Voyages of Ocean Explorer
2008 - Short Trips on Lake Michigan
Donna's illness continues to prevent her from sailing, or being aboard Ocean Explorer at all. She is just too weak to be safe aboard the boat. Knowing full well that Donna would not be able to be with me on OE, I decided to put the boat in the water in the spring of 2008 anyhow. It is a lot of work getting OE rigged, and there is additional expense involved in putting her in the water. Common sense would have dictated that I just keep her in the shed again, as I did last year. But I put her in the water in spite of all the reasons not to, and you know what? It felt good!!!
Just being aboard and lying in my berth feeling her come to life as the wind blew through the rigging was balm for my soul. Her gentle rocking has always reminded me of an excited child wanting to let go of his parent's hand to run and do something that appeals. In the same way, OE begs to be turned loose from her moorings and start traveling. Perhaps what I am really feeling is myself wanting to be turned loose from the fetters of life to again start journeys to far-off destinations. And, I would do so if only Donna could go with me.
While the boat just sat for most of the summer, I did take a couple of short trips with her. I am blessed by having two grandsons who are as much in love with OE as I am. Tristan, now 11, is my loyal sailing companion in Donna's place. He is more than glad to accompany me to the boat any time I ask him. As readers know, he had done quite a bit of sailing with Donna and me. He has become a surprisingly proficient and reliable crewmember in the process. He and I did some day-sailing around Manitowoc and Two Rivers and then, in late August, we did a two-day trip up to Kewaunee and back. We sailed all the way, both ways, even leaving the dock at Kewaunee under sail. On the way back to Manitowoc we were beating under a full main, jib, and staysail. Once we rounded Rawley Point we had a single-leg, close-hauled sail all the way back to Manitowoc. The wind picked up to nearly 20 knots and we had quite a ride. I became a little concerned about getting all that sail down with Tristan at the helm. I needn't have worried, however, as he demonstrated a quality of helmsmanship as good as any adult I've had with me.
I did a second two-day sail to Kewaunee with my good friend, Chuck Gustafson. Chuck is a retired exec from what is now called XCel Energy. We had a good sail with the added benefit of passing both the Kewaunee and Point Beach Nuclear Plants which were of great interest to Chuck.
Finally, my second grandson, Miles, age 6, and his father, my son, Steve, visited me in September. We had poor conditions for sailing but we did go out under power in very thick fog for a couple of hours. Miles is very computer literate and he had a great time learning how to use and interpret the RADAR unit. I look forward to the day when he and I can go out like Tristan and I do now. I also look forward to getting the boys' younger sisters involved.
So, in summary, it was a good summer. We did not travel far, but we did have some opportunity to enjoy being back aboard Ocean Explorer.
Updated November 21, 2008