Archive for category Elliot Bay Marina
Docking for dummies
Posted by admin in Elliot Bay Marina on April 3rd, 2008
I haven’t really used the sailboat I got since I brought it down from Friday Harbor in November. Yes – that’s completely retarded. Elliot Bay Marina, while very nice, is very intimidating, docking wise. It’s one of the tightest marina’s I’ve been in. The slip way isn’t even a boat length wide. You absolutely have to maneuver around multi-million dollar boats, since they’re out at the entrance on the T slips. Add to this the very modest engine on the Westsail 28 and a full keel and, I’ll admit, I was scared 
I’ve never really been in a marina (I always had a T slip in Boston – which you can sail on/off – very easy) and have never owned a full keel boat – which is a completely different animal (much harder) than the light weight Hunter 27 that I could hand stop at hull speed with one line and which turned on a dime. You’ve got virtually no directional control in a full keel boat in reverse and, even going at idle speed, stopping forward motion is far from instant. The boat’s heavy enough that you really can’t just man handle it at the dock with lines.
So – I took docking lessons. I learned how to do back and fill turns, learned how to use the wind to help me dock, learned a few things about creative dock line usage and generally just practiced for a few hours with a Windworks sailing instructor.
Friday Harbor to Seattle: Day 3
Posted by admin in Elliot Bay Marina, Port Ludlow, Puget Sound, around Seattle, map, sailing on November 26th, 2007
Another very cold (and moderately windy) night, but no complaints. Didn’t drag the rest of the night after resetting. Woke up to some cool evaporation fog (very low to the ground wispy fog) and more ice on deck. Made some coffee, entered some way points, hauled up the anchor (must get windless) and was off, covered in stinky mud, pre-dawn, and headed for Seattle.
Morning in Port Ludlow
Leaving Port Ludlow was a breeze since I hooked up my laptop below decks with my hand held and had real time plotting on the charts… should have done this before.
Laptop setup below decks, held in with a bungee
Colvos Rocks at the entrance to Port Ludlow… icy decks
Very uneventful trip down to Edmonds.
Edmonds Ferry and the ever present glare of sailing south in the winter
After Edmonds I tried cutting in front of a container ship, who, apparently didn’t think I was going to make it and gave me four blasts (collision warning), which had me doing a 180 by the second horn. Ooops…
A few hours later I was coming into Seattle. I was pretty exhausted and really nervous about docking (I’ve always been on moorings, anchors or T-slips [or wasn't the one docking]). I spent some time practicing maneuvers out in the harbor (outside Elliot Bay Marina) but it didn’t help. Even with some help from Elliot Bay docking was an ordeal, not helped by the jack ass motor boaters who were hauling around like this was a mall parking lot.
After 3 days, Seattle comes into view.
I’ve since read about tricks for maneuvering single screw trawlers in tight quarters and will have to practice that next time. Got in around 2, tidied up, caught a cab to King County Airport, drove home, ordered pizza and didn’t get out of bed until 2pm the next day… guess I over did it. But, for a first trip on this boat, it couldn’t have gone better.
36.9 miles in 7:20 for an average speed of 5.0mpg