Finding a home for our life raft

We have a 6-person Winslow ultra-light life raft. The raft weights about 30 kg (65 lbs). When we first bought the raft we asked for it to be packed so it would fit next the companionway steps in the aft cabin. The location, while close to the cockpit had several disadvantages. It was under the tool cabinet doors, so tools could fall on it and cause damage and it was placed vertically making it a little more difficult to get out. Lastly it was very low requiring a big lift to get it into the cockpit. After living with that arrangement for a short time we moved the raft behind the mizzen compression. That location was out of the way, but ease of access was definitely compromised so we knew that we had not found the right place for it yet.

Initial location, next to aft cabin companionway (looking down).
Tool locker behind doors on the right

Second raft location behind mizzen compression post 

This year we stored our composting head in the space behind the mizzen compression post and while looking for a good spot for the raft, we just put it on the forward part of the starboard bunk (bed) and presto we found its new location! The new spot is easily accessible, does not interfere with opening the side storage bins, is higher up (easier to get the raft in the cockpit) and is protected from any companionway spray or drips. 

The only think that was left to do was design and fabricate a “cradle” or pivoting tray that would allow us access to the storage underneath. After some measurements, we made the cradle, tested it, painted it and installed it. We are very happy with the new life raft location. Here are some pictures of the project.

Life raft cradle with black knobs to secure it in the down position (left) and heady duty hinge (right)

Life raft secured to cradle and lifted to allow access to storage below

Life raft secured in place (looking to starboard)

View from the aft cabin companionway

 Sails #4 and #5

Chesapeake summers are hot and humid so, to beat the heat, we are looking at early starts and short outings. The fourth sail the season was a quick outing to check for any interference between the new inner forestay and the operation of the jib and its roller reefing system. If you want to learn more about that you can read the post on why we are adding one more sail to Rosalind that will be uploaded shortly.

The fifth outing was a great sail. Last weekend, the forecast called for light winds 4-9 knots and hot weather so we decided that, as usual, we would go out early to beat the mid-day heat. We invited two great friends to come along and planned to be on our way by 9:30 am. Instead of dinging back and forth we brought Rosalind to the dock to pick up our guests. Motoring down the West River it was clear that Rosalind was a little slow. It has been two months since we pulled her out of the water and had her bottom power-washed. We have found that the engine runs very smoothly at 1800 RPM, generating very little vibration throughout the boat. Even though we will not win any speed records at these RPMs, the cruising is very conformable with the engine just humming along with minimal noise, and we can travel for many hours without feeling like we are being shaken to pieces. 

We motored to Red 4, about a mile from our mooring. We rolled out the mainsail, fell off, rolled out the jib and turned off the engine. Sailing! The wind was slightly stronger than forecast, between 10 and 14 knots. With the wind shifting from a beam reach to a broad reach Rosalind’s speed ranged from 2.8 to 4.2 knots. What surprised us was that even on a broad reach Rosalind sailed herself. The balanced sails and the flat sea state helped keep her on track. Nevertheless we were amazed at how well Rosalind tracked (sailed straight) by herself. 

The Admiral enjoying the sail!

We sailed to the entrance of the Rhode River and, as the ambient temperature started to climb close to 30C (86F), we prepared to tack and head back. Tacking, turning the boat so that the bow crosses the wind, was not a success. We started turning and expected the jib to move from one side of the boat to the other, but the jib did not budge.  Instead the jib got stuck around the inner forestay. It only took a second to realize that with the new inner forestay in place we could no longer tack without first furling the jib and then unfurling in on the other side.  This is because the “slot” between the jib and the inner forestay is too narrow for the jib to go through it. So we furled the jib and instead of tacking we jibed, moving the wind across Rosalind’s stern. It was clear that we had not yet built “muscle memory” to account for the new forestay configuration!

Inner forestay just visible behind furled jib

We sailed back up the river and after a little time we first furled the jib then the main and motored the last bit to the dock where our friends got off. The two outings confirmed that the new sail configuration will work well. The fifth outing of the season with our fiends was relaxing and pleasant and we learned a lot about how we will sail Rosalind in the future with her new sail setup.  Another great set of outings!

V-Berth Refurbishment 

Last week we brought the v-berth cushions on board as the v-berth refurbishment is now complete. When we got Rosalind, the leaky v-berth hatch had caused water damage to the cabinets, sides and base (area where we stand between the bunks) so the first job was to fix the hatch leak. We had to remove the broken old hatch, level and fair the area under the hatch and install a new hatch. After the leak was stopped we got new cushions made. Then we started the rebuilding process which was done over several seasons. 

The rotten plywood at the base of the v-berth was removed (a) and replaced with a piece of Coosa, a synthetic non-rotting material (b). The base of the v-berth was then trimmed with some new plywood that was match stained and varnished.

Repairing the base of the v-berth

The rotted plywood and carpet sides ((a) below) and the cabinets which had also suffered some damage from the leaky hatch were also removed. For the new setup we added insulation to make the cabin more comfortable (c) and then cork over the plywood, instead of the original carpet over plywood. The cabinets received some new plywood sections and were then refinished. We also relocated all the windlass electrics and placed them in a water tight enclosure ((e) left) so they are protected from any water splashing if we have to open the overhead hatch in wet conditions. 

Rebuilding the upper parts of the v-berth

This has been a significant project but now the v-berth is quite, dry and has the nice earthy smell of cork. We are looking forward to some cooler weather so we can stay onboard and start enjoying it!

 Sail #3 

For sail number three of this season we decided to sail off the mooring as our downwind neighbors were out sailing so we had room to maneuver.  We decided to sail off the mooring with the mainsail only for easy maneuvering. Because there was a little bit of wind and we had room, we did not “walk the mooring” pendant amidships to orient Rosalind favorably to the wind. Instead we dropped the mooring pendants and let Rosalind fall off and catch the wind.  Rosalind took somewhere between 30ft (9 m) and 50 ft (15 m) to turn 60 degrees and then the main sail started generating power and she started making headway.

It was a hot day so we decided the plan was to only use the main and jib, saving a little bit of work in the sun uncovering and covering up the mizzen. Our plan was to sail out to Red 4 (about 1.2 nautical miles) only with the mainsail, get a better sense of the wind, then roll out the jib once the river opened up. Sailing down the river we soon realized that the actual winds were stronger than forecast. Instead of gusts to 16 knots, we were seen gusts to 22, upper end of Force 5, lower end of Force 6. It was still very smooth sailing in foot-high (0.3 m) waves and nothing like experiencing these winds in the ocean because the river was very flat with the exception of some powerboat wakes. With the stronger winds we were doing 4.6 knots broad reaching (wind almost from behind, on the aft quarter), so we decided to just enjoy a sail with the main only. On the way back, close hauled, we were doing 3.7 knots. In the flat river pushing into wind over 20 knots, it felt a little windy but with the flat water Rosalind moved upwind very gracefully and did not feel like overcanvased (like we had too much sail up). In this outing we found the upper limit of sailing with the just the mainsail. Rosalind’s helm was very light. While we could have put out a little jib to increase our speed downwind but I do not think she would have been happier with more sail upwind. There is something to the well proven adage of “do not put up more sail downwind than you can carry upwind”. While we could get to the same total sail area by a reefed main and partly rolled out jib it is important to know how Rosalind behaved with only the mainsail for situations were tight maneuvering and short handed are required so this was a great test.

Rosalind on a abroad reach in the West River

We enjoyed the sail out to the Rhode River. It is great fun sailing with different sail configurations in different wind conditions. It is allowing us to learn how Rosalind performs with her new mainmast and new mainsail. Another fun sail in the logbook.  

Sailing towards the Rhode River

 2026 Sail #2 - A quick sail with just the main

We were already in the third heat wave of the season and it was only mid-June. The forecast called for high eighties (over 30C), high humidity and sustained winds of 10 knots. The winds were forecast from the north so we decided to sail with the mainsail and jib and see how Rosalind behaved with that sail combination in those conditions. It did not take us long to get Rosalind ready to sail. We left the dinghy at the morning and started motoring out the river.

The wind forecast from the north was funneling down the river from the Chesapeake Bay actually blowing from the NE in the river. Motoring down the river, we had the wind off the starboard bow for the first one and a half nautical miles and with the wind from the NE It became clear that would have to motor all the way out if we wanted to sail back. Not wanting to motor into the wind for almost another hour, we decided instead to unfurl the main, turn around and leisurely sail back to our mooring. 

Slowly sailing up river took less than an hour, confirming that “great things can come in small packages” and Rosalind, with her cleaned bottom easily glided through the water on a broad reach. With only the main up we were not breaking any speed records but the easy sail felt rejuvenating. The previous week we had been working on installing the v-berth side paneling and cabinets and it felt great to be on the water and taking it easy.  

With ten knots of wind, Rosalind was easy to maneuver so we leveraged the opportunity and decided to sail back and pick up our mooring under sail, without using our motor. As we got close, watching Rosalind’s speed, we planned our course through the mooring field. We wanted enough speed for maneuverability and to reach the mooring, but at the same time, we did not want too much speed so as to overshoot the mooring. Approaching KittiWake on her mooring, we decided to leave her to port (go behind her), giving us a little extra time and distance to slow Rosalind down. After passing KittiWake, I turned Rosalind into the wind and Cheryl went forward and grabbed our mooring. As Cheryl secured the mooring pendant on the bollard, I watched and waited for Rosalind to swing to port and then furled the mainsail. 

Rosalind’s track to her mooring

After buttoning up Rosalind, on our way to shore,  we stopped by to say high to our neighbor on Sureya. Simon, commented: “You went for a sail but I did not hear you come back,” I replied with a small smile “We sailed back to the mooring.” It felt good to sail back to the mooring, continuing to enhance our boat handing skills. Another great sail. 

 Rosalind and our First Near Gale on the West River

It was late May and the morning air, in the high 50s, was unseasonably cool and the weather forecast called for northerlies 14 gusting to 20 knots. By the time we got to Rosalind, deep in the West River we were seeing 18 and 20 knots registering on the anemometer. It took us a few minutes to get Rosalind ready for her first sail of the season. It only took about 15 minutes to remove the mizzen sail cover, start the engine, don our PFDs and sailing gloves and cast off our mooring pennant.

Motoring out the river, Rosalind moved easily through the water at four knots as the wind, dead on the nose, increased. One of the benefits of a ketch is that there several sail combinations available to choose from for different wind speed and direction conditions. Given the expected winds, we were planning to sail “jib and jigger”, without the mainsail. 

Rosalind at her mooring before the sail.

With Cheryl at the helm we passed red nun #4 and I went aft to raise the mizzen. The wind was steady at 20 gusting to 25 and Cheryl let Rosalind fall off the wind as I started partially rolling out the jib. Cheryl then pulled back on the engine throttle, I trimmed the sails and Rosalind started sailing and picking up speed. We were on a close reach, with the wind forward of the beam, and we started moving through the water first at 4.5, then 5 and settled in at 5.5 knots. Wind gusts increased to 27 then 29 knots. During the gusts, Rosalind increased her speed to 6.2 knots while heeling another 5 degrees, to about 20 degrees. The was some lee helm, as the power from the jib was more than what was provided by the full mizzen, but Rosalind was very steady. In the river, the seas were no more than two feet and Rosalind put her shoulder down and plowed on; she felt controlled and powerful. There was power in the wind!

After a while, we tacked. Cheryl handled the helm and I managed the jib, the mizzen being self tending. The tack went very smoothly and Rosalind was now on a broad reach gaining speed soon settling at 5.7 to 6 knots and climbing to 6.3 in the gusts. Now the gusts were over 32 knots, and Rosalind still felt very controlled. Rosalind is a heavy boat (9 tons), with only 25 feet at the water line. With partially unfurled jib and her full mizzen she was sailing at almost her hull speed of 6.5 knots and was very comfortable doing it. 

We kept sailing down the River still doing over 6 knots, Rosalind increasing her speed in the gusts, while generating a little extra helm in the process. After passing red nun #4 we knew we had to depower as the river gets narrow and crowded, so I rolled in the jib and before we motored to our mooring we dropped the mizzen. On the weather apps, the upper Chesapeake was now all lit up with Small Craft Warnings. Soon after we arrived our neighbors on Gorgeous Girl, a Pacific Seacraft 40 came in from their outing. They commented “Rosalind looked good out there”.

It had been a great shakedown sail in a near gale in the river. Rosalind handled her self beautifully in sustained winds exceeding 25 knots and felt very steady and comfortable. Everything worked, and nothing broke. A couple of small items were added to the to do list and we learned a lot. Overall one sail for the books!

 Designing and building Rosalind’s hardtop

The idea to built the hardtop had been on our minds for several years so we were happy,  

in September 2021, to start the design process. We quickly decided on a foam cored fiberglass hardtop built on a male mold.

Onboard measurements were made to get the dimensions, shape, camber, and connection to the existing hard dodger. The hardtop size drove the selection of all the solar panels and grab handles. There were three main challenges:

1. How to make the hardtop rigid without making it too heavy,
2. What type of connection we would use to connect it to the hard dodger, and 
3. What type of supports we would use aft.

A number of options were considered and we arrived at these final solutions:

1. We would fiberglass Coosa board (a composite boat building material that can be used instead of marine plywood) all around the interior perimeter of the hardtop to solve the flexibility/ rigidity issue.
2. We would build a “bridge” piece to connect the hardtop to the hard dodger. This was necessary as the aft (back end) of the hard dodger is not straight. The idea behind the “bridge connector piece” is that it will get fiberglassed to the hard dodger and offer a flat surface for the hardtop to connect with. This avoids having to built a hardtop that perfectly matches the curves/ imperfections of the aft end of the hard dodger.
3. We decided on custom made aluminum supports. We designed them, bought the aluminum, cut everything to size and had them welded. The design allows us to make the final vertical measurement onboard and cut the tube to size before final assembly. 

Rosalind on her mooring on a calm summer day. 

The West River is a beautiful place.

Here are some pictures of the design and fabrication of the hardtop. It has been a great project. 

This has been a big project. We built the hardtop in our basement and before we started  we measured very carefully to check that we could get it out. Once finished we were able to get it out of the basement, without an inch to spare! The project took a while and we are really looking forward to the installation. It will be great to have weather protection in the cockpit and the 200W of solar will be essential for charging our batteries. On the next we will share an unexpected decision based on last summers’ sea trials…

 Rosalind’s cockpit enclosure

After returning from our trip to the Bahamas in the spring of 2010, we decided we wanted more protection that what had our trusted Camper Nicholson 31, Aisling, could provide. Spending several months cruising made us realize that we wanted increased protection not only from the sun, but also from the wind and rain. This would enhance our comfort, and by extension our safety, give us protection from the elements both at anchor and at sea. Additionally, it would make the entire cruising experience so much more pleasurable. Part of the allure of voyaging under sail in a small boat is to enjoy the sea and to experience, and see beautiful distant places. You cannot really do this from the protection of the cabin peaking out a 6 inch tall portlight! Some sailboat designers solve this challenge by adding a pilot house, a raised enclosed cabin with large windows. This is a great solution but is not common and it is hard to pull off in smaller sailboats. A dodger (typically canvas over frame protection in the forward part of the cockpit) is a minimum and this is what we had on Aisling. To get additional protection from the elements sailors add biminis (cockpit tents or covers). While an open cockpit is great for day sailing, many if not most cruising sailors look for some type of protection from the elements.

When we purchased Rosalind, some 15 years ago, in addition to a hard dodger made out of fiberglass and glass windows, she had a full cockpit enclosure. This was one of the many features that attracted us to her design. The enclosure was made out of 7/8” diameter stainless steel horizontal “U” shaped tube attached to the aft (back) end of the hard dodger. The frame was covered by a dark gray marine outdoor fabric. The frame was held up by two vertical supports on the sides of the cockpit. An aluminum and stainless steel frame supported an 80W solar panel a couple of inches above the enclosure frame. Here is a picture from the first time we moved Rosalind.

Rosalind on her first outing, note enclosure supports near (original) primary winches and additional supports for solar panel.

Rosalind’s cockpit fully enclosed, looking aft.

Clear panels, when zippered in, fully enclosed the cockpit for inclement weather.  I remember, shortly after we got Rosalind we were sailing with friends in the West River. It was late fall, and there was a definite chill in the air.  We were heading back to our mooring when it started to drizzle then rain. In the comfort of the enclosure, the rain added to the overall experience. While we were heading up the river, a number of sailboats were sailing out to go racing. Everyone was decked out in full foul weather gear in the rain, while we were snug in the cockpit in our light fleeces (we may have even had coffee mugs in our hands!). I can tell you we got more that one not so friendly stare…

Some limitations of the old design. 

We got Rodsalind in the fall, and the benefits of the enclosure for cooler weather sailing were very obvious. In the upcoming years we made many adjustments/ improvements to Rosalind. In the cockpit, new self-tailing two-speed primary winches required that we move the vertical enclosure supports (to allow the winch handles to rotate 360 degrees). We also removed the solar panel over the enclosure as reefing lines from the mainsail were getting snagged there all the time. We also found out, that the dark synthetic canvas was acting as a very powerful  “sun collector” very nicely warming the cockpit in the cooler months but the fabric reached temperatures over 150 F (65 C) in the summer. We were literally getting baked in the cockpit during the Chesapeake summers!

A few years after we got Rosalind we replaced all the soft parts of the enclosure, as soft enclosures typically only last about five to seven years. Losing the solar panels also had to be remedied so we added two semi-rigid solar panels (100W total) and secured them with Velcro on the enclosure fabric (more dark surfaces on top of the dark fabric!).   

Soft top enclosure with two 50 W solar panels.

After ten years, we were getting ready for a second replacement of the soft (fabric) parts when we decided to build a hardtop out of fiberglass. Here is a picture on the finished but unpainted hardtop in our basement. 

New fiberglass hardtop, with stainless steel handles and two 100 W rigid solar panels, unpainted in our basement.

In the next post we will share the design, features and benefits and how we build the hardtop. We will share the installation work as it takes place. 

Hello friends. We are back after many years!

It’s a been a very long time since we posted last, as work has kept us very busy since our voyage to New England in 2018.  The tide is changing now however, and after many years, and we are starting to get Rosalind ready for her next adventure in 2026.

Here are some recent pictures highlighting some of the updates that Rosalind has received since her last voyage including a brand new rudder that we made ourselves, new portlights for the main cabin (that you brother!), a new main mast and mainsail, a new cockpit Bimini frame, new propane cylinders and brackets, and a new dinghy and 6 hp outboard motor.

Rosalind turned 50 last year and we feel she is looking great for her age. Our plan is to post about once a month to share updates as we get her ready for her next voyage. 

A big welcome to our new followers and our new friends we recently made in Greece!

If you want to learn more about any of the projects, please leave a comment and we can put together a post with more information. All the best and see you in a few weeks,

Alex and Cheryl

New dinghy with new 6 hp motor, during sea trials and motor break in. Our 30 year old dinghy is still going strong but is starting to show its age so decided to start the next voyage with a new dingy. The new dingy is 15 pounds lighter and with the new outboard we will be able to go exploring further.

New propane cylinder with new bracket, new outboard motor, and newly refurbished aft seats. The mizzen works perfectly for raising lowering the new outboard! An additional propane cylinder and bracket system are ready to be installed next to the outboard motor, on the starboard side. 

New bimini frame. This is work in progress and some additional sewing is needed to finalize the size of the soft top. There is a whole story big behind this project coming up soon!

Rosalind with her new main mast and in-mast mainsail and new chainplates. Also visible is the new bimini frame and the Wiley window (portlight).

New rudder at home in final stages of construction (a project during Covid shutdown). This and the main mast replacement were two challenging projects. 

Rosalind with new rudder. Notice the old full cockpit enclosure, more about that in the next months. Dinghy davits have been since removed to make room for the self-steering vane (to be installed).

The new Wiley windows (functional jewelry for Rosalind!), so no more leaks down below. We designed them, our friend Riley did the engineering drawing for the CNC machine, and they were fabricated in Greece. Let us know if you want to learn more.