A Mid-Winter Mini-Cruise: Ludlow to Port Townsend

Port generator (Ginny) started: Check. Functioning as designed: Check. Water gurgling out of stern exhaust pipe: Check. Chart plotters, Furuno & Simrad instruments, AIS, autopilot, radios on. Nominal functioning noted: Check. Course plotted: Check. Frozen solid dock-lines made ready for depart. Stern line required boiling water poured on its little head: Check. Dock electrical cables removed from dock pedestals and coiled on fore-deck: Check. Dock ladder replaced with depart ladder: Check. Engines started to warm up: Check. Engine room reconnoiter to review nominal functionality, check belts, check for leaks, gauges etc., reviewed by deckhand / engineer / co-pilot (Blair): Check. Startup times for everything logged: Check. Depart plan discussed: Check. Headset batteries inserted, headsets turned on and functioning: Check. Leo placed on pilothouse settee to eliminate wandering about: Check. Deckhand (Blair) removed stern lines, fore and aft spring-lines, and finally, the bowline: Check. Captain (Les) held stern into the dock with the stern thruster so deckhand could get back on the boat: Check. Depart away from dock accomplished with aplomb: Check. Co-pilot assumes Captaincy: Check. 75,000 pound boat is guided out of Ludlow Bay, Tala Point to starboard, the Cascades in the distance: Check. Captain engages course to Port Ludlow: Check. And so on… That is what it takes…

Why, one might ask? Well… we were off to the Port Townsend Co-Op to have a new bow thruster installed. So what if it’s 24 degrees with snow and ice on the ground… WE WANT A NEW THRUSTER!!