From now on, boys, this iron boat's your home

Nothing like a week offshore to give you a new appreciation for just how big the ocean is. Matt and his dad took time out the last week of October to sail from Charleston, S.C., to the Bahamas aboard the 125-foot schooner Liberty Clipper, which was being moved to the islands for winter cruises. More details on the trip to follow, but you can view other pics from the trip here.

'Bout damn time!

Ship's log, Sept. 25, 2010: It's nearly October, and the first really good winds of the fall just hit today. Upon noticing a revised and improved forecast around noon Saturday, Matt and the lovely Mrs. Matt ditched whatever the hell it was they were supposed to have been doing and headed for the lake. Winds were approximately 10 mph at the outset, with some puffs that were probably in the upper teens. They settled down a bit near the end, but remained solid enough for a leisurely, wing-on-wing run back down to the marina.


Out of dock under power about 3:40 p.m. Sails up about five minutes later. First run with a newly refurbished rudder (left) and brightwork. Tooled around the south-central part of Lake Lanier for about two hours. Buzzed briefly by a Hobie 16 that we saw flipped over about five minutes later. As ex-Hobie sailors ourselves, we resist the urge to quote the great philosopher Nelson Muntz and say, "Haaaaa-ha!" Returned to dock at 5:45.

Every day's a dog day these days

Ship's log, 31 July 2010: Bumbo's first trip out of the dock in nearly four months follows weeks on end of high temperatures and slack winds punctuated only by the occasional thunderstorm. It's a common late-summer pattern that's prevailed in this area since around the beginning of May. A hopeful forecast spurred the crew to head for the lake on Saturday, but whatever wind was promised had deserted us by early afternoon.



Out of slip at 1:05 p.m. Bumbo motored around the south-central portion of Lake Lanier in hopes of catching the promised southwesterlies, finding only brief spells of air estimated at less than 5 mph. Ice-cold beer was the only respite from the blazing sun and temperatures in the low 90s. Back into the dock shortly after 3 p.m., when winds naturally began to freshen.



It still beat the last trip either of us made to the boat, most of which was spent killing hornets that had nested in the cabin. Another nest formed under the sail cover between that late-June visit and this week, but its inhabitants were quickly chased off, the nest stomped onto the dock and left there as a warning to the others.

Suggestions for next time: Start later. Bring swim trunks and towels.

First run of 2010!

Friends of the boat Graham and Becca came aboard for Bumbo's first outing of 2010. Graham helped us emblazon the name on the side of the hull last year, while Becca -- who used to sail some of the same Gulf Coast waters as your humble narrators in years past -- got to refresh her boathandling skills this weekend.



Bumbo cast off under power about 2:40 p.m. in light air. Winds picked up about a half-mile out of the marina but remained shifty. Matt briefly rigged Bumbo's new whisker pole, but one of those shifts forced us to take it down soon afterward. Returned to dock under sail shortly before 6 p.m.



Top two pics by Graham; last one by Becca.

Field trip

We'll get back to sailing soon. Honest we will. The last couple of weekends have been gorgeous, and we've got a new whisker pole to test out, but we've been stuck dirtside with various projects. In the meantime, if you're in the general area (say, headed south on I-85 from South Carolina), check this out.

Does this flag make my stern look big?

Heavy rains and other projects, including George's extensive home renovation, have kept Bumbo's crew dirtside for the last couple of months. But we're just glad we picked a better name than did the owners of this HK-registered tanker, rechristened since this 2005 pic for obvious reasons. As our friend Greyhoos puts it, maybe it'll stop in Djibouti ...