engine a clean bill of health (Grace à Dieu) but there was evidence of some pretty interesting electrolysis that had taken place in the few hours the batteries had been submerged.  One battery cable end (the kind that attaches with a butterfly nut) that I had disconnected when trying to get my car battery to work had dissolved completely off the end of the cable.  Below also are two bolts that held cables to one battery.  They were both like the left one the night before.  They had been under water (salt water) five or six hours.

Battery terminal bolts after electrolysis
Battery terminal bolts after electrolysis

The next day at noon Trillium was back in the marina leaking very little and behaving properly.  After the stem crisis it was an exhausting little marathon but she’s back on track and sailing well.

Now I know some people will condescendingly ask: “Now Al, what did you learn from all this?”

I learned three things:

1) Never abandon a badly leaking boat.

2) Always have a bucket on board.

3) Even in an emergency, keep your pants on!

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Spring flowers everywhere

Despite the cool, very rainy, foggy week the Spring flowers are gorgeous. I was walking in the woods and on the paths around here and the smell is heavenly and the green so bright and vibrant. What a treat – even in the fog.

Along the path in front of Tudor Hart
Along the path in front of Tudor Hart

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Blankets of Bunchberries
Blankets of Bunchberries
I found masses of Lady Slipper's hidden in a small knoll in the woods. What a treat.
I found masses of Lady Slipper’s hidden in a small knoll in the woods. What a treat.

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The flowers combined with that sea mixed with cedar smell is so amazing.

The weather is supposed to clear tomorrow just in time for the Festivals des Chansons. I hope so as the town is preparing like mad. I will post pictures later this weekend.

Hope the rain ends soon. Enjoy your evening. Jane

Boat Troubles, as usual!

One of the joys of spring is getting the boat ready for the water but this year provided more than the usual sanding, scraping and painting.  When I took the covers off there was a disturbing crack in the stem where the stay from the bowsprit connects.  I pulled on the stay and it opened wider.  Once I had removed the fitting it became clear that nearly the whole stem was rotten.  That’s bad.  When they build a boat they lay the keel, then attach the stem and transom, and then attach everything to those.  The stem is so integral to the boat I wasn’t even sure I could replace it.

Uh oh.  A crack.
Uh oh. A crack.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 2004 I had found rot in the top of the stem and cut it out down to where there was good wood and replaced the top 14 inches with a new piece.  Now the rest was gone right down to where it attaches to the keel.  And the keel, even though in contact with the stem, was fine.

11 years ago.
11 years ago.
My May Adventure.
My May Adventure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inside View. The hole at least looks smaller!
Inside View. The hole at least looks smaller!

 

 

It is at times like these when sensible people can be forgiven for saying that the boat is not worth the work, and that’s when a chainsaw takes center stage and the resulting rubble is hauled to the dump.

It’s hard to make that choice when much of the boat is in good shape, and when, having been built in 1939, you know that if this boat is trashed there will never be another like it.

Pattern to work from.
Pattern to work from.

I had to at least try.  When my old school closed its wood-working shop I had bought all the leftover wood and had some lovely pieces of 2″ mahogany.  The upper stem I had replaced in White Oak but Mahogany is at least as good.  The curving bevels for this part were far more complex so I made a pattern out of scrap and had a go.  With no plan except the boat the only way forward is to carve a little and fit it in, carve and fit.

The carving begins.
The carving begins.

The drag is that with every bit of carving you have more invested in the timber you’re cutting, and with every fitting there is the possibility you’ve cut out too much and have to start all over again.

A Start.
A Start.

Add to that there is an interior piece which the ends of the planks screw into, and then there is an exterior piece which covers the cut off at the plank ends and that becomes the front of the boat.

A fitting.
A fitting

Where this would have been one big piece in the original plan, it had to be five pieces here, three to fit in the interior and two mirror image pieces side by side to make the exterior of the stem.

Both sides getting there.
Both sides getting there.

 

The joy of this nonsense was that of course all the other boat owners were getting their boats ready and they all noticed the rather desperate efforts going on under my boat.  Many came to discuss it and see what I was doing and several made it a point to drop by every day to see the progress.

I was relieved that they kept their assessment of my probable sanity to themselves and they were very encouraging about my efforts.  One or two are sons of schooner captains from way back and had a pretty good understanding of what I was up to.

Another fitting.

As mentioned in an earlier blog this is a tidal dry-dock so you can’t just tell the man in charge that you’re going to delay your launch a week or two.  In reality, the tide is in charge, and the rule is that the biggest tide in May is the launch and everyone must go.  There’s nothing like a deadline to keep you working hard.

Routoring one area flat.
Routoring one area flat.

 

 

Part of the inside of the exterior stem had to be flat to meet the interior stem pieces.  One good way to flatten it when a plane can’t work on an inside curve is to clamp flat wood (2 x 4s in this case) on either side and ride a router along two flat boards to get a very flat surface.  Below are all the five pieces enjoying a photo op before installation.

Five pieces where there was once one.
Five pieces where there was once one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interior before...
Interior before..

One of the annoying parts for someone with a bad back is crawling right in to the forepeak inside to fit pieces and install bolts to hold the exterior stem on.

 

…and after.
…and after.

Fortunately this led to my meeting Tadoussac’s very capable Massothérapiste who worked wonders reassembling me.  She and her husband happened to own the next boat to mine so she had seen the unergonomic way I had been working and knew just what kind of pain to inflict to put me back together.

 

Varnish on the go
Varnish on the go

 

Interior stem installed.
Interior stem installed.

The other good news is that I had no time to get the varnishing done (of which there is a great deal.)  Jane took over that job and it turns out she does a better job than I usually do anyway!

 

Interior stem installed.  Modern epoxies and sealants were used liberally and with no shame in an effort to make up for any and all amateurish carpentry bobos.  I did have to caulk a little with traditional cotton to fill gaps but in the end it all came together.

 

 

Exterior stem installed.
Exterior stem installed.

It seems a shame to cut off all the excess wood because it is magnificent mahogany but a boat is supposed to be pointed at the front end and this certainly looks brutally ugly untrimmed!

Final trimming.
Final trimming.

 

 

 

 

It planed down much more easily than I feared.  There’s a metal strip that gets screwed on from the very top down past where the stem connects to the keel so it will be protected.

Final product.
Final product.

In the end it looked pretty good and, although it went about 4″ below the waterline, it hasn’t leaked.

It reminds me of an article I once read about someone who had done a much more extensive restoration of an old boat.  After detailing everything he’d done someone asked if it had all been worth it now that the boat was operational.  He said, “No!”

For me this was worth it, even though most of the marina members now think I’m crazy.  But the question is always out there:  What’s next and at what point does it stop being worth the effort?

It bears mentioning that every year on launch night the tide floats my boat first because mine is the smallest and shallowest.  Every year there is a cheer from the other boat owners when I start my engine and head for the gates.  This year they were waiting for it, and the cheer was a whole lot louder and longer than usual!

The Bay comes alive – Too alive!

Having been a relatively conscientious volunteer at yacht clubs I’ve belonged to in the past, it was a little bit guilt-making to receive the annual e-mails from Tad asking for help to put in the docks when I was in Montreal.  Now I can help, at last, and May 1 and 2 were the designated days.  Trouble was, everything that could go wrong pretty much did.

The first thing was the docks had been stored on the wharf and needed to be lifted into the water by the green crane in the photo below.  However, this research ship from the University of Quebec at Rimouski tied up the night before saying it had to have its hull inspected by a diver, for two whole days, and wasn’t going to move out of the way.  Apparently the dock in Rimouski is in bad repair and they’re not allowed to dock there.

The inconvenient research ship from Quebec City
The inconvenient research ship from Quebec City
It's a converted trawler as you might have guessed
It’s a converted trawler as you might have guessed, but we saw it more as just “IN OUR WAY!”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That problem became secondary when I noticed the crane operator and owner feverishly leafing through a manual, talking on cell-phones and sweating profusely.  They couldn’t get the crane to work.  Optimistically I suggested we all go home, they get a mechanic to fix it, and we’ll all come back tomorrow.  Trouble was, there was a transport truck with ten docks on it due in from Chicoutimi any minute, and we had to have a crane to unload it.

The truckload of docks from Chicoutimi
The truckload of docks from Chicoutimi

 

 

 

 

 

There was a smaller crane we could get to unload the truck on to the wharf as opposed to into the water where we needed the docks, and by the time we got that one down to the wharf, of course, the first crane started working.  So then we unloaded docks off the end of the wharf which meant a double-lift for many of them because of the research ship being in the way, and as in the picture above took the docks from the truck right into the marina area.  This was great till the fishing boats started coming in…

One of three fishing boats vying for space to unload their catch
One of three fishing boats vying for space to     unload their catch

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They are just trying to make a living and were none too pleased about the research ship in the way either, so we moved some docks to make a little space at the end of the wharf for their boat and we moved other docks on the wharf to make room for their truck.

Then the crane broke again.

Just before we decided it was game over they got it working once again.  We had a late pizza lunch and carried on getting about half the docks in by day’s end.

Saturday we started at 7.30 am and, although the ship and the fishing boats were still around, the crane worked perfectly.  We got all the docks in and the main dock bolted together and anchored into position.  It was a beautiful sunny day but, lest you think everything went right this time, as my mother used to say: “Into every life a little  (er) rain must fall.”

You may recall that the fuel dock has two hinged struts bolted to the dock to hold it in place and accommodate the tide.  These are hinged up in winter and then lowered into place.  One strut supports the gas hose down to the dock and the other has the diesel fuel hose going down and sewage from boats’ holding tanks going up.  (You know where this is going, don’t you?)  Fortunately the gas and diesel hoses were dry.  Unfortunately the 30 feet of 3 inch sewage hose had somehow retained the remains of its last pump-out.  When our hero (not me, a real hero) was confidently standing on the dock saying, “Lower away!” or words to that effect, little did he know that within seconds he would be heading for his car, his home, his shower, and a complete change of clothes!

Phil, Shawn and me picking up the pieces
Phil, Shawn and me picking up the pieces
Docks tied to the zodiac wharves to hold them till needed
Docks tied to the zodiac wharves to hold them till needed
Shawn and Phil still at it Sunday morning
Shawn and Phil still at it Sunday morning
May 2 - The first zodiac tours of the season
May 2 – The first zodiac tours of the season

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday morning saw Shawn and Phil back at the docks looking after the details (like anchors, not that they are mere details).  Now it’s time to start thinking about the dry-dock…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was going on as Tadoussac seemed to awaken from hibernation.  Restaurants are opening and B & Bs are having their first customers.  Tourists were looking down at us from the docks with the usual curiosity and taking pictures with views in the background (never me, I noted.)  The ship had divers underneath it all day.  A black zodiac with three men dressed in black survival suits complete with black helmets and visors showed up looking like a set piece out of a Star Wars movie.  They didn’t look like the sort of people who would take kindly to suggestions about liberating their concept of color scheme but before I had the chance I fortunately noticed that the only white on the vessel was letters spelling out the word “Police.”  They hung out at the  Coast Guard dock for a while, I assume comparing horse-power, while their mother ship hovered out in the river.  I mention the horse-power because Shawn pointed out that there were no numbers on the two huge motors driving the zodiac.  He asked last year and was tersely informed that the horse-power was “classified.”

Add to all that, the first two zodiacs were running whale-watching tours starting today.  Tadoussac is finished with winter and starting to show some life on the water and off it.

Alan Evans

 

 

The Forgotten Blog: The Lake in Winter

Back in March Barb and Kevin Dillon visited and went for a skate on the lake.  I begged off having a sore knee but was determined to get in on it before the winter ended.  Just before the end of March I made it over and the ice was great.  I think this is a relatively rare opportunity in Tadoussac but having a very cold and windy winter with far less snow than usual the ice was great!  Not a sign, however of anyone else skating on it – no people – not even scratches on the surface from other skaters.  So I had the whole place to myself!  Here are some pics.

Alan

Looking toward the far end
Nice, clean, skateable ice
Nice clean skateable ice
Looking toward the far end
An ice  fall at the far end
An ice fall at the far end
From the far end
From the far end looking back toward the swimming area
The beaver dam
The beaver dam
The far end
The far end
DSCN1206
Looking toward the far end from the swimming area

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The usual swimming hole.
The usual swimming hole.

May 2nd – 1 year ago I retired – what a ride!!

It dawned on  me yesterday that today I will be retired 1 year. I cannot believe all that has happened and where we find ourselves. The old adage comes to mind “if we had known it would be this good, we would have done it sooner!”

You have seen our year in pictures and I am posting some pics from today. This is  what my life looks like and I could not be happier

the remains of a fun evening with friends last night
the remains of a fun evening with friends last night
a fire to take the chill off after my walk with the dogs
a fire to take the chill off after my walk with the dogs
a lovely spot for my afternoon tea
a lovely spot for my afternoon tea

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a view that never ever gets old - at least twice a day
a view that never ever gets old – at least twice a day

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For anyone contemplating retirement – don’t delay – do it. For anyone not quite there – you will get there.  For anyone not nearly ready – you can come and stay with us and, at the very least,  pretend for a few days!!

Off to play in the woods. Have a great Spring weekend wherever you are.                  Jane

Ahhhhhhh….Spring

Well it is official. Spring appears to finally be showing its face around here. I was home to Ontario for a week to visit my family and I cannot believe how quickly the snow has melted. Once it decided to go, it went very quickly. Granted we had half the snow that usually comes to Tadoussac but still it has been persistent in sticking with us right up to this week.

So all the ice is gone from the bay, the paths in the deepest part of the woods still have icy bits but all the roads are clear and all main paths. We went down to Adele’s beach yesterday and walked to the clay cliffs and not one speck of ice remained. Given what you have seen earlier in the blog you know what a change that is!

I drove to Chicoutimi today for an appt and the Marguerite is now clear and full, and the far end of the Saguenay is now completely open as well.

There are three fishing boats still here for the urchin fishery and a third ferry arrived at the same time I did on my return on Sunday. I haven’t seen three running yet so I imagine another will go to Quebec to be fixed up for summer and still leave two here.

Alan saw belugas earlier in the month under Pointe Noire where we often see them but there have not been many. However we did see our first seal of the season as he came to play with the dogs who were swimming yesterday and he followed us along as we walked the beach.  In other wild life sightings, on my way home from Chicoutimi today myself and another car had to pull over and stop as a large moose cow and a young moose were running down the middle of the road in a panic!! They got to safety and I hope they stayed in the forest!!

The bay was its usual spectacular self this evening and we had our first drinks on the deck – what bliss. We are looking forward to the long weekend when family and friends will arrive. See you all soon and enjoy every minute of the sunshine! Jane

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Shannon in his favourite spot for looking at the view
Shannon in his favourite spot for looking at the view
Ahhh a sure sign of Summer chairs ready for a drink on the deck
Ahhh a sure sign of Spring –  chairs ready for a drink on the deck

A whale now lives in Tadoussac during the winter!!

Many of you from Tadoussac will remember that a few years back we discussed with the municipality that our section of Tadoussac is soooo depressing in the winter. (Now that we have been here a year, we can attest to that!!)

After much lag time we have added a little something to our family house Windward for the winter months.  For those of you who follow this blog, and don’t know Alan’s brother Tom – he is a man of many talents, not the least of which is that he is a very creative artist and carpenter. He combined these two skills to create an amazing mural/triptych with a whale. It is absolutely stunning and will now grace our house each winter to jazz up the scene.

I wanted to send it out to show you as it will come down, of course, with the house opening in the Spring.

We just wanted to say thanks to Tom. This is truly a beautiful gift to our family.

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PS Now my dear neighbours start planning for  your houses!! Enjoy this beautiful Spring day Jane

The Spring Melt Begins…

This one is on its side on land but would have floated with the top flat.
This one is on its side on land but would have floated with the top flat.
I carved this one to look like someone I know.  Recognize yourself?
I carved this one to look like someone I know. Recognize yourself?
The future of wedding cakes.
The future of wedding cakes.
Beached.
Beached.
Icicles all over as it melts.
Icicles all over as it melts.
A sizeable rock has been picked right up by the ice which has then gotten on to another piece of ice.
A sizeable rock has been picked right up by the ice which has then gotten on to another piece of ice.

The ice continues to be fascinating as this is an exceptional year.  Now it is on the wane as the sun softens up the top and the tide eats away at the bottom.  The shapes that are left behind during the process are, in my mind, high art.

Enjoy your day, Alan

 

I don't know every rock on the beach but I have to think these ones have been rearranged like the previous one will be.
I don’t know every rock on the beach but I have to think these ones have been rearranged like the previous one will be.
I don't know how nature did that...
I don’t know how nature did that…
…but it makes a nice frame for Pointe Rouge!
…but it makes a nice frame for Pointe Rouge!
Doesn't this look like a Vendée Globe boat from behind on the starboard tack?  Yes it does.
Doesn’t this look like a Vendée Globe boat from behind on the starboard tack? Yes it does.
Security protection for the entrance to the Turcot path.  You try climbing up that ice!  I couldn't.
Security protection for the entrance to the Turcot path. You try climbing up that ice! I couldn’t.
He what?  He pushed me off just over one little hole in the carpet?
He what? He pushed me off over one little hole in the carpet?
Big overhangs as the water erodes the ice from underneath.
Big overhangs as the water erodes the ice from underneath.
This chunk is already collapsing.
This chunk is already collapsing.
I really should keep the dogs out of there!
I really should keep the dogs out of there!
My all time favorite.  The tide left it balanced perfectly...
My all time favorite. The tide left it balanced perfectly…
…but the next day it had flopped.
…but the next day it had flopped.
Hard aground.  I've done that.
Hard aground. (I’ve done that.)
Honeycomb.
Honeycomb.
Beautiful blue ice floe...
Beautiful blue ice floe…
…close up.
…close up.
First fishing boat of the season!
First fishing boat of the season!
Perhaps she's here a tad early.
Perhaps she’s here a tad early.
I'm glad my boat's not anchored there.
I’m glad my boat’s not anchored there.