Macatawa River Paddle

A few weeks ago, we had an unseasonably warm day. So we decided to take the XCR out for a quick paddle. We drove up the the launch and almost turned around. The wind was very strong from the south west and was driving some short chop right onto our launch beach. Not an issue for just Emily and I, but we had the kids with us... what to do... We decided to give it a whirl; packed everybody into the boat and set off. Once we turned off the lake into the river, things calmed down pretty quickly, so much so that David fell asleep. Every time he is in this boat, he falls asleep! We paddled a bit then pulled up on shore and moved him into the covered bow section of the boat, where he slept until the end of our trip.


Sara wasn't happy sitting on the bottom of the boat, so we put her up on a dry bag and she loved it. She was pointing at the "alligators" and "elephants" but told us "it's OK, they are just pretend." We paddled up the river a bit, went around Windmill Island, then turned around and went back to our launch site. Landing was a blast! We paddled out away from shore a bit, then turned downwind and literally surfed the boat in. Very fun! Sara really enjoyed herself, and how could she not?!?! She sat on a soft drybag eating an apple, what a life. Here are some more pics:

I'm still around!

Wow, it has been a while since I have posted!

Well, my dad and I successfully completed the WaterTribe UltraMarathon in March. It was a great experience, and we both had a lot of fun. We finished in just under 24 hours, with about 21 hours of paddling. We took breaks pretty consistently throughout the day, just to stretch legs, eat snacks, etc... The boat was great; handled well in the wind and waves, paddled well. I just wish we had had a sail! We ended up having a tail wind for most of the day and a sail would have really pushed us along. Oh well, next year.

Speaking of next year... I am slowly getting things going on the sail rig. I ordered a set of inflatable amas from Attila at Custom Inflatables. These are not something you will find on his web page, but he as made them before, a couple of pictures are here. Mine are going to be made from red 32oz PVC.

Over the next month or so, I hope to get the rest of the sailing rig built and assembled. The major steps:

• Modify Escape Rumba sail
• Shape leeboard and rudder
  
• Build leeboard bracket and rudder box
• Assemble mast and akas
• Install running rigging

Sounds easy! We'll see... watch this space!

But for now, here is a link to my dad's UltraMarathon trip report.
And here is a slideshow of our pictures:

Countdown to the UM

With just under three weeks to go, I need to wrap up all the final bits and pieces on my boat. This weekend I finished the bow and stern lighting and a mount for the compass:

First paddling trip!

Over the past couple of days, my dad and I were able to get the XCR out paddling. This will probably be our only time paddling together before the Watertribe Ultra Marathon this coming March. We decided to split our paddling into two days since the weather here has been so nasty. Well, maybe typical for Michigan this time of year, but still not great for paddling. It has been rainy and low to mid 50s for the past few days. At least it wasn't very windy... :) Anyway, on our first day, we headed west from the canoe launch at Dunton Park, on the east end of Lake Macatawa. We paddled about 6 miles, almost to the end of the breakwater but decided to turn around before we hit the big lake. The waves coming into the channel were 4 to 5 feet and pretty steep. We were able to surf down the face of a couple of these waves which was thrilling. We then paddled back to the launch since we needed to get back home for my daughter's 3rd birthday party. Here is our GPS track:


The second day we started from the same spot, but headed east up the Macatawa River (also called Black River). Just at the mouth of the river, we passed a large lake freighter which appeared to be unloading road salt. Like I need a reminder that winter is coming... We headed up the river about 5 miles before it got a little to small to easily navigate the XCR. We turned around and paddled back down the river, this time taking the canal that runs around Windmill Island. If you are ever in Holland in the spring time, this is a must see! Once back to our launch beach we decided to do a couple more miles (since we couldn't get enough of paddling in the rain!) before heading back home for lunch. Here is our track from day 2:



And finally, here is a slideshow of pictures from both days:

Pictures

First coat of topside paint done. I plan on putting on a second coat tonight.

Interior shot, looking from front to back (rear seat is removed) I plan on painting the interior as well, using the same topside paint as the exterior, but in a "sand" color.

Painting

Again, I have a few days of progress to report... After our successful launch, I had to get around to actually finishing everything. I started with a long session with the random orbital sander, smoothing down all the rough spots from the first fairing coat. After that got smoothed out pretty good, I put on a much thinner second coat, limited to the area around the fiberglass joints. After this was set, I ran over everything again with the sander getting the hull and deck nice and smooth. There are still a couple rough spots here and there, but you have to be pretty close to see them. Then finally, I put on the first coat of paint. I started with Rustoleum Wood and Fiberglass Primer, which went on without a hitch. I used a foam roller (cut in half to ~4") for the majority of the hull, and a small brush for the coaming. Last night, I put on the first coat of Rustoleum Topside Paint after giving the primer a quick, light sanding. The boat looks great, I'll try and get a couple new pics up soon.

LAUNCHED!

The XCR got wet today! Still not faired, sanded, or painted; but who cares! We took a very short trip on Lake Macatawa since we had our kids with, but still had a great time. Sara (almost 3) enjoyed peeking over the edge of the coaming, while David (1) promptly fell asleep:

How this is comfortable, I have no idea...

Because I took a bunch of pictures, here is a little slide show: