Busy, Busy, Worry, Worry...

All of the electronics have been installed (except for the satellite TV dome).  We took the boat out with the electrician on board Monday, May 24th.  He programmed the autopilot and helped Todd begin the learning curve.

Left to right on the arch are the AIS antenna (to help us track the huge barges on the rivers between Chicago and the Tennessee River), upper station GPS receiver, radar (and hinged anchor light), old TV antenna (which we will probably keep) and lower station GPS receiver.  On the dash in the center of the picture is the upper station monitor for the chart plotter, radar, GPS, depth as well as other navigational readings.  Left of the dash is one of two new marine radios with emergency MMS identification to help the Coast Guard locate us if we are in trouble.  We hope we never have to use that feature.  The lower station in the pilothouse has all of the base equipment that transmits to the upper station.  I'll get pictures of that and post them later.

The certification cruise was made even better by having our two grown children on board.  Both David and Carissa had come for a family wedding on Saturday, May 22nd.  They grew up at Bay Point and on the water with us in our many boats.  The weather was good and we had an excellent time together.

David and Carissa both left for their homes on Wednesday, May 26th.  Todd and I went back to the boat for our first real shakedown cruise over Memorial Day Weekend.  We left for Put in Bay, South Bass Island Friday morning.

Todd had no problem using his new navigation equipment.  The autopilot worked flawlessly, although Todd found there is definitely a learning curve involved with its operation.  When he would reengage the autopilot after avoiding fishing boats in the path, the boat would make tight turns to get back on the plotted course.  It made the cruise pretty interesting.

Todd learning our new marine radio.  Lots of books and lots of reading to do!

When we arrived at Put in Bay, the mooring field was nearly empty and we were able to take up our favorite mooring.  Our newly established house DC would be tested for the next 4 days.  We had decided to replace our old 8D battery with a bank of two golf cart batteries.  Tests have reported longer duration between charges and better recovery with golf cart batteries.  We need dependable DC during the Loop to keep our Tundra refrigerator running.  Of course, use of the head (toilet) and lights are nice too!

We had a beautiful weekend on the mooring.  The house DC setup functioned well.  We ran the generator for a couple of hours each morning and an hour or so each evening to charge the batteries.  We were a bit disturbed to see the voltage meter drop down between charging.  However, the ice cream in the Tundra never softened and we never noticed sluggish heads or dim lights.  We did try to conserve DC in the evening and at night by keeping usage of the lights to a minimum.

While Todd learns his navigation equipment, I'm learning my Olympus Stylus Digital Camera.  This is a panorama shot beginning at Perry's Monument which commemorates the Battle of Lake Erie, near Ohio's South Bass Island, in which Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry won the greatest naval battle of the War of 1812. The memorial also celebrates the lasting peace between Britain, Canada and the United States that followed the war.   Following on around to the right are the Put in Bay Municipal Docks and the Boardwalk (awesome restaurant).  There really isn't a hill in the water...my learning curve to keep the camera level!

Continuing around from the Boardwalk is the Crew's Nest private membership dock.  Getting better at following the cue in the camera.

Continuing...is Miller's Marina public dock, more of the Crew's Nest docks and the free State Park Docks that only accommodate smaller boats.  Golly, by now I've got some confidence in my picture taking.

...until I got to here.  Note the piece of a boat above?  Continuing the tour...behind the moorings you can see the old Fish Hatchery (the white building) and part of the OSU Laboratories as well as Peach Point.  The passage between Peach Point and Gibraltar Island is not navigable by visiting boaters.  The area is full of large rocks that have taken out many a prop!

Back on track, with a better alignment of pictures...this is the OSU Stone Lab on Gibraltar Island.  It is the nation's oldest freshwater biological field station and the Island Campus of The Ohio State University.  Classes are held here year round.  A huge amount of research is done at this facility on the Great Lakes aquatic life, invading marine species as well as endangered marine species.  Tours and educational lectures  for the public are held here during the summer.  This also gives you a good idea of the Boardwalk mooring area we love so much.  It is always our preference when coming to the Bay.

It's always a treat to see the USS Niagara come for a visit out at the Bay.  Her home port is Erie, PA but she makes trips throughout Lake Erie all summer long.  She is manned by very dedicated volunteers that take their vacation working on her two weeks at a time.  The Niagara played a pivotal roll during the War of 1812.  On September 10, 1813, Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry's fleet defended against an attacking British fleet at the Battle of Lake Erie here at Put in Bay. Perry's flagship, the USS Lawrence, was destroyed in the encounter.  Perry was rowed to the USS Niagara, carrying his battle flag (reading "DON'T GIVE UP THE SHIP", the final words of Captain James Lawrence).  Every September, Put in Bay celebrates this victory with a full weekend of reenactments of the battle, orchestral tributes on the steps of Perry's Monument and encampments depicting the era.  We try to come to Put in Bay for the celebration but hope to be on the Loop this year during that time.

Todd and I brought the boat back to home port Monday, May 31st (Memorial Day).  The forecast was not looking good and we wanted to avoid bad seas.  Once back at Bay Point, I pumped out the holding tank in preparation for repair of the leaking connections.  Before we left for the moorings, Todd and I removed the SaniGuard filter and made a direct connection with the vent hose to the outside.  As I pumped out, I could finally hear the air moving into the holding tank.  My theory throughout this problem had been that not enough air was allowed to exhaust through the filtered vent, creating a build up of pressure inside the holding tank and actually 'blowing out' the connections.  Once back at the dock, I went below into the bilge to clean up the usual mess and found much less drainage.  I think this confirmed my suspicion about the pressure in the holding tank.  I look forward to no more cleanups in the bilge!

Monday evening thunderstorms rolled through the area.  Todd and I were able to watch them on our newly established Sirius Weather by way of our radar.  It was fun to see what was coming and compare it to the front on the computer.  Sirius will come in handy when computer internet becomes spotty during our trip.  With more rain in the forecast, we came home on Tuesday to take care of appointments during the week.

So what's to worry about?  We continue to watch the tragedy in the Gulf with the BP Oil Spill.  The AGLCA website updates us on the situation for pleasure boaters and Loopers.  They are telling us to continue with our plans.  However, Todd and I are now beginning to discuss alternatives.  The range is from taking the boat through the first half of the Loop and wintering on the Tennessee River, moving through the Loop clockwise instead of the preferred counter clockwise route or scuttling the trip until August 2011.  Only time will tell...