Shakedown Sailing

I'm a bit overdue for updates here, but the last few weeks have been a rush and a half of boatwork and testing, repairing, testing some more, and finally casting off. (Some of which merits a post of its own - the saildrive process alone would do well with thorough covering while the memory is still fairly fresh)

In late March, I finally got the last of the out-of-water work done, and girded myself for that fateful moment when the boat would hit the water for the first time in ... probably 4 years or more.

After a scramble to get the last bits of fairing and bottom-painting done between bursts of crummy weather, the boatlift team graciously let me take some time to inspect for leaks before leaving the safety of the Sealift, and another bit of time on the haulout dock for more thorough checks.

Which is great, because in all the rush I hadn't had time to add gear oil to the saildrive. Can't get far without that.

The splash went smoothly, and I'm happy to report no leaks so far! Once the drive was oiled up, off I went over to an end-tie dock. Nobody arrived in time to help, but it was calm enough I managed to get tied on just fine solo. That kind of tight-quarters motoring, though, remains the trickiest thing about three hulls and about 28 feet of width - it's a lot of boat to maneuver, and a lot of deck to cross to get to the lines in time to tie on!

On the dock, I got a professional rig inspection (which got a clean bill of health, with one or two lines to keep an eye on and be ready to replace in the next year or two), finished up the last bit of work on the windlass and anchor setup, installed the headsail furling system, and tested everything carefully before setting off.

From there it was to anchor out for a bit - I discovered the "jib" I thought I had was actually a staysail, and had to wait for a proper jib to arrive (and get the staysail modified for my removable forestay - it was set up for a furler). I also squared away a motor for the dinghy, and spent some more time tweaking and testing everything.

Then a short test-run - from Coomera down the river under motor, then a bit of sailing down the Broadwater over to nearby Southport. Far enough to get a bit of miles in, but close enough that if anything went badly wrong I could turn back and get it sorted out at the boatyard.

Also some lovely sunset views and settled weather.

That short shakedown run handled, I took the evening to do a little renaming ceremony, and put the new name decals on in the morning.

Presenting sailing vessel Iria, hailing from Brooklyn, NY:

The name comes from a Greek island, on which was found an ancient sanctuary (later, the site of a Dionysian mystery cult). It's also pleasantly easy to spell and say over the radio, which the old name ... was not.

Then a somewhat grueling day of sailing and motoring up the Broadwater, into the Narrows, and up into the southern end of Moreton Bay, where I anchored off of Horseshoe Bay at Peel Island. It was Easter weekend, and there must've been about a hundred or more boats anchored out in the same little harbor.

My refit having gone well over-deadline, I only had one day left before a brief trip back to the States, and it was a handful. Wind started off calm (pictured) and rose to a spicy Force 6 gusting well into 7 westerly along the way, with short, steep chop giving the boat a good dousing (not pictured - my hands were full).

The boat sails like a dream - crossing Moreton Bay up to Scarborough took barely 2 hours, despite the hefty inshore weather, and speeds ranged from about 6 knots to over 12, with sails still well-reefed down.

It wasn't enough time to really feel like I know the boat yet, but it was wonderful. A few issues showed up that will need to be fixed before longer trips are an option (the electronic autopilot doesn't work, and my kludged-together alternator still doesn't charge the batteries), but the boat is amazing. It dashed through the calm weather, and handled the heavier stuff with aplomb once I found a balanced heading.

(and that water bottle just, stays up - it's amazing going so fast without heeling more than a few degrees)

Safely moored up and enjoying these sunsets before a series of long airplane rides. There's more to be done, but life's good out here.