posted September 29, 2005 10:08 PM               

We had a great sail up to Windermere, one of the last grand hotels on the lake. Here's a view of the hotel under the reefed main.

We put into the marina for gas. After a full season of sailing the tank was almost empty. As we tied up at the gas dock Mike greeted us. He has a S-6.8, which through a grandfather clause he is able to moor at the Government dock all summer. He lives on the boat. If you ever see a picture of Windermere House you will most likely see Mike's red boat called Doghouse. Its' centreboard is in a skeg below the floor and the S-6.8 is a flush deck design. Sailors are few and far between on Lake Rosseau so there's a lot of camaraderie. Mike gave us a tour of his boat, which at 22 feet seems huge down below compared to a Sandpiper. It is well equipped with auto pilot galley stove and role out dish racks. He also showed us several good spots to anchor overnight on his chart.

Our plan was to continue sailing south then round Tobin Island for an exciting reach all the way home. The 2 boats headed out together to pace for a while, mains reefed. Mike on the bow of Doghouse. Autopilot helming.

The S-6.8 also had its' jib partially furled. Our feisty boat overtook Mike's boat called Doghouse. The race was on. The Doghouse crew unfurled the jib and powered up their craft but to no avail;

Shortwave just kept pulling ahead.

We ran down the west side of Tobin Island and through a cluster of islands called the Venetia Group. Some of the most beautiful old cottages on Lake Rosseau are on these islands. One of my favorite boathouses for a sailboat.

We sailed almost 20 miles this day; half of it upwind in 15 to 20 knots of wind. To compare distances, I believe we only sailed a total of 16 miles at the Rendezvous. A spectacular day of sailing and meeting new friends.

We also figured that this day cruise has put us well past the 100 mile mark in distance logged this year. I know some of you guys have gone much farther, but for a couple of dinghy sailors it's a milestone

posted September 30, 2005 12:00 PM               

In 1997 (pre Sandpiper daze I sailed my Laser "Teacher's Pet" on the same Lake Rosseau for 18.96 nautical miles, not including tacking. I left Horseshoe Bay at 10 am and got to my brother's cottage in Skeleton Bay by 4pm for a snack and beer. I arrived home after midnight. No lights, VHF or food.....This trip made me realize that I was tired of simply going back and forth in a Laser...but wanted to cruise. We rescued ShortWave from languishing on the ground (sans trailer)in a marina on Lake Chemong in the Kawarthas. Thus began my long and very satisfying 16 year stewardship of ShortWave.

posted September 30, 2005 12:11 PM               

In a few years.....this might be us in SilverHeels III

posted September 30, 2005 12:52 PM               

Our longest trip has been south to Royal Muskoka, south west to Port Sandfield where we dropped the mast to get under the bridge into Lake Joseph. We then sailed north to the mouth of the Joseph River then motored through the river dropping the mast again to get under the highway bridge. we then sailed back to Morgan's Bay. That was a straight line trip of 29 miles.

Over the 8 hour trip we were very comfortable in Shortwave's cockpit. Lynn made sure we dined in style providing brunch, lunch and several delectable snacks. I don't know what we were thinking of hanging off the side of racing dinghys for so long.

posted September 30, 2006 04:14 AM            

How did everyone else do?

Stan, you had Wind Chime to the North Channel and then for an extended weekend at the 1000 Islands. Any idea how many miles you sailed?

posted September 30, 2006 09:31 AM               

I'm sure I've trailered a possible 1200 miles just in Colorado this year. Add close to 4000 miles round trip to Canada, 5200 miles maybe.

I've done well over 100 miles sailing in Colorado. We have a perfect day coming up tomorrow. Going to Carter lake, or maybe Dillon. Dillon alone is 200 miles round trip on the trailer. Sure I'll sail 15 to 20 miles.

Sid

posted October 02, 2006 05:18 PM               

I also sailed a lot on other people’s boats. The most exciting was the week long Shark Worlds in Toronto. It was intense. Thanks to small digital cameras and a lot of press photo boats I’ve been able to get some pictures of the event.

Weather was amazing most of the time giving the fleet exciting race conditions.

We also had a squall blow through one afternoon. These pictures are a bit rough owing to the conditions but hopefully you get the feel of extreme wind.

Here’s our boat Spot (owned by my brother) rounding the weather mark while hoisting the chute. Note excellent fore deck work by nimble middle-aged crew.

Believe it or not there is a mark in this picture as well. Amazingly enough, there were no collisions.

With 2 or 3 races every day and one long distance race, we probably only sailed a hundred and fifty miles total in the week, but it was still an incredible week of sailing.

posted October 03, 2006 06:03 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by Tailpiper:
... How did everyone else do?...

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We probably logged another 15-20 NM in our new little addition to the fleet, a Flying Junior dingy.

Weather permitting, we plan to make a big commitment to sailing next season.